Octopath Traveler: Preview Thread

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Totakeke said:
Sounds like this is the BotW of JRPGs from his video impression.

... I can do that right?

Seems like the good points is that it's strongly gameplay focused with a good degree of freedom on the order you want to do things... without a strong singular epic story to drive your progress onward.

It has a exploration aspect very much like BotW but otherwise you really can't compare it to the exploration found in BotW which uses exploration in a 3D environment to its utmost gameplay potential. It's very different.

It's more a Skyrim of JRPGs only more focused. The exploration pay-off is mostly narrative and combat encounters that simultanenously gives you loot.

KrigareN- · Jul 7, 2018

TaleSpun said:
"Perfectly good"

The game isn't even out yet and some of the impressions indicate the stories are actually a little boring, which isn't that hard to believe even as someone that's enjoyed the demo.

It's cool if people don't mind this approach or even are excited about it, but there's no reason to pretend detractors are being so unreasonable. This is a divisive choice they've made.

The writing is so unpalatable, and at times atrocious. For example, the dialogues in H'anati's story were dreadful to read because of how forceful they tried at flowery tongue.

I don't even care if her story has any merit. If the style impedes the flow at which I engage with the story, it's not worth it.

If I ever do get this down the line (I've already spent my summer budget on Mario Tennis and Hollow Knight), I'd be sure to skip her.

Dreamboum · Jul 7, 2018

Mezoly said:
Instances like this one reminds me why many devs are interview shy and secretive. You have no idea how many headlines I've seen were "SE: Octopath Traveler is a spiritual successor to FFVI" It's shame that outlets have used these titles misrepresenting the dev meaning.

To be fair the headline quite literally states that Octopath has been "conceived as 'the evolution of Final Fantasy VI'", but we don't know if it's an actual quote or just a misrepresentation of what was said.

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Here is another preview, she's 50 hours into it:

- this is the most challenging turn-based RPG she has played in a while
- resource management is very lenient
- exploration has been an absolute joy so far
- plenty of sidequests and some are way more fleshed out than you would expect
- eight stories aren't yet as interconnected as she had hoped but likes the characters and excited to see their arcs through to the end

Totakeke · Jul 7, 2018

Dreamboum said:
To be fair the headline quite literally states that Octopath has been "conceived as 'the evolution of Final Fantasy VI'", but we don't know if it's an actual quote or just a misrepresentation of what was said.

The only other time Final Fantasy VI and the word "evolution" was mentioned in the article other than the article headline was the exact quote I used Google translate on... you can check for yourself.

http://www.jeuxvideo.com/news/87572...ncu-comme-l-evolution-de-final-fantasy-vi.htm

JoeNut · Jul 7, 2018

OmegaDL50 said:
This game has no DLC / Add-On content or Microtransactions. I don't know what gave you the impression that a GOTY version would be coming out later.

I was implying it's gonna get game of the year

aSqueakyLime · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
Here is another preview, she's 50 hours into it:

- this is the most challenging turn-based RPG she has played in a while
- resource management is very lenient
- exploration has been an absolute joy so far
- plenty of sidequests and some are way more fleshed out than you would expect
- eight stories aren't yet as interconnected as she had hoped but likes the characters and excited to see their arcs through to the end

So excited, this sounds wonderful. Lenient resource management is a small but important thing to me, too.

Ashidome · Jul 7, 2018

KtSlime said:
People here really have their hearts set on that 'team up and kill an evil god' archetype don't they?

What is it with these disingenuous reductive postings? Someone else also implied that the opposite of NO overarching story and character interaction would indefinitely lead to 'power of friendship' scenes. That's just not true.

Some people (myself included) want the members of our party to have meaningful interaction. Otherwise, the very concept of a 'party' becomes awfully abstract: on one hand these characters exist within battle to aid each other. On the other hand, they have zero business with each other outside of battles. I finished 3 storied in the demo. Two of them were the thief and the scientist. Without spoiling much, the scientist just arrested a book thief and is looking for another. Here it would have been nice if the scientist had told my party members, to which the thief in the party could have reacted with an ironic, sarcastic or worried remark a la '... better not tell that jolly fellow about my profession, eh?'. Somethimg like that. It's nothing deep, but it's the kind of interaction that would enrich the experience. Saying that all interaction between characters and an overarching story comes down to 'let's believe in each other and defeat the darkness!' is unfair and silly. It's also nothing that occurs much in modern jrpg. Xenoblade 2 had it, but that game was specifically designed to be like that. Other jrpgs like Xenoblade X, Persona 4, SMT4, etc. weren't.

ZeroX · Jul 7, 2018

KtSlime said:
People here really have their hearts set on that 'team up and kill an evil god' archetype don't they?

To be fair, I didn't say I wanted it, just that it was inevitable

Ashidome · Jul 7, 2018

BlueManifest said:
People that want more interactions between party members are really asking to not be able to choose their character at the beginning so the developer can make specific encounters in the game that everyone will see

Or SE could have put in the effort similar to Mass Effect 1 where choosing a different order in which to make contact with new party members would simply change things up a bit.

Zoantharia · Jul 7, 2018

I've learned not to expect anything out of videogame writing at this point... I'll gladly skip cutscenes if they're boring me and look up the plot on the wiki if I'm so inclined. This game looks great, sounds great and plays great, and honestly that's good enough for me.

Totakeke · Jul 7, 2018

I think they need to plaster "eight stories to discover, eight perspectives to explore" on the game cover because it seems like they really meant it.

Ashidome · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
This thread is honestly shocking to me.

Literally every Octopath trailer is littered with the phrase "eight characters, eight different stories to be told" - clearly advertising it as one of its biggest appealing aspects and differentiators compared to other RPGs. That's also why I'm actually interested in this as the exploration aspect of the game is pretty unpredecent for a 2D JRPG as a result. They couldn't be more clear about there being literally eight independent stories about each character.

If the stories are all without connection, why not ... make 8 games then? Sell them as episodes for 8-10 dollar each.

Or put differently: what's the difference between these 8 stories and 8 quests in Skyrim? Aside from the latter featuring the same avatar, Skyrim also tells many unique stories. That's why the marketing was misleading imo: Why make such a BIG deal of the '8 stories!' if it doesn't amount to anything meaningful? That's why interaction between party members would have been expected, as it'd have given a greater meaning to all individual stories. Now it rather feels like playing 8 sidequests.

Totakeke · Jul 7, 2018

Ashidome said:
If the stories are all without connection, why not ... make 8 games then? Sell them as episodes for 8-10 dollar each.

Or put differently: what's the difference between these 8 stories and 8 quests in Skyrim? Aside from the latter featuring the same avatar, Skyrim also tells many unique stories. That's why the marketing was misleading imo: Why make such a BIG deal of the '8 stories!' if it doesn't amount to anything meaningful? That's why interaction between party members would have been expected, as it'd have given a greater meaning to all individual stories. Now it rather feels like playing 8 sidequests.

8 games for 8-10 dollars each? Oh boy. And we thought people arguing for this game to be $30 is bad.

Why make a big deal? Because obviously from this thread, it's quite different from the norm of what people expect. You think it's a negative, they might think it's a positive. Time will tell whether it succeeds or not.

Handicapped Duck · Jul 7, 2018

Finally got around to the demo tonight. Picked Tressa who I found to be a great first pick and one that makes sense for me with the travelling merchant and all. Was making my way to Therion but didn't think I could progress when I got to H'annit so I got her for my second character. She seems powerful with her beasts and regular abilities. Then before the demo ended I made it to Therion and was working my way through his story. Unsure if I'll restart to try the other characters, but I think Tressa and Therion will be permanent members. Tressa's haggle with Therion's steal is a great combination I think.

jwk94 · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
This thread is honestly shocking to me.

Literally every Octopath trailer is littered with the phrase "eight characters, eight different stories to be told" - clearly advertising it as one of its biggest appealing aspects and differentiators compared to other RPGs. That's also why I'm actually interested in this as the exploration aspect of the game is pretty unpredecent for a 2D JRPG as a result. They couldn't be more clear about there being literally eight independent stories about each character.

But they said the stories were connected and there's no point in recruiting the others instead of just giving everyone their own npcs to buddy and form relationships with if they weren't going to connect everything into something bigger.

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Ashidome said:
If the stories are all without connection, why not ... make 8 games then? Sell them as episodes for 8-10 dollar each.

Or put differently: what's the difference between these 8 stories and 8 quests in Skyrim? Aside from the latter featuring the same avatar, Skyrim also tells many unique stories. That's why the marketing was misleading imo: Why make such a BIG deal of the '8 stories!' if it doesn't amount to anything meaningful? That's why interaction between party members would have been expected, as it'd have given a greater meaning to all individual stories. Now it rather feels like playing 8 sidequests.

I understand preferences but I'm not sure where you are going with this now.

There still seem to be smaller interactions between another, they are all an integral part of the gameplay system in terms of interacting with the overworld/NPCs and the battle system, nevermind the fact that the whole explorable overworld is where all eight stories unfold. Why should it be episodic?

Otherwise, these 8 stories are clearly not like side-quests in other games. Sidequests aren't typicaly 5-10 hours long which is the ballpark for each story and they are all presented from the view of the protagonist. And how would grand party interaction make sense? They are not fighting for a common goal, they are all fighting for their own goal.

I can understand having your "immersion broken" by them being in your party without much introduction but it's clear what they are going for.

jwk94 said:
But they said the stories were connected and there's no point in recruiting the others instead of just giving everyone their own npcs to buddy and form relationships with if they weren't going to connect everything into something bigger.

Where did anyone say that the stories would connect into something bigger? The marketing for this game literally says otherwise. The stories are very likely indirectly connected and influenced by each other because they share the same world but that doesn't mean they result into a common goal.

Saint-14 · Jul 7, 2018

Any info about exploration yet? How rewarding is it? Are there some secret areas and bosses? Is the lore any good?

Aprikurt · Jul 7, 2018

jwk94 said:
But they said the stories were connected and there's no point in recruiting the others instead of just giving everyone their own npcs to buddy and form relationships with if they weren't going to connect everything into something bigger.

Oh wait they don't? That's a shame, they had a chance to do something truly unique.

Noppie · Jul 7, 2018

Saint-14 said:
Any info about exploration yet? How rewarding is it? Are there some secret areas and bosses? Is the lore any good?

Exploration is fairly linear with lots of branching paths and some more open areas. Yes to the rest.

jwk94 · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
Where did anyone say that the stories would connect into something bigger? The

I can't find the quote but I believe it was during the treehouse stream at e3.

Aprikurt said:
Oh wait they don't? That's a shame, they had a chance to do something truly unique.

I mean this is still pretty unique. Not often you get an rpg with this kind of art style or 8 different stories

Feep · Jul 7, 2018

I'm obviously still buying this game, but it is a massive misstep to not connect the stories into a larger, overarching narrative.

Any focus poll or consultant who wasn't a blathering idiot could have told them this from day one, but hey, it's their game, I guess.

test_account · Jul 7, 2018

Just wondering, is there a known reason why there are previews at this point in time? Isnt the game out in a few days? Why not go directly to reviews instead? I know its a longer game, but having previews this close to release isnt common from what i know.

tyfon · Jul 7, 2018

Not worth $60?
Too bad I paid the equivalent of $100 for it! :)

Seriously though, some of the comments here are wild.

Fishsnot · Jul 7, 2018

Are they even allowed to mention the story arc though?
Isn't it part of the embargo?

jwk94 · Jul 7, 2018

Fishsnot said:
Are they even allowed to mention the story arc though?
Isn't it part of the embargo?

You'd think they would be allowed to say something since people have been questioning it

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Feep said:
I'm obviously still buying this game, but it is a massive misstep to not connect the stories into a larger, overarching narrative.

Any focus poll or consultant who wasn't a blathering idiot could have told them this from day one, but hey, it's their game, I guess.

Oh yeah, focus pools. The sign of quality.

And yes, it's their game.

Fishsnot · Jul 7, 2018

jwk94 said:
You'd think they would be allowed to say something since people have been questioning it

Right?
Seems a bit off.
This sounds good though:

I'm about 60 hours into the game right now. I can see tons of complaints around about there not being enough elements to tie the 8 stories together, but personally I must say, I find this REALLY refreshing. There is a lot of variety in these stories and it's nice to move from one to the other all the time, so it never gets boring. You know, you don't spend 10 hours to "reach that town" then plottwist and you spend 10 hours to "reach the next town". There's always meaty funs otry going on and that's fantastic.
I am sick and tired of all these redundant, badly written JRPG character interactions anyway. There's some of it here, but for the most part the stories are very episodic and I love it that way.

WARNING!!

LATER PARTS OF THE GAME IN VIDEO:

I've been enjoying Octopath way more then other "retro" jrpgs is all I can say. The reason is that there isn't a bloated, redundant main plot that I have seen a million times before. Sure, the 8 characters don't have stories that are completely inspiring either, but they come and go at a very rapid pace and that fact makes it extremly refreshing.
The interesting aspect are the character dialoges that pop up during a chapter, that actually do include your other party members. These dialogues only involve your active party, so that means there is a lot of content that is tailored towards you, while it probably means there's many alternate conversations you will never see on one playthrough.

Hopefully this puts peoples fears at ease!
Man, this game looks outstanding!

Saint-14 · Jul 7, 2018

60 hours and not done with the game? Jeez, I wonder if that's following the main path only with minimal exploration.

Feep · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
Oh yeah, focus pools. The sign of quality.

Yes, believe it or not, having live humans playtest your game and give feedback is an invaluable tool for game designers.

Source: me, I'm a game designer.

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Feep said:
Yes, believe it or not, having live humans playtest your game and give feedback is an invaluable tool for game designers.

Source: me, I'm a game designer.

Good to know that you are a game designer. You should know that focus polls are different from humans playtesting their game which I'm sure they did as most devs do that.

You should also know that just because you don't like something doesn't mean their consultant is a blathering idiot. Or their playtesters for that matter.

Ashidome · Jul 7, 2018

The reason is that there isn't a bloated, redundant main plot that I have seen a million times before. Sure, the 8 characters don't have stories that are completely inspiring either, but

I mean, really, are we calling 'having a main plot' redundant now? If it's referring to specific plots: How about offering a non-redundant main plot then? Sorry, but it feels like there's a lot of non-sensical handwaving away going on to defend Octopath's lack of a greater plot.

I've read, watched and played countless great, nice, and/or interesting stories that all have a main plot. And side plots, too. If some people like having no overarching story, that's fine. But acting as if having one is a negative is just warping reality. Imagine the next Persona-game having no character interaction and common goal - only singular character-dungeons, fighting next to mute party members. :/

Imo marketing oversold this game. "8 stories, 8 characters" isn't worth special mention when it removes the basic expectation of a main plot. And let's not pretend those 8 stories are writing masterpieces. I'd be shocked if the 5 stories I played took any meaningful detour. Finding a missing book, doing a ritual, bringing back some jewels ... it's bog standard 90s jrpg tropes.

Plum · Jul 7, 2018

I'm gonna post this again since people still seem to think that there's been no indication whatsoever of an overarching plot:

(12:41)

And a transcript to make it clearer:

IGN: So what's the premise here?

Treehouse Employee: Typical story the world is in peril and you get these characters together [to see] how they can save the world in different ways. But how they get to that point, that's the part that's intriguing."

There's also the fact that we know that there's

A music track for a singular final boss

So, whilst we don't know the extent to which there's an overarching story, we at least know that there's something there. However, if you're expecting this to be an entirely linear game in its second half I think you're still going to be disappointed.

jwk94 said:
You'd think they would be allowed to say something since people have been questioning it

Why would those two things correlate with each other? If the embargo says "do not mention the overarching plot" then nobody's going to be able to mention it no matter what they're asked. Since no marketing but that one slipup by the Treehouse employee has mentioned anything relating to an overarching plot it's safe to assume they want to keep it a secret.

Totakeke · Jul 7, 2018

Yeah, there's that, but I'm pretty sure that's not what most people mean when they want an overarching plot.

Also focus testing a narrative method seems pretty silly. Obviously most people would choose the narrative method they're most familiar with, but that's not what the most memorable fictional works tend to end up being. Not to say that Octopath Traveller is exactly that though.

Smerdyakov · Jul 7, 2018

I could get on board with the lack of focus on party interaction if anything I played of the demo inspired confidence in me that the individual stories would be interesting. I know that most RPGs start slow, but the dialogue I experienced was a particular type of long-winded that took it from "slow" to "dull".

Feep · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
Good to know that you are a game designer. You should know that focus polls are different from humans playtesting their game which I'm sure they did as most devs do that.

You should also know that just because you don't like something doesn't mean their consultant is a blathering idiot. Or their playtesters for that matter.

It generally wouldn't matter if they'd played it or not; it breaks fundamental expectations of storytelling that any writer would tell you is a mistake. Imagine the Game of Thrones books, which take place in a unified single world, but where none of the characters ever met in a meaningful way, or whose actions never directly affected the others. You can make an argument that it would be "interesting", but most people disagree, and you can see that very easily in this thread.

Admittedly, it's still not entirely confirmed there isn't at least *something* near the end, but it's not looking like it. And if we're all just *wrong* about that, that's one thing. But if it really is eight generally unrelated stories all told in a single game, that's a mistake. If you disagree, fine, but the majority of players are going to be disappointed with that decision, full stop.

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Ashidome said:
I mean, really, are we calling 'having a main plot' redundant now? If it's referring to specific plots: How about offering a non-redundant main plot then? Sorry, but it feels like there's a lot of non-sensical handwaving away going on to defend Octopath's lack of a greater plot.

I've read, watched and played countless great, nice, and/or interesting stories that all have a main plot. And side plots, too. If some people like having no overarching story, that's fine. But acting as if having one is a negative is just warping reality. Imagine the next Persona-game having no character interaction and common goal - only singular character-dungeons, fighting next to mute party members. :/

Imo marketing oversold this game. "8 stories, 8 characters" isn't worth special mention when it removes the basic expectation of a main plot. And let's not pretend those 8 stories are writing masterpieces. I'd be shocked if the 5 stories I played took any meaningful detour. Finding a missing book, doing a ritual, bringing back some jewels ... it's bog standard 90s jrpg tropes.

This is so funny. You are complaining about the thing you are doing only the other way around. There are countless narrative directions and everyone has their preferences, exactly. It isn't inherently a negative or positive as that's subjective. So what is the problem?

Your analogy for Persona doesn't work because it has certain expectations tied to it after 5 installments. Even then I would disagree because every game should be considered on its own merits no matter the franchise legacy but that's besides the point.

Plum · Jul 7, 2018

Totakeke said:
Yeah, there's that, but I'm pretty sure that's not what most people mean when they want an overarching plot.
.

I was simply responding to the idea that there's no overarching plot whatsoever. Personally I think that the later chapters in most character's stories will see those characters interacting with that 'main' plot, and thus giving them a reason why they'd want to fight the big bad or whatever the game has. If that's not for you and you expected this to become a linear RPG after the first few chapters then I don't know why the current previews have suddenly made it clear, the marketing focused a lot on "8 different stories" from the very start.

Jahranimo · Jul 7, 2018

It's interesting about some previews like this, when we've had two different demo builds of the game to play and determine how much we would like it or not.

20 hours though, that's neat I suppose? Less than a week left.

jwk94 · Jul 7, 2018

Plum said:
Why would those two things correlate with each other? If the embargo says "do not mention the overarching plot" then nobody's going to be able to mention it no matter what they're asked. Since no marketing but that one slipup by the Treehouse employee has mentioned anything relating to an overarching plot it's safe to assume they want to keep it a secret.

I meant you'd think they wouldn't have that element under nda since they know people have been questioning it.

Plum · Jul 7, 2018

jwk94 said:
I meant you'd think they wouldn't have that element under nda since they know people have been questioning it.

That doesn't really make any sense. Why would they change their NDA based on questions from fans? The very point of an NDA/Embargo is to make sure surprises don't go unspoiled.

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Feep said:
It generally wouldn't matter if they'd played it or not; it breaks fundamental expectations of storytelling that any writer would tell you is a mistake. Imagine the Game of Thrones books, which take place in a unified single world, but where none of the characters ever met in a meaningful way, or whose actions never directly affected the others. You can make an argument that it would be "interesting", but most people disagree, and you can see that very easily in this thread.

Admittedly, it's still not entirely confirmed there isn't at least *something* near the end, but it's not looking like it. And if we're all just *wrong* about that, that's one thing. But if it really is eight generally unrelated stories all told in a single game, that's a mistake. If you disagree, fine, but the majority of players are going to be disappointed with that decision, full stop.

This isn't a book or even a TV series, this is a game. I'm baffled I have to explain a game designer that narrative can be interwoven completely differently and more playfully in a game compared to books and TV series as any narrative whatsoever isn't a required element to make a video game. And how do you know things that happen in the story of a character don't affect things in the story of another character? No one is saying that it doesn't and it's problaby very likely one of the reasons why all eight stories are happening in the same overworld in the first place.

You really have a hard time explaining the "mistake" other than "it being a mistake". So just because some people are going to be disappointed because expectations of other games that have nothing to do with this one it's a mistake? All games that are unappealing to the masses are bad I guess? You sound more like a business man here than a developer.

Plum said:
That doesn't really make any sense. Why would they change their NDA based on questions from fans? The very point of an NDA/Embargo is to make sure surprises don't go unspoiled.

People 50+ hours into the game said there is no overaching plot yet so I doubt it's under embargo. They wouldn't be able to say even that fact if there was an embargo for it.

ngower · Jul 7, 2018

I've got a bunch of fun money at Best Buy and am considering this but is there a consensus from reviewers and previewers about voice acting/writing? Cause my early impressions are I could not do this for ~80 hours, writing and acting is atrocious.

Feep · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
This isn't a book or even a TV series, this is a game. I'm baffled I have to explain a game designer that narrative can be interwoven completely differently and more playfully in a game compared to books and TV series as any narrative whatsoever isn't a required element to make a video game. And how do you know things that happen in the story of a character don't affect things in the story of another character? No one is saying that it doesn't and it's problaby very likely one of the reasons why all eight stories are happening in the same overworld in the first place.

You really have a hard time explaining the "mistake" other than "it being a mistake". So just because some people are going to be disappointed because expectations of other games that have nothing to do with this one it's a mistake? All games that are unappealing to the masses are bad I guess? You sound more like a business man here than a developer.

I am operating under the assumption that we are talking about eight generally separate stories without much significant overlap (i.e. not "little touches" like someone saying "hmmm, I remember another guy looking in that drawer earlier..."). I've already said that if we're *wrong* about that, cool, our bad, though it's not looking notably likely based on the previews and the amount of time some of these people have played.

But more to the point, it's my goddamn opinion, and almost certainly the opinions of the majority of the people in this thread, that it's a mistake. I've already justified why it's extremely unsatisfying to see a diverse, theoretically interesting cast of characters not interact in narrative-relevant ways, and frankly, it's basically self-evident. Robust and well-written party interaction between major characters is a hallmark, a staple, and as far as I'm concerned, a necessity in any top-tier RPG.

It's a bad business move because it's a bad narrative move, and I'd appreciate dropping the not-so-subtle jibe that I care more about money than I do my art.

Jolkien · Jul 7, 2018

ngower said:
I've got a bunch of fun money at Best Buy and am considering this but is there a consensus from reviewers and previewers about voice acting/writing? Cause my early impressions are I could not do this for ~80 hours, writing and acting is atrocious.

You're probably better skipping it. I did Primrose and Olberic in the latest demo, did not have any problem with the writing whatsoever. Primrose story is really interesting.

Really quite a big let down if the different story don't wove into each other, I'll still get it but it's too bad.

jwk94 · Jul 7, 2018

Plum said:
That doesn't really make any sense. Why would they change their NDA based on questions from fans? The very point of an NDA/Embargo is to make sure surprises don't go unspoiled.

Because these are questions we've had for months and the purpose of a preview is to let people talk about certain points of the game and address bits that need to be addressed. You don't have to give away the whole plot. Just saying that there is something that they do come together or that getting more than one person has some meaning to the plot goes so far too address any concern.

Kalor · Jul 7, 2018

When they initially revealed the game I presumed it was just 8 individual stories so I'd be fine if they don't really come together. Although I think they will, albeit only right at the very end of the game.

Plum · Jul 7, 2018

sanstesy said:
People 50+ hours into the game said there is no overaching plot yet so I doubt it's under embargo. They wouldn't be able to say even that fact if there was an embargo for it.

The game's a very long JRPG and, considering both previews at that point were very positive, there's a fair chance they've been doing a lot of side quests and grinding. We've got no impressions from people who have finished the game yet, so unless one comes out and they're still saying there's no overarching plot then it's safe to assume that it's under embargo.

jwk94 said:
Because these are questions we've had for months and the purpose of a preview is to let people talk about certain points of the game and address bits that need to be addressed. You don't have to give away the whole plot. Just saying that there is something that they do come together or that getting more than one person has some meaning to the plot goes so far too address any concern.

If that point is embargoed then it's embargoed, there's no way previewers are going to speak about it. Again, considering the relative silence on any form of overarching plot contrasted with the evidence for there being one, why is it so difficult to assume that the developers see that convergence as a major plot point in and of itself?

sanstesy · Jul 7, 2018

Feep said:
I am operating under the assumption that we are talking about eight generally separate stories without much significant overlap (i.e. not "little touches" like someone saying "hmmm, I remember another guy looking in that drawer earlier..."). I've already said that if we're *wrong* about that, cool, our bad, though it's not looking notably likely based on the previews and the amount of time some of these people have played.

But more to the point, it's my goddamn opinion, and almost certainly the opinions of the majority of the people in this thread, that it's a mistake. I've already justified why it's extremely unsatisfying to see a diverse, theoretically interesting cast of characters not interact in narrative-relevant ways, and frankly, it's basically self-evident. Party interaction between major characters is a hallmark, a staple, and as far as I'm concerned, a necessity in any top-tier RPG.

It's a bad business move because it's a bad narrative move, and I'd appreciate dropping the not-so-subtle jibe that I care more about money than I do my art.

Oh, I'm sorry for having an issue with your goddamn opinion that whoever allowed them to make them the game they wanted is a blathering idiot.

And basically no one here other than a few reviewers have played the game here so there is no majority opinion on the game at the moment other than "the game's I played did it this way so why isn't this one doing it the same way" - you included. It's a mistake because it's not a "JRPG staple". Okay.

Plum said:
The game's a very long JRPG and, considering both previews at that point were very positive, there's a fair chance they've been doing a lot of side quests and grinding. We've got no impressions from people who have finished the game yet, so unless one comes out and they're still saying there's no overarching plot then it's safe to assume that it's under embargo.

Let's just say that after you have played a game for 50 hours and there isn't a overaching plot at that point, the people that take a huge issue with that fact probably won't be satisfied.

jwk94 · Jul 7, 2018

Plum said:
The game's a very long JRPG and, considering both previews at that point were very positive, there's a fair chance they've been doing a lot of side quests and grinding. We've got no impressions from people who have finished the game yet, so unless one comes out and they're still saying there's no overarching plot then it's safe to assume that it's under embargo.

50 hours of anything, even a long rpg with side quests and no overarching plot is a long time.

Octopath Traveler: Preview Thread

What rating do you think this game will get?

90+

80+

70+

60+

"Garbage like Xenoblade 2"

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