Octopath Traveler II dropped final month and was every little thing you could possibly ask for in a sequel. It improved on the unique recreation, added extra to the world and gave everybody one other 80 hours to sink their enamel into.
Due to Sq. Enix we bought to have a fast chat with the sport’s Director, Keisuke Miyauchi and Producer, Masahi Takahashi concerning the recreation.
Octopath Traveler II is on the market now, we’ve up to date our discount information, there’s a demo available on the eShop as nicely. Progress continues onto the principle recreation in case you resolve to choose it up.
What are the principle modifications between Octopath Traveler and Octopath Traveler II?
Miyauchi: When it comes to recreation mechanics, the existence of day and evening instances is the key change. Simply having this one new aspect expands lots of the techniques and different components within the recreation. For instance, NPCs shall be doing various things within the day and at evening and the heroes can all use completely different Path Actions relying on the time of day. While you go on a visit in actual life, the identical city or the identical vista can present completely different points in case you go to it at completely different instances of day, and I feel we efficiently managed to seize that feeling and pleasure within the recreation.
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How did you go about managing eight separate storylines and having them intertwine?
Miyauchi: As I used to be in sole management of every little thing on the plot writing stage, I used to be ready to make sure that not one of the tales went down the identical path or used the identical themes. I additionally deliberate out how the eight tales would relate to one another on the similar time, which is why I feel they got here collectively so nicely.
The world of Octopath Traveller II is rather more trendy than the primary recreation. What was the rationale behind this resolution?
Takahashi: As implied within the title, it is a recreation about travelling and having fun with a journey. We felt that it was important to set OCTOPATH TRAVELER II in a very new world with a view to give the participant that feeling of pleasure and anticipation when exploring it, questioning what lies down the following path or who might be dwelling within the subsequent city.
The primary recreation was a narrative that came about in a really small space of a medieval European type setting, so to present gamers a brand new and completely different feeling journey, we took care to make the setting for OCTOPATH TRAVELER II extra expansive, include completely different cultures and present an extra advance of civilisation.
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Will there be any crossover within the story between this recreation and the earlier video games within the sequence?
Takahashi: There are not any direct hyperlinks between the tales in OCTOPATH TRAVELER and OCTOPATH TRAVELER II. The second recreation is ready in a very new world and incorporates a utterly new solid of characters. Accordingly, it’s designed in order that gamers who’re beginning the sequence from OCTOPATH TRAVELER II will be capable to totally take pleasure in all points of the sport and don’t want to fret about occasions which have already occurred.
How a lot of an affect did Octopath Traveller: Champions of the Continent have on Octopath Traveller II?
Takahashi: Simply as there are not any hyperlinks between the tales in OCTOPATH TRAVELER and OCTOPATH TRAVELER II, we additionally didn’t work in any hyperlinks with CHAMPIONS OF THE CONTINENT both. The event construction for the 2 video games have been completely different, so slightly than influencing one another, I feel it’s extra a case of the person groups making their video games in the easiest way for the respective house console or smartphone platforms.
How a lot variation is there within the actions taken through the day versus at evening?
Takahashi: Every of the eight characters have completely different Path Actions to make use of within the day and at evening, so there are a complete of 16 completely different actions out there.
Are you able to communicate concerning the new additions to the fight system comparable to Latent Powers?
Miyauchi: Latent Energy is a “tremendous transfer” sort skill that every character can use. We included the system as a result of we wished to inject extra drama into battles. The essential circulation of battle within the OCTOPATH TRAVELER sequence is to assault an enemy’s weak level to interrupt them, then use enhance and land highly effective assaults whereas they’re weak. If that cycle was all there was, it will generally turn into repetitive, so we added the Latent Energy system that enables the participant to proactively change the battlefield state of affairs to their benefit. The way in which this provides the participant benefits in fight additionally permits us to make boss enemies with a greater diversity of assaults and battle logic patterns. We aimed to create alternatives for gamers to expertise their very own particular person dramatic moments, comparable to taking down a strong boss that was about to kill them as a result of they have been ready to make use of their Latent Energy at simply the correct second.
Due to Takahashi-san and Miyauchi-san for his or her time.