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Whoever writes you at this moment is a grumpy old man. It's a technological bacucco, one of those that has not been able to accept the rise of shooters as the most popular genre in the world, which prefers to spend tens of years. Hours in total loneliness of any solo title rather than spending ten minutes in the chaos of mbadive online gambling. The gradual disappearance of users of this type is now a fact. The majors of video game entertainment are aiming for more and more inclusive experiences, with projects that are each time bigger and designed to absorb the most diverse users.
This does not mean that the market has become completely addicted to these productive mechanisms: to resist vigorously some small niches of players, eager for recreational adventures unrelated to the mbades. And it is precisely this category of users that addresses Octopath Traveler the new intellectual property of Square-Enix that comes out on Nintendo Switch. This new jrpg dominates the glorious past of the software house, bringing the most contemporary of this playful and aesthetic corpus that made the fortune of Final Fantasy Dragon Quest and Chrono Trigger 90s. The last effort of Square-Enix and Acquire surprised us and surprised us, bringing back memories of childhood and offering new gameplay ideas, certainly not a trivial choice for a certain type of productions.
Eight Heroes, Eight Stories, Eight Roads
Since the first announcement, which took place in January 2017, Project Project Octopath Traveler had intrigued more than one player for several reasons . The result of the collaboration between Square-Enix and Acquire was immediately presented as a unique tribute to Japanese RPGs appeared on Super Nintendo. In that sense, therefore, it was easy to understand why the graphical aspect chosen for this work.
Taking advantage of the Unreal Engine 4, the Japanese team had surprised Nintendo Direct's viewers with its HD-2D a sort of transposition in the three-dimensional graphics engines and Final Fantasy VI brothers. The real reason why so many Switch owners around the world ran to order the product, in any case, lay in the particular narrative offer. Octopath Traveler promised the possibility of selecting one of eight possible protagonists, a choice that would then determine the alter ego of the user in the world of Orsterra. The other seven heroes would have contributed to the adventure, weaving the thread of their adventure to that of the chosen character. In the months following the announcement, Square-Enix has released several demos of the game, designed to show the progress of the work to the most curious and impatient. As we were able to write, only in the recently distributed construction it was possible to get to know the actual eight cast personalities. The heroes of Octopath Traveler form a very varied rose, although referring to typical clichés of the genre. Olberic the wandering knight, is a taciturn type and with many wounds in the soul. His silence and devotion to the role of knight can not fail to recall the Cyan Final Fantasy VI, and Therion the thief is reminiscent of Gidan, Final Fantasy IX. Even the priestess Ophilia has illustrious ancestors, namely Yuna of Final Fantasy X. Then there is the scholar and the womanizer Cyrus the hunter with noble vocabulary H & # 39; aanit and Primrose the desert dancer in search of revenge. Completing the group is the apothecary with a pure heart and sharp tongue Alfyn and Tessa the girl with an innate talent for trading in search of adventures. As it was easy, it was not at all immediate to choose an avatar to impersonate the identity. These are archetypal characters, and each player will have the opportunity to see each other more in relation to each other.
Whoever writes has chosen to take on the role of Cyrus, a sort of medieval Indiana Jones, in love with knowledge as much as with female companionship. The choice should not be made lightly for several reasons. The chosen leader is actually the pivot around which turns all the experience, a digital reporter who will be present at every moment of the story. Our alter ego will always be an active member of the party, while the other seven – or even less, as we will explain soon – can sometimes sit on the bench and rest.
This irreplaceable nature has consequences inextricably linked to the peculiarities of the game of Octopath Traveler . Each of the protagonists has a special ability to use them outside the battlefield: Cyrus can investigate people's souls and understand if they're lying, so that Alfyn can tap into his medical talents and to deduce their psychophysical condition; Olberic and H & # 39; ananit can engage in a duel with different pbaders-by, thus getting experience points and rare items; Ophilia and Primrose have the power to convince the subjects of the kingdom to follow them in battle, the first using the power of faith, the second the strength of … we understand each other. As is easy to guess, Therion is able to lighten the pockets of those who stand in front of him, while Tessa is able to convince the other to haggle the goods in their possession, buying rare goods at unbeatable prices. These skills are essential to advance in the different chapters of history dedicated to the different actors of the distribution. The story that contains Octopath Traveler was not written as a linear script, but interspersed and fragmented into chapters, each dedicated to a different character. Each of the eight heroes has their own path to follow, a path that, at least in the early stages, is rarely intertwined with that of their comrades of arms, virtually only through external dialogue scenes to the narrative (a little as in, where it is possible to read a dialogue " incidental " between two members at certain times). At the beginning of the adventure, that is, after completing the introductory chapter of the chosen character, the world map will open to completely free players, offering an open world sui generis.
Arriving in the different cities that cover the continent of Orsterra, it will be possible to begin the introductory chapter of the protagonist who lives in this particular village: the hero stands in the middle of the square, waiting to be able to tell its history – always and constantly centered on the theme of the initiatory journey – and thus become our ally. By the time the story focuses on the newcomer, previously encountered characters, including the player's avatar, will disappear from cut scenes, only returning when the opportunity dungeon will be explored. The fragmentary nature of the story, at least in the first part of the game, is also confirmed by a few small holes in the plot.
Take an example: the second chapter of Cyrus and Tessa can be started in the same city; By choosing to play Tessa first, the cutscenes will focus on the merchant, but for the rest of the hours needed to get through the chapter, the other members of the group will always be with her. From the episode of Cyrus has overtaken that of Tessa, in the first scene cut off, the scientist will marvel at the beauty of the city, in which he has just spent three hours! If on the one hand this narrative structure allows the players to shape the story as they prefer – another special feature: if you avoid talking with one of the seven characters at the first "meeting", those This will never enter the party – on the other hand the promises made in the development phase, those concerning the narrative paths intermingled from the beginning.
Clarify: This does not mean that the plot of Octopath Traveler is ugly, indeed. Of course, some heroes are better written than others, because the different scenarios can be more or less fascinating, but the lack of cleanliness of Square-Enix's writers throughout the plot leaves something to be desired. first a bitter taste. The lack of communicability between the characters and the fragmentary nature of the events are the only flaws of a production otherwise perfect for technical implementation and for gameplay, from the combat system
The Power of Tactics
In the intentions of Nintendo and Square-Enix, Octopath Traveler will fill the void left by the two Bravely appeared on 3DS, representing a deliciously retro title intended for the nostalgia of the golden years of jrpg. Exactly like his spiritual father, Octopath Traveler offers its buyers an exquisite turn-based combat system, a combat system that is less and less present in current games.
Battles (random, in the perfect SNES style) are not limited to the mechanical repetition of the attack command, but revolve around the search for Dominio . Each enemy has specific weaknesses, that it is a kind of weapon or elemental magic. To take advantage of the flaws of the adversary means to see his reduced points of defense, indicated by a shield-shaped icon next to the sprite of the monster. Once the defenses have been reduced to zero, the Dominio phase will begin, which means a few turns in which our opponent will not attack, also suffering significant damage due to the Confused state in which it is located. It's time to liberate Potenza . Power Points, which are automatically recharged in use, can increase the number of attacks that can be made during a single phase of the badault. In the case of physical blows based on sticks, swords, spears, arrows, axes and daggers, thanks to Power Points, it will be possible to reach the target four times during the same turn. For spells, however, the attack will be unique, but quadrupled in its range.
We have already talked about the importance of the protagonist's choice. As these are irreplaceable, it is good to keep in mind the different characteristics of the different characters, since the chosen avatar will always be on the ground. Whoever writes to him has opted for Cyrus, thus finding himself a black magician so ineffective in physical attacks as devastating with elemental magic. Cyrus, by the way, has his other talent: he can discover the weaknesses of the opponents at each meeting. This means that, faced with two or three times the same enemy with the scientist in the team, the villain will have no more secrets for the players. The other heroes also have interesting talents, inspired by the crafts of the characters: Primrose is in fact the bard, able to increase the statistics of his companions through the powers of dance; H ananit can capture the beasts and summon them in later fights; Therion and Tessa manage to steal useful materials from the sacks of enemies, while Ophilia and Cyrus are able, thanks to the powers of religion and medical science, to treat companions in difficulty. Olberic finally, is the tank of the group, able to collect the blows instead of the wounded comrades.
Almost all characters can use two weapons and some sort of elemental magic, but you have to accept the fact that there's no perfect party: every game situation will require a different approach; which will make Octopath Traveler ] always tactical, galvanizing and intriguing. This variety in the combat system allows you to never get bored in combat, which is welcome given the number of hours that users will have to spend with their swords in their hands. Octopath Traveler as well as Bravely and the Final Fantasy VI to which every pixel of the game is inspired, requires a consistent farming exercise, that is, the accumulation of points of interest. experience and levels between one phase and another epic. If this choice was eligible in the 90s – it was necessary to lengthen the stock of games otherwise too short – it is strange to agree in 2018 to spend an evening of gameplay killing whole ranks of monsters, otherwise it is impossible to proceed calmly. If you decide not to do it, know that there will be tears, sweat and blood during boss fights, from the outset hard and very resistant, in a perfect JRPG style.
Wonder in the Backpack
In recent years, the revival of two-dimensional graphics, inspired by the years of 16-bit consoles, has led to the publication of titles often too similar in appearance . Square-Enix, among the software house creators of this particular aesthetic canon, thought it best not to queue needlessly at this vein, by dressing Octopath Traveler with a graphic design certainly already seen, but that has never been so beautiful. The work, thanks to the characterization of sprites and the very intelligent use of the bokeh effect, is a joy for the eyes, both in TV mode and played with the Switch in the hands.
The care taken in the planning of the lighting of the rooms and the refinement of the textures elegantly cover the deficiencies related to the number of polygons. Beautiful to see the models of the protagonists, although they are better animated in the phases of exploration than in those of combat. Moreover, the soundtrack deserves praise. Written with the great clbadical masters in mind Uematsu the music that accompanies the distribution of Octopath Traveler is dreamy, rich and inspired. The game runs very well on Switch both with the console nested in the docking station and in the portable version. It does not exploit any of the specific features of the hardware, but overall it does not matter: Octopath Traveler is an almost orthodox game, and the features regarding the control of movement or the touch screen do not go well with this type of productions.
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