In this game, there are eight protagonists to choose from. You play through their stories, and see how they interact with the world around them. Each character has a path ability that they can use. For example, Primrose can use her Allure to have people follow her, and Olberic can challenge people to duels, which is pretty self explanatory.
The demo allows you to choose between playing as Primrose, a dancer, or Olberic, a soldier. I played as Primrose, because I like playing girl characters when they're available, and I am a bard in our D&D campaign. I also assume that my husband will probably play through as Olberic.
Visually, this game was beautiful. It seemed to be a mix of old school sprite art, and much more modern 3D, CGI graphics. It felt a lot like wandering around in a pop up book, honestly. The music was also gorgeous, and suited the locations and situations perfectly. And the voice acting was brilliant. I felt the tension and the emotions. I was repulsed by the characters I was supposed to be repulsed by, just by the combination of their appearance, and their voice.
The demo seems to give you the opening chapter to the two available characters. Primrose starts as a dancer, working for a terrible man who mistreats his dancers. She is waiting for the perfect opportunity to spot and exact revenge on one of the men who killed her father years before. And so, you play through this first chapter in what seems to be a regular day in her life here. Until the man she is looking for does appear. I won't say too much else, as I don't want to spoil anything (most of what I've already mentioned is revealed in the opening cut scene, and also in the character selector). I will make a quick note now that, if you are uncomfortable with sexual content, especially implied sexual assault of women, you may want to avoid Primrose's story line. It was something I certainly wasn't expecting when I went into it.
After you complete the demo, you are able to do some limited exploring. I decided to keep wandering and see how far I could get. The short answer is, not very. However, I did end up in the next town over, and was able to recruit Olberic into my party, so I could see how he operated in combat, which is something I will discuss now.
Combat felt fairly typical for a Square Enix turn-based combat RPG. The turn line up is on the top of the screen, so you can always keep an eye on it. You need to keep track of your HP and MP. You can attack with your equipped weapon (Primrose has a dagger, while Olberic has a sword, and a polearm), or you can burn MP to use an ability. Primrose is proficient in dark magic, while Olberic does more intense sword and polearm attacks. And, with each turn that passes, you earn a BP (Boost Point). Using two of these, you can boost the ferocity of your attacks or abilities. If you use an attack or ability that an enemy is weak to, you have the chance to "break" them, leaving them stunned for their next turn. You can use items to replenish health and MP as well, so if you get into any sort of trouble, you have that option. I will say now that, barring the story initiated combat, combat is randomly encountered as you're wandering, so if you're not a fan of that, it might put a damper on your enjoyment of this game.
All in all, I really enjoyed the demo of Octopath Traveler. It took me about an hour, including the exploration that I did at the end. I am looking forward to playing it when it comes out later this year, and seeing how the rest of Primrose's story unfolds. Are you excited for it? Do you plan on picking it up?
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