THAT'S A LOTTA PATHS!!!

[@ArloStuff]

PINNED COMMENT FOR YOU Many thanks to Square Enix for sponsoring this video! Octopath Traveler II is out now on Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, and Windows! Hit this link to learn more: bit.ly/Arlo_OctopathTravelerII

[@drawgam2946]

Gratz with the new sponser!

[@davidmuir405]

I liked live a live better

[@Antidepressiva1980]

Crunchy and punchy :D Love it .

[@matthewcienki8064]

Only one month?????

[@davetoms1]

Congrats on the sponsorship! Sadly the link won't let me purchase :( I'm in North America (Canada) and the link takes me to the Great Britain Square Enix website, (despite the "Select Region" menu saying "Canada"!) so its link to purchase for Nintendo Switch goes to the UK Nintendo Shop, which says "You cannot purchase this content" because I have a Canadian account. If I just surf to the Canada Nintendo shop, I'm concerned Arlo won't get credit for it :(

[@minecraftotalwar]

Arlo is like: "This character, oh I love this character." "This character, he is one of my favorites." "This character, this is my main."

[@scarlet7960]

Yeah lol, it's funny in the best possible way

[@jameslawrenson1208]

He sure loves characters.

[@buster5661]

He’s getting paid

[@CalvinVance]

​@@buster5661 yeah. but knowing Arlo he probably also actually likes all the characters. I like octopath traveler and plan on playing the sequel but it's definitely not for everyone.

[@buster5661]

@@CalvinVance true true, but not only was he actually getting paid, his tone was like he was reading an ad which can be distrustful. I’m sure the game is very fun, but a very sketchy video

[@NigelGrab]

This hd 2d thing is really exciting to me. Mainly, I would love to see a Pokémon game following this style. That would be the absolute dream, particularly as a way to sidestep the switch's hardware limitations.

[@friendbreakfast]

hd 2d would be like, the one look i would accept for a Pokémon Black and White remake. cuz already Pokémon B&W were the PEAK of 2D graphics for the series and already was a mix of 3d and 2d, so turning B&W 3D wouldnt sit well with me i think. hd-2d is basically just a more elaborate version of what B&W did so id LOVE to see B&W be remade on that style ^^

[@NigelGrab]

@@friendbreakfast agree big time, with following and overworld pokemon would be the dream

[@cameronjensen9397]

@@NigelGrab Perhaps in all honesty, it might be a decent idea for pokemon to go to hd 2d in general, given how some of the latest 3d games aren't that well designed.

[@sspectre8217]

@@cameronjensen9397 I enjoyed Scarlet and Violet, but yeah I agree. If they went back to 2D pixel art, even better if it's like the HD 2D style (Square copyrighted the style, I think). The game would run better, look better and they might even have more room to make a very interesting RPG.

[@cameronjensen9397]

@@sspectre8217 Nope, from what I've googled, they've copyrighted the name. Meaning that the style is absolutely open for anyone to use. But either way, 2d pixel art is a good way to try and recapture old pokemon fans, without just copying and pasting the old versions, and not making the game stupid easy or hand-holding for the 'kids'. Doing that is like one of those phone game ads that you see, where the 'player' playing the game is so brain dead, they can't solve a simple puzzle. That is just straight up annoying, and can drive away people.

[@sibby_547]

One thing Arlo did not mention is the music. I've not yet played Octopath 2 (it's downloaded and ready to go for this evening) but the music in the first Octopath is incredible. I've no doubt the sequel's OST will be fantastic as well.

[@gondalfthewizard]

The normal battle themes feel like boss music. Tis great

[@coastersplus]

So far the music's been great but what gets me is how _much_ of it there is... places have day _and_ night themes (even the map where you select your first character has a night version of the main theme!), character themes go wild - Partitio gets a whole electric guitar and sax jam for some reason - terrified how many discs the soundtrack will take up but I'm going to have to get it anyway :P

[@tmacandcheese1]

He mentioned a foresty hometown and my mind immediately went to H'aanit's home theme, "My Quiet Forest Home" which was easily one of my favorite songs in the last game. I want MORE 🤩

[@fe_fanby2278]

Has to be good because it's the same composer too!

[@WateryStar]

@@coastersplus I believe it's 6 discs. Someone on Reddit posted photos.

[@SSJ_EWGF]

The presentation of Octopath was one of the most impressive things I've seen in the JRPG genre and I'm glad the sequel looks like it focuses on polishing it's already strong parts. Man seeing the visuals, presentation, storytelling and combat of this game compared to my month long playthrough of Pokemon is actually night and day.

[@slyceth]

But it's just press a

[@zeroescape]

@@slyceth yeah lemme know how well that works out for you

[@南方ボイ]

Pokemon is trash anyway

[@TheSnazzyBoi]

​​@@slyceth Nuh uh, if you play on PC it's press z or enter

[@blayedd_]

I’m not a fan of jrpgs but the visuals of the first game got me to try the demo… unfortunately I couldn’t get into it, but I’m glad to see more and more games with this style

[@rickrogan2355]

I started Octopath Traveler with Tressa, and I started Octopath Travler 2 with Partitio. No regrets I love them both.

[@darcidious99]

Octopath loves their OP merchant characters. Seriously partitio giving extra JP and having that broken latent power is just insane early game.

[@guusthomassen9945]

I started with alfyn, but tressa is still the goat

[@Mario-wp8ut]

Me too merchantism for the win!

[@veemporer5592]

Shalom

[@Kaiwalski]

@@darcidious99 sounding like a rise of kingdoms ad

[@guilhermefloresfeitosaguer4543]

This game really makes you FEEL like Dunkey is going to hate it. 10/10 IGN

[@somethingelse4282]

dunkey: "I hate turn based JRPG, they feel slow, tedious and childish" Viewers: "So you're not gonna play it and say the same thing again" Dunkey: " >:) "

[@thermalThrottled]

@@somethingelse4282 but if he didn’t how would he find the ones that he does like!

[@thelastwindwaker7948]

@@somethingelse4282 The same pain of being a Sonic fan watching Game Grumps.

[@darcidious99]

​@@somethingelse4282 for what its worth that's still important for reviewers to do, so long as their criticisms and praises are fair. Dunkey blends reviews with his comedy which unfortunately kinda backfires on him. Like I enjoy his xenoblade videos, and they do show some of those game's weaknesses... But he emphasizes them to a point where it isnt an actual reflection of the game. Arlo's reviews are much fairer. Look at his pomemon ones, there's praise on good elements and criticisms on elements he didn't like. That being said while they're informative, they aren't as entertaining as dunkey's. That's not a diss on arlo i prefer his reviews, they just have different styles of reviewing.

[@rickrogan2355]

To me, Dunkey just sounds like one of those guys who loves to complain. They do things that make them want to complain, just so they can complain because they love that.

[@benabaxter]

I know Octopath Traveler gets a lot of gripes about a lot of things. What I don't see a lot of people appreciating is how the game repurposes and recontextualizes very old JRPG tropes. The goal of Octopath Traveler, in my understanding, wasn't really to be an overlapping network of stories, like we saw with Final Fantasy 6, but to be eight different stories told in the manner of an anthology which connected very satisfyingly at the end. It's a book with eight characters and the story chapters only move ahead when you do, and when you finish all of the stories you see how it all ties together. The only difference is it slightly plays on the Live A Live structure. It's the story of eight protagonists, not eight friends. Their traveling companions just happen to be protagonists you've spent a lot of time with, and for the sake of simplicity your imagination fills in the gaps. At least, it did in my case. Meanwhile, it has eight very different kinds of stories, from a wide variety of subgenres of children's storytelling. It had the best tournament arc in one of its chapters, perfectly and thematically tied to what the character was going through. It had a very very dark place with the dancer story, Even though it messed that up as it goes towards the end. Still, it unwraps itself in very different ways depending on who you start with. I chose Cyrus and it was a hoot to play through his campaign first and see where the whole thing was going. It would have been a very different experience to start with Tressa, for example---It's really amazing to me to see how different the story feels depending on who you start with, just because of how the way stories are unlocked and told and recontextualized based on the player's choice. I understand that people are frustrated that there's no such thing as overlap and interaction in the usual way. Maybe for a bigger release that would be possible---or a much smaller one. I understand why it would be difficult to track the four or five different places each of eight different characters might be developed in at the various different points of the story. Their relationships wouldn't quite grow and it would come off a little hollow, like the battle text which varies depending who's in your party in an old Super Nintendo RPG. I see that as marginal gains compared to what the game is actually trying to do, and which it succeeds at doing in such a focused and elegant way.

[@pizzacrescent1080]

That's really interesting, maybe you or someone else can put their own interpretations into a fanfic or something and make it overlap their own way, because personal experience from playthroughs can help build a great story on top of a another one. Maybe I can try it one day

[@mooglerific]

thank you for saying what i basically would not be able to say so succinctly. i think people are going into this game with the wrong expectations. Nothing says that an RPG with different stories HAVE to intersect and come together, it’s fine as it is as a collection of stories. comparing it to an anthology has been the best analogy i've seen thus far in how to describe the octopath games.

[@ddgaming9717]

I don't have a problem with the connection I just wish your party members would comment on things doesn't even have to be all of them just random whoever is with you old rpgs did it like with the theif and hunter how they had the banter talk that fit so well with the scene that just happend if the hunter was there in the background of the theif story and she made that comment that would been perfect but I'm really enjoying 2 and the battle banter helps alot I love that and weapons changing I don't think they did in the first one but for 3 I just want them to comment not be adding into the others story like paper mario or something they just comment on what's happening with their personality but overall loving 2

[@obivandyke7483]

Yeah.. Totally agree on your points. Your imagination fills in the gap.. I love it.. Even though there are no real interactions, you can use "banter" if a prompt appear. Characters gives comments with each other stories depends on which chapter you are on. I just saw this "banter" half way in my game with Octopath 1. Now I'm playinh Octopath 2, I'll keep an eye on these just to read their "interactions"

[@ED-gw9rg]

So my first character was Osvald, and then I ran into Temenos first... ...And yeah I thought the guy would be that one laaaaame cleric/healer stereotype until he fearlessly sMITED A THIEF IN FRONT OF ME. From then on, the tone I got was "I really, REALLY can't wait to tear these bosses to shreds..." Actually, that's another nice thing about Octopath: You get to make a fun difference with 7 other characters when the main boss fights roll around!

[@MasterPig11]

I really like the apothecary this time around. The changes they made to concoct make it so much more usable, and it feels good to go all out with it without using up the ingredients thanks to their latent power.

[@anthonylooyen4855]

Agreed. I started with Castti because her design and story stuck out the most to me, and I'm so happy Concoct isn't a thing that's too expensive to invest in until endgame anymore. It's still somewhat limited since I need to abuse her Latent Power to not waste the multi-target goods, but that's still contributing immensely towards me actually using Concoct.

[@leargamma4912]

Castti doesn't seem like anything special, and I am having regrets of starting with her. Not seen chapter 2 yet. Does she get better, because she seems like alphyn with amnesia ​@anthonylooyen4855

[@cheddarbub6324]

I had major doubts about Castti going in… boi hold onto your butt. every chapter of hers gets better and better, and she became my favorite character

[@ilan8468]

I’ve played the game for seven hours now, and didn’t even know that there are chapters where two characters team up; just makes me want to play it more. What I like most is that the game feels so much more alive than the first one: the day / night funcion makes npc’s move and gives you different paths to explore, the npc’s gather around taverns and drink together etc.. The only thing I’m worried about is the difficulty, as the first game seemed quite easy when you knew what you were doing.

[@Subremedy]

Either way either enough leveling you can be OP. Just make sure you know your own formula for success. There's a lot to make RPGs easy if you find the formula. I just hope there's not a RIGHT formula, or a lot of people will just exploit it instead of making their own.

[@crisiscoreffv2]

This game is INCREDIBLE! the demo itself was so good, but the real game? holy shit

[@Hanoua2]

My big issue with the first game was the fact that you had those 8 character with their own story... But those 8 story never really mix with each other and the group feel like 8 people playing their own little single player story. At least this new one seems to have double character chapter where they actually interact

[@MrTherandomguy42]

Yeah, and remember how much the finale sucked in the first game? The finale to the sequel is like 100x better.

[@DolusVulpes]

There's also a *lot* more travel banter scenes, to the point that you'll probably get a few per chapter no matter what your party composition is, unlike the first game, where you'd maybe get one at the end of a chapter if you had the exact right other characters in your party, and those scenes also show a lot more camaraderie then the first game's did.

[@FrozenDarkVoid]

Dude the entire jrpg genre is the rag tag bunch go fight the big bad. Play that game instead.

[@leasting]

Congrats to Arlo on the Square Enix sponsor! And for a game I've been so wildly excited for as well! The original Octopath is my absolute favorite game mechanically, I'm thrilled that it seems to have been fleshed out even further here!

[@handsoaphandsoap]

The absolute best addition I’m finding is the ability to put battles at 2x speed. The first Octopath was never sluggish by any means and I wasn’t bothered by how long things took but it’s one of those things where once you experience it, the game just feels so much nicer and smoother. I’m never going back to 1x speed, the 2x life is far too sweet.

[@islaamN]

I feel like I haven’t played a fun RPG since Bugfables, and just like Bugfables…you convinced me to give Octopath Traveler 2 a shot. Thanks Arlo! :D Probably going to go with Agnea first. I’m all for the happy cozy vibes and she really reminds me of Lunar Legend :].

[@TheMetalGaia]

Bug Fables is great!

[@jessicashaw4086]

Bug fables was one of my all time favorites ❤

[@scribsandskets1179]

The first game was some of my first experiences with good uses of haptic feedback in a game. The satisfying drop of coins in your hand when you went to the shops was a standout. I'll be playing the sequel on PS5 and I hope it does the same things with the controller.

[@Laurmachi]

After quite a few disappointing games in the past year or so, I'm so glad that Octopath 2 came out as good as it did. It could've just been a cashgrab, but instead they took what worked in the original and added onto it. It also reminded me that you can still have good characters and story in a video game. Thank you Octopath 2 for filling this nagging void in my heart.

[@MedusaLegend]

I so love those characters. I am so invested in their stories. The three I look the most forward to are the stories of Oswald, Temenos and Hikari. But the best things about the game are the musics. Absolutely gorgeous. This is the best OST of a video game I ever heard (yeah, even better than the Zelda ones).

[@13AxelRoxas]

I pre-ordered it, and I've been loving it so far. My first character was Osvald, and he gets a nice ability that increases the exp you earn in battle. After that, I grabbed Patito and Agnea, which was accidentally the best decision I could have made. Since Patito gets an ability for more money and Agnea gets an ability to increase the amount of JP you get and my most recent character is Temenos... I just wanted a healer character. He's ok, I just like my other 3 characters more. They work really well together.

[@tylerprince6371]

Yeah, temenos was my least favourite battle-wise

[@logandevitt7017]

OCTOPATH is a 10/10. They also have a pretty good mobile game (it is gacha but they give out loads of free currency that it’s not too bad). The story is really in depth and fully voice acted, which is amazing for a free mobile game

[@davidrich27]

I love HD-2D graphics. It’s like it’s those shadow box displays.

[@mekadragon86]

this game is amazing on 78 hours finished all stories and counting

[@RaspberryWoof]

One of the biggest problems I had with the original Octopath Traveler was that everyone had this really cool and fun backstory, but for the most part nothing really interconnected and everyone just felt like you were going through the paces of doing their own story rather than building a story from all of them together. Very curious to know if this game actually has the characters interacting with each others stories more and has them build a narrative together?

[@Chozo_hybrid]

Yeah, thats what stopped me from loving the first game too.

[@juliofigueroa5567]

Everyone in the party is too much like a background character to each-others stories

[@anthonycousineau5205]

Seem they add a coop chapter or something but in the end I think it will be the same, character in the background of story stuff... Wish they do a story where they are all connected somehow. Arlo did an amazing job at reviewing it but sadly he did not play the 1st one to do the comparaison.

[@Antasma1]

Granted, they still interacted in travel banter and the lore of all 8 stories merged for the final boss

[@pizzacrescent1080]

@@Antasma1 That’s nice, but I wanted more than that because the banter was optional and can be easily missed. I just wish they actually talked to each other more during the story. And they never had anything to say during Galdera, which was a missed opportunity because Graham and The person trying to revive the fell god was the reason they went on their journey to begin with, at least they could have talked to each other about that. Hopefully Vidal brings a better payoff.

[@boo-rian2717]

I love hearing how much you like the hunter character. I started with H'aanit in the first Octopath and I really like the monster capture feature as well!

[@psbrown711]

Glad to see that Square is supporting you! Love your content!

[@KINGJA92]

Ochoette is definitely my favorite character, the ex skills she learns is OP(no spoilers) along with Hikari and Partitio as a dancer 🔥

[@majones117]

I'm 20 hours into this game and JUST learned you can boost other attacks other than the basic ones... Lol

[@corndog9482]

I feel ya on how much potential game play there is. There are tons of items to be had in many varying ways, as well.

[@SalvableRuin]

I finished the demo now. I also started as Ochette and then did the intro for Castti. The game so far is wonderful.

[@gangstersamurott2511]

I just want to mention one of my favorite parts of this game and the first one. You don't need to use the joystick. This should not be a positive, but with joycon drift the way it is I can play these games in hand held without ever having to wory about joycon drift.

[@Ricaidius]

Just got the first Octopaty Traveler in today. Gonna start it the weekend. I picked Primrose as my starting point in the demo last weekend and I loved the intro to her story. Can’t wait to play.

[@disneyvillainsfan1666]

I haven't bought Octopath II yet, but I already love this new cast of characters more than the previous game. Everyone feels like they have their own identities from who we've had before. Comparing Agena to Primrose and Osvald to Cyrus, respectively, is like comparing a horror movie to an episode of Sesame Street.

[@allieherba]

Absolutely! I love that each job has a completely different character with different motivations accompanying them. And, I've only finished the first chapter for half of the gang so far, but already this game feels much fleshed out than the original Octo and the characters and their stories are far more compelling. The stakes for all of these characters feel much more realized in Octo II than in I, and I'm more invested in their stories than I was for the first Octopath

[@tribble608]

Ok ok we don't need to diss my boy Cyrus like that :P

[@edcaous]

Really like what they've done with the towns in this one. Each one is extremely expansive. The day/night system really adds a lot to each of them.

[@gondalfthewizard]

For those who don't mind some mechanics SPOILERS: The secondary jobs are available at a higher level than before, so you actually get to spend more time with the base kit which is really nice. In the 1st one you get most jobs right away really easily and get really powerful kits really early such as two clerics for elemental reflect

[@friendbreakfast]

SPOILERS AS WELL, MAYBE?? really?? cuz i got the Artificer second job during the DEMO. unless thats there only on the demo in order to show you the game mechanic but in the game proper it would take way more time or something

[@zsDUGGZ]

My favortie job combo so far is scholar + cleric. I love how advanced magic also affects the heals and the radiant aoe spell.

[@dshjfsd]

I played the first game fully, beating everyones story as well as the final boss and had abt 100 hours on the game, and since the 2nd one has come out, I've already got 40 hours on the game and just.. Compared to 1, Octopath 2 makes 1 look like a DEMO I am NOT kidding, they improve on SO much it's stupid, almost everything everyone complained that was wrong with the 1st game, was insanely improved on the second PLEASE get this game you WILL NOT regret it, and if you can afford it, I'd definitely even recommend the collectors edition box

[@Iffondrel]

I love these characters so much holy shit I can't wait to meet them all. I started with Temenos because he looked chill and smug in his lil intro picture. I started with Alfyn in the first game, because I wanted to start with a healer type and then pick up a more battle-ready partner for my second character. I didn't exactly intend on it, but I loved the duality of Alfyn and Therion in the first game, so when I got to OP 2 and started with Temmy, I made a beeline for Throné because they seemed like a fun pair lol. Super excited for more!

[@willmcdono]

the game is amazing looking. I'm gonna watch this after I play more to avoid seeing areas I haven't yet been. thanks Arlo.

[@Jaekization]

I think all the characters are Arlo’s favorite characters

[@monsieurliquorice]

Arlo reviewing something is why I exist. It’s the best thing to happen in my day when it pops up. Edit: This was an exaggeration and a joke.

[@streygaq6988]

Gosh I hope youre joking

[@bens5859]

@@streygaq6988 lol agreed. I mean obviously I'm an arlo fan but get a grip

[@davidmuir405]

Most of his reviews are just him rambling a lot.

[@chain3519]

I'm glad you get so much enjoyment out of his reviews. He definitely has a unique format in this space

[@OhsoWoobie]

I agree

[@kidthegeek]

Me seeing so many paths thinking is Arlo into ttrpgs now and making a joke about pathfinder?

[@spiritdancer36]

Please, oh please Square Enix give us an accessory(from the beginning) that allows us to backtrack or explore for chests without random encounters. Trust us as the players to know when we need to grind. People who love blind RE can have them and those of us that it’s a deal breaker can still love and appreciate your amazing game. I want to play all 8 paths and not just hope I can get through one without setting it down in frustration.

[@spagbowl5413]

I’m so glad you liked it I wasn’t sure if I was going to pick it up but you’ve fully convinced me!

[@YourAverageLoser763]

Ive only played the sequel for about 3 hours (have about 200 on the og) and omg its such a big improvement, especially the story, also the combat improvements make me so happy they rlly out did themselves (also you've convinced me to make a team around Castti my one problem with the apothecary in the old game was the materials it took and now i can make big boy bombs for free)

[@twilighthero426]

I'm so excited for this! As soon as I finish the first Octopath Traveler, I'm 30 hours in and not even halfway through haha. I've had an on-and-off relationship with it for years now due to notable flaws such as the lack of interaction between characters. The sequel looks like it improves on those flaws in every way, which is awesome. Arlo's enthusiasm only makes it better.

[@gioarevadze2703]

Don't go it's scam

[@BlingBlingDubuLove]

It’s so hard settling on a main party of 4 bc all the characters are so great. Even some I did not have expectations for, I ended up really invested and engaged (e.g. partitio). Gah it’s a happy struggle.

[@gentrol1630]

Charging my pro controller and watching this video before i boot up the game. LOVED the first one...cant wait ...unsure who I wanna start with yet but this video def helped. Thank you arlo !

[@Chiller31916]

I'm really curious to know what kind of games Arlo declines to review

[@Antasma1]

Shady companies or shovelware I guess

[@specialsomeones]

Mobile games I’m guessing

[@lauriebarton9836]

Only nintendo-ee stuff or mario kid type games or stuff like this nothibg adult like or too big boy for the switch. G rated content for us adult viewers and type games. Nothing too violent

[@Chiller31916]

@@lauriebarton9836 Didn't he review Resident Evil 7 & 8, Revelations 1+2, Doom, a few horror games & a World War Z game?

[@TragicArchAngel]

Temenos is basically just Sherlock Holmes as a priest. All he's missing is a coke habit.

[@wesnohathas1993]

Now about that Forbidden Elixir...

[@Tini-Stic]

Absolutely loving this game! I started with Osvald cause his story was the most interesting to me, and I wanted to start with someone other than a Warrior like I did in the first one.

[@nerdzone]

I am happy you like Octopath II. Octopath Traveler is my favourite jRPG of all time and one of my favourite games. 31 hours in the second one, I feel it starts significantly better than the first one. If it ramps as well, I am going to cry tears of joy for the next month.

[@timmy3822]

I started Ocotpath II today, with the apothicary as my main and then I did the first chapter for the merchant. Really wonderful stories s ofar, I'm absolutely immersed and motivated by their backstories. There are a bunch of quality of life improvements which really make this an improvement over the first title. I bought Xenoblade Chronicles III at the same time and I'm really unsure when I'll get around to it, I think I'll have a lot of fun with Octopath 2.

[@mjanime786]

I absolutely have fallen in love with all the characters but my favorite path is hikari...he's a beast

[@haissamali]

Not sure why but the boat travel reminds me of the boats in donkey Kong country

[@TheBrotherSyne]

"Look at the owl! I got the owl" lol, so Arlo sounded so bashful

[@Matt-iq3mw]

I just realized... Arlo sounds like Partitio some times HAHA.

[@PostcardsAndBooks]

I adored the first, I'm playing Triangle Strategy now, but I can't wait to get to this one. I'm 100% sure that the guy at my local videogame store won't even let me talk and just FINALLY give me the game. Can't wait. Loved the peek to to the characters!

[@Flareboxx]

I hope you enjoy it Arlo! Octopath Traveler 1 was one of my top 5 favorite games of all time, and the sequel seems like it's going to be even better! Hopefully you'll go back and play OT1 eventually too.

[@jackall-trades6149]

Just beat it. Loved every second of it. It was one of the most positive and uplifting experiences I have had playing an RPG in a long long time. Right up there with both Ni No Kuni titles. Hikari was my main (excellent in combat), but Partitio was EASILY my favorite. And yet...Temenos was my spirit animal. If you play it and you like these games, you will have a great time. Also...that final boss....well, prepare. A LOT.

[@GrizzyLatrizzy]

After playing the demo, I chose Agnea as my starter. I chose her because her story is the most neutral. No blood feuds, no mystery, no greater purpose. Just "I wanna dance!" I scooped up all the western continent players, and plan to do their quests first. I wish they made it so all 8 could be in your party at once.

[@lewis9s]

You know a game is good when you sit and play it for 10 hours on launch day

[@ivarandresosorio6461]

Good job Square Enix on getting Arlo to talk about this game. I'm sold, getting it ASAP

[@707strait]

Crunchy battles.. yeah that is spot on. The combat in these two games feels so satisfying. Gonna have to wait out on a sale but own the first one played it to death:)

[@calvinmatthews1527]

I'm glad this game is getting so much attention and now that the series has gone multiplatform, it's guaranteed to sell better. Meaning a lot more people will know how good it is!

[@genzsavedamerica2234]

After playing pherona drifts I finally know where you got that awesome music track from

[@Rageouz]

I've played the first one and it was amazing a 9/10 only held back by the characters seem alittle separate at time but in octopath 2 the characters are alot more interconnected and it's straight up better than the first one in every way, I'd say it's one of my favourite JRPGS of all time a 10/10

[@majinboo6377]

im 80+ hours in the 1st game and just reached 1st traveler chapter 4, this game is long af, though i do everything like side quests, optional dungeons, loot everything, explore everything, steal everyone, challenge everyone, buy limited equipments that cant be stolen from npcs, etc3. for inner ring i already done everything there, for middle ring only forest of no return level 48 with 263k hp boss that i havent done yet cause too dangerous. havent get advance jobs yet. its a really really long game. for normal people im not sure if they can finish both games.

[@commonviewer2488]

A big complaint I had with the first was the complete lack of interaction between the characters. We shouldn't have to wait for the endgame to have this group talk to each other. Happy to hear _something_ is there now.

[@spotmikestudios1020]

I really ENJOY your channel Arlo!

[@ianboast9928]

A new Square Emix game with a 86 on metacritic gets no nominations at Game Awards wow

[@monologistics]

I'm still waiting for a free DLC for the original to add an extra dungeon for high end leveling to get the whole party the max level. Pipe dreams im sure.

[@yanhuideng8263]

Levels don’t actually do much for your character. Your equipment/job combinations/skills will do much more than a slightly higher maximum HP and SP. Somebody modded their team to be only level 1 and fought the hardest boss in the game and still won because his team setup was just that good.

[@monologistics]

@@yanhuideng8263 thats nice and all but if he's using mods how can you be sure he isn't also using a mod to cheat stats in his favor? They have level suggestions along the main story for a reason so I don't quite buy that levels are meaningless. Plus I'd rather beat it myself instead of using mods and maybe just seeing everyone at max level would be interesting to see. Max level boss meets max level teams. I'm not swayed. I've looked up guides on proper team, skills, and equipment but it still wipes out both my level 82 teams in a single hit. Maybe I'm just unlucky

[@yanhuideng8263]

@@monologistics Because anyone can replicate it. The point of the mod is to showcase how equipment/skills/setup is more important than levels. “Level suggestions” are kind of a joke, levels don’t change your attack stats much either way.

[@h_works2965]

I loved the first Octopath. The visuals, the combat, the soundtrack, the exploration. It’s all just on point. I really enjoyed the demo for 2 (especially on PS5 where it looks even better). It definitely seems to recapture a lot of what was good about the first one. I do hope it can fix my few problems with the first. Specifically, it can be a bit too grindy (especially near the end). And the characters and stories were a mixed bag (some were great, some were pretty blah). It was a little too early to tell from the demo alone if it fixes either of these (though I should probably replay the demo with other characters to find out). But I definitely might check out this game soon.

[@matthewtryon7452]

Glad you will be playing! Hope you enjoy the full game!

[@Squirmychair]

Last time I was this early to a video, Arlo was still a sock puppet

[@Chiller31916]

A sock puppet? He's been a monster as long as I've known him 👻

[@wesnohathas1993]

I can't hype up Octopath Traveler 2 enough. This is my game of the year right here. If you are a fan of any turn-based RPG, do yourself a favor and play it. I'll leave it at that.

[@SleepyRPGsuperCharged]

I wasn’t gonna get this one until Arlo hyped me up. I just hope the characters are more intertwined this time around

[@christopherdornak3632]

I played the full 3 hours in the demo and grabbed 5 of the 8 characters. Osvald and Ochette are my favorites. I can't wait to pick up my copy tomorrow

[@haissamali]

I was not gonna play this one because ive played the first one, but now you've pulled me in arlo. Its now on my list after Metroid prime and atomic hearts

[@sunnycideup4725]

I JUST HOPE Theres no excessive ridiculous Grinding, god and the enemy encounters in the first one? a nightmare, i really hope this game is an awesome sequel!

[@rickDirector]

Thank you Arlo, your opinion influenced me the most to buy this game. I've played the first chapter of this saga, and I loved it, but, because I'm obsessed on completing games (or, at least, most of them), I also hated myself for playing the very hard final boss of the game. That's why I was not really sure about playing the second chapter...until I watched your review. It reminded me of how good this kind of games was: gameplay, music, art style, but, most importantly, the story(*stories). So...I've picked Partitio, and I've already completed his first chapter... in less than an hour of gameplay. Thank you, Arlo

[@lordrikudouzero9119]

Thanks Arlo and welcome!!! The first is one of my fav games all time and has maybe the best ost ever (top 5). I’m getting the special edition and am looking forward to diving in again. Special note: The ‘disconnected’ stories is one of the games characteristics so it bothers some people but it’s a lot like ‘Live Alive’ and really is a sub-genre that doesn’t gel w/everyone. If it changed that aspect it would be just like any other turned based jrpg. My understanding is that there is more connectivity for the separate stories this time. Enjoy!

[@5SenseGames]

I don't know who works together on the lighting and to animate the particle effects in the Octopath games but goodness they are not paid enough.

[@stormcutter59]

I still believe its possible to have a third game where you can have more natural character interactions in a story thats more connected. Even if the game isnt as OPEN as the first two games, having a more interactable, linear story would be awesome if its written well. It can happen.

[@allouthd3866]

It looks amazing ! thanks for the video

[@starsartbar]

I just wish square didnt scam their fans with NFTs

[@eduardobasto8083]

This is a total gem of a game :)

[@Surfer669]

Congrats on the Square Enix sponsorship! I still need to finish the FIRST Octopath Traveler, then I wanted to play Live A Live, then maybe I'll play Octopath Traveler 2. They're wonderful games but so long and grindy; I wish there were more times in the day/week/month/year

[@video-luver769]

The upside is that Live A Live is actually a fairly brisk little game. You can knock out a whole chapter in an hour or two, but it's still a very enjoyable experience.

[@grapes9h5]

20+ hours in and with a TON of game left I’m blown away by how good the game is. I can’t wait to get to the finale cause I can already see how it’s being set up to actually be a real story this time

[@jlkomina778]

Same here. There's something at the end when you finished all their stories, like a big bad villain.

[@grapes9h5]

@@jlkomina778 I beat the game last week, so I can confirm that. Working on the Platinum Trophy which requires you clear all side quests including the additional “super hard” secret boss.

[@alexiosblake9804]

Thank you for the crossed path chspters. That's what the first game really missed.

[@dycu]

I wish they stopped calling game with numbers, especially when it's not a continuation of the first or if it just an alternative story with the same gameplay mechanic. "Octopath Traveler : The land of Solistia" would be a better fit. However many Octopath Traveler there will be, you know you're paying for playing with it's mechanic in different universe. "Octopath Traveler : Space Odyssey", "Octopath Traveler : The world of Nintendo" or "Sega", "Octopath Traveler : Console War Parody", "Octopath Traveler : The Wild West", "Octopath Traveler : The Family Trip in modern Japan à la Eartbound" to name a few idea.

[@xcelentei]

Love the vid, appreciate how the characters all have the same classes and abilities as the first game's characters PLUS their own night abilities. I wonder if Ochette has the same hunter skills as H'annit because the bow abilities were CRAZY good compared to the Pokemon mini-game.

[@Next0gen0]

Just beat the game recently and I can without a doubt say this game is 100% worth it. One of the best RPG experiences of the year hands down, and I CANNOT recommend it enough. I'd go on, but it would take a 2 hour review to go over everything I've loved about this game.

[@cheekydemon6131]

Is there a lot of grind in it?

[@Next0gen0]

@@cheekydemon6131 No actually. It's fairly well done in a way that allows you to tackle each problem with a variety of solutions. It's certainly a Long game, but nothing that forces you to go fighting the same enemy over and over to get more powerful. Heck, I did most of the end game fight's well below the recommended level. Which is a good sign of how the game offer's you the ability to tackle any challenge, as long as you approach it mindfully.

[@cheekydemon6131]

@@Next0gen0 Thanks for your answer. I've never played any JRPG, but I just want to try this one. Long is good, but grinding is not so it's good to hear that you don’t need it.

[@Next0gen0]

@@cheekydemon6131 NP, I'd say this one is a Great one to start off with. Good Luck!

[@Ribbonnanza]

Fun fact: the first letter of each character's name spells out Octopath!

[@bibliofowl]

Really want Square to put a comment from Arlo on the physical copy of the game: "You get a boat now! Who doesn't like boats?!" -Arlo

[@WhyYouWahYoo]

“DISCOBALLLONGLEGS” -Arlo, 2023

[@Chiller31916]

*me an intellectual, trying to imagine what that looks like*💭

[@mellow8176]

they finally got him to sit down and play an hd-2d after all these years

[@karmad.twelve6613]

I have Octo 2 in my Switch right now, but I also picked up the physical copy of Metroid Prime today and the new Kirby game! The hype is real! Thanks, Arlo!

[@thefirefridge5187]

I think what makes me most excited for this game is the characters. I loved the characters in the first game, but all of the characters this time around just seem way more interesting to me. They also feel more unconventional. Like instead of the scholar being some bookworm he's a brooding prisoner out for revenge. Can't wait for this game to take a hundred hours of my life away from me.

[@cosmogang]

I only hope it’s less repetitive than this first one. Otherwise I am pumped for this. Thanks Arlo.

[@GeoOsaka]

according to jason schreier the chapters are no longer just explore town, dungeon, boss fight, repeat. there’s apparently much more variety thankfully

[@JackCross3]

​@@GeoOsakathat was my biggest gripe with the first game. It felt like every chapter was locked into that structure even when it didn't really make sense for the characters' stories (looking at some of the merchant stuff in particular)

[@PinkoKane]

So everyone is one of your favorite characters? Got it...

[@Hus0408]

Arlo got one thing wrong about Temenos, in that he's not just a cleric, but the church's inquisitor. But him being morally kinda gray and a bit unorthodox, 100% correct.