Octopath Traveler II

The first Octopath Traveler stunned players with Square Enix’s new-look “HD-2D” graphics. The turn-based combat and pixel art hit many right in the nostalgia, spurring memories of SNES classics. However, it was held back by a pretty weak story, repetitive combat, and a lack of cohesion between party members.

Square Enix heard all these complaints and perfected its Octopath formula with the sequel. All eight travelers have stellar stories that slowly begin to intertwine. The voice acting took a huge jump in quality, particularly with Alejandro Saab as the tortured Osvald. The combat retains the turn-based random encounters, but with added flare and power-ups to make strategies far more unique. Side-quests are rewarding, detailed, and provide some of the most pleasing moments in the game.

Read more: 15 Hours With Octopath Traveler II: Good But Disjointed Stories (So Far)

Octopath Traveler II improves on every shortcoming of its predecessor, while adding new dynamics that make the game shine from front to back. Pair that with its still-gorgeous graphics and you’ve got yourself an instant JRPG classic. Yet another example of sequels running away as the best games of 2023. — Jeb Biggart

Playable On: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch

Rough Average Playtime: 61 hours