History VideoGame / OctopathTraveler

* MinorCrimeRevealsMajorPlot: This is essentially the hook for the entire game. Eight characters set out on individual quests with individual goals, only to find out that they've had their lives altered by one singular, central thing (specifically, [[spoiler:Lyblac's thousand-year-long efforts to free Galdera]]) which is buried so deeply behind layers of manipulation that none of them even realize it was happening. In fact, the game is structured in such a way that ''players'' might not catch it; they can stop playing the game without ever actually figuring out what it's been revolving around the entire time.

* ShoutOut: Enough to warrant [[ShoutOut/OctopathTraveler its own page]].

* BossInMookClothing: Of the many [=NPCs=] that you can interact with, the ones that make the best allies can also serve as enemies powerful enough to put some of the ''bosses'' to shame when challenged with Olberic or H'aanit, who must fight all challenged [=NPCs=] alone. Every town and village is host to at least two or three such characters.

** Following the title shenanigans from the team behind ''VideoGame/BravelyDefault'', the word "Octopath" is every character's name's first letter tossed into it.

* MinorCrimeRevealsMajorPlot: Cyrus's story starts by tracking down a few stolen books, before revealing that one particularly dangerous tome went missing long before the minor crime occurred, leading to the rest of his adventure.

* MultiMeleeMaster: If a job (or combination of jobs) lets a character equip more than one type of weapon, they can switch between them in battle to target different vulnerabilities [[spoiler:This is exemplified with the hidden Warmaster job, which gives access to every weapon type at once.]]

* NonLethalKO: Even if Olberic or H'aanit fall in battle against an NPC they challenged with their Path Action, it won't count as a Game Over; they'll just reappear on the map with 1 HP. This also applies to any NPC you defeat in such a challenge.
* NonstandardCharacterDesign: When the main characters enter battle, they keep their small and simple overworld sprites, while enemies receive larger and more detailed ones. This is taken even further with boss characters, who receive extravagantly detailed sprites that take up a third of the screen. This is a throwback to some of the older ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' and ''VideoGame/{{SaGa|RPG}}'' games. Most foes that Olberic and H'aanit can challenge also use imitations of their overworld sprites when attacked.

* ObviousRulePatch: Enemies will always go first in a round after coming out of Break (consecutively performing all of their actions if they can move multiple times), even if they're under the effects of Leghold Trap, which makes enemies go last. This is so that the party can't indefinitely stun-lock a boss with the ability, which is cheap to cast and available almost immediately.

* CombatAndSupport: Any character with a ChoiceOfTwoWeapons (Tressa the Merchant, Olberic the Warrior, Therion the Thief, H'aanit the Hunter) is Combat, while the others (Ophilia the Cleric, Cyrus the Scholar, Primrose the Dancer, Alfyn the Apothecary) are Support, being more focused on healing, attack magic or buffing. On top of this, the Subjob system not only allows mixing-and-matching, but to a certain extent encourages it: as many Combat-oriented passive skills are hidden in the Support classes, and vice versa. "Saving Grace", allowing a character to be healed over their maximum HP and providing obvious value to frontline classes, can only be learned by grinding Cleric levels; and "SP Saver," which halves the ManaPoint cost of any spell, is found at the end of the Merchant class.

* AwesomeButImpractical: Automated sentries are convenient for when manpower fails, but they can be taxing to repair, and nearly impossible to do mid-fight. [[spoiler:Break Orlick's guardian in his boss fight and it will no longer respond to his commands to fight you. "But the guardian can move no more..."]]

* CombatAndSupport: Any character with a ChoiceOfTwoWeapons (Tressa, Olberic, Therion, H'aanit) is Combat, while the others (Ophilia, Cyrus, Primrose, Alfyn) are Support, being more focused on healing, attack magic or buffing. The whole Subjob system allows mixing-and-matching

** You ''cannot'' remove your starting character from the PlayerParty until you complete their Chapter 4 quest. Most people won't find this out until they actually get a fifth party member and attempt to trade out their starter, by which point they've spent five or ten hours on their playthrough. This is not a problem, ''per se'', since every character is ultimately useful, but if you're going to be stuck with someone, there are definitely certain characters it's more practical to be stuck ''with.''

** Cyrus' boss, Yvon, has [[RedEyesTakeWarning red eyes]], and everyone InUniverse knows he's a {{jerk|ass}}. However, nobody suspects him of being truly evil until Cyrus uncovers [[spoiler:his culpability in the theft of the tome ''From the Far Reaches of Hell'']], at which point Yvon [[spoiler:tries to kill both him and his pupil Therese [[HeKnowsTooMuch for knowing too much]]]].

** Gideon, the villain of Cyrus' second chapter. Cyrus' first chapter is relatively light-hearted and humorous, and its antagonist is just a thief trying to pay their gambling debts and eventually [[HeelFaceTurn Heel-Face Turns]]. Gideon, on the other hand, is a [[TheSociopath sociopathic]] [[MadScientist scientist]] who kills several innocents so that he can extract their blood to use in dark magic, and begins the transition to more serious threats for Cyrus to overcome.

* PrecisionFStrike:
** While the word itself is not actually used, it doesn't take much to guess what Primrose meant when she told Helgenish to "go pleasure yourself".

** When Primrose visits Stillsnow, [[spoiler:Arianna also calls herself one.]]

* '''Ophilia [[WhiteMage the Cleric]]''': A member of the Order of the Sacred Flame, Ophilia is on a pilgrimage known as the Kindling to reignite the sacred flame at holy sites across the realm. Ophilia's Path Action is ''Guide'', which lets her convince [=NPCs=] to follow her. This lets her lead them away from or towards destinations for a variety of purposes, as well as use them as an AssistCharacter within battle by using her Talent ''Summon''.

* '''Tressa [[IntrepidMerchant the Merchant]]''': A young woman who crosses paths with a traveling merchant one day, and decides that she also wants to explore the world to enjoy whatever treasures she may find while doing so. Tressa's Path Action is ''Purchase'', which lets her buy items from [=NPCs=]. Some of the items you can buy are only found this way, and some can be used to clear quest objectives. Her Talent is ''Eye for Money'', which randomly grants the party a small amount of money whenever Tressa enters a part of the overworld map.

* '''Primrose [[BellyDancer the Dancer]]''': The daughter of a noble house who was orphaned at a young age and now works as an dancer. Primrose's goal is to find the members of the mysterious organization known as the Crow Men that killed her father in the name of revenge. As a Dancer, Primrose can buff her allies, and she is capable of using both knives and Dark elemental magic. Primrose's Path Action is ''Allure'', the Rogue counterpart to Ophilia's Guide, meaning her reputation will suffer if she fails. She also shares the ''Summon'' talent with her.

* '''Therion [[TheSneakyGuy the Thief]]''': A thief who is recruited by a wealthy client to procure a set of rare gemstones. Therion’s Path Action is ''Steal'', the Rogue counterpart to Tressa’s Path Action Purchase. He is able to take items from [=NPCs=] for free, but as a Rogue action, there is a chance of failure, which will lower his reputation if he fails. His Talent, ''Pick Lock'', lets him open purple treasure chests in the overworld, which no one else can do.

A sequel to the game set in a new world, ''VideoGame/OctopathTravelerII'', is slated for a February 24, 2023 release. The sequel is set to be available on the Switch, PC via Steam, and UsefulNotes/PlayStation4 and UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, marking the first time an "HD-2D" game has seen a multi-platform launch and seen release on [=PlayStation=] hardware.

* BittersweetEnding: Primrose's ending. [[spoiler:Primrose finally avenges her father and effectively dismantles the Obsidians, but just as [[ArcVillain Simeon]] warned her, killing him and his enforcers [[VengeanceIsEmpty did nothing to ease her pain or bring her peace]], and now that her revenge is complete, she has no idea what to do with her life anymore. But with the Obsidians gone, a major evil has been wiped from Orsterra, and [[BigBad Lyblac]] has lost the primary enforcers of her will.]]

* JobSystem: Each character has their own job and is able to take on a subjob in order to expand their tactical options within battle.

* YeOldeButcheredEnglish: In the English translation, everyone from H'aanit's village speaks like this. (It doesn't reflect anything in the Japanese version, where they speak normally.) On the one hand, the game actually shows a surprising amount of thought, using Middle English -en infinitives. On the other hand, it still falls prey to the classic mistakes, like "he wouldst"[[note]]"wouldst" is only for "thou", otherwise it's still "would"[[/note]] and mixing formal and informal pronouns, like in "Hast '''thou''' ever knownst '''your''' master."[[note]]which also adds an extraneous -st onto "known"[[/note]]

* LightningWindJuxtaposition: A lot of Lightning-elemental enemies are weak to Wind, and vice versa. Furthermore, a post-game banter reveals that Tressa is afraid of thunder, which is an example of GameplayAndStoryIntegration because her primary job, Merchant, uses Wind spells.

* LighterAndSofter: Tressa's route compared to most of the others.

* YeOldeButcheredEnglish: On the one hand, the game actually shows a surprising amount of thought, using Middle English -en infinitives. On the other hand, it still falls prey to the classic mistakes, like "he wouldst"[[note]]"wouldst" is only for "thou", otherwise it's still "would"[[/note]] and mixing formal and informal pronouns, like in "Hast '''thou''' ever knownst '''your''' master."[[note]]which also adds an extraneous -st onto "known"[[/note]]

** A mild one. Finding the enemy weaknesses can be a bit of a chore, but then the game always follow a pattern on how to display them. [[spoiler:Weaknesses always display weapon type weakness first in order of their appearance in the equipment screen followed by elemental weakness in order of their appearance in the Scholar and Sorcerer skills. It goes as Sword -> Polearm -> Dagger -> Axe -> Bow -> Staff -> Fire -> Ice -> Lightning -> Wind -> Light -> Dark]]. The order of placement is important as it gives a hint on the preceding and succeeding weaknesses. So if, for example, an enemy weakness shows Axe and still has one more unknown weakness on its left, you have an easier time guessing what weakness the enemy could have.

* BitterSweetEnding: Primrose's ending. [[spoiler:Primrose finally avenges her father and effectively dismantles the Obsidians, but just as [[BigBad Simeon]] warned her, killing him and his enforcers [[VengeanceIsEmpty did nothing to ease her pain or bring her peace]], and now that her revenge is complete, she has no idea what to do with her life anymore. But with the Obsidians gone, a major evil has been wiped from Orsterra, and [[GreaterScopeVillain Lyblac]] has lost the primary enforcers of her will.]]