The latter half of 2026 has seen an absolutely deluge of RPG ports to Switch 2 courtesy of Square Enix. There doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get to them all, but if you’re a fan of turn-based RPGs, the Octopath Traveler series is absolutely worth a look. Eight short years ago, we were still wondering if the title would be the most talked about aspect of the first Octopath Traveler, but once the game released, its eight characters with their own individual stories–combined with an amazing soundtrack and thrilling battle system–more than held their own. While most would see two games that have followed since as weaving more compelling stories, the debut is still a much satisfying turn-based affair.

From the outset, you have the option of choosing your starting party member from the eight available, each one belonging to a standard RPG class. When I first played Octopath Traveler, I was delighted that my first pick went to Cyrus, a scholar versed in elemental magic. I heard stories from friends about how their opening hours were a bit more challenging for having chosen the hunter H’aanit or the apothecary Alfyn, whose abilities take a bit more effort to make effective. For my Switch 2 playthrough, I started with one of my favourite travelers, the warrior Olberic. The choose-your-own-adventure concept has been one I’ve gravitated towards ever since the original Final Fantasy, and it was refreshing to revisit Octopath 1 with a new order of operations in mind.

The Switch 2 version of Octopath Traveler appears to reach the same targets as Octopath Traveler 0, which is 1080p and 60fps. There are some small dips in the frame rate during more intense battle sequences, but as a whole the experience is a really smooth one. Given that the Switch 1 version runs at 30fps and only 720p, there is a noticeable jump in resolution and performance. The load times seem to be slightly reduced here as well.

Of course, like we’ve mentioned in reviews of other recent Square Enix RPG ports to Switch 2, there is again no upgrade path here. Switch 1 owners of Octopath Traveler will have to fork out the full cost for the Switch 2 version, with no upgrade path or save data transfer. The bump in visuals and frame rate make for a more aesthetically pleasing experience for sure, but to loosely coin Breaking Bad’s Jesse Pinkmin: “[they] can’t keep getting away with this!” I guess not every company is going to be as generous as CD Projekt Red, unfortunately.

For those who have never played an Octopath Traveler, there are threads in the first game that get tugged on gently in Octopath 2 and much more strongly in Octopath 0. It’s a satisfying turn-based RPG in its own right, and I thoroughly enjoyed it back in 2018, but if you are only planning to play one or two of these games, the sequel and prequel are the better options than the debut. If you’re down for everything under the RPG sun, Octopath Traveler is worth the price of admission, but maybe not if you’ve already played it elsewhere.