Square Enix surprised fans of its acclaimed “HD-2D” RPG Octopath Traveler by announcing Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent. The new game will release in 2019 on Android and iOS operating systems in Japan.
The company describes the game as a “free-to-play single-player RPG” with the story taking place several years before the original game. The story features a new group of characters. The player gets to choose from three protagonists and is referred to as the “Chosen One.” The narrative follows their adventures to prevail over evil forces abusing fame, power, and wealth.
From the trailer, it looks like much of the gameplay is similar. The game features eight-character battles with a similar look and feel to the Switch game’s battle style, including the Break and Boost systems. The control scheme is now touch- and swipe-based to lend itself to being played on a mobile device. The “Path Actions” from the original game also return, although they are now called “Field Commands.” The trailer shows some of the commands, and they are similar to Octopath Traveler’s — players have the option to steal items, listen for information, or hire allies, to name a few. The game will have some microtransaction elements, though the extent of these purchases is still not yet known.
Square Enix is taking pre-registration for the game as well as a chance to sign up to test the beta of the game on its website starting March 12. As of right now, this offer is only for Japan, as there is no North American release or translation currently confirmed.
This news came along with the announcement that the series has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. For fans hoping for another console game, the team added that there is one in the works, but the production is taking longer than expected.
