At its best, Octopath Traveler reminds me of my favorite 16-bit role-playing games. Strategic turn-based combat tests your skills, a job system gives you the freedom to tinker and optimize, and a fantastic retro aesthetic brings the world and creatures to life.

The game is a love-letter to classic RPGs of the SNES era as the CSM review states. I would like to point out, however, there is more sexual innuendo in the game than the review let's on.

Available exclusively on Nintendo Switch There's something special about returning to JRPGs of old, whether it's to relive iconic stories or relish in mechanics that have long since been left behind.

Fun and accessible combat system; Plenty of varied; well-written characters; So much variety in its world; Soundtrack is excellent

Grinding isn't for everyone; Opening hours are a bit slow; Retro influences aren't always positive

Eight strangers travel together in Octopath Traveler, combining their efforts to overcome foes and sharing their stories and challenges with each other. If The Canterbury Tales and a classic JRPG had a baby, it would look quite a lot like this game.

Gorgeous HD-2D art style; Engaging turn-based battles; Flexible party and jobs system; Some nice individual stories

Sluggish opening chapters; The eight stories don't link up convincingly; H'aanit's Middle English

The makers of Bravely Default bring an exclusive new Japanese role-player to Nintendo Switch and it's the perfect mix of old and new.

Impressively open-ended in terms of everything from exploration to character customisation; Engrossing battle system that stays interesting throughout the whole game; Great visual style

The storytelling and dialogue is weak, with limited voice-acting of a similarly poor quality; Some odd graphical glitches

What is in a name Some JRPGs have absolutely weird names that never seem to get explained. Octopath Traveler is quite a mouthful, but it at least makes sense. Octopath, besides being eight paths, is the first letter of each character's name: Ophelia, Cyrus, Tressa, Olberic, Primrose, Alfyn, Therion...

Strong cast of characters; English and Japanese voice acting; Solid tactical combat system

Random difficulty spikes between characters; Shops are not always the best place for gear; Not all story sections are voiced; Guide actions border on busywork

It's no easy task to combine the old with the new; gamers may yearn for the good old days, but few things will turn even the most nostalgic retrogamer off like dated mechanics and tedious gameplay.

Gorgeous retro-modern graphics; 50+ hours of gameplay; plus sidequests; Strategic; turn-based; only occasionally monotonous combat; Unique characters; abilities; and skill sets

Surprisingly little and limited character interaction; Some character stories are stronger than others; Grinding is required

Octopath Traveler is unapologetically old-school, and would not have been out of place if it had released back in the golden age of JRPGs.

Incredible music and art; deep and strategic gameplay; strong cast of characters; character Path Actions make trips into town exciting

No real overarching story that involves all eight characters; can be grindy between chapters; chapter structure can get repetitive

Octopath Traveler lovingly embraces old-school RPG conventions while offering its own refreshingly modern take. Through placing sprites in 3D environments, incorporating a separate storyline for each party member, and spicing up battles with fist-pumping turn-based combat, Square Enix makes bold...

Now I must say that up until now, I have never played a ‘turn-based' JRPG (though I did get introduced to the JRPG genre earlier in the year with Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom ). I've been gaming for over 30 years, so it's quite mad to think that this beloved genre has eluded me over the years.

Beautiful 16-bit HD visuals in a 2D/3D hybrid world; Sublime soundtrack; Brilliant voice-cast; Great replay value that will have you playing as all 8 characters

JRPG's aren't for everyone