The announcement of Octopath Traveler 2 has been a pleasant surprise indeed. The first game wasn't perfect, but it was a perfect combination of age-old JRPG mechanics along with modern innovations that looked absolutely beautiful. It was a great game for fans of the genre which had three huge strengths to rely on — its beautiful HD-2D design, the combat system that absolutely shone during the boss fights, and the stellar music.

RELATED: Octopath Traveler: Best Weapons Of Every Type (& Where To Find Them)

While the sequel still has many things going for it, there's no denying that a few improvements need to be made for this game to make it truly exceptional. Octopath Traveler was certainly a great game in its own right, but there are still some aspects of the title that need to be reworked for the sequel to not be burdened by the same problems that plagued its predecessor.

8 The Multiple Stories Need To Be More Connected

Octopath Traveler A Miner Dilemma Stonemonger NPC menu

Octopath Traveler had the unique concept of telling different stories for each of the eight protagonists, encompassing everything from a revenge plot to a coming-of-age story and doing so in a pretty impressive. However, while the individual stories are pretty well-told and fleshed out in their own right, this does come at a cost.

The stories are so individually contained that the rest of the party members feel like backseat viewers of what's happening in that particular tale. As a result, it feels pretty jarring to see a party of four have absolutely no reaction to one of their friends having a major breakthrough and fighting against a person who's been a thorn in someone's side for so long.

7 The True Ending Should Be Easier To Access

Octopath Traveler Galdera

Octopath Traveler has individual endings for each character that end on a decently satisfying note. However, all the plot threads of the characters lead to one common point that can be discovered with a fair bit of effort.

RELATED: Octopath Traveler: Every Forbidden Weapon & How To Acquire Them

However, to access the true ending, players need to get through a grueling boss rush before fighting the hardest boss in the game. Most JRPGs use superbosses as optional challenges to not frustrate players and lock them away from experiencing the entire story, and it's a shame that Octopath Traveler doesn't follow suit here. Perhaps the sequel can make it so that the true ending of the game can be experienced without any issues, while more challenging foes end up becoming completely optional encounters.

6 Voice Acting Needs To Improve

solistia-octopath-traveler-2

Japanese games have a pretty rocky history when it comes to English voice acting, with most games having pretty shoddy voice direction that leads to the performances feeling rather stilted, at times. This is the case in Octopath Traveler as well, where the voice acting feels rather forced and unnatural in many instances due to the voice direction being all over the place.

Octopath Traveler 2 can make some major strides to make the localization more pleasing to hear. This can prove to be a major hurdle to get over, but the game can definitely be more enjoyable to play with engaging vocal performances.

5 Regular Battles Should Be Less Random

Octopath Traveler Sorcerer

Random battles have pretty much become a thing of the past in most JRPGs. Most modern games let players see enemies in the overworld, letting them either escape them or engage them in battle.

This choice isn't present in Octopath Traveler, forcing players into random encounters after a few steps in dungeons or the overworld. This design is pretty archaic, and fans can hope that Octopath Traveler 2 sheds this part of its otherwise immaculately designed game.

4 The Narrative Structure Should Be More Complex

octopath-traveler-2-solistia-orsterra

In a bid to tell unique individual stories, the narratives of each character in Octopath Traveler end up relying on a bunch of cliches and tropes to deliver a decent story. While this got the job done, it didn't amount to anything extraordinary either.

These simple stories should be replaced with more complex and interconnected narratives in the sequel. This way, not only will the stories be more riveting and memorable, but they'll help every party member feel like an integral part of the tale instead of just turning them into bystanders.

3 More Extra Jobs For The Player To Find

Octopath Traveler gameplay screenshot of characters speaking

Octopath Traveler has a wealth of jobs that players can unlock in the game. Aside from the eight jobs that each member of the party already has, players can also unlock four more special jobs that are absolutely incredible in the game.

RELATED: Octopath Traveler: Every Battle-Tested Weapon & How To Acquire Them

Unlocking them is almost mandatory if players want to defeat Galdera since this task is almost impossible without these special jobs. As a result, the party feels rather lopsided with four members being way stronger than their counterparts. The new game should try and add more special jobs, especially if it wants to add more challenging optional encounters as well.

2 The Overarching Narrative Should Play A Much Greater Role

optopath traveler 2 screenshot full party

After completing all eight stories, players will get the opportunity to defeat the true final boss of the game. However, before this battle, players have to go through a gauntlet of eight boss fights that dump a ton of exposition on the player to get them up-to-date on how all the narratives connect in the game.

It's a neat idea that is executed rather haphazardly in Octopath Traveler. If the sequel is wishing to improve on its story, then making the overarching narrative more central to the plot and motivations of the eight party members would be a good place to start.

1 A More Natural Way For All The Protagonists To Team Up

Octopath Traveler cast

The manner in which all eight party members of Octopath Traveler team up is pretty weird indeed. Players need to go to different towns regardless of the motivations of their main selected protagonist and listen to the backstories of each character in a rather awkward fashion.

There needs to be a better reason for the eight party members to join forces, which is something the sequel should work on. As it stands, the first Octopath Traveler doesn't even try too hard and just lets the characters form a team regardless of their personalities and objectives.

Octopath Traveler 2 will be available for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and PC.

MORE: Octopath Traveler: Everything You Need To Know About Secret Jobs