@r_hjort
Gah, that chapter broke me. Definitely one of those memorable gaming moments.

@TriforceBun
It was rough, and right after that I played through Osvald's fourth chapter, and that was just as messed up.

Osvald spent years thinking his wife and child had been burned alive, only to suddenly find out that his wife hadn't died in the fire, and there's hope that she's still around as some sick experiment, and then he learns that no, she's dead for real, she was actually murdered after the experiments, but hey, the kid is still alive! Except she's also a lab rat now, and has been Stockholm syndromed into thinking of her mother's murderer as her father, to make her more accepting of the experiments and to cause Osvald even more anguish as an added bonus. Emotional rollercoaster doesn't begin to describe it. It's so nuts that it would have come off as parody in a lesser game.

EDIT: Oh yeah, and when I was done there I got back into Throné's story, and that sure goes places. Some dark, dark places.

Before I started playing I wasn't sure if the game would have a plot line that could rival Primrose's from the first game, but right now it feels as if at least five or six plot lines in Octopath 2 are on the same level. Damn game just keeps getting better. Battles are getting more challenging, field abilities are starting to feel more organic, new locations always bring some new flavour and the soundtrack keeps growing on me.

@r_hjort

Osvald's story was absolutely one of the highlights for me. I've made him an Arcanist and he's been on my team since the moment I could get him there. I think he was my third character and he stuck around.

Throne's story was also a favorite.

I liked Partitio's a lot more than I expected to.

Just beat all of the characters' main tales, and now I'll save up all the post game stuff for my vacation. Absolutely amazing game, a contemporary RPG classic and one of the best old school type JRPGs I've played.

It's not just that the gameplay is solid and that the progression is on point, making it addictive to play, it's also how the game sells every little scenario it presents to you, making your think about the characters and tales even when you're not playing.The game world is tied together in such a subtle but convincing way, main characters' and NPCs' backstories and fates are intertwined in ways that are often mundane, but also integral to major plotlines. It's not perfect, but it is quite brilliant still.

DrFinkelstein said:

@r_hjort

Osvald's story was absolutely one of the highlights for me. I've made him an Arcanist and he's been on my team since the moment I could get him there. I think he was my third character and he stuck around.

Throne's story was also a favorite.

I liked Partitio's a lot more than I expected to.

Throné's story was the one I saved for last, and I'm glad I did. It's hard for me to say which stories are better than others, but I do feel like that one has to be in my top three. Those final locations and plot developments were nuts in a good way. Could have built a whole RPG around her story. Or Osvald's. Or Partitio's. Or Castti's. Or...yeah. I guess that's the game's whole deal, but still.

I have to say I loved Temenos and his story, too. Had to google to see if anyone else read an unspoken gayness into his interactions with Crick, and it turns out I'm not alone. Makes Crick's death even more tragic, if that's possible. This game just doesn't pull any punches, and I respect it.

After way too many months and way too many other games, I decided to go back into Octopath Traveler II for the post-game stuff. It's just like coming home.

Went around the world and completed some sidequests, just to get back into the world and its lore, and it's still great. Went back to the Leaflands to set the final main quest in motion and watched the whole camping sequence. Didn't have the same emotional impact that its Chrono Trigger counterpart does, partly because of nostalgia, I guess, but also in part because this is one of the few times we see our main cast get together like this, but it was still a good scene leading into the last parts of the game.

Will be interesting to see how this all ends.