Octopath Traveler 0 (Zero) is the latest mainline entry in Square Enix’s turn-based JRPG series, set to release on December 5. The 100-hour prequel to the franchise has a somewhat unique origin, as it’s a brand-new console game built on the foundations of a live-service mobile RPG called Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent (hereafter CotC). AUTOMATON recently had the opportunity to interview CotC and Octopath Traveler 0’s composer Yasunori Nishiki alongside director Yasuhiro Kidera and producer Hiroto Suzuki. An interesting point the developers brought up was the “fast food” or “beef bowl” approach used for the new RPG’s sound design.
How will Octopath Traveler 0’s soundtrack differ from past entries in the series? Nishiki uses a cooking analogy to explain: “Console games are like preparing a full-course meal, while live-service games are more like a beef bowl (gyūdon) or fast food. I consciously differentiate my mindset depending on the game.” He explains that, in the case of console games, players will sit down to play for several hours at a time, which means the way music is delivered should ideally follow a course-like structure – from appetizers, to the main dish, and finally, dessert.
On the other hand, with live-service mobile games, players tend to log in for shorter sessions, sometimes even for just 5 to 10 minutes a day. This means they might only hear one or two tracks at best. “That’s why I aim to create music that can leave players feeling like they’ve had a whole, satisfying meal even if they only play for five minutes,” Nishiki comments.
But which of these two will Octopath Traveler 0, a console game based on a mobile game, fall under? Producer Suzuki explains that all CotC tracks that will be making a reappearance in Zero were commissioned directly from him and director Kidera to Nishiki. And when creating additional tracks, the developers intentionally carried over what they learned from the mobile game, especially the idea of music that lets you “taste the flavor” immediately.
In the age of short-form entertainment, Suzuki says, players may not sit down for a whole full-course meal experience. “We don’t know if people will commit to a course meal in one go anymore,” he notes. That’s why the team leaned toward incorporating “addictive music” that will keep players wanting to come back and play more. In this sense, he describes their approach as closer to the aforementioned “fast-food-style music.”
Octopath Traveler 0 releases on December 5 for PC (Steam/Windows), PS5/PS4, Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, and Xbox Series X❘S.
