Top 10: Octopath Traveler Songs (Patreon)

I’m back from vacation and from battling some flu thing that’s been going around. Plumbershop Quartet is still slated for the beginning of December, but the jury’s out on whether it’ll be the first of the month or a few days later; I’ll keep you guys posted. In the meantime, let’s tackle another Top 10!

I’m quite the fan of the 2018 throwback JRPG Octopath Traveler (1), given that it’s my second-favorite game of its year beaten out only by a certain ultimate Smash Bros. But while I could talk at length about Octopath itself, this Top Ten is focusing entirely on what I feel is its strongest asset: the music. As a game composer, I have a particular appreciation for video game OSTs, and Octopath Traveler’s is absolutely among the best I’ve ever heard! Relative newcomer composer Yasunori Nishiki saw it fitting to craft a massive, melody-driven soundtrack for this game, and have the entirety of the game’s songs performed by live musicians. I cannot overstate how much this level of care added to the game, particularly when the music actively elevates other aspects of Octopath (such as its writing and storytelling). It was quite a task to narrow down the choices to a mere ten, but here they are!

10 - Battle II

Few things are worse than a tedious, repetitive battle theme in an RPG, since it’s the song you’ll almost certainly be hearing more than any other. Octopath knows you’re going to be fighting often, though, and treats the player to not one, not two, but three wholly unique normal battle themes across the game so you never get too tired of any one song! It’s a good thing, too, because it resulted in this catchy theme that goes in all sorts of unexpected directions. The first battle theme almost made the list, but it got edged out by this one. The rock beat drives the song while the violins keep things feeling classy.

9 - Bonds of Friendship

Octopath has a few different categories of song, from battle themes to field themes to village and character themes. But there are also cutscene themes, pieces of music that help emphasize emotion, levity and/or tension during story moments. Bonds of Friendship is my personal favorite of those, a beautiful little song that comes across as both playful and hopeful. This was one of the first themes I heard in the original demo that convinced me the music in this game was something special. Who doesn't love that piano/violin section at the 40 second point!? And the way it “borrows” another key (for want of a better phrase) at 1:18 is a common Nishiki technique that keeps his music interesting.

8 - My Quiet Forest Home

Sometimes you just need to Keep It Simple, Stupid, and this song conveys that rather delicately (and politely). Only two instruments are needed here, a single piano and…um, I wanna say viola? Not 100% sure which string instrument it is but either way they sound great, engaged in a dance between a longing melody and arpeggiating harmonies.

7 - Determination

This melody can be heard fairly early, but it’s its implementation in Primrose’s final chapter that really give it an extra boost. H’aanit’s story also features this theme a few times. While compositionally simple, it’s a dramatic, uplifting song that provides some intense atmosphere at key points. It’s also one of the few songs to get its own remix in the sequel, but that’s for another time.

6 - Decisive Battle II

Not content with giving us three battle themes, Octopath goes the extra mile and delivers a whopping six boss themes. All of them are great, but Decisive Battle II is definitely one of the best. It’s catchy and intense and goes great with the game’s battle system. It includes a neat little coda where the loop point would normally go, a fancy trick employed by several of the boss themes in the game.

5 - Olberic, the Warrior

It was tough not just putting all the character themes in this list and calling it a day, since they’re all extremely fitting and well-written. But in the end, I only included two, starting with this rich, noble tune. You can really feel Olberic’s combat history weighing upon him in this piece. The key changes are tastefully done and give some real weight to everything.

4 - Octopath Traveler -Main Theme-

The first song heard upon opening the game is one of the few that uses the full orchestra, and it really sets the stage for the adventure to come. Like much of the game’s soundtrack, the Octopath Traveler Main Theme is built on a strong melody that grows and evolves as it repeats. The end result is a grandiose, uplifting song that makes you yearn for adventure.

3 - Tressa, the Merchant

Here’s one I rarely hear people talk about, but I absolutely love it. This song is ridiculously catchy, full of personality, and it fits Tressa to a capital T. The harmonica is an inspired choice, and the general chord progression captures a wonderfully nostalgic feel that reminds me a bit of EarthBound’s Twoson theme. I don’t even mind the lack of a B-section because the main melody gets played in a variety of ways. Those triplets in the second refrain are my jam!

2 - The One They Call the Witch

Spoilers! The very last “new” song you hear in the game is this operatic behemoth. They went all out for this song—latin chorus, full orchestra, and a belting soprano that drives home the point that this is indeed the end. This pair of songs is all about being dramatic and awesome, and they friggin’ nailed it! Good thing, too, because you’ll be listening to it for like an hour as you repeatedly claw your way back from the abyss during the most difficult RPG battle of your life. At least your ears’ll be happy!

1 - Battle at Journey’s End

It's a close one but over time I've decided I prefer this theme to #2 on this list. But even though it's not quite as boisterous or "heavy," the Chapter 4 boss theme really pulls out all the stops in letting you know a lot lies on the line. It’s got a great feeling of intensity, particularly when the trumpets blare the melody—and then the recorder (of all instruments) just goes wild after the key change! The drum part during the bridge is similarly intense, as is the coda with all those upbeats.

I’d also like to point out here that the Octopath games do a neat trick in having each of the characters’ themes play as a sort of intro into the boss music. This is done by making a (short) version of each in the correct key and tempo, and then having them transition seamlessly once the battle begins. It’s slick as heck. Slick, I say!

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I'm a pretty nostalgic fellow, almost to a fault. A lot of my favorite things (games, movies, shows, etc) are stuff that may or may not be on a pedestal due to their novelty at the time or what have you. As such, there are few gaming soundtracks that really stick with me these days, but Octopath Traveler and its sequel are exceptions. Not only are they great modern-day OSTs, but they rival my all-time favorites in the medium. Hope you enjoyed this Top 10, and please stick around for more updates! One day I may do a Top 10 for the sequel's songs, but I'd prefer to cover some other series first.

Lastly, if you like the music in these games and are a fan of physical media, you might consider importing the 4-CD set. It gets a lot of play in my car!

-Matthew