Update: Octopath Traveler 2 is set to be released in 2024 on Xbox Game Pass in 2024
September 28th, 2023. After this piece has been published, Xbox has updated its interview below, with an explanation of the fact that Octopath Traveler 2 will not be available for Xbox Game Pass from 2024. However, it will be available on Xbox consoles more broadly.
After an impressive show during the Tokyo Game Show, it’s evident that Xbox has been trying to reach out to gamers from the Japanese as well as the Asian market. Microsoft has always been more successful in the West, but with Sony and Nintendo taking over others, Xbox has pushed more to be more successful than ever.
The ongoing effort shows that it is not slowing down, and the very loved JRPG sequel Octopath Traveler 2 is set to release the first day of Xbox Game Pass when its exclusive gaming console release for Nintendo Switch ends next year.
This is a clear indication not just of Game Pass’ might in providing games to broader viewers but also of the seriousness with which Microsoft intends to expand its reach in the Asian market. In the final phases, the company’s Activision merger is a great moment to play Xbox.
Are you planning to participate in Octopath Traveler 2 when it is released via Game Pass in 2024?
The Octopath Traveler 2’s Game Pass release announcement comes thanks to an Xbox Wire interview with Sarah Bond, the Corporate Vice President of Xbox.
In the video interview, the Xbox Wire Japan interviewer confirms by asking Bond that Octopath Traveler 2 will join Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Changed His Name when it launches in Game Pass. It is believed to be a day one Game Pass release, though Octopath Traveler 2 initially launched on Switch in February 2023.
Although there’s no confirmed launch date, we expect it to be sometime in February 2024. This is one year since Octopath Traveler 2 first launched. It’s logical because Nintendo linked the game to a one-year exclusive console contract.
“Game Pass enables creators to reach players who may otherwise have not known about the game or been able to afford to buy every single game out there,” Bond mentions in the piece. It certainly is the intention here: increase the exposure of Octopath Traveler 2 to all Game Pass subscriber base.
This announcement comes amid new information about Microsoft’s acquisition of Call of Duty publisher Activision. This week, the purchase was granted provisional approval from UK regulators. This was the final obstacle before the deal could be completed.
