Octopath Traveler II

• Every character is viable as your first character, but the one you pick cannot leave the party until you finish their story, so make sure you like them and their abilities.

• Throne's a solid starting pick. A good balance of physical and magical stats means she pairs well with anyone else's job. She also starts near a good secondary job to unlock, as well as two solid early characters (the Scholar and Cleric specifically). Her Day/Night Path skills are also insanely useful in many situations.

• You can switch between day and night at will, which changes some NPC locations (as well as your character's path actions).

• Try and spread your attack types out amongst your group so you can break shields easier.

• The merchant gets special events where he finds good investment opportunities. One is a ship; it is critical you complete it as you get the ship for travel, but the oceans are higher level than you'll be able to handle when you first find it so you can wait.

• You only have to pay once to travel across the ocean. After that, you can fast travel between ports (and eventually whatever locations you find).

• Play all the character's chapter 1 when you find them. You'll get some levels and starting gear out of it, and the stories are good; they range from "alright" to "absolutely riveting".

• Gear is going to be your biggest way of boosting power, and has no level reqs. New characters can be given higher level stuff to get them up to speed while they catch up in levels.

• Level everybody up. It's tempting to have an A-Team, but you'll need everyone geared and levelled for the endgame or you will have a bad time.