When Square Enix announced Octopath Traveler 0, my first read was that they took the mobile game Champions of the Continent and un-gachafied it. That, on its own, would be a grand achievement. Even though I loved my 100+ hours played in Champions, a true single-player campaign sounded like a great idea to me. My chief concern, however, was the sheer amount of repeated content. Especially when it came to the main story and the music.
At the tail end of 2025, just after the game’s launch, Square Enix published the Octopath Traveler 0 Original Soundtrack. And frankly? I was surprised. Delighted, even. Yes, there is still plenty of music lifted from Champions of the Continent—all found on the second of the soundtrack’s two CDs, totaling about 40 percent of 0‘s full OST. They are some of the best tracks from CotC, but we’ll get back to those. Let’s take things in order.
The “Octopath Traveler 0 -Main Theme-” is a genuine triumph. Remember: Yasunori Nishiki handled composition and orchestral arrangement for all tracks. Impressive as violinist Atsuki Yoshida and his team are with the strings, it’s all under Nishiki’s guidance. Together, they make an unstoppable team. This new, original melody is haunting, perfect, and lively. It is something entirely different from the previous two main Octopath Traveler themes. The castanets alone make for a lively addition, bringing the 6/8 dance to a whole new level.
Nishiki then expands on the main theme in four separate tracks: “Fury,” “Sorrow,” “Compassion,” and
“Requiem.” These are elaborated, but softer, versions of the main theme: “Fury” and “Sorrow” maintain emphasis on piano and strings, while “Compassion” goes the guitar route. “Requiem” puts the violin front and center, and the tempo slows even more. We even get a pipe organ (likely synthesized through keyboard). It’s a nice touch.
After a tender interlude called “Chronicles of the Guardians of Light,” where Nishiki modulates between minor and major keys, we get the full “Wishvale” suite. For those not in the know, Wishvale is the town you build from scratch in Octopath Traveler 0 with new recruits, not unlike the base forts in the Suikoden series. The vanilla “Wishvale” theme maintains the 6/8 time signature of the main theme, but slower and with a decidedly uplifting major key.
Having said that, I think the variants of “Wishvale” are stronger than the original. My favorite is “For the Future,” featuring a beautiful balance of piano and strings and just the right amount of reverb to fill the silence. Fans of Nishiki’s environment themes from Octopath Traveler II, specifically, will love this one. “Prosperous Days Ahead” and “A Utopian Town” are polar opposites, with the former being a full musical celebration, while the utopian variant is ominous, sometimes wandering into diminished harmonies.
“Wishvale Trail” provides the player/listener a warm soundscape filled with swelling strings and light percussion, as well as that beautiful trademark piano and the surprise reverse-note sound Nishiki loves to sneak into environmental themes. This track is an absolute gem. However, things go from warm to dark in a hurry with “Choices to Make.” At this point, we’re digging deeper into the darker themes of Octopath Traveler 0‘s story. The harmony builds in an exceptional four-chord form, starting on a minor key and sneaking toward something hopeful before crashing back to the fear and anxiety. To release that tension, thankfully, we have a flurry of battle themes up next.
“Battle 0” is the standard battle music. But friends, these battle tracks are anything but standard; this isn’t weak, mediocre battle music. This is a rock band meeting Atsuki Yoshida’s string ensemble, and it’s a fantastic mix. Even more surprising is “Battle 0-2,” a mid-tempo 6/8 with great melodic trades between guitar and violin. If you like those frontier vibes found in, say, Partitio’s story (OT2), you’re going to love this one. Yet another musical treasure.
After the quick musical sting “Staking One’s Life,” it’s time for some boss battle music! “Decisive Battle 0” cranks up the intensity with some great motifs calling back to prior Octopath Traveler 0 melodies, now with a rapid tempo and string ensemble running up and down their natural range. At around the 90 second mark, the ensemble pulls back for a brief acoustic guitar interlude before the whole team jumps back in. The drums sound spectacular on this track as well!
Disc One ends on a lovely, slow, memorable map theme: “The Middlesea.” This is another track that showcases Yasunori Nishiki’s incredible ability to bring walls of warm sound to the listener, this time with a mix of wind and brass. The shift in instrumentation at this point, after many piano and string pieces, is truly a nice touch.
Okay, now for the incredibly awesome, but ultimately re-used, part in Octopath Traveler 0. If you haven’t experienced Champions of the Continent as its own experience (and the servers are still up, so maybe think about it!!), you’re in for a treat. “Master of Wealth” is an incredible theme featuring operatic vocals representing the exorbitant wealth of the villain Herminia. “Master of Power” is the theme song for Tytos the Thunderblade, and the vocals here feel like a hymn sped up to match a rip-roaring battle theme.
“Master of Fame,” the musical theme for the ‘marvelous!’ Auguste, is a dangerously up-tempo wonder with focus on the strings and great backing from brass and percussion. Finally, wrapping up the first story arc of CotC, we have “Master of All,” the imposing theme for one of the greatest villains I’ve yet seen in the Octopath Traveler series, King Pardis. The mixed choir, rock band, string ensemble, and low horns weaving in and out all let the player know that they are in for a fight. What a fantastic set of music.
But wait, there’s more! So much more. The second story arc offers up the “bestowers” instead of the masters. And these villains are absolutely unforgettable. The “Bestower of Wealth” is the elusive Oskha the Have-Not, a dark character with complicated motives. His tactics in beguiling an entire city remind me of No-Face from Spirited Away. Musically, the dark mix of choir, saxophone, and a shocking 5/8 time signature make Oskha’s theme one of the most musically complex from CotC, and a great addition to Octopath Traveler 0.
But, oh goodness, if Oskha is good, wait until you hear Tatloch’s theme “Bestower of Power.” This villain is a treat, and easily one of my favorite characters from these games. The nasal, chant-like vocals are impressive enough on their own, and the “hoo!” grunts from the strong men (whose life force Tatloch is sure to steal) sound great as well. This one comes in a straight 4/4 common time, but the full-force syncopation is strong enough to make you forget this.
“Bestower of Fame” is, musically, my least favorite of this trio. Nonetheless, it is a character/battle theme for a very interesting character, Ceraphina the Charitable. The storytelling here is top-notch, moving from those who would claim hold over wealth/power/fame to those who claim to give it away. Friends, we are living in the right timeline to have access to such great music, paired with such a great game. Even though this isn’t my favorite of the CotC tracks, it’s still a force to be reckoned with, especially when the organ kicks in against the rock band.
There are still four more tracks from Champions of the Continent awaiting us. First up is “Who Awaits on Greed’s Path,” featuring some incredible vocals from Kaon Kokudo. I don’t want to spoil the context for this battle theme. It’s just… wow. This intense piece of music fits the moment so well. It’s a tough call, but this might be the single best pull from CotC onto Octopath Traveler 0.
“Bestower of Despair” hints at what’s to come in the final confrontation, but the party is far from done when this fight occurs. There’s a motif here that we’ll be hearing again. The added layer of “Despair” for the bestower line (that the master line lacked) tells you that there’s more to come.
“Orsazantos, the Creator” and “Bestower of All” give away everything you need to know about how this goes down. In Champions of the Continent, these two battle themes mark the end of the game’s second story arc, and hoo boy, what an ending. Between these two pieces of music, I think “Bestower of All” takes the cake. Even so, I think I keep finding myself going back to “Who Awaits on Greed’s Path,” and maybe “Bestower of Power,” as the best tracks from CotC.
However… Octopath Traveler 0 does not end where Champions of the Continent does. No, friends. There is more. And musically, it is a tasty treat!
After a haunting piano & vocal interlude via “The Dark God Awakens,” Yasunori Nishiki cranks the amplifiers to 11 with “Returning All to Nil.” No expense is spared. No instrument is off the table. This is an eight-minute battle theme on par with OT2‘s “Vide, the Wicked.” When the Soprano and Tenor duo (Keiko Tatsumi, Yuta Tanaka) jump in, my brain explodes. And don’t even get me started on the guitar solo. This track is one for the ages. I’d pay good money to hear it live.
The above experience is duplicated, now with “Lighting the Flame” serving as the transition piece (a la “Dark God Awakens”) as it accelerates into “Those Summoned from Nil.” This final battle theme is not quite as impressive as “Returning All to Nil,” if only because there are no vocals this time. But the clever use of the Octopath Traveler 0 main theme woven throughout this battle theme makes it quite the treat, and absolutely a solid capstone experience for those seeking the ultimate battle.
The Octopath Traveler 0 Original Soundtrack closes on a vocal track: “Yet I Carry On -Ending Theme of Octopath Traveler 0-,” sung by Kaon Kokudo in English. Interestingly, even though English and Japanese lyrics are found in the liner notes, there is no Japanese version performed here. The English lyrics fit the game’s theme very well (shout-out to lyricist Tim Law!). Musically, this is also a restatement of the Octopath Traveler 0 main theme, though I think I may have heard a nod to the OT1 main theme as well…?
Well, friends, that’s the whole shebang. If you wanted to know what the Octopath Traveler 0 OST offered, now you know. I would still make the case that purchasing the two Champions of the Continent volumes is the better option, but… I don’t know. “Returning All to Nil” and the Octopath Traveler 0 main theme might be enough to tip the scales.
