Not necessarily, I also thought Octopath was overly complex as well, but loved Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
The difference between them is that XC2’s complexity yields diverse outcomes that fit into a strategy, while Octopath Traveler is a complex input with an incredibly simple outcome. OT was complex for the sake of being complex.
Also, too many battles. That OT demo seemed to have more battles in 5 hours than XC2 had in 60.
I describe myself as a little dose of toxic masculinity.