Anime titles created by Shonen Jump are full of surprises. Titles like Naruto, Bleach, Gintama, and Dragon Ball have recently undergone unexpected changes not only on the big screen but also received video game adaptations. Among them is one series known as One Piece and recently, Bandai Namco has released their newest JRPG for this year known as One Piece Odyssey.
One Piece Odyssey is an all-new JRPG developed by Namco Bandai that utilizes turn-based combat with great combat animation and storyline. The game centers around Luffy and his Straw Hat crew being stranded on a mysterious island known as Waford. Upon their arrival, they meet a young girl who suddenly touches them and steals their abilities.
In order to solve this problem, they have to not only search for cube fragments that have their abilities, but also relive all of their big adventures such as their fights in Alabasta, Dressrosa, and the historic fight in Marineford. I love the direction of the game’s story that didn’t fall short with its humor, and I appreciate how original the narrative was.
Though the story was good, I am really sad that some iconic scenes were not included in the game. I really wish that they wouldn’t exclude ones like the Death of Whitebeard, The arrival of Sabo, and even Blackbeard’s appearance in Alabasta. These scenes played a crucial role in telling how these memories came to be and what troubles they will face in the near future.
One Piece Odyssey lets players control different members of the Straw Hat Pirates. Each member of the crew has different abilities that allow players to explore the islands and cities that the crew has explored before. Examples of their abilities are Luffy’s Haki, Nami’s Treasure Hunting skills, Usopp’s sniping skills, and Sanji’s cooking skills. All of them are essential in surviving as a member of Luffy’s crew and overcoming odd obstacles.
In terms of combat, the game utilizes turn-based combat with rock-paper-scissors gameplay. Each Straw Hat pirate has a certain set of battle skills or abilities that either are effective or ineffective. Each battle skill used has a unique animation that is worth watching and personally, I love the dedication to it but I felt that the combat system was too easy and needs a certain adjustment in the difficulty level.
There are side missions in the game to help players get stronger. Many of these side activities are fun, however, most of the time they end up being repetitive. I would have preferred to take on missions that are more challenging with less repetition.
If Bandai Namco wants this franchise to grow, they should put more content that revolves around combat but focus on the exploration part such as finding items, treasure hunting, or the use of Sanji’s cooking skills.
Both the art and music direction of One Piece Odyssey sticks to what One Piece fans loved about the franchise. ILCA stayed true to its source material as environments found in the Alabasta to the Dressrosa arc are nostalgic and rendered wonderfully for the PlayStation 5.
As a fan, I can say that I’m really amazed by the dedication that the studio put into creating such an impressive take on a popular anime franchise. In fact, every aspect developed in the game was made not only for fans but also for those who want to get into One Piece.
One Piece Odyssey runs pretty solid on the PS5. While there are only minor issues such as visual bugs that center around battle animations and a few voice lines, these aren’t game-breaking and shouldn’t be a bugger that will affect your experience.
One Piece Odyssey is an adventure game made for fans of the show. It is full of memories cut from the various arcs of the epic story. The game would’ve been better if it had better side mission contents, new characters, and in-game items that would be beneficial for the players. I’m excited to see what Bandai and ILCA can do in their sequel and I’m hoping there is one.
