If we talk about intellectual properties from the Land of the Rising Sun, nowadays it is not easy to find something more relevant than One Piece. The great work of Eiichiro oda is now as fundamental as the immortal Dragon Ball in the exhausting shonen universe, and its cult status is consolidated to the point of having led to an expansion far beyond the inked pages of a manga or the colorful episodes of a successful souls .
A large number of ideas and characters like this should, at least on paper, also give life to very high quality video games, on the other hand there are very few names capable of marrying with the same grace with the world of action or games RPG; However, One Piece seems to suffer from the same curse as many other Japanese-made brands, inevitably plagued by rapid expansionism and the very strict copyright regulations of the companies that control them: a production chain of often rushed titles and limited, which certainly cannot do justice. to the original material. Of course, in the mix of video games created with the Oda universe as a base there is no shortage of notable works, but if we take into account that the most critically acclaimed is a free to play mobile phone, in addition to the fact that we have not yet taken the hassle of properly attempting the role-playing route, we can only shake our heads at an ocean of sadly unexplored potential.
However, something must have moved in recent years in the area. Bandai Namco, because investments in so-called "manga games" have increased exponentially, giving life to creatures with production values and passion clearly superior to the pale imitations of the past. From this change of direction (yes, with a pirate game the word games are almost automatic, we apologize) emerges One Piece Odyssey: finally a JRPG developed by that ILCA which in recent times - thanks also to the experience acquired in countless different projects - seems to aggressively want to carve out a niche for itself in this complex and increasingly competitive genre. We've been playing it almost non-stop over the past few days, and as long-time fans of the saga, we'd like to tell you right away: One Piece Odyssey is not a masterpiece, but for a very holy time it is. a game with soul capable of satisfying everyone a little.
Let's see how the ILCA developers have navigated these turbulent waters, on our own. One Piece Odyssey Review.
Narrative: fanservice to the cube
La fiction from One Piece Odyssey is immediately curious, in fact it lives in a strange duality, which on the one hand makes it absolutely brilliant as a structural basis for the entire campaign of the game, but at the same time it turns out to be half a mess comparable to the classic "episodes "filling" of souls. Let's understand, the fact that the story of this JRPG had to be something detached from the events officially narrated in the manga was absolutely inevitable, however ILCA wanted at all costs to offer fans a complete experience, through such a banal idea. as functional. .
It all begins when Luffy and his men get caught in an unnatural storm after spotting a strange island in the distance; Struck by a gigantic icy lightning bolt and thrown onto the islet by unnatural currents, our men discover they have ended up on the mysterious Waford, a place full of cutting-edge technologies and apparently uninhabited. Emphasis on "appearance", because, during a battle with a huge metal giant, the Straw Hats meet a girl named Lim who, recognizing them as pirates, deprives them of their abilities with a touch and scatters them in the shape of cubes for the entire island. After clarifying that they have no malicious intent, the group teams up with the girl and a scout named Adio to regain their strength and solve Waford's secret, only there are much more dangerous powers at play than initially realized. ...
As can be easily understood, the file that justifies a progression from a JRPG in a game that chronologically would already take place long after the Dressrosa saga (with protagonists, therefore, already exaggeratedly powerful) is precisely the power of Lim described above: thank you to the girl, the crew begins this adventure weakened and unable to use their abilities in battle, so they are forced to listen to the instructions of Adio (curiously the only one who has a plan on what to do). However, in a twist worthy of the highest roller, the development team has decided to expand Lim's "magic" to the point of allowing him to create real alternate dimensions based on the memories of the touched pirates, which represent the main trick to making One .Piece Odyssey a truly complete experience for fans. In fact, the only way to fully regain lost strength is Relive some of the manga's highlights, modified to make sense in the new context; a blessing to ensure fans experience the most iconic battles and most moving scenes in the Oda universe.
For God's sake, we are well aware that this is pure fanservice, however, we find it very difficult to criticize a similar trick here. It's by all accounts the easiest way to reconnect to the main plot without any particular changes, and the developers have approached everything much more carefully than we expected, adding entire explorable chapters set in the past, with maps that often They are noticeably more extensive. and interesting than Waford's.
Gameplay: time and space
Perhaps aware of not being able to boast of a miracle with a story chained to the needs of the brand involved, ILCA has focused heavily on the game system, trying to shape a game However, it is distinctive enough to have a say even in a genre as popular as JRPGs. At its core, its creation is more classic than ever: an RPG with turn-based combat and enemies clearly visible on the maps, where progression is mostly linear and the complex parts are relegated to specific dungeons. However, each of these aspects has been at least partially reworked, with valid design solutions that, in our opinion, place One Piece Odyssey comfortably in the subset of quality JRPGs.
I turn-based fight, for example, are noticeably more elaborate than the classic vision and place enormous importance on both spaces and enemy resistance. In One Piece Odyssey, in fact, you will have a fairly large group of characters at your disposal, starting with seven possible options (initially separating Franky and Brook from the rest of the crew) until reaching nine. Each character belongs to a specific type divided between strength, speed and technique, in a very obvious "rock-paper-scissors" system (and also conveniently indicated in the battle interface to avoid confusion) in which enemies also intervene. During a fight, however, not only these type subdivisions must be taken into account, but also the position of the fighters, because there are four active fighters divided into more area (usually two separate areas, but can increase in certain battles), and depending on the location you will find yourself facing different groups of enemies. Here comes the beauty, because each character has variable range abilities available, which affect individual enemies at short and long distances and entire groups. Considering that all fighters can be replaced in their position at any time by whoever is on the field or on the bench - as long as they have not already acted or are not victims of some status - and that it is necessary to calculate where they are, the skills available and their resistances to maximize effectiveness in battle, we find ourselves formulating complex strategies even during seemingly trivial battles.
To these already solid bases we must also add the presence of state such as freezing, bleeding and others, to which certain enemies have specific weaknesses, and even special moves of some protagonists that are effective only against specific opponents (Robin's Dos Fleur, for example, only works on those with vulnerable "bottoms" , while the Usopp Pound exclusively against easily impressionable human enemies, to clarify). There is even a system of group attacks, which adds an additional factor by avoiding weaknesses and making even the offensive of predominantly support or defensive characters dangerous. Most battles even have gods. internal modifiers which temporarily increase the danger of enemies to offer experience bonuses. In short, in a nutshell, it's a complex combination of engaging and well-applied mechanics, which alone significantly increases the overall value of the experience and makes it impossible to focus on just a handful of characters for much of the campaign. Certain limitations due to the narrative temporarily deprive the party of some members, pushing the player to develop the entire team.
Let's be clear, although ILCA's work demonstrates the clear desire to create a high-level game even for those who are not necessarily One Piece fans, this does not mean that there have not been some missteps: Perhaps to offer as many recognizable abilities as possible, the developers gave each character a wide variety of moves, many of which become redundant as the game progresses; While we understand the desire to keep even the "older" bindings available to fans, we would have preferred to focus more on their functionality than their mass. The second misstep concerns the managing difficulty, since One Piece Odyssey is extremely easy for anyone playing JRPGs, but sometimes battle modifiers lead to weird challenge spikes that can KO your pirates without much warning. Additionally, some statuses, such as freeze, can act with almost unnatural frequency, reversing fights that would otherwise be a walk in the park. A higher difficulty on average with fewer changes would have been absolutely manageable, because as it is One Piece Odyssey is way too forgiving, aside from a few odd bumps here and there, and this makes the final stages in particular free for anyone who's been there. behind. the progression.
The repetition of many types of enemies with the classic resource of recoloring does not help, although one should not complain too much about this last lack, given that the campaign offers a Myriad on the boss respectable, easily approachable even if you avoid most fights during exploration.
Structure: so many treasures in these ruins
ILCA's passion for the project undertaken is crystal clear even when its structural characteristics are analyzed, despite the fact that there is naivety in this field as well. In fact, this is not a particularly long-lived JRPG, but its dungeon We found them very well cared for and, despite the technical limits of One Piece Odyssey that do not allow who knows what interactivity, the designers of the Japanese team have worked hard to diversify the most elaborate areas, inserting in each one dedicated mechanics that at least make the simple puzzles and 'exploration'. Peculiarities that increase when you take into account that the crew characters not only have unique abilities in combat, but also while roaming the maps. For example, sometimes it is necessary to choose Chopper, the only one who can go through the smallest tunnels, Zoro, because he is able to effortlessly cut metal walls, or Luffy himself, whose elongation allows him to reach high areas adjacent to certain squeezes.
In fact, the concept on paper is better than the app, and sometimes it is tedious to move on to "collectible" characters like Sanji or Usopp, which usually only allow you to obtain additional ingredients or some healing items, but overall it adds variety to everything, and We approve of the attempt to add a little flavor to simple map exploration. Also because, as already mentioned, it is always a classic JRPG and therefore there is no shortage of repetitive missions or very stressful moments, where the player is forced to go back over already explored areas by deactivating fast travel for no reason or is asks you to complete simple tasks. goals that are honestly insignificant. Although this mainly occurs in the side quests, there are unavoidable phases of this type even between the main quests and we would have gladly done without them. In general, however, One Piece Odyssey lasts around thirty hours If we focus on the primary objectives, a duration that in our opinion is more than satisfactory for the scale of the project. The team even tried to add a kind of ending that we won't reveal to you: in any case, don't expect anything particularly memorable or varied...
As interesting as the dungeons and combat are, so is the progression, which focuses on two factors: collecting skill cubes and creating accessories. In connection with what happens in the prologue, the Straw Hat crew members must also collect some cubes scattered around the maps, which can then be conveniently equipped to level up their offensive skills. Skills grow significantly (especially in the advanced phases of the campaign where the number of available spaces increases) and there is certainly no shortage of cubes, but the development of the protagonists is not limited to finding them, on the contrary. In fact, much more central to the strengthening of one's group is the use of accessories- Objects that can be placed on a grid, which in turn grows during the campaign, capable of inflating statistics in a way that is anything but ignorable and modifiable to offer multiple effects. The RPG element of the game is pretty much there, and combining the right accessories allows you to create real monsters or maximize the efficiency of support characters like Chopper and Brook with various forms of regeneration or greatly improved defensive stats.
It's a shame that the efficiency of some of these items and crafting, combined with items like dishes Sanji can cook and Usopp's special balls that weaken enemies, further reduce the already poor overall difficulty level. Yes, in a nutshell, One Piece Odyssey offers a decent amount of ways to become outrageously powerful, without countering it with really worrying threats as you progress (aside from the waves they mentioned above). However, even with these imbalances, the successful mass of the game's systems and the validity of the fanservice are enough to make the experience enjoyable.
We close with a technical sector It is certainly not exceptional, but it is very respectable. The game tends to reuse a lot of resources when it comes to enemies, however, the different scenarios seem well made and the 3D models of the manga's most important characters are refined and full of personality. The animations of the attacks are the jewel in the crown of the production, where some interlude films capture very well (although with some modifications) the spectacular nature of the best scenes of Oda's work. Even the sound is good, with Japanese voice actors from the anime and very catchy music. There is little to complain about, it is clear that there are many One Piece fans in the ILCA team, who have clearly done their best to finish every aspect of the game to the best of their ability.
Conclusions
Tested version PlayStation 5 digital delivery PlayStation Store Holygamerz.com 8.0 Readers (37) 7.5 your voteOne Piece Odyssey may not be remembered among the best JRPGs of all time, but it will certainly be among the best One Piece games ever made. And despite knowing that this is a very low bar to clear, we do not believe it is appropriate to diminish ILCA's work on a product that, despite some structural setbacks and a handful of imbalances in the progression of difficulties, demonstrates that I am finally starting a project full of love for the Oda saga and its fans. Highly recommended if you love the adventures of Luffy and his crew, or even if you just want to enjoy a respectable JRPG.
PRO
- Excellent combat system
- Lots of fanservice well done
- Simple dungeons, but varied and well maintained.
- Endless iconic bosses to defeat
AGAINST
- Low difficulty, with some miscalculated changes.
- Recycling of basic enemies a little excessive
- Some missions and campaign phases are quite tedious.
