What did we think of the video game “One Piece: Odyssey”, adapted from the famous manga by Eiichiro Oda, available since January 10 on PlayStation, Xbox Series and PC? Contrasting prints.
We remember Dragon Ball Z: Kakarotone of the latest video game adaptations of Akira Toriyama’s manga, and its open-world game system allowing you to relive the most famous episodes of the plot, and face its most emblematic villains: Frieza, Cell, Majin Buu…
And it is on the basis of a somewhat similar promise that reaches us One Piece Odyssey, except that this game is not inspired by the plot of Eiichiro Oda’s manga, but by a completely original story, supervised by the mangaka himself. Embodying Luffy and the Straw Hat crew in an unprecedented adventure, isn’t that the dream of every One Piece fan?
Bandai/Namco
THE ULTIMATE LOVE LETTER TO ONE PIECE MANGA
There is little doubt that One Piece Odyssey was conceived as a love letter to the famous license. The winks are numerous, the abilities and attacks of each character are faithful to the source material, and the turn-based combat system moving the heroes in several areas is a clever transcription of the scattered fights of the manga.
Fans will appreciate the effort made to transcribe each of the characters as well as possible, while the special attacks are accompanied by short cutscenes (which can be accelerated to save time) which are frankly pleasing.
The specificities of each hero also make it possible to unlock various objects on the main map, while certain levels will only be accessible according to these special abilities: Luffy can thus use his elastic arms to project himself from a distance, Chopper can explore narrow tunnels etc…
Bandai/Namco
BETTER BE A ONE PIECE FAN
One Piece aficionados who don’t particularly like RPGs will surely find good reasons to enjoy this game, but we can’t guarantee that RPG fans with no knowledge of the manga universe will experience a similar feeling.
Because everything seems to indicate that One Piece Odyssey was designed exclusively for fans of the work, and above all for a rather young audience. The most experienced players will therefore be able to criticize the game for its simplicity, and regret that a real difficult mode is not offered to give them more trouble.
Aimed at the general public, the game also takes a lot of time to explain the basic workings of the RPG to us, in order to ensure that no one is left behind by this cutting edge operation with the systems used by the previous One Piece games.
Hence this sometimes off-putting feeling of being constantly interrupted by explanations, when we would have liked to launch ourselves from the first minutes into the exploration of this new world.
It is therefore necessary to be patient during the first hours of play, due to a large number of explanations and very limited freedom of movement. Also, One Piece characters outside of the Straw Hat crew only appear mid-game; it therefore seems essential to have this information in mind to avoid feeling frustrated by this overly framed prologue.
Bandai/Namco
Zoro vs Smoker: a dream fight for manga fans!
A WORLD NOT SO OPEN AS THAT
The map available to One Piece Odyssey players is the main highlight of the game. Being able to explore this world at will (you will be delighted to unlock the possibility of being able to move from one end of the map to the other) provides boundless pleasure, although the feeling of having to follow a very precise frame is often felt.
The list of playable characters is limited to the nine members of the Straw Hat crew: Monkey D. Luffy, Roronoa Zoro, Nami, Sanji, Nico Robin, Usopp, Franky, Brook and Chopper. Newer recruits, such as karate fish-man Jinbei, are not among the available heroes in the game.
Dozens of characters well known to manga fans also appear, some as enemies to fight including iconic villains such as Doflamingo or Crocodile. Almost no one is missing, except maybe the mysterious Pandaman!
To rank without hesitation among the best video games adapted from the cult manga, One Piece Odyssey pays perfect homage to the universe designed by Eiichiro Oda. But this game will undoubtedly leave a taste of unfinished business in the mouths of fans who hoped to be able to attack the road of all perils to face the crews of the Seven Corsairs and the Four Emperors of the Sea.
Images from the video game One Piece Odyssey:
The One Piece Odyssey video game has been available since January 10 on PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox Series and PC.