Will One Piece Odyssey be worth it?

What seems like an eternity without a new anime game, Bandai Namco recently revealed their newest entry. The Brand New One Piece Game, One Piece Odyssey, released their first trailer. But anime games have a history of burning their consumer base, milking them for money for some shoddily created experiences. This then begs the question, will One Piece Odyssey be worth it? Or will it just be another cash crab like so many of its predecessors before it?

[Related: What is the One Piece Odyssey Release Date?]

Price

When considering the question of whether a game will be worth it, a price point analysis stands out as very necessary. Since One Piece Odyssey seems to be targeted for a PS5 alongside XBOX Series X, it’ll likely release at whopping $59.99 (USD), excluding tax. Fact of the matter is, the vast majority of anime games end up drastically dropping price relatively soon after release. One Piece Odyssey will most likely follow the same trend.

Be wary, once the game gets closer to release, tons of content creators will undoubtedly hype up the game. Bandai Namco has a history of paying these creators, sponsoring them and thereby helping them market their new entries. This allows for more community engagement and bonding over the games. Watching the content creators provides fun for both the viewer and the creator. So it’s not necessarily bad.

But understanding the hype and differentiating whether a game suits individual players remains essential. For picky gamers who expect a quality gaming experience from a full priced release, probably wait until game critics review the game before dropping money on a preorder. After all, a content creator’s biased thoughts shouldn’t influence whether the consumer thinks One Piece Odyssey is worth it or not.

Target Audience

Every anime game targets a bit of a niche demographic. The developers understand that anime fans will buy almost anything and everything anime. Throw in Luffy in up to date graphics, or for the more cultured Robin in full 3D, and One Piece fans will throw their money at developers.

A lot of Bandai Namco games end up becoming cash grabs, either rehashing a similar formula of anime arena fighters, making a bare bones RPG, or implementing hack and slash to give players a power trip. In this case, it seems to be the second option. But will this entry be any different?

Not much gameplay revealed. In fact, combat remains unseen. Throughout the trailers and their producer interview, it is made very clear that the game is first and foremost a JRPG. So think in the lines of old school Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. Chances are, the combat will be turn based, surrounding physical encounters. In the picture above, monsters are shown very similarly to that of Dragon Quest 11, where interacting with them may potentially begin the fight.

JRPG games are not for everyone. They tend to prioritize solo player adventure, with an emphasis on exploration and story. In addition, JRPGs are known for their turn based, strategic combat. Therefore, players wanting a multiplayer competitive based game will likely not enjoy this game. And for those who dislike turn based combat, although it hasn’t been officially confirmed to be turn based, may want to avoid this entry.

Is One Piece Odyssey Canon?

In the trailer, it states that Eiichiro Oda participated with the game’s development. That doesn’t necessarily make the movie canon. Eiichiro Oda didn’t write the story, nor does the story tie directly in with the manga. In the One Piece Canon, the manga stands as the best representation of what is canon or not. But it does promise a certain degree of charisma. Similar to Dragon Quest, which receives Akira Toriyama’s character and monster designs, One Piece Odyssey’s characters were created by Eiichiro Oda himself.

For those who don’t know, Akira Toriyama created the Dragonball Franchise and Eiichiro Oda created One Piece.

Take a look at the new character designed by Eiichiro Oda. The long haired One Piece Odyssey exclusive character just looks badass. Although the story may not have been written by Eiichiro Oda, having characters and monsters created by the great artist himself should help the feeling of immersion for the game.

To draw an accurate portrayal of how canon the game is, it’s essentially as canon as the One Piece movies. In essence, the One Piece movies also have Oda’s character designs, but little to no participation in story writing. Not many story elements were revealed for One Piece Odyssey. But they mentioned that One Piece Odyssey was a long term project, not a rushed one.

In Conclusion

The game looks promising. One Piece Odyssey’s graphics seem crisp, almost movie-like. With character and monster designs created by Eiichiro Oda himself, the game’s development seems rather reminiscent of the Dragon Quest franchise. And honestly, that’s a huge compliment, since Dragon Quest is one of the greatest JRPG series of all time. But without any gameplay footage, no set release date, a lot of things remain up in the air.

Anime games have a history of exploiting their consumer base, creating easy to make, shallow games. They often sell purely with the anime series title, rather than creating quality games that compete with other flag ship game titles. So definitely keep these thoughts when thinking about whether One Piece Odyssey will be worth it or not.

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