One Piece Odyssey Review
A seaworthy adventure.
A classic turn-based RPG in the style of Dragon Quest is not exactly the first place my mind goes when it comes to thinking of game genres that would pair well with the action-heavy world of One Piece, but as One Piece Odyssey proves, it's actually kind of a great fit. The Straw Hats make for one hell of a party of RPG characters; Eichiro Oda's one-of-a-kind art style lends itself well to filling the world with fantastical and amusing creatures; and the over-the-top nature of battles from the actual manga and anime gives plenty of material for some of the coolest (and funniest) special attacks I've seen in any turn-based RPG. Those fights would've been better if they were a more consistent challenge, and I could've done with less backtracking through areas I'd already explored, but this is still a surprisingly satisfying JRPG that's not quite by the numbers.
The story begins with Luffy and crew suddenly finding themselves marooned on the mysterious island of Waford. It isn't long before they meet two original characters: Lim and Adio, who have an understandably deep distrust of pirates. So much so that, upon first meeting, they steal the powers of the Straw Hats, providing a convenient way to explain why Luffy and company don't win every battle just by looking at their enemies. (Though, that does come later.)
What follows is a grand story that plays out on two fronts: The adventure in Waford sees The Straw Hat crew attempting to help Adio and Lim by defeating a handful of elemental colossi that are responsible for the giant storm that surrounds the island (I know, what's the worst that could happen?); and another that plays out in Memoria, a world of memory created through Lim's special ability that allows the Straw Hats to revisit specific locations and events in their history. The revelations and twists won't shock anybody, but I still very much enjoyed both sides of Odyssey's story. Lim, especially, is a wonderful addition to the cast, and I loved watching her go from being extremely wary and cold towards the crew to being intrigued and occasionally flabbergasted by each of their individual quirks, and eventually fully embracing the Straw Hats as her friends.
[...]
Verdict
The power of One Piece's story, world, art, and characters does a lot of the heavy lifting in making
One Piece Odyssey a joy to play, even if I could beat most of the battles in my sleep. It really could have used some sort of way to adjust the difficulty and add even just a little more tension to its fights to make them more satisfying to get through, and a lot of the quest design in the middle relies too much on backtracking through already-visited areas, but
One Piece Odyssey nails the most important parts: The heart, humor, and soul of One Piece.
Score: 7/10
