It was three months ago when we got our first reveal for Bandai Namco’s One Piece JRPG, and now we have a full dev diary entry giving us a look at the game’s design and gameplay.
Here’s producer Katsuaki Tsuzuki explaining the work that went into making One Piece Odyssey:
In this developer diary, #ONEPIECEODYSSEY producer Katsuaki Tsuzuki and composer Motoi Sakuraba are joined by Ken Takano, editor-in-chief for ONE PIECE at Weekly Shonen Jump. Learn how Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc. works with ILCA Inc. as the game’s developers, Eiichiro Oda’s involvement, and how the game’s score was created.
While One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda wasn’t in the video himself, the video does introduce us to the characters and creatures that he created for the game. Though Odyssey takes place in only one location, the developers made sure to make the game feel like the vibrant world of one piece—even down to the style of the clouds.
As for the gameplay, Odyssey is pretty unique in that big fights are separated among each member of the crew. The combat is turn-based, and there are unique parameters that could affect gameplay for each character. When it comes to traversal, each characters’ ability will change how the player can explore the terrain—Luffy can hang on ‘Sky Hook’ his way around a dungeon, Zoro can cut through obstacles, and Chopper can squeeze into tight spaces.
Though the this is just dev diary entry, we should expect a full gameplay trailer soon. Hopefully we don’t have to wait too long, since the game is set to come out this year, and we’re already more than halfway through 2022.
A broken Thousand Sunny… Scattered crew members… Luffy’s missing straw hat…
The Straw Hats, led by Monkey D. Luffy, are swallowed by a massive storm at sea during their voyage. They end up on a mysterious island full of nature amidst the storm and become separated. Work together with Luffy and his crew to set sail once again! The crew sets out on a new adventurous journey filled with wonders of a raging nature, powerful enemies, and strange encounters with island locals.
One Piece Odyssey is expected to launch for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and PC sometime later this year.