One Piece: World Seeker, our review

Yoo-ho-yoo-ho the pirate life is not for me!

One Piece: World Seeker was announced as the first open-world of the anime, with a series of excellent ideas on paper, we are talking about one of the longest-running manga / anime still present on the market today. Unfortunately, good intentions are sometimes not enough and this is precisely the case, in fact the ideas conceived by the development team do not combine well together, significantly reducing the quality of the gaming experience.

While the game may not please everyone, it could be one of those titles that long-time fans are looking forward to and may enjoy playing it. Among other things are the foundations that will lead us to a better sequel (we hope).

An unexpected start ...

One Piece: World Seeker takes place in Jail Island, a place not part of the canonical series of the world created by the mangaka Eiichiro Oda. All this happens after the death of the Capo dell'Isola, transforming the place (with an unfriendly name) into a place with a fragile political and economic balance. Without forgetting the conflict between the Navy and those who are against their rule. Obviously, the Straw Hat Pirates will find themselves in the midst of these misadventures.

More can be done

During the entire adventure you will control only Luffy, leaving the remaining members of the crew with the unoriginal task of extras and quest-givers. This aspect is somewhat disappointing, as the colorful Pirates accompanying the Rubber Boy are interesting to use from the eccentric Brook skeleton to the mighty Franky, not forgetting the "veterans" Sanji and Zoro.

The concept of the Open World is present in One Piece: World Seeker, unfortunately, however, we collided with an almost deserted game world, the absence of life makes everything a bit monotonous, even if you will be able to enjoy interesting views. And it is in these moments that the game will make you feel like real adventurers.

Ability

As you progress in the game you will be given skill points, objects that can improve the Straw Hat Gum-Gum skills, some will allow you to cover large distances while exploring, on foot it becomes a little boring. In these moments we must admit that we loved controlling Luffy, so much so that we remember (distantly) our dear Spidey.

Combat System

In this aspect One Piece: World Seeker suffers the most. In fact, the fight is boring and will make you lose interest in just under a couple of hours. Our hero has more or less the same combos that will create that terrible “more of the same” feeling in you, leading to boredom pretty quickly. Despite this, the Intelligence of the Enemies is well studied, far from current standards, but able to put you in difficulty, they will often be able to lead you to death. Less beautiful are the long waits during the loading screens, which makes it frustrating to say the least.

Everything is made even more difficult by the fact that there are mainly two mechanics to fight, attack and dodge. To be honest, they don't even combine well. Once the combo of our hero is finished you will have only one chance, detach your fingers from the attack button, after that, you will remain motionless for a few moments and at the mercy of the opponent's attacks. As a result we think even the difficulty would have been improved if we were allowed to dodge while attacking (as you will have to face multiple enemies), the gameplay experience would have undergone a significant improvement.

Quest

Quests are scattered throughout the world of One Piece: World Seeker. We want to reassure you, there are not an infinitesimal quantity that could lead to discouragement, on the contrary you will have to entertain you for a good number of hours. These missions will also be uninteresting, which is unfortunate. Even the sub-plots present do not stand out for originality and interest. One of the things that I found positive is the hunt for collectibles, which somehow encouraged me to explore the map, even if it's fun that doesn't last long.

The importance of ties

During our adventure we will be able to relate to different factions and characters within the island, even if none of them seem to be particularly significant. You can also interact with the various members of the Straw Hat crew in various ways. Just think of the carpenters Usopp and Franky or Sanji the cook, capable of preparing very useful meals. This all sounds more interesting than it is. The same items within the inventory have very little importance.

Final Comment

One Piece: World Seeker is a commendable attempt to bring a famous anime into an open-world. Although it does not reach the size of other similar games, it presents a number of interesting ideas that can be used for a possible sequel. If you are a fan of the series created by Eiichiro Oda, the title will be able to entertain you, passing over the slightly woody mechanics of the combat system and the (not) lively game world.

Unfortunately, World Seeker joins the list of licensed games that haven't unleashed the potential they had.