One Piece Odyssey - What We Know So Far

The author of "One Piece," Eiichiro Oda, first began his beloved series back in 1997 and it has since grown into a cultural phenomenon. It's the best-selling manga of all time with a record 490 million copies in circulation. Numerous other media properties have branched off from the over-100-volume-long story, from the immensely popular anime (which now has over 1,000 episodes), to the upcoming live action Netflix adaptation. Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat Pirates have even had their adventures expanded into a series of video games, with dozens of titles across multiple platforms dating all the way back to 2001's "One Piece Grand Battle." 

Now, fans are about to get a new game which allows them to embark on yet another adventure on the Grand Line. "One Piece Odyssey" was announced back in March, and fans of the franchise are already eager to see what the latest game from developer ILCA, Inc. has in store. Here is everything we know about it so far.

The first thing most fans probably want to know is when they will be able to get their hands on a copy of "One Piece Odyssey." Well, it turns out that they won't have to wait very long at all! Although a specific day has not been set for the release as of yet, Bandai Namco is planning to launch it sometime in 2022 to celebrate the franchise's 25th anniversary.

The official website for "Odyssey" states that the game is currently available for pre-order and that it will be available for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S, but it does not appear that it will be available on the Xbox One or Nintendo Switch. Steam has not created a page for "Odyssey" as of yet, but there is an event post from PCGamesN on the platform that states that it will eventually be available through Steam.

Players who want to know more about the game will be delighted to learn that not one, but two trailers have been released for it so far. The first is the announcement trailer. It begins by slowly panning out from the Straw Hat flag to reveal that the Thousand Sunny has been shipwrecked, with burns across its sails and the hull partially submerged in the ocean just off the shore. The trailer then takes viewers through several scenes, showcasing the crew and several new characters that they will presumably meet during the game. After that, the trailer shows off a few of the game's flashy attacks and hypes up the game's nostalgic aspects.

The second trailer was released during 2022's Summer Games Fest. It's a little more cinematic than the first and gives a bit more information on what to expect. It opens with Luffy spotting an island covered in towers with a massive beam of light emanating from its center. He decides to explore the island, but massive clouds appear on the crew's approach and they are hit by a knock up stream which launches their ship into the sky. Each of the characters are then introduced as they use their various abilities to navigate the treacherous fall. From the looks of things, Luffy and his pals are going to run afoul of all kinds of weird new characters.

Fans of the franchise will be delighted to learn that the game will feature an original story written by none other than Eiichiro Oda himself. It will not utilize any of the storyline established in the manga or the anime, but it will most likely live up to the quality of storytelling that fans have come to expect from the series' creator.

The basic premise seems to be that the Straw Hats have been shipwrecked by a mysterious force and they are now stranded. According to game's official website, "They end up on a mysterious island full of nature amidst the storm and become separated from each other. The crew sets out on a new adventurous journey filled with wonders of a raging nature, powerful enemies, and strange encounters with island locals." It also states that the scattered crew will encounter ruins and brand new monsters, and that, while they are initially excited to explore this strange new island, things inevitably take a much more serious and dangerous turn. It seems that there is a mystery behind the powers of this island and it will take all of the Straw Hats to figure it all out.

Exploration, combat, and puzzles seem to be the main gameplay mechanics of "One Piece Odyssey." The game is a single-player RPG, but that doesn't mean that players will only be able to explore this mysterious new island as Luffy. They will also get to play as fan favorites such as Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Chopper, Robin, Frankie, and Brook. It seems that Jimbe is not in the game, since the project reportedly entered development before he joined the crew (per Screen Rant), and so the Knight of the Sea was not a part of the developer's original plan.

Like all RPGs, "One Piece Odyssey" will have various quests and dungeons for the Straw Hats to complete. Not very many details have been revealed about how the battle system in the game will work, but it looks there will be a lot of monsters populating the world for Luffy and the crew to fight. In fact, the website states that Oda has created many of the new character and monster designs himself. Also, each character seems to have a special attack that groups of Straw Hats can execute together. Hopefully more gameplay will be revealed as the game comes closer to launch.