Review: One Piece: Burning Blood is fast, frantic and accessible

Platforms: PS4 (reviewed), PC, Xbox One

Publishers: Bandai Namco Entertainment

Developers: Spike Chunsoft

Introduction

While the US doesn't get as many One Piece titles as Japan, the ones we do, generally get the job done. Sure, the first Pirate Warriors might not have hit the mark in the gameplay department and the second game veered off on its own original storyline, the third game did a whole lot right, especially in its ability to retell a majority of the show's arcs. Burning Blood, however, is more of a spritual successor to J-Stars Victory VS+, a game that pits numerous characters from various anime and manage series against one another in a 3-on-3 brawl. Spike Chunsoft has taken that similar arena formula, but instead of the chaotic 3-on-3, it shifts the focus to 1-on-1 with two other characters able to be swapped in.

While J-Stars Victory VS+ was a fun fighter, the combat was certainly a little janky. Admittedly, I was worried for Burning Blood since it seems like it would use the J-Stars combat formula, but surprisingly, the combat here works.

Faithful to the source material

The game begins during the major events of the Paramount War where Luffy is on a quest to save his brother Ace from being executed. The game reframes the latter part of that arc really well, with scenes perfectly recreated in the game's in-game engine.

Characters a-plenty

The game features a large roster of both playable and support characters. If you can think of a notable character from the Paramount War arc and beyond, then they're most likely a playable character. Of course the staple crew is there, with Luffy also having his pre-time skip form as well.

What makes the large roster so impressive is how wildly different each character handles and attacks. It's one thing playing a fast attacking character like Zoro and Sanji, but switch to a larger character like Moria or Bartholomew Kuma and it's a whole different ball game.

However, unlocking all of them is a bit of a process. You can either go through the story mode and unlock characters that way, and even then it might take a while, or you can outright buy them using the money your earn from doing basically anything and everything in the game. The latter is certainly a welcome addition, but either way you'll have to play a lot to earn that money.

Accessible, fast, and not nearly as janky as J-Stars

I really love Spike Chunsoft's dedication to create an authentic fighter to the series, keeping it relatively fast paced and hectic, all while keeping the moveset accessible and easy to learn, and yet tough to master. A bulk of the strategy and constant back-and-forth stems from the game's rock-paper-scissors formula when it comes to each character's attack patterns. There's combos that can smash through guard break attacks, guard breaks that smash through defense, and defending while the opponent is unleashing a standard combo. Knowing when to use each one effectively will make all the difference between laying the smackdown on your opponent and being on the receiving end of one.

Then there are the character specific super moves as well the ultimate attacks which are all visually stunning and equally easy to pull off.

The game does a great job at teaching you all of these and more through its extensive tutorial sequences. Aside from the standard tutorial, you can also take on advanced techniques which teach you the finer nuances of combat. Though the game seems easy, you'll want to check these out prior to playing, or at the very least, prior to playing online.

Plenty to do outside of Story Mode

Even though the story mode contains a rather meaty amount of content with a slew of unlockable side battles, there is a ton more to do outside of that. There are bounty hunts that pit you against specific character match ups and task you with defeating them in a certain way.

The aformentioned Advanced Tutorial is basically a mode in and of itself, with battles separated in categories that all teach you the nuances of the combat. And once you exhause everything here, the next logical step is to go online.

Online is great, but your mileage may vary

I've played a few matches up until the release of the game, and from what I could tell, the game held up nicely. While the game does support ranked and casual matches, the mode that got me most interested is Pirate Flag Battle. Here, players will join factions and battle other players who belong to other factions. As rounds are won, those players will then occupy spaces on a map. If you're looking to butt heads online, I certainly recommend checking this mode out for sure.

Verdict

As someone who very much enjoys the anime, I had a great time with One Piece: Burning Blood. While much better than J-Stars Victory, the one anime franchise that still surpasses it on almost every front is the Naruto Shippuden Storm series.

With that said, the 1-on-1 battles are intense, and the ability to call in other characters to help you out when you're in need, or simply to hop in to interrupt an opponents combo not only feels fantastic but looks stellar as well.

It really manages to nail the aesthetic of the show, something that's usually hit or miss with anime-based titles, but I really loved how the team handled the graphics. The cel-shading looks fantastic, and certainly miles better than the 3D look of J-Stars Victory Versus+. It seems like I'm ragging on the previous game a lot, but that's because Burning Blood is a major step in the right direction, using that game as a baseline.

If you're a fan of the anime, I probably won't have to convince you further, as the fighting is on-point with a diverse cast of characters to unlock and play as. Fans of fighting games should most likely borrow it from a buddy or try it via rental service like Gamefly. Though once the game clicks, even fighting game fans will find a lot to love here.