Best One Piece Games (2024)

One Piece has been a manga since 1997, and it is still going strong. Additionally, the anime series, which started in 1999, has skipped a thousand episodes and, again, is still going strong. Even if it took longer to cross over to Western countries than the other "big" battle shonen properties, One Piece is arguably untouchable when it comes to worldwide appeal, with only Dragon Ball exceeding it.

Due to its delayed push, many games based on One Piece were never localized in North America. Furthermore, the franchise has not always had the greatest track record when it comes to these sorts of adaptations, with most projects being very mediocre. Still, there are some gems that fans should check out. Let's take a look at the best One Piece games.

Updated June 9, 2024 by Mark Sammut:This article has been updated and expanded to highlight the absolute best One Piece games currently on the market. The specifications for each project have also been added.

5 One Piece: Unlimited World Red

Metacritic Score: 75

One of the more readily available One Piece games, Unlimited World Red is on the cusp of greatness, but mostly settles for being just pretty good. Telling an original story that is not far removed from the quality of the One Piece movies, the campaign finds the Straw Hats helping out a unique town while also engaging with a powerful pirate from yesteryear. Also, the crew has to go up against some of their strongest past foes, although they are not quite themselves.

Unlimited World Red knocks its presentation out of the park, looking great on most systems. While very linear, the stages are generally impressive and varied, with their backgrounds being consistently gorgeous; conversely, Transtown, the main hub, is quite open and allows for a fair amount of exploration. The combat feels like a mash of beat 'em up and Musou mechanics, albeit arguably slower than both. Although far from terrible, the battle system gets repetitive rather quickly, especially since encounters with fodder enemies tend to overstay their welcome. That said, the boss fights are consistently great and superior to the ones found in most of the Pirate Warriors games.

4 One Piece GBA

Metacritic Score: 76

Simply called One Piece, this beat 'em up is a perfectly good option on Nintendo's handheld GBA system. Dimps is a reliable developer, and this somewhat forgotten project represents the developer's talent for crafting solid licensed games that capture the charm of the source material while providing accessible gameplay. Just to be clear, One Piece does not excel in any one area, and its combat will probably not keep non-fans engaged for too long due to its low difficulty and style-over-substance approach.

However, the 2005 title is decent across the board. A vibrant color palette and little animation touches (like Luffy holding his straw hat when he runs) add personality to the otherwise simple visuals, and the game nails its character designs and Luffy's special attacks. The campaign is also reasonably robust for a GBA release.

3 One Piece Treasure Cruise

Metascore: 79

Gacha mobile games are a dime-a-dozen, especially ones based on anime licenses. Most major shonen series have at least a single adaptation that fits the bill, and they tend to be fine ways to waste a few minutes per day. That said, One Piece Treasure Cruise is arguably better than average, delivering a surprisingly fun turn-based combat system that can be reasonably challenging and requires frequent interaction by players due to its input-based bonuses. The story mode runs through the manga's main arcs and is updated fairly regularly, ensuring there is always new content on the horizon.

Still, Treasure Cruise's appeal is its HUGE roster of characters, with pretty much every One Piece figure having different tiers/forms that cover their changes throughout the story. Players will gradually build a six-member crew featuring some of the most powerful names in this universe; however, the process is slow. Like most gacha games, Treasure Cruise starts fairly forgiving but gradually slows down to a crawl, requiring players to grind for pretty much any progress.

2 One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4

Metacritic Score: 76

The latest installment in the Musou series, Pirate Warriors 4 is basically a love letter to the franchise, offering die-hard fans a massive roster of characters along with telling a unique version of Wano Arc, which was ongoing at the time of the game's development. While nothing too amazing, the story is at least a fun departure from the status quo, making this entry a better overall pick than, for example, Pirate Warriors 3.

Ultimately, this game (and series) is not for everyone. The Musou formula tends to be very divisive, either granting players a cathartic power fantasy with accessible hack and slash combat or a repetitive slog with shallow gameplay. Still, Pirate Warriors 4 is a fantastic example of this formula that is packed with content, even going beyond the massive roster of characters that are just waiting to be unlocked. For what it is trying to be, this title is great.

1 One Piece Odyssey

Metacritic Score: 79

The most recent One Piece game, Odyssey is a turn-based JRPG that frames some of the manga's most prominent arcs through a new storyline. The Straw Hats wind up on a mystery island that strips them of most of their abilities, forcing the crew to revisit their most challenging memories to regain their skills. While largely retreading familiar ground, Odyssey does change a few things about the sagas, so they should present a handful of surprises for long-time fans.

One Piece Odyssey is arguably the franchise's most ambitious game to date, and it comes the closest to capturing the source material's sense of adventure. The turn-based combat works fairly well since it emphasizes the crew's positioning on the battlefield, encouraging players to move them around to ensure they are targeting the right enemies for them. That said, outside of boss encounters, the campaign is a bit too easy for its own good, which winds up taking away from what is fundamentally a solid battle system.

On paper, One Piece Odyssey is the most accessible game in the franchise, but it is still ultimately difficult to recommend to JRPG fans who are not interested in the manga or anime. The story is not only long but moves at a fairly slow pace, which can cause boredom to set in after a while.