The detailed world-building and strong personalities, along with a unique and attention-grabbing art style, are some of its most interesting aspects – and all of them make wonderful ingredients video games. If you’re interested in the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates on their journey to becoming salty sea legends, let me guide you through some of the best games this genre-varied franchise has to offer.
15. One Piece: Pirates’ Carnival (2006)
Platforms: PS2, GameCube As is the case with many popular multimedia franchises, One Piece has made its way into a variety of genres. Developed by h.a.n.d., the Pirates’ Carnival game takes inspiration from games like Mario Party and the classic board game Reversi. The end result? A unique experience filled with mini-games, backstabbing, and all the good stuff we expect from the genre. With around 30 mini-games and five boards based on locations from the series, this relatively basic PS2/GC title can be a blast for a group of friends interested in anime piracy.
14. One Piece: Round the Land (2004)
Platforms: PS2 Lots of One Piece games were made way before the franchise gained traction abroad, and never made it to Western audiences. One of the first to make it out of Japan was Round the Land. This 2.5D side-scrolling brawler developed by Artdink offers an entirely new story featuring a Devil Fruit user called Blyue. Most of the main Straw Hat pirates up to the Skypiea Arc are available as playable characters, complete with voice acting from the original anime cast. A classic to pick up if you’re a hardcore One Piece fan.
13. One Piece: Gigant Battle! (2010)
Platforms: Nintendo DS Developed by Ganbarion and only released in Europe and Japan, Gigant Battle! is an excellent NDS fighting game similar to SSB. But with some exciting RPG elements to keep you busy for a long time. The plot is pretty simple: the Straw Hat Pirates are invited to a tournament spanning several islands around the Sabaody Archipelago, where they’ll fight classic foes from the anime. While 2D sprites represent the characters, the colorful 3D backgrounds give the game an interesting look. The voice acting is also pretty good despite the audio limitations. Tip: check online for ROMs if you’re not able to get this one working perfectly in your NDS.
12. One Piece: Grand Battle! Rush (2005)
Platforms: PS2, GameCube The Grand Battle series was also one of the first One Piece games to make it West, featuring semi-chibi versions of the main characters duking it out over several 3D arenas. The combos are basic, and the fighting system isn’t anything fancy. Still, with iconic locales and a great cast, it delivers a fun yet engaging experience that’s perfect for an afternoon with friends. Or even solo, if none of your friends dig One Piece like you do.
11. One Piece: Grand Adventure (2006)
Platforms: PS2, GameCube Anyone who likes the Grand Battle concept, but doesn’t want a game for its multiplayer, you’re better off going for its successor – Grand Adventure. This title retains the same basic combat gameplay as previous installments, but adds an “Adventure Mode” where you can choose one of five Captains to pilot the Going Merry. These campaigns include Luffy and Usopp, naturally, so you’ll have a lot of fun going around to visit islands around the Grand Line. Of course, the Grand Battle mode is still present here too. And with more characters, levels, and even some new multiplayer features to boot.
10. One Piece Bounty Rush (2019)
Platforms: Android, iOS Usually I’d only mention a mobile licensed game to complain about micro-transactions. But One Piece Bounty Rush on Android/iOS is actually really fun – at least if you’re a fan of the series. The free-to-play title developed by Bandai Namco is mostly about collecting characters and leveling them up, like many other “gacha games” on the market. It features a litany of characters from the anime, plus different forms of the most popular ones, with gorgeous character designs and illustrations (well, for smartphones). That said, the actual gameplay is surprisingly engaging too. It takes the form of a 4v4 “capture the treasure” match where flashy attacks are used to keep your opponents away from your loot.
9. One Piece: Burning Blood (2016)
Platforms: PS4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, PC One of the most talked-about fighting games featuring the Straw Hat Pirates is Spike Chunsoft’s One Piece: Burning Blood, which pits several characters against each other in a stunning cel-shaded visual style. Regrettably, the gameplay isn’t half as exciting as the game’s roster and looks. It’s a competent fighter that’s sure to bring you a lot of fun with your OP-loving peeps. But once you’ve played a couple of times, you’ll realize it lacks any uniqueness or innovation. Hard to replay in my opinion. Still, it’s pretty fun in short bursts. If you’re interested you’ll find it available on the PS4, Vita, Xbox One, and for PC gamers too.
8. Jump Force (2019)
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC Jump Force is a love letter to the shonen genre in the form of a fighting game with incredible graphics and an excellent battle system, one quite similar to the Ultimate Ninja Storm series. Given its prominence as one of the big shonen manga around, the game features six iconic characters from One Piece, and more are coming in the future as DLC. Sure, the story is nonsensical. But we play these games for the flashy attacks and cinematic combat, and maybe some fanservice too. Watching Luffy beating the lights out of Goku is just mesmerizing.
7. One Piece: Unlimited Adventure (2008)
Platforms: Wii Given its focus on world-building and exploration, the One Piece series feels like the perfect IP for a colossal open-world game. And it arguably is! Developed by Ganbarion for the Wii, Unlimited Adventure takes a step in that direction by dropping our beloved characters and their Thousand Sunny on a “stranded at sea” situation. Other than the frankly incredible graphics that still look pretty good today, the game shines for its varied gameplay throughout the campaign. Give it a try if you’re open to open adventure games. You likely won’t be disappointed.
6. One Piece: Unlimited Cruise Episode 1/2 (2009)
Platforms: Wii, Nintendo 3DS Ganbarion realized they had something great in their hands with Unlimited Adventure. So they continued the “Unlimited” series on the Wii with Unlimited Cruise, which was released as two different “episodes” due to the length of the campaign. It’s a story-driven adventurous journey that’ll take you from island to island on the Thousand Sunny. With excellent graphics and lots of good fights against marines, divine soldiers, automata, and bosses such as Buggy and Don Krieg, this game will keep you hooked for a while.
5. One Piece (GBA) (2005)
Platforms: Game Boy Advance As unexpected as it may be, I can’t help but draw attention to this amazing little game from the franchise’s early years. Developed by Dimps specifically with Western markets in mind, this platformer/beat-em-up is based on the 4kids dub of the anime. And it covers the entirety of the introductory East Blue Saga. Stages are detailed and interactive, and combat works pretty well too. With Luffy’s combos and ability to summon friends helping you pummel the game’s bosses, this is a real treat if you can still have fun playing old-school GBA titles.
4. One Piece: World Seeker (2019)
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, PC The latest open-world installment in the One Piece universe looked promising throughout the development cycle’s concept art, character designs, and brief looks at the gameplay. However, the reality was a little different than our expectations. Sure, the game looks impressive. With some insanely beautiful vistas and hi-res characters too. But the gameplay falls flat on its back in many regards. The open world isn’t empty, but the side-quests and collectibles that fill it are pretty uninteresting, and it gets repetitive in no time. The reason it makes it this high up the list (other than the remarkable graphics) is the excellent original story written by author Eiichiro Oda solely for the game. For One Piece fans, this is worth playing for story alone.
3. One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 (2015)
Platforms: PS3, PS4, PlayStation Vita, Nintendo Switch , PC I’ve always been a fan of Omega Force’s Dynasty Warrior series. And I love it when they mash up its Musou gameplay with a franchise like The Legend of Zelda… or in this case, One Piece. The third entry in the Pirate Warriors series was considered the best for a long while. Not only does it feature the best re-telling of the story in a game so far, but the attention to detail and references that only fans will catch is a treat. Absolutely give this one a try if you can, it’s on mostly all modern consoles.
2. One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 (2020)
Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC Now if you really want the newest and greatest, there’s really no reason to play Pirate Warriors 3 when you can grab the most recent release: Pirate Warriors 4. This game takes everything that worked in PW3 and doubles down on it. It’s bigger, better, and with a more extensive cast and even a new mode where enemies are several times their original size – because why not? With 43 characters and lots of DLC incoming, this game will keep you hooked for a long time. Fans will be unlocking new costumes, movesets, and enjoying this gameplay for weeks at a time.
1. One Piece: Unlimited World Red (Deluxe Edition) (2017)
Platforms: PS4, PS3, Nintendo Switch, 3DS, Wii U, PC Initially released in 2014 but recently renewed for an eighth-gen console release, One Piece: Unlimited World Red is the best game in the franchise’s roster for adventure lovers. While its visuals are just as stunning as some of the other games here, the sense of adventure in Unlimited World Red is off the charts. Exploring the Island of Promises is a pleasure thanks to Luffy’s elasticity. And there are lots of resources, collectibles, and secrets to keep you busy. Sure, combat isn’t too complex. But it does look fantastic. And this title makes it satisfying to mow down enemies throughout the campaign.
