At the moment, everything is quiet on theOne Piecevideo game front.One Piece Odysseyhas finished its roll-out on various platforms andOne Piece Pirate Warriors 4seems to have completed its surprise bonus wave of late-Wano DLC. Meanwhile, theOne Piecemanga has spent much of 2024 working through various revelations in the Egghead arc and has since taken the Straw Hat Pirates to the near-mythical island of Elbaf. With the potential for several story arcs and plot points to be paid off in this land of giants, it feels more than ever likeOne Pieceis approaching its conclusion.
This video game drought may seem sudden, but typical publisher Bandai Namco provided a reason for it recently by downsizing and shutting down several unannounced projects. Shonen Jump titles were said to be among them, soOne Piecefans looking for new experiences will have to be content with mobile titles likeOne Piece Dream Pointerfor now. However,moreOne Piececonsole gamesare inevitable, and will greatly benefit from the manga drawing to a close. New forms and powers will no doubt roll out duringOne Piece’s climactic final arcs, but they will likely necessitate one unexpected character getting some special treatment.
Adaptations Must Acknowledge One Piece’s Long History Through Its Characters
One Piecegames have been careful about properly representing important characters at different points in time, particularly Monkey D. Luffy and the other Straw Hats. If a game isn’t set in awell-defined place withinOne Piece’s chronology, it’s either some time before or after the time skip, or covers both periods by dividing the relevant crew members into two versions. This has worked out for all the different genres and formats thatOne Piecegames have assumed so far, but another big name inOne Piece’s universe will likely have to join them very soon.
Blackbeard Has Evolved As Much As The Straw Hats
While the Straw Hats were busy gaining allies and new abilities, the Blackbeard Pirates have been busy throughoutOne Piece’s run doing the same. Led by Marshall D. Teach, better known as Blackbeard, this enigmatic crew has built up a criminal empire under the watchful eyes of their eccentric but powerful leader. It’s fitting that they sound like the Straw Hat Grand Fleet under Luffy, asLuffy and Blackbeard were set up as twisted reflectionsof each other from Teach’s first moments on-panel. Their parallels have only grown more stark over time, and with that grows the work newOne Piecegames will need to do to accommodate them.
How New One Piece Games Can Represent Blackbeard’s Growth
Blackbeard’s status, appearance, and abilities have changed enough over time that he’s owed the same treatment thatOne Piecegames give to the Straw Hats. The most obvious shift was whenBlackbeard stole Whitebeard’s Tremor-Tremor Fruit powerjust before the time skip, anomalously adding it to his already impressive Dark-Dark Fruit. However, it’s been confirmed that there’s more to be revealed about how he managed this normally lethal feat, so much like Luffy’s different Gear levels sometimes require multiple in-game portrayals, Blackbeard would also need to be presented in each stage of his evolution.
Even as the Straw Hatsclose in on the One Piece treasureand the coveted Pirate King title attached, they’re also unknowingly nearing their final showdown with Blackbeard, and futureOne Piecegames will need to pull out all the stops to show both sides at their best.
