One Piece: Grand Battle

"Dub Fans Only"

Graphics-8/10
As most anime-related games, OP:GB features cell-shaded graphics. Bright and colorful tones express the more lively side of One Piece, making GB fell like a cartoon, which is both good and bad. Backgrounds are nicely done, with decent attention to detail that provides a variety of great-looking characters and areas to choose from.

Sound-6.5/10
Sadly, this is where the game both wins and looses. The music for each stage is fitting, and is often bouncy and fun. Not exactly what you might expect from One Piece, but it certainly works. However, music isn't the only sound in a game. The game uses the dub voices, the voices from the American version. While a few of the voices sound decent at best, most sound horrible and don't fit the character at all. There isn't an option for Japanese voices, so fans of Oda's original creation will be greatly disappointed.

Gameplay-7.6/10
The game features what would at first appear to be a large roster of playable characters and areas to fight in. But once you learn that three characters and two stages have been cut, you realize that you deserve better. Yes, simply because the American anime and manga weren't far enough along, several characters and arenas were completely cut from the game. The game plays out like your average fighter, with a Story Mode, a one-on-one battle mode, a Tournament mode, and a few extras. It's decent, but nothing special.

Replayability-8/10
By completing certain events in the game, you unlock extras like art, character stats, new costumes, videos, and even new characters and areas. Also, being a fighter game, you can always just pick it up and go; the game never changes, and you can always change your combo patterns to keep the originality flowing.

Overall-7/10
While fans of the dub will likely spend hours in front of the TV, loyal fans of the original One Piece will feel disappointed and let down. If you just have to have it, go for a rental, but if possible, get the imported version. A decent game, but not the greatest way to spend your money.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/31/06