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An exhilarating combat experience with missed opportunites | Review - One Punch Man: World
464 View2024-02-02
✨Overview
One Punch Man: World has finally launched! bringing forth an action-adventure gacha experience set in the One Punch Man universe. The game covers the first season of the anime, but also introduces new original stories involving various side characters, for the main quest and overall game progression. The game is currently available on iOS, Android, and PC.
🟩Pros
+Faithful adaptation of anime scenes
+Impressive cel-shaded visuals that could give the Anime a run for its money
+An exhilarating combat experience
🟥Cons
-Uninteresting filler-esque story
-Too much trivial mini-games and activities
-Stingy gacha rates
⭐️Score: 7/10
One Punch Man: World has finally launched! bringing forth an action-adventure gacha experience set in the One Punch Man universe. The game covers the first season of the anime, but also introduces new original stories involving various side characters, for the main quest and overall game progression. The game is currently available on iOS, Android, and PC.
🟩Pros
+Faithful adaptation of anime scenes
+Impressive cel-shaded visuals that could give the Anime a run for its money
+An exhilarating combat experience
🟥Cons
-Uninteresting filler-esque story
-Too much trivial mini-games and activities
-Stingy gacha rates
⭐️Score: 7/10
📖Story and Premise
The central storyline follows the unparalleled hero Saitama, whose ability to defeat any opponent with a single punch has left him yearning for a worthy adversary. Players will still assume the role of Saitama, but the game mostly follows side characters, going as far down the roster with heroes like Lightning Max, Smile Man, Golden Ball, and other more obscure heroes, each contributing to an overarching narrative that unfolds within the confines of the Hero Association.
The story serves as a stop gap filler in-between major events in Season 1 that shows the a glimpse of the life of these Hero side characters as well as interacting with the civilians affected by all these destruction. It’s almost a slice-of-life story told within the One Punch Man universe, complete with exploration and free-roam around the city.
The premise itself is interesting, but the way it is presented—lots of running, talking, the pacing, and the silent dialogue—does not make it compelling. Players can still relive some of the events of the anime’s Season 1, one episode at a time. On the other hand, this aspect is done very well and is faithful to the Anime, but players will need to progress through the main game's story to unlock them.
🎨Visuals and Art
The cel-shaded visuals are simply masterfully executed and in my opinion looks as good as Madhouse’s animation of the first season, you can almost forget that it’s a game and not a new Season. The game faithfully recreates scenes from the anime using its 3D cel-shaded graphics engine. I find the engine so impressive that I would have no qualms if it were used instead to generate anime scenes quickly, if it means we can have future seasons soon. While there are returning voice actors from the anime, there’s still a lot of unvoiced dialogue.
🎮Gameplay
One Punch Man: World follows a gacha game model with action-oriented gameplay, reminiscent of titles like Genshin Impact and Aether Gazer. Players assemble a team of up to four heroes, embarking on a variety of missions to combat monsters and villains. The gameplay, typical of anime action games, grants players freedom of movement, dodging/blocking, and activating unique abilities for each hero.
Each hero possesses a distinct ability and move set, providing varied combat mechanics, Even identical heroes come with different variants, each offering unique abilities. For example, an SSR Genos variant may seamlessly switch between melee and ranged attacks, while another variant may cater more to a ranged playstyle. Saitama also has multiple variants, from his Long Haired Salaryman days to being Saitama in Pajamas — each with different movesets.
⚔️Combat
Mirroring the intense action of the anime, the combat in One Punch Man: World is an exhilarating hack-and-slash experience, with some options for automation. Every strike delivers a satisfying punch with stunning visual effects, capturing the essence of the Anime's magnitude. The game is at its peak when in the heat of combat, especially during the main story missions where you are controlling the main heroes like Saitama and Genos. The gameplay effectively translates the heroes powers into a hack-and-slash-style format.
📜Progression
Following the introduction, the game introduces side characters like Lightning Max, Smile Man, and Three-Staff Lilly, exploring their stories within the Hero Association. Other heroes are primarily obtained via the gacha system but can also be acquired through other ‘free’ means, such as completing quests (it even offers free SSR characters via these quests) and progressing in the story. Although some suspension of disbelief is required, as you can obtain and use heroes like Saitama or Genos, which aren’t really part of the game’s filler-esque narrative.
🌍World and Side Activities
Aside from Story missions and Anime story missions, The game features various side missions and activities, plus exploration of A-City at leisure. Convenience stores offer stat-boosting meals, and arcades host One Punch Man-inspired versions of classic games.
There are also various mini-games and segments in the story that I feel like this game doesn’t know what it wants to be and might be experiencing an identity crisis. A whack-a-mole mini-game to keep yourself awake during cinema? A sneaking segment to escape hospitalization? An investigation mini-game? Why the hell not? The game feels a little too bloated with these things included, all I was expecting is a hack-and-slash game set in the One Punch Man universe focused on what the Anime does best = Action.
💵Monetization
The game is free-to-play with in-app purchases for gacha rolls and premium currency. The gacha rates are notably low, but the introduction of a pity system somewhat mitigates this issue by guaranteeing an SSR item on the 60th pull. There is also a steep price of $45-$50 for just one pull. In my experience though, the game provides enough free resources to clear content, and both SSR and SR characters are viable for gameplay.
📊Technical Performance
Technical performance is acceptable, but there are occasional drops in performance during action-packed scenes, even on my Snapdragon 888 device (ROG Phone 5). The game also supports frame rates of up to 60 and 120 FPS, and has an extensive graphics settings. I’ve experience some connectivity issues during launch, but it became easier to connect as time went by.
⚖️Conclusion
One Punch Man: World is at its best in its faithful adaptation of iconic anime scenes and in delivering an engaging combat experience. When all cylinders are firing, expect an exhilarating, fun hack-and-slash game. However, the game loses focus by including too many trivial mini-games and activities, and the filler-esque story presentation doesn’t help. Instead of doubling down on the action, it attempts to do everything, much to its detriment. Adding to that the stingy gacha model, and it results in unfortunate game that could have been a masterpiece of an adaptation.
The central storyline follows the unparalleled hero Saitama, whose ability to defeat any opponent with a single punch has left him yearning for a worthy adversary. Players will still assume the role of Saitama, but the game mostly follows side characters, going as far down the roster with heroes like Lightning Max, Smile Man, Golden Ball, and other more obscure heroes, each contributing to an overarching narrative that unfolds within the confines of the Hero Association.
The story serves as a stop gap filler in-between major events in Season 1 that shows the a glimpse of the life of these Hero side characters as well as interacting with the civilians affected by all these destruction. It’s almost a slice-of-life story told within the One Punch Man universe, complete with exploration and free-roam around the city.
The premise itself is interesting, but the way it is presented—lots of running, talking, the pacing, and the silent dialogue—does not make it compelling. Players can still relive some of the events of the anime’s Season 1, one episode at a time. On the other hand, this aspect is done very well and is faithful to the Anime, but players will need to progress through the main game's story to unlock them.
🎨Visuals and Art
The cel-shaded visuals are simply masterfully executed and in my opinion looks as good as Madhouse’s animation of the first season, you can almost forget that it’s a game and not a new Season. The game faithfully recreates scenes from the anime using its 3D cel-shaded graphics engine. I find the engine so impressive that I would have no qualms if it were used instead to generate anime scenes quickly, if it means we can have future seasons soon. While there are returning voice actors from the anime, there’s still a lot of unvoiced dialogue.
🎮Gameplay
One Punch Man: World follows a gacha game model with action-oriented gameplay, reminiscent of titles like Genshin Impact and Aether Gazer. Players assemble a team of up to four heroes, embarking on a variety of missions to combat monsters and villains. The gameplay, typical of anime action games, grants players freedom of movement, dodging/blocking, and activating unique abilities for each hero.
Each hero possesses a distinct ability and move set, providing varied combat mechanics, Even identical heroes come with different variants, each offering unique abilities. For example, an SSR Genos variant may seamlessly switch between melee and ranged attacks, while another variant may cater more to a ranged playstyle. Saitama also has multiple variants, from his Long Haired Salaryman days to being Saitama in Pajamas — each with different movesets.
⚔️Combat
Mirroring the intense action of the anime, the combat in One Punch Man: World is an exhilarating hack-and-slash experience, with some options for automation. Every strike delivers a satisfying punch with stunning visual effects, capturing the essence of the Anime's magnitude. The game is at its peak when in the heat of combat, especially during the main story missions where you are controlling the main heroes like Saitama and Genos. The gameplay effectively translates the heroes powers into a hack-and-slash-style format.
📜Progression
Following the introduction, the game introduces side characters like Lightning Max, Smile Man, and Three-Staff Lilly, exploring their stories within the Hero Association. Other heroes are primarily obtained via the gacha system but can also be acquired through other ‘free’ means, such as completing quests (it even offers free SSR characters via these quests) and progressing in the story. Although some suspension of disbelief is required, as you can obtain and use heroes like Saitama or Genos, which aren’t really part of the game’s filler-esque narrative.
🌍World and Side Activities
Aside from Story missions and Anime story missions, The game features various side missions and activities, plus exploration of A-City at leisure. Convenience stores offer stat-boosting meals, and arcades host One Punch Man-inspired versions of classic games.
There are also various mini-games and segments in the story that I feel like this game doesn’t know what it wants to be and might be experiencing an identity crisis. A whack-a-mole mini-game to keep yourself awake during cinema? A sneaking segment to escape hospitalization? An investigation mini-game? Why the hell not? The game feels a little too bloated with these things included, all I was expecting is a hack-and-slash game set in the One Punch Man universe focused on what the Anime does best = Action.
💵Monetization
The game is free-to-play with in-app purchases for gacha rolls and premium currency. The gacha rates are notably low, but the introduction of a pity system somewhat mitigates this issue by guaranteeing an SSR item on the 60th pull. There is also a steep price of $45-$50 for just one pull. In my experience though, the game provides enough free resources to clear content, and both SSR and SR characters are viable for gameplay.
📊Technical Performance
Technical performance is acceptable, but there are occasional drops in performance during action-packed scenes, even on my Snapdragon 888 device (ROG Phone 5). The game also supports frame rates of up to 60 and 120 FPS, and has an extensive graphics settings. I’ve experience some connectivity issues during launch, but it became easier to connect as time went by.
⚖️Conclusion
One Punch Man: World is at its best in its faithful adaptation of iconic anime scenes and in delivering an engaging combat experience. When all cylinders are firing, expect an exhilarating, fun hack-and-slash game. However, the game loses focus by including too many trivial mini-games and activities, and the filler-esque story presentation doesn’t help. Instead of doubling down on the action, it attempts to do everything, much to its detriment. Adding to that the stingy gacha model, and it results in unfortunate game that could have been a masterpiece of an adaptation.
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