One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2

Given the source material One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2 is likely to be avoided by most as they have no connection already in place and the genre is ten-a-penny on the current generation of consoles. This would be a mistake. The story is lively and full of interesting characters even if it’s basic in its plotting and execution.

Omega Force keeps releasing the same game over and over again and some like it this way. But if you’re not a fan of the One Piece anime, I suggest picking up Dynasty Warriors 8 instead. [11/2013, p.86]

It's not all smooth sailing, but there's still some rich pirate booty to discover if you're up for it. [Nov 2013, p.70]

It's worth renting or borrowing the game if you aren’t into the One Piece phenomenon. If you’re a massive fanm it’s a must buy - especially given the fact you won’t see this particular One Piece adventure anywhere else.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2 could have been a cheap cash-in of a sequel, not far from the assumption one would make of a re-skinned promotional product, but it's actually better than the majority of titles in the main Dynasty Warriors series.

The combat can be a bit simplistic and shallow, but it doesn’t keep it from being enjoyable. It is a game that can be enjoyable without any knowledge of the amine/manga, and by people who don’t care for either of those mediums.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2 was created with an unusual attention to gameplay quality for a licensed game. It may not be a masterpiece, but it's simple fun that is especially good for short play sessions with a friend.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2 takes the foundations that were built by the original Pirate Warriors, strips away the gameplay that it wasn’t confident about and sticks with what Warriors games know best – frantic action against waves upon waves of enemies while looking stylishly true to source material to please fans of the show.

Pirate Warriors 2 is a step backward in terms of gameplay mechanics and storytelling, but its amount of contents and replayability grants its existence.

One Piece Pirate Warriors 2 removes all quick time events and platform sections of the first episode to offer a more Dynasty Warriors oriented game. It’s a good game if you’re One Piece fans, but it shows all the limits of the musou genre.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2 builds on the qualities of the first episode and removes its flaws to finally offer a massive and frenetic Dynasty Warrior's-like beat'em all... A genre that has its limits, but fans of the One Piece series will be delighted to find a new original story, 36 playable characters and many things to unlock.

A nice fighting game in the vein of the Dynasty Warriors saga, Pirate Warriors 2 is great for fans of the manga, but also has something else to appeal to the rest of us.

Next time I see that Omega Force logo I might just get excited instead of nauseous.

Somehow, the package works. [Nov 2013, p.75]

Too Close to the classical Dynasty Warriors style, Pirate Warriors 2 ends up pleasing only hardcore fans of Oda's saga.

Combat is entertaining, but it’s entirely unmemorable, and not only because one battle blends into the next after a while. To its credit, it’s everything it promises to be – but it’s unlikely to convert anyone not already invested in One Piece.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors surprised us a bit two years ago with its platform levels which offered some variety and let the player breathe a little outside of the battlefield. Forget this with One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2. Quick Time Events levels are not even included, the story has been pushed aside, only to give the fans what they want: more new characters and more new battles. Too bad.

For One Piece fans and One Piece fans only.

All-in-all the features add up to a game that is one of the best replications of the real thing thus far, especially with some top notch presentation. Just watch out for those damn ghosts. [November 2013, p85]

It is, however, hard to open-handedly recommend it to everyone: One Piece fans will find far more to like in it than non-fans, and the stylisation can be a divisive visual look.