One Punch Man: World Review

One Punch Man: World, released January 31, 2024, developed by T3 Studio and published by Crunchyroll Games. Based on the popular anime/manga series, One Punch Man, the game is an ambitious title with big shoes to fill. But does it live up to that expectation?

Despite still retaining many of the issues that plagued the closed beta last year, One Punch Man: World manages to both pay homage to its source material and expand on it in ways that both long-time fans and newcomers will appreciate.

Story and Graphics

One Punch Man: World is a direct adaptation of the first two seasons of the hit anime series. It follows the budding superhero, Saitama. Despite his inexperience, he possesses an incredible power: the ability to obliterate villains with a single punch! However, this is a power for which he holds much disdain since it makes fighting new opponents rather boring.

The game also allows players to take control of other characters in the Hero Association, a legion created to protect Japan from powerful monsters and supervillains! 

They can embark on a variety of missions and side quests to explore cities in Japan. Take on epic challenges within the Hero Association’s headquarters. All of these features help ensure players are never short on things to do. They are accentuated by the vibrant animation style that feels very in line with that of the anime itself.

It all works very well to capture the sense that players are indeed playing the anime, but it is at times bogged down a bit by the most important issue: the gameplay.

The Gameplay

The interface of One Punch Man: World features quite a few menus to cycle through. While each of these does serve a purpose, such as selecting different game modes or flipping through in-game shops, it can be rather overwhelming and break the immersion at times. 

A lot of these menus have to be used in the tutorial as well, and it made the beginning of the game a lot rougher than it should have been.

While an Android or iPhone touchscreen is not as responsive as a PC, the gist of the combat is not lost and gets easier over time. I found myself beating the tutorial relatively easily, even despite the slightly overwhelming interface of actions. Not all of these are necessary to progress through the game, so it makes for an experience that feels comfortable and adaptable to your style of play.

The actual gameplay of One Punch Man: World takes place within a large 3D arena. Here, players can use a variety of character-specific special moves and abilities. Several cities and locales from the anime are represented on this map. Everything from bustling city streets and quiet, dark suburban locales. Each location features unique NPCs and side quests for players to complete. There are also interior attractions like convenience stores and game centers that I definitely didn’t spend too much time in. Certainly not. 

Characters and World

Hero Association headquarters serves as the game’s primary hub for plates to return to at any time to report on or take missions. It’s great for seeing all the game’s heroes in one place.

One Punch Man: World also features online multiplayer available at launch, including cooperative play and a PVP mode. Online versus modes features both single and team-based battles that seamlessly replicate the chaotic, over-the-top action setpieces of the anime. This is helped by the variety of playable characters to choose from aside from Saitama. 

Each character has a specific niche they specialize in, such as ancillary characters such as support characters like Bang or combat-focused characters like Genos and Fubuki. It was fun to experiment with and feel each one on the battlefield.

The Verdict

Despite a few small hindrances such as the UI and the overwhelming scope of the world, One Punch Man: World is a faithful love letter to the popular anime series that fans new and old can easily pick up and enjoy. 

It immerses the player in the universe of One Punch Man in a way that makes the world feel lived in. It manages to be engaging as an on-the-go experience for its intense combat for single and multiplayer, wide cast of characters, side quests, and new unlockables to discover as you play.