Grand Battle!

One Piece: Grand Battle! is a fighting game based on the One Piece manga and anime, released for the Sony PlayStation. It adapts elements of the series up to the Whisky Peak Arc.

Developed by Ganbarion and published by Bandai, Grand Battle! was released in Japan on March 3, 2001, becoming the series' second-ever licensed game (preceded only by Become the Pirate King!), and the first for a home console. It met with resounding success, ultimately selling over 400,000 units and launching its first sequel the very next year; several more sequels and spinoffs would follow, expanding the Grand Battle name over an entire series.

In 2003, the game was given a PAL release, featuring text options (with unaltered Japanese audio) in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and German. This made it the first One Piece game to be released outside of Japan, though it remains unavailable in North America.

Gameplay


Combat uses typical 2.5D mechanics, with three-dimensional character sprites interacting on a two-dimensional axis. Player characters can walk, run, jump, double-jump, crouch, block, and pick up (as well as throw and catch) items around the battlefield.

Fighting consists of standard button combinations. Each player character can access 12 standard techniques, along with several Finisher (必殺) techniques that incorporate full cinematics. Finishers can only be used when character health falls below a set threshold (marked in notches on the health bar), and follow a numbered level system; higher levels correspond to lower health, and usually greater damage.

There are five classes of Finisher techniques:
 * Strike (打撃) finishers are delivered through largely conventional blows.
 * Boost (タメ) finishers are delivered through blows that can be "charged" for extra range.
 * Grapple (投げ) finishers are delivered completely flush with the opponent, and cannot be blocked.
 * Counter (カウンター) finishers are delivered by intercepting one of the opponent's attacks.
 * Support Summon (手下召喚) finishers call in a support character to deliver the blow.

Every character can access at least two different finisher techniques; some can access as many as three.

Characters
There are a total of sixteen player characters, seven of which are assigned support characters. Note that player characters with multiple support characters are limited to one - randomly selected - in any given match.

All player characters can access an "A" and a "B" costume, consisting of their canon outfits and a recolor.

Items
Combatants may be helped or hindered by a variety of items around the battlefield. All items can be picked up or caught, and are generally activated by either direct contact or the impact of a throw. If attacked, most items vanish immediately; if left alone, they generally vanish after five seconds.

Below is a table of items and their respective effects.

Items are generally found by breaking the containers - barrels, crates, and treasure chests - positioned around each stage. These containers can also be picked up, caught, or thrown for minor damage.

Battle Stages
There are a total of six stages, each with unique music, features, and background spectators.

Game Modes
Two modes may be accessed from the Top Menu.

Grand Battle
Grand Battle (グランドバトル) mode allows players to participate in classic arcade-style battles against each other or against the CPU. CPU opponents may be set at three different difficulties. Time limits may be set at 60 seconds, at 99 seconds, or completely disabled. Stages may be preset or randomly selected.

Event Battle


Event Battle (イベントバトル) mode puts the player character through a gauntlet of six 99-second battles against six semi-randomly selected CPU opponents.

Each battle is framed with a short cutscene, generally scripted after canon interactions if possible. The stage for each battle also generally follows canon; Usopp will always be fought at Syrup Village, Arlong will always be fought at Arlong Park, and so on.

To progress, each opponent must be fully beaten; if a match times out with no conclusive winner, both combatants are restored a small amount of health and sent into a Sudden Death rematch. Once all six battles are cleared, a still of the player character (overlaid with a signature quote) is shown, followed by the game's development credits.

Outright losing a battle will present the player with a continue option; a total of five continues are allowed before Event Battle automatically ends.

Bonus Features
Treasure (お宝) contains a data file for each player character, collecting the character's sprite model, win record, combat attributes, voice clips, and finisher commands.

These files can be unlocked by clearing Event Battle with the corresponding characters.

Trivia

 * The game's box-art, opening cinematic, and Press Start screen all recreate the cover to Volume 12.
 * Oddly, the game mostly labels Igaram as Mr. 8 and Vivi as Miss Wednesday, despite referencing events that occurred well after their real names were revealed in Chapter 110 (with one cinematic even recreating Igaram's farewell to Vivi in Chapter 113).
 * Sanji will enter a unique "Mellorine" mode, with different voice clips, if battling a female opponent.
 * Nami's Temptation Kiss and Alvida's Who's the Loveliest In the World? finishers will produce a heart if used against Sanji, Buggy, Arlong, Pandaman, or Shanks, and a heart if used against anyone else.
 * Miss Wednesday's Come, Karoo! finisher will occasionally feature a gag ending where Karoo tramples both combatants.
 * This game sold well even after its initial release; by mid-2002, it and its sequel had sold over 600,000 units together, earning a joint Gold Prize commendation at the 2002 Sony PlayStation awards.

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