‘One Piece: Burning Blood’: Great Action and Environments; Release Date, New Characters Bared

by Jen Mendoza / Feb 15, 2016 07:09 PM EST

http://www.onepiece-game.com/us/image/8659

Finally, "One Piece: Burning Blood" has a release date, as well as a new set characters that are expected to add more excitement to the game.

According to a press release from Bandai Namco via Cinema Blend, the highly-anticipated arena style fighting game for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita and Xbox One will be rolled out in North America on May 31.

Among the latest characters that have been added to "One Piece: Burning Blood" include Edward Newgate, AKA "Whitebeard," Marco, Jozu, Jimbei, Luffy (Before two-year time skip), Nico Robin, Nami, Perona and Boa Hancock.

Shonen Jump fans will be thrilled to know that these characters can be played in all of the game modes, including the new Paramount War mode.

For those who are unfamiliar with the "One Piece" franchise, the Paramount War mode is a story-based campaign that lets players relive the "Marineford" Arc that was culled directly from the popular manga and anime series.

"One Piece: Burning Blood" will allow players to choose their favorite characters - hero or villain - and battle it out across colorful environments as seen in the beloved series.

Cinema Blend described the game as "great in action" and boasts of graphics that are a bit different from the anime, looking more like a "colorized version" of the manga series.

For their part, desktop gamers need not worry, as the release date of "One Piece: Burning Blood" for PCs will be in June of this year.

In related news, the 10th issue of Shueisha's Weekly "Shonen Jump" magazine will announce the inclusion of admirals Akainu, Kizaru and Aokiji in the lineup of "One Piece: Burning Blood" characters, according to the Anime News Network.

The three admirals will all be playable characters on the PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, PC, and Xbox One versions of the game.

The North American version of "One Piece: Burning Blood," which will only be available on the PS4, will have a Collector's Edition, will includes the game, two figurines of Whitebeard, and an official art book.

On the other hand, the game's European version will includes the same items as the North American Collector's Edition, but will only be available on both the PS4 and Xbox One.

"One Piece: Burning Blood" has an impressive production team, with Spike Chunsoft as game developer, Kōji Nakajima as producer for Bandai Namco, and Hiroyuki Kaneko and Tairi Kikuchi as game director and designer, respectively.