Review One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows - A fighting game about Saint Bong Tom

Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment, Namco Bandai Games America Inc.

Developer:
Spike Chunsoft, Chunsoft

Release date: February 27, 2020

Platforms:
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC

Like previous anime-based fighting game titles, One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows was born mainly for the purpose of serving longtime fans of this anime series. Bringing in new mechanics as well as a large number of fans, there are still a few basic errors that make this game "lose points" in the eyes of gamers. 

The beauty of the game lies in the character customization feature, allowing players to change both appearance and fighting style. These options can be a bit limited at first, needing to be unlocked through the gameplay. However, after a few hours of unlocking options, gamers were able to experience the feeling of designing their own characters in their favorite style, diversifying gameplay and storyline.

As mentioned above, the player can also freely switch the fighting style for the character at almost any time, except of course during the match. Each style is designed to be quite diverse in terms of aesthetics, with some being traditional melee combat methods, while others use psychic powers or ranged weapons. Despite the variety, the gameplay of these styles for each character is quite similar, with only a few slight differences in distance or casting time.

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While this can be a bit disappointing, such changes are largely unnecessary in some cases, as One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows brings together a cast of characters from superheroes. S-rank to the noobs in the anime. Each character has its own advantages and disadvantages as well as different combos that make gamers need a lot of time to master as well as fully grasp the gameplay of each character.

Some complaints about the gameplay lies in the fact that the tempo of the matches can become quite boring when not pushed to the climax like regular fighting games. When knocked down, instead of immediately getting up and continuing to charge into the fight, the character takes up to 4 seconds to sit up, immune to all combos for the entire time. This constantly interrupts the gameplay resulting in a loss of interest for some gamers.

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As usual, every time you hit an opponent, the character's energy bar will slowly increase, allowing that character to use special moves. The moves in the game are all inspired by the moments in One Punch Man that promises to bring eye-catching matches for true fans of this anime series. However, these attacks are often quite easy to react to as well as dodge, making gamers need to learn how to combine their moves with combos smoothly if they want to see their opponent's health bar recede. 0 in the coolest way possible.

The plot of the game itself lacks attractiveness. Mainly cutscenes with some dialogue placed between fights. Admittedly, a few scenes have been included by the publisher, which are beautiful and detailed, but they are no different from the anime. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but fans are still eager to see some other original details from the manga incorporated into the main plot.

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After playing to a certain point in the story, gamers can unlock Saitama for other modes including 3v3 online. Adding Saitama to the game opens up more entertaining aspects to online confrontations with other players. The question here is: How to add a character with the skill 'Punch to the death' to a fighting game while keeping the balance of the game?

The answer is absolutely possible, if you choose Saitama in the 3v3 format, the player will only be able to start with the 2 characters they have chosen other than 'Saint Bong'. Particularly Saitama will need to have time to 'get lost' before being able to start the match. This means that if you choose Saitama, you can only play with 2 other characters to buy time until Saitama appears with unlimited health and the 'Punch and die' skill. In addition, it is also possible to reduce the time Saitama appears by combining beautiful combos. This mechanism brings interesting points as well as new tactics to the game, while maintaining the hegemony of 'Thanh Phong'.

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Honestly, if you ignore the popularity of the anime, there is nothing that can separate One Punch Man: A Hero Nobody Knows from other fighting games. However, those things are also what the game maker itself is aiming for. Among the countless other names that have also been adapted from recent anime such as Jump Force or Dragon Ball Z Kakarot , the game, despite its lack of versatility and humor, is still an interesting experience for fans. Perennial.

Conclude

The game still retains its pure values, although the appeal is mainly related to character customization and gameplay design. In fact, the game itself, if stand alone, will be nothing special. But that is not why this game attracts players so much. For those who simply want to experience One Punch Man related games, A Hero Nobody Knows is the game for them. As a reminder of the super crazy anime legend they have been following.

Kareem Winters

Update 05 January 2022