Bandai Namco’s One Piece: Thousand Storm is officially approaching end of service, with the latest announcement revealing a closing date of January 23, 2024. After almost eight years of service in Japan, this will mark the 2016 mobile title’s final end, meeting the same fate as the worldwide version back in 2018.
Naturally, One Piece: Thousand Storm’s main appeal has been its leveraging of the hugely popular One Piece IP, featuring familiar characters like Monkey D Luffy in multiplayer RPG gameplay. It was developed by Nintendo associate DeNA and published by Bandai Namco.
The franchise started out as a Japanese manga series in 1997 and has since spawned a long-running anime, video games and even a Netflix adaptation. But despite its sustained popularity and a Western resurgence through Netflix, the Japanese mobile game is still coming to a close.
Part of a trend
One Piece: Thousand Storm is unfortunately not a fringe case; the number of Japanese mobile games reaching end of service seems ever increasing, and with increasing speed, too. Many Square Enix titles are among them, but unlike Bandai Namco’s One Piece: Thousand Storm, most didn’t even get a chance in the West.
Square has already closed down Bravely Default: Brilliant Lights, Echoes of Mana, and the global versions of SinoAlice and Dragon Quest Monsters: Super Light. Next on the chopping block are the latter two’s Japanese iterations, both closing down in January 2024, just like One Piece: Thousand Storm.
"Thank you very much for using One Piece: Thousand Storm. Since the service started, One Piece: Thousand Storm has been used by many people, but as of January 23, 2024, the service will be suspended," the One Piece: Thousand Storm team posted on the game’s official site.
"We have decided to discontinue the service. We would like to express our deepest gratitude to everyone who has patronised this app."
While January is looking like a bad month for closures already, entering into 2024 isn't all doom and gloom. In fact, Bandai Namco and DeNA recently partnered to release Takt Op Symphony in the West, a mobile game in the Takt Op multimedia project; Koei Tecmo has thrown its hat back into the mobile ring with Atelier Resleriana too - its first mobile game of the decade. So, clearly, there will still be plenty of newer Japanese content to play in 2024.
