I think I might enjoy it just because it's One Piece. After all, I even put over 40 hours into JoJo ASB despite how mediocre the gameplay was and I don't regret the 70 bucks I spent on it. Still, I'd have to sell at least 3 of my games just to get this for half off. Decisions, decisions.
Never played that game, but I know everyone's definition of mediocrity is different. Personally, I think they put together a very solid package with Unlimited Red, and the production/cinematic quality is a bit better than I expected, especially for a 3DS game.
My only gripes are pretty minor. When boosting around town, Luffy boosts in the direction he's facing, rather than the X marker that's appearing onscreen. Makes getting to certain tight spots near impossible. Even in Spider-man and Arkham games they program it to attach to whatever ledge is triggering onscreen. The other would be that R-triggering the AI seems really random. I have the hardest time getting Chopper to heal me.
But man, there's a lot going on in terms of combat. I don't think folks will get bored with it. Each character is very, very different, and there's a lot to negotiate between the onscreen combos that trigger Breaks, the Item Words, special attacks, team special attacks. There's a lot of shit to enjoy. At heart, it's a brawler, but it's definitely a very up-to-date brawler with lots of fun mechanics. For me, Robin made the price of admission worth it. The rest is
jugs gravy.
