• Light/Dark
  • Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
  • We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.

SAND LAND - Review Thread

Lucia

Lucia

Member
Oct 18, 2021
1,284
Argentina
packshot-c5b20ea2123f9560f6d47ec599499423.jpg

RELEASE DATE:

April 25, 2024 (JP)
April 26, 2024 (WW)

PLATFORMS:

PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S

REVIEWS

OPENCRITIC - (75)
METACRITIC - (72)


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gqck16kwdcE

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lINxiGA0NIk&pp=ygUQU0FORCBMQU5EIFJFVklFVw%3D%3D

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=somd8O8zgZg

BUT WHY THO? - 8.5/10​

While the gameplay is fun and there is a lot to explore, enough cannot be said about how gorgeous SAND LAND looks. Toriyama is one of the most beloved creators and his creativity is visible throughout every second. There is so much detail when it comes to side characters, enemies, and locations that it is impossible to take your eyes off the game. The contrast between Sand Land and Forest Land too is striking and showcases the incredible creativity of the team at ILCA.

SAND LAND is a gorgeous and heartfelt game that brings together unlikely allies on an epic quest. It is fun to play, beautiful to look at, and an unforgettable journey for everyone to enjoy.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Broken down into individual pieces, Sand Land doesn't do anything particularly amazing, but when taken as a whole, this is one of the best anime-based games that we've played in a long time. It's got plenty of great story moments, its open world structure is moreish, and combat is satisfyingly solid. A robust and lovingly crafted adventure that charms from start to finish.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
WCCFTECH - 8/10
Sand Land is a fitting farewell to Akira Toriyama as the game elevates itself above most digital adaptations of his work, delivering a well-presented story, solid action, and satisfying exploration. Some aspects of the game's design may be a bit overfamiliar for open-world veterans, but newer players and fans just looking to explore a fresh world from the master will likely enjoy burying themselves in this sandy adventure.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
GAMING NEXUS - 8/10​
Sand Land immediately caught my attention due to its ties to Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball and character designs in the Dragon Quest series. With a manga, anime, and now a video game adaptation, Sand Land has quietly become a full-fledged franchise, seemingly over night. Despite its simple premise—a search for water in a desert wasteland—Sand Land offers a mix of action RPG, vehicle combat, and stealth gameplay that's just plain fun. The game stays faithful to its source material while offering surprising depth and variety in gameplay mechanics. Despite some challenges with the stealth sections, Sand Land provides a fun and engaging experience and retains the nostalgic charm of its origins in Toriyama's work
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
SAND LAND offers a big beautiful dust bowl for players to explore to their hearts' content. I found its story and its characters to be the main driver for my playthrough, but the fun vehicle combat went hand-in-hand in my enjoyment of the game. A great adaptation of a legend's work.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
A stunningly realised rendition of Akira Toriyama's work, Sand Land matches its aesthetics with fun, breezy systems and a charming, if clumsy, tale of war, friendship, and hope.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Much like the vast desert making up nearly everything in it, Sand Land can be rough and coarse at times, yet also provides a lot of beauty in various ways. The story is great, the characters are an enjoyable lot, and the vehicular combat and traversal are superb, marred only by annoying travel dialogue and bland levels at times. Whether you're a fan of the great Toriyama's work or not, there's still something special here to check out if you're willing to put in the effort.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I'm happy to see Sand Land get a second wind with an open-world action game, and it can sometimes adapt the series in impressive ways. But while there is the potential of an interesting expansion of the manga here, it doesn't manage to replicate what Toriyama's panels were able to illustrate so effectively. Beneath some ho-hum dialogue and stilted cutscenes is a fun story with its heart in the right place, and Beelzebub and friends at least have the charisma to carry you through to the end alongside a quirky set of supporting characters and villains.

Dialing in on vehicular combat and exploration pays off to both maintain the spirit of the original work and deliver some high points, but the quests themselves fall into repetition. Thus, Sand Land suffers the same fate we've seen in many other game adaptations of anime and manga – competent in several respects with a few moments of brilliance, but for the most part, a simply okay adventure that can only occasionally capture what makes the source material special.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Sand Land is a very safe video game adaptation. There's nothing particularly stunning about its open-world design or vehicle combat, even if its Toriyama-style art looks great. That makes its flaws all the more noticeable as the story worsens in its back half and open-world activities become even more tedious.


Although this is about what I expected from a Sand Land video game adaptation, I believe this story and world have the potential to go above and beyond where it currently is. Fans of Sand Land should have a good time here, and I could see this being a formative licensed game for some younger players. But if you're unfamiliar with the source material, read the manga first.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
 
Last edited:
CloseTalker

CloseTalker

Member
Oct 25, 2017
30,876
Not going to pay full price, but this really does seem like a game I'd enjoy. Will absolutely grab it once it hits 30% off
 
tiebreaker

tiebreaker

"This guy are sick"
Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,189
This is the kind of game I'm playing despite of reviews just because of how charming it looks.
 
sfedai0

sfedai0

Member
Oct 27, 2017
10,004
Dont know anything about this game but even before reading the OP, I was gonna say this must be Toriyama. Looks amazing.
 
ghibli99

ghibli99

Member
Oct 27, 2017
17,906
Based on some of the demo impressions (I didn't play it), I thought it was going to come in lower, but glad to see that it looks to be a good game! Maybe the demo was just not a good representation of it. Wishlisting!
 
Lotus

Lotus

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
106,313
About what you'd expect for an anime game. I'll watch the anime for this at the very least, and then maybe think about getting this on sale if WoM is good
 
viral

viral

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,659
I'm enjoying the anime (well, mostly the first part), so will check this out on sale for sure.
 
MrSaturn99

MrSaturn99

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,514
I live in a giant bucket.
My grief over Toriyama's passing had me finally check out DBZ Kakarot -- nothing special, and honestly I'm expecting much the same for Sand Land, different developer aside -- but I'll probably look into this once I'm done with that.
 
ReplacementPelican

ReplacementPelican

Member
Oct 29, 2017
4,070
ghibli99 said:
Based on some of the demo impressions (I didn't play it), I thought it was going to come in lower, but glad to see that it looks to be a good game! Maybe the demo was just not a good representation of it. Wishlisting!
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
The demo impressions were that way because it was bad demo. Not meaning 'in the demo, the game was bad' but meaning... it just sort of, well, wasn't structured very well as a demo. Very much just plopped you down and went 'there you go!' and that was it.
 
Brodo Baggins

Brodo Baggins

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,031
Better reviews than I expected. I wish we got this kind of game for other anime/manga adaptations rather than so many arena fighters. I think I read this is a sequel to the anime, so I should probably watch that before diving in?
 
ghibli99

ghibli99

Member
Oct 27, 2017
17,906
ReplacementPelican said:
The demo impressions were that way because it was bad demo. Not meaning 'in the demo, the game was bad' but meaning... it just sort of, well, wasn't structured very well as a demo. Very much just plopped you down and went 'there you go!' and that was it.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Ouch! Yeah, that's not a great way to onboard/introduce people to your game. :)
 
twopenny

twopenny

Member
Oct 27, 2017
209
I'm such an easy mark for this game, it's not even funny. I absolutely acknowledge I would be getting it regardless — still, good to see it's sitting at a pretty decent number, all things considered.
 
Skies

Skies

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,283
Second time this year where two big games are launching on same day but I'm more interested in the lower reviewed game (Rise of the Ronin and now Sand Land).

I have zero experience with the manga and/or anime but something about this game just calls to me. Not sure I will be there day one but I definitely plan to check it out. Some of the reviews are extremely glowing wonder why there is such a contrast with others.
 
Kadzork

Kadzork

Has got mad skills!!
Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,996
Collectors edition shipped a couple of hours ago - can't wait!
 
Giolon

Giolon

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,110
I forgot this had a demo. I'm going to have to download it and check it out.
 
Dreamyard

Dreamyard

Member
Jul 15, 2020
296
Prioritizing this one because of Toriyama, but the premise already had me interested before his passing. Glad to see the scores are pretty solid with this one, and glad to be supporting one of Toriyama's last pieces of work.
 
Gestault

Gestault

Member
Oct 26, 2017
13,410
I like what I'm reading in the reviews so far, especially re: how the pieces seem to mesh pretty cohesively even if every part isn't perfect. It's not on my short list, but I'll check this out before too long. The demo didn't sell me, but I've heard more than once that it wasn't a great representation, and that fits with info from the reviews.
 
Kadzork

Kadzork

Has got mad skills!!
Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,996
It's funny as I have to agree the demo is bad but it legit sold me on the game as I just wanted to see the actual content even more around the vertical slice offered.
 
OtakuCoder

OtakuCoder

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,410
UK
I know it's going to be a tribute to Toriyama, but:

Sand Land |OT| Out now for Xbox, PC, and PlayStation 6!
 
viral

viral

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,659
Brodo Baggins said:
Better reviews than I expected. I wish we got this kind of game for other anime/manga adaptations rather than so many arena fighters. I think I read this is a sequel to the anime, so I should probably watch that before diving in?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

No, it adapts the same story.

The original manga is a complete story, that got adapted into a movie a few years ago. The same movie got recut into the currently airing anime's first 6 episodes, while the other 7 start a completely new, original arc. The game adapts both parts, so in a sense its second half is a sequel to the manga, but not the anime.
 
Lowblood

Lowblood

Member
Oct 30, 2017
5,232
Kinda feels like a lot of the bigger releases this year are landing in the 7-8 range instead of 8-9ish like 2023 (and yes, I realize that's not a huge difference). On the other hand, there's just so damn many of them. There's like five big games just this week, and that's not even touching on more niche stuff like Class of Heroes.

As for Sand Land, I'll be picking it up eventually, but I might wait a bit simply due to the deluge, If I try to play everything at once I'll never finish any of them.
 
PucePikmin

PucePikmin

Member
Apr 26, 2018
3,801
Another one for the pile -- it's good! Unusually good for an anime adaptation I'd say. None of it's anything you haven't seen in an open-world before, but the level of polish and scope of the world is impressive.

wccftech.com

Sand Land Review – Enticing Toriyama Tribute

Is Sand Land a fitting tribute to the recent-passed Akira Toriyama or will it leave fans thirsty for something better?
wccftech.com wccftech.com
 
PeakPointMatrix

PeakPointMatrix

Member
Oct 25, 2017
19,199
I'm happy to see the final game is much better than the demo let on. Because that was a bad bad demo. Makes for an excellent example of how not to market your game.

I barely have time to complete the games I already have on deck, but this will be an easy buy by the end of the year once a sale hits.
 
Brodo Baggins

Brodo Baggins

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,031
viral said:
No, it adapts the same story.

The original manga is a complete story, that got adapted into a movie a few years ago. The same movie got recut into the currently airing anime's first 6 episodes, while the other 7 start a completely new, original arc. The game adapts both parts, so in a sense its second half is a sequel to the manga, but not the anime.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Ah cool! I will probably still check out an episode or two but no need to hold off on diving in then :D
 
stn

stn

Member
Oct 28, 2017
5,617
I have it on my wish list, but I'm gonna buy it down the road. Too much current stuff to play and not enough time for it all.
 
DarkplaceGarth

DarkplaceGarth

Member
Mar 25, 2019
438
I know nothing about Sand Land and I barely knew anything about Dragon Ball but really enjoyed Kakarot so will definitely check this out. So many games rn!!!
 
CatAssTrophy

CatAssTrophy

Member
Dec 4, 2017
7,656
Texas
I had a feeling this game was going to either be reviewed as a game on it's own or as an adaptation of the source material.

~7/10 games are usually my jam though so I'm down to pick this up when monies will allow.
 
Slythe

Slythe

Member
Oct 26, 2017
534
I know these scores aren't great but after that barren demo I had written this off completely, so oddly enough these reviews are getting me back in.
 
denpanosekai

denpanosekai

Member
Oct 28, 2017
2,296
I hated the demo but I'm still hyped for the full game

I'd like to know if this has base building à la Suikoden or dark cloud
 
Ryno

Ryno

Member
Oct 25, 2017
645
Brodo Baggins said:
Better reviews than I expected. I wish we got this kind of game for other anime/manga adaptations rather than so many arena fighters. I think I read this is a sequel to the anime, so I should probably watch that before diving in?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
You actually get plenty of non arena fighters but people either don't care about the games or the ips.
 
hungryghost

hungryghost

Member
Feb 8, 2024
14
I feel like I have to get this regardless of reviews. The manga was my favorite growing up and I'm so happy the game was made :)
 
Kadzork

Kadzork

Has got mad skills!!
Member
Oct 27, 2017
16,996
Looking like my collectors edition will be delivered today 😁
 
Red Fire

Red Fire

Member
Oct 26, 2017
5,478
What's the right order for everything sand land related storywise? Movie, then anime, then game? Movie, then game, then anime? Or does the order not matter?

Excluding manga
Wanna pick this up
 
viral

viral

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,659
Red Fire said:
What's the right order for everything sand land related storywise? Movie, then anime, then game? Movie, then game, then anime? Or does the order not matter?

Excluding manga
Wanna pick this up
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

No order, they all have the same story. The movie adapts the original manga, while the anime recuts the movie into the first 6 episodes, and has a completely new 7-episode arc after that. The game adapts both arcs, but will be probably greatly expanded since it's a game, and would be weird if the main campaign was only like 4 hours.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.