Sand Land

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It’s a little difficult to determine the value of reviews when it comes to media. I’ve reviewed games for Popzara for over a decade, and I’ll be the first to tell people who ask they shouldn’t trust the stuff I put out there – nor should they trust anyone else’s. We live in an era where you can watch the entirety of any given game, commentary-free, without having to pay a dime, and beyond that you probably have a better idea of what you like than anyone else would. Reviews are more of a snapshot of someone’s experience with a game in the context of that specific moment in time, and there’s a lot that can color a take as a result.

Sand Land, an action-RPG based on a smaller work from Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama, is a prime example of this sort of thing. Toriyama, if you’ve somehow missed the news, passed away in March. The proximity to his passing means that reviews of Sand Land are going to have a little bit of that grief mixed in; who’s going to say that a game based on a work from a beloved and recently departed artist has severe flaws, even if that were the case? Combine this with the reactionary nature of online discourse and it’s a little tough to figure out whether or not Sand Land is good.

via YouTube

How fortunate, then, that I’m here, because I think it’s good and you should ignore everything I just said in favor of trusting me unquestioningly. Bet you didn’t see that coming, eh? Yup, all reviews are wrong unless they’re mine. Let’s look at Sand Land.

Sand Land is a desertified nation occupied by both humans and demons. The two live in mutual distrust, but they share a common struggle: water is hard to come by in Sand Land, and the only reliable supply comes from a greedy king that rules over the land with an iron fist and powerful military. Out of desperation, the human sherriff Rao requests an alliance from the king of the demons, leading to a joint effort between Rao, the demon prince Beelzebub and unwitting sidekick Thief to explore Sand Land and find the Legendary Spring that can solve the water crisis. Things rapidly become a little more complex than they might seem, and the stakes quickly go beyond just, y’know, ensuring that everyone in Sand Land doesn’t die of dehydration. No pressure.

You’ll control the demon prince himself for this adventure. Beelzebub’s a force to be reckoned with on foot, capable of dodging about and applying beatdowns to water-hoarding miscreants, and his moveset will only expand as you gain experience and invest into a skill tree. The real heart and soul of Sand Land, though, is its vehicles. This is basically anime Mad Max, so you’re probably not surprised to hear that there was a lot of love put into your rides. The most iconic of these is your tank, an engine of destruction where you’ll spend plenty of your time crunching wildlife, blasting baddies and searching for loot, but there’s other options including a jumping mech and a motorcycle as well. They’ve all got their own uses, but you’ll definitely want to get used to the tank.

Sand Land’s focus on vehicle ‘venturing is doubly emphasized by the depth of customization available for your vehicles. Change up their looks, their gear and more to suit your every whim – your rides are your new best friends, after all. There’s something that really activates the ol’ lizard brain when you take a pile of materials you’ve been hoarding from all over the desert and turn it into a fancy new cannon. Maybe that’s how Bob Ross felt about painting, just maybe a little less violent. It’s a great time, all in all, and Sand Land knows it’s what you’ll want to be doing so there’s plenty of resource nodes, hidden chests and baddies to battle all over the place. It’s all there to help you get what you’ll need to build the machine of your dreams.

Combine that with some pretty solid performance and a fantastic preservation that really nails what’s great about Toriyama’s work and you’ve got a winner. One of the highlights of modern gaming is the anime-shaded aesthetic pioneered by games like Guilty Gear Xrd, and that’s put to great use here. If you’ve had a chance to check out the Sand Land anime, you’ll probably note how similar it looks to the game, and that’s not a complaint at all. Even the English dub isn’t too bad! It’s a great time to be an anime fan. The only real complaint is that Beelzebub’s voice lines tend to repeat way, way too often, so you should probably get used to how he’ll keep whatever you just picked up because it might come in handy.

In a couple years we might look back on Sand Land in a different light, since, well, as much smack as I talked earlier, even I’ll admit to being a little affected by Toriyama’s passing. Still, I think this one will stand the test of time. Sand Land is a lighthearted, simple romp with solid vehicular-combat fundamentals that, more than many open-world titles of the modern era, really seems to want players to dive in and just enjoy themselves. Slap a tank together and give it a shot. Make sure you stay hydrated, though.