SAND LAND Review (PlayStation 5)

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SAND LAND Review, Dive into a desert world where both humans and demons suffer from an extreme water shortage – SAND LAND. Meet the Fiend Prince Beelzebub, his chaperone Thief, and the fearless Sheriff Rao, and follow the team on an extraordinary adventure in search of the Legendary Spring hidden in the desert.

SAND LAND Review Pros:

  • Decent Anime hand-drawn graphics style.
  • 15.44GB download size.
  • Platinum trophy.
  • You get the PlayStation 4 and the PlayStation 5 versions of the game.
  • Display settings – brightness slider, Colourblind support, and screenshake.
  • Game settings – quest ui, mini-map display, message text size, vehicle user guide, and no names.
  • Controller settings – two layouts, you can remap controls for each action like movement and vehicles. Invert axis and sensitivity sliders.
  • English or Japanese voice choice.
  • Convert data from PlayStation 4 to PlayStation 5.
  • 3 difficulties – Easy, normal, and hard.
  • Action adventure gameplay.
  • In-game cutscenes and you can skip them.
  • Full 3D game world with 360-degree camera control.
  • Seamlessly transitions from game to cutscene and vice versa.
  • Tutorial pop-ups as you play.
  • Handy button icon prompts.
  • Some of the best voice work in a game.
  • Memorable characters.
  • Drive vehicles like tanks and cars, when driving you have access to turbo and autopilot.
  • The map uncovers as you play and explore the world.
  • Fast travel is available to any discovered location.
  • Play how you want.
  • You can see enemies roaming around and they will have a level above their head.
  • Loot chests are everywhere.
  • Water is the central item of everything, you need it to heal but also if you die then all remaining water gets taken off you to revive you.
  • Combat is real-time, you have the basic light and heavy attacks and special moves, and you can just straight run away if needed.
  • You can hit, damage, and even kill enemies with your vehicle.
  • Lost property acts as collectibles.
  • Mission markers help guide you.
  • They add in different game styles like runners.
  • Buy and sell items at the vendors you find in the world.
  • Collect materials and resources from the world and chests along with mission rewards.
  • Items can be equipped to your radial menu for quick selection.
  • It’s a lot of fun to run around and explore the world.
  • Find and farm ore veins to get ores for crafting.
  • Parts of the world can be climbed, it really has a great sense of adventure.
  • Icons and points of interest pop up on the map as you discover them or get close to them.
  • Break down trees, plants, cactuses, and the like for material.
  • Earn EXP and level up to spend points in a skill tree.
  • Your party members with you can level up and you can set their passive and active skills.
  • No fall damage.
  • Thief missions are a stealth-based affair where you have to get provisions and water without being seen.
  • Water points replenish water stocks.
  • The game is played in 3rd person with occasional first-person segments.
  • When stealthing around bases you can do silent takedowns.
  • The tank can be fully customized by getting/crafting new parts and weapons for it.
  • Campfires let you rest and set the wake-up time to day or night.
  • When in a vehicle anything you blow up the parts will be auto collected and you can also loot items when still in the vehicle.
  • The game really opens up and gets fun once you get to the tank.

SAND LAND Review Cons:

  • The first hour is very cutscene-heavy.
  • The chase sequence at the very start feels really flat and it kinds just never hits.
  • Doesn’t give feedback on when and where you trigger a checkpoint which is vital info in the stealth missions.
  • There is a lot of looting chests.
  • Invisible walls ruin exploration at times.
  • It’s annoying how some barrels and boxes can be broken and then some cannot.
  • Hard to see the enemy at times.
  • The flow of the game is very stop-start.
  • Party members talk and sometimes it doesn’t fit what is actually going on so I’ve had it where they are having a serious talk but I’m beating up a cow.
  • Lines from your party repeat a lot.
  • It cannot have you set the character interactions to auto-scroll.
  • Disappointing how little of the world you can blow up with the tank cannon.
  • No definitive save button so you never know when it’s saved.

Related Post: Fallout TV show

SAND LAND:

Official website.

Developer: Bandai Namco Europe

Publisher: Bandai Namco Europe

Store Links –

PlayStation

  • 8/10
    Graphics - 8/10
  • 8/10
    Sound - 8/10
  • 7/10
    Accessibility - 7/10
  • 8/10
    Length - 8/10
  • 9/10
    Fun Factor - 9/10
8/10

Summary

Sand Land is an action-adventure game that offers a unique gaming experience with its decent Anime hand-drawn graphics style. The game, with a download size of 15.44GB, is available on both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. It offers a range of display settings including a brightness slider, colorblind support, and screenshake. The game settings are comprehensive, offering options for quest UI, mini-map display, message text size, vehicle user guide, and more. The controller settings are customizable with two layouts, remappable controls for each action, inverted axis, and sensitivity sliders.

The game offers three difficulty levels – easy, normal, and hard. It features in-game cutscenes that can be skipped and seamlessly transitions from game to cutscene and vice versa. The full 3D game world with 360-degree camera control enhances the gaming experience. The game offers tutorial pop-ups as you play and handy button icon prompts. The voice work in the game is commendable with an option for English or Japanese voices.

The characters are memorable and the gameplay allows you to drive vehicles like tanks and cars with access to turbo and autopilot. The map uncovers as you play and explore the world, with fast travel available to any discovered location. The game allows you to play how you want, with visible enemies roaming around and loot chests scattered everywhere. The combat is real-time, with basic light and heavy attacks and special moves. You can even hit, damage, and kill enemies with your vehicle.

However, the game has its downsides. The first hour is very cutscene-heavy and the chase sequence at the very start feels flat. The game doesn’t give feedback on when and where you trigger a checkpoint, which is vital info in the stealth missions. There are invisible walls that ruin exploration at times and it’s annoying how some barrels and boxes can be broken and then some cannot. It can be hard to see the enemy at times and the flow of the game is very stop-start. Party members’ lines repeat a lot and it cannot have you set the character interactions to auto-scroll. It’s disappointing how little of the world you can blow up with the tank cannon and there’s no definitive save button so you never know when it’s saved.

Overall, Sand Land is a game that offers a unique and immersive gaming experience with its detailed settings, memorable characters, and real-time combat. However, it does have its drawbacks such as a lack of feedback on checkpoints, invisible walls, and repetitive party member lines. Despite these, the game’s strengths in its graphics, gameplay, and character development make it a worthwhile experience for gamers looking for an action-adventure game. The game really opens up and gets fun once you get to the tank, making it a lot of fun to run around and explore the world. It’s a game that allows you to play how you want, offering a great sense of adventure.

Jim Smale

Gaming since the Atari 2600, I enjoy the weirdness in games counting Densha De Go and RC De Go as my favourite titles of all time. I prefer gaming of old where buying games from a shop was a thing, Being social in person was a thing. Join me as I attempt to adapt to this new digital age!