sandland is an interesting game that combines a variety of gameplay features into a well-realized package that, despite its flaws, is completely solid and greater than the sum of its parts.
Everything I knew about this sandland It was said that it was based on the manga. Akira Toriyama. I haven't read it, just occasionally see artwork or random panels taken out of context. I didn't see anyone discussing it, so I wasn't sure if it was some kind of stealth alliance. Galactic Patrolman Jaco or an independent title. I was nervous when the game started because I wasn't used to it. In my experience, anime games tend to take advantage of fans' familiarity with the source material to make up for weaknesses or fill in areas where they don't have time to fully explain plot and setting details.
Thankfully this is not the case sandland. Given that the original manga is only one volume long, this works (as far as I can tell) as a retelling of those events. The game also offers an opportunity to expand the world by telling more side stories within the setting. I understand that this is aimed exactly at people like me, as the game explicitly sets up and conveys all the characters, setting details, etc., and makes it easy to understand.
This aspect is one of the game's great strengths. sandland Not many curveballs are thrown. Most of the characters are easy to understand by design alone, and the world is simple but exciting.Fascinating design work from a legendary designer Akira Toriyama From the vehicles to the architecture to the character designs, it's all fully represented here. Sure, it might not be a setting that will have you combing through every bit of lore early in the morning, but it does have a clear hook and a relatable goal. “Apocalypse is terrible, we have to get water and supplies”, “Humans don't treat each other equally, and our cruelty and bigotry is worse than being the devil” easily get into the game It's a theme you can understand.
sandland's The mechanism presents an interesting combination of unexpected systems. At its most basic level, it's an open-world action RPG. Follow the main quest to traverse the world map, choose side quests, gain experience, and level up your party members. As you progress through the story, new areas and methods of movement open up, along with new abilities in the combat skill tree, materials to collect, and more. The combat system is a standard third-person action setting. Light and heavy attacks, telegraphed evasion of enemy movement, and meter-based special attacks. There are stealth sections, forced perspective platform sections, and careful exploration will yield more materials and rare finds. Nothing unusual so far.
It's the vehicular combat that spices things up. sandland The utility of vehicles was heavily emphasized in all aspects of gameplay. They are your primary means of traveling through the overworld, your primary combat tool, and the lens through which you view the world and your progress. Vehicles range from small cars to tanks to robots. Each has unique weapons, movement options, and controls. Climbing rock walls in a mech or dueling enemies you encounter in a tank often makes them the star of the show.
Most RPG titles focus on equipping the protagonist and party members with the right equipment and talents; sandland This focus shifts to vehicle customization. The bulk of the customization elements lie in acquiring materials to create custom parts, finding rare chips to install interesting passives, and tinkering with each vehicle's equipment. Being able to switch between vehicles on the fly (Toriyama's capsule system seems to help facilitate this) allows you to determine how individual performance and vehicle combinations can be combined to cover different situations and enemy force configurations. We often weigh whether to integrate
This seemingly small change in vehicle focus can dramatically change how you feel from moment to moment. sandland Compared to other action RPG titles. Even mundane random encounters can take on a slightly different texture due to the actions you take to line up shots and manage effective range and reloads. As with most vehicle combat games, equipping vehicles is a fun exercise. Because there are a lot of considerations when it comes to equipment that go beyond the boring “more numbers” stereotype. Weapons can do more damage, but you need to consider things like ammo capacity and reload speed. Spread across the collection of vehicles you collect during your travels, the customization of his mini-games is extremely satisfying over most of the game's playtime.There are also long ones collectionfinding people to take back to the main hub village that opens new shops throughout the game, bounties to look for extra money and loot, or hidden platform areas where you can earn rare materials.
Presentation is another general area of strength. sandland. The visuals do a great job of evoking an adventure manga world with bright colors and the cel-shaded look of the 3D models. Most surfaces even have small touches such as cross-hatching and shading lines that you would see on a drawn page, and while they may be noticeable in close-up shots, overall they immerse the player in the feeling that this is a manga. Helpful. Come back to life. The music is also on point, and the game features full voice acting for all dialogue, adding to the immersion. My favorite parts of the voice acting are the little conversations between characters that occur spontaneously while driving. Characters lean out of hatches and talk about the world, their tastes, and interesting sites.
All wrapped up in amazing creativity. Akira Toriyama. His recent death brings into sharp focus how effortlessly he expressed whimsy and creativity. His fingerprints are all over this work, and he brings the same joy to titles such as: Chrono Trigger, dragon questor various Dragon Ball fighting game. It's always fun to explore the world with Toriyama-sensei's sensibilities.
The biggest caveat for all the good points is that sandland It doesn't mean you're great in any field. Most of the game's systems are good to adequate, and the game never overstays its welcome in terms of play time. That being said, if you try to dig into one subsystem, you may find that it's shallower than you thought. The worst part in this regard is the foot combat, which is pretty barebones even before comparing it to similar titles. However, vehicle combat can also be hit or miss (especially when fighting mechanical bosses), and the novel feel of piloting a vehicle can't completely mask the numbing woes of repetitive encounters that come with territory. you can't. Vehicle customization is much more powerful than I expected, but it's not necessarily a gear geek's dream. You don't need to urgently set the highest optimization level to win most encounters.
Similarly, the presentation and worldview are okay, but not problematic. The characters and themes are decent and relatable, but not groundbreaking. The settings are easy to grip, but not overly complex or original. The music and visuals are fun, but not very memorable.
And it goes on and on, wherever sandland It doesn't actually exceed expectations, but it meets them.
The most I can convey sandland Here's how my play pattern evolved during the review period. As far as playing 30-60 minute sessions, I had a great time. However, when I tried to overcome this and try to seriously measure time all at once, I felt unmotivated and unimpressed. As the review period progressed, I found myself getting into a comfortable rhythm of playing for about an hour each night and having a good time. We had a great time fighting monsters, winning bounties, tinkering with robots, watching cutscenes, and making the game work. Let's move on and try again the next night.
There's a lot of content in this game, but it's not a title you'll want to spend hundreds of hours on. But not every title has to be everything in life. sandland It's a good time as long as it lasts, nothing more, nothing less. Try new things without feeling like you're taking big risks while achieving either: Akira Toriyama's works brightly color your life. With that in mind, now is a very good time to have some unique features to help you stand out from the crowd.
