More than 20 years after its premiere, the manga classic receives “Sand Land” from “Dragon Ball” creator Akira Toriyama finally the attention he deserves. In the action RPG from ILCA (“One Piece Odyssey”) we can now explore the wasteland of fantasy adventure like never before. We jumped into the action together with the cheeky demon prince Belzebub and his friends on the PlayStation 5.
Below you will find out in our big test of the game what to expect and why we have something to complain about despite having a good time with the game.
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Find the legendary source
After a series of devastating events, the world has turned into a desolate wasteland. For the residents of Sandland, every day is a fight for survival due to the constant lack of water. In order to improve the situation in the country, an unlikely trio consisting of the two demons Belzebub and Sheef as well as the old Sherrif Rao set out to search for a legendary spring that is said to be somewhere in the desert.
Unlike the manga, however, the adventure of our main characters is not over at the end of their odyssey. Similar to the anime “Sand Land: The Series” A brand new storyline then begins with the “Angel Hero” arc. This takes us to the neighboring nation of Woodland, where lush green meadows stretch as far as the eye can see. Belzi's new friend Ann, who we get to know over the course of the story, urgently needs his help.
In general, the action role-playing game is based relatively closely on the manga template, although the creators allow themselves some creative freedom to tell their own version of the well-known story. This way, the story remains interesting for those who are familiar with both the manga and the anime show. We definitely had a lot of fun following the exciting plot, which, especially in the woodland part, is much larger than in sandland. Thanks to the likeable characters and some great cutscenes, we were excited from start to finish.
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With the motorcycle through the quicksand
Both sandy land and forest land are so extensive that we cannot avoid using vehicles. Fortunately, Belzi builds up an impressive fleet of vehicles over the course of the “Sand Land” game. This means that, unlike in the manga, we don't just race through the desert or across the meadows in a tank. Instead, we can also drive a buggy or a motorcycle, among other things.
Many of our vehicles have a special task. If a rock is too high, we can jump up with a jump bot. If there is quicksand in front of us, we can race across it on our motorbike at lightning speed without sinking. Our hover boat helps us in flooded areas, because although Belzebub is very strong and 2,500 years old, he actually cannot swim. But luckily he doesn't have to.
With the great focus on the vehicles, ILCA not only pays homage to Toriyama, who had a great passion for vehicles of all kinds, but also provides playful variety. As the story progresses, the creators sensibly incorporate the various means of transport into the gameplay and ensure that we have to use their strengths to progress. Sometimes we have to climb a hill, sometimes we have to solve a little puzzle. In addition, it motivates you to explore the game world of “Sand Land” outside of the story.
Unfortunately, some story sections are far too long. Over the course of the approximately 20-hour-long plot, we repeatedly had to cover paths that were sometimes miserably long through very similar-looking areas. This always noticeably reduced the fun of the game. The development team tries to provide variety, for example with puzzles or 2D platforming sections. However, since we repeat these several times in a relatively short period of time, they wear out quickly.
A tank ride is fun
But of course our vehicles have another purpose. The world of “Sand Land” is a dangerous place in which numerous monsters and other enemies lurk who want to stop Belzebub & Co. For this reason, each of our vehicles is equipped with weapons just in case. Your tank has the greatest penetrating power, but you can go into battle with any vehicle. Depending on the opponent, this can even be an advantage.
Our impression from the preview version was confirmed during our test of the action RPG: The vehicle battles, especially the tank battles, are among the absolute highlights of the adventure. Whenever we had to deal with superior numbers in our small tank or face an imposing boss opponent, not only our trigger finger was required, but also tactical skills. In order not to be overwhelmed, we have to position ourselves wisely.
These brutal and equally demanding material battles are incredibly gripping and have always been a lot of fun for us.
Fortunately, we can also upgrade our vehicles so that we can take on the strongest enemies in Sandland and Woodland. Belzebub and his friends can find blueprints or finished parts on missions, at dealers or scattered throughout the game world. In workshops we can use these to pimp up our vehicles to our heart's content and even shape them visually to our liking.
As extensive as in one Armored Core VI The options in “Sand Land” are not limited, but the slow improvement of our vehicles always motivated us to explore further or to take on a small side mission.
What kind of adventure can it be today?
Side missions are a good keyword here: Of course, you can do all sorts of things in the action role-playing game apart from the exciting story. For example, you can go on bounty hunts, explore ancient ruins, take part in breakneck races or take care of building your own small settlement. Ann, a character newly created by Akira Toriyama for the “Angel Hero” arc, takes you to tranquil Spino.
This place is very run down, but if you want, you can ensure that the small village experiences a second spring, so to speak. If you help the residents, the settlement will slowly blossom again and attract new people. This includes, for example, a cat-like demon who offers you treasure maps in exchange for ancient pieces that you find in ruins. Belzi & Co. can also go on a treasure hunt!
However, the side missions in “Sand Land” didn’t particularly captivate us. Unfortunately, they are far too generic for that. There is hardly a side quest that stayed with us for more than a few minutes. As soon as we had collected our payment, the mission was usually forgotten again. That's a shame, because we're sure that Sandland and Woodland would have offered room for more exciting side missions.
Since we're complaining: Every now and then the makers throw in small 2D platforming passages and stealth sections. These are quite entertaining, but they also annoyed us a bit. In the 2D parts, this is due to the somewhat imprecise controls, which make precise jumps difficult. Sneaking feels very limited because we always had the feeling that we had to follow an ideal line in order not to provoke a game over.
The rewards for side quests usually include some money, useful resources or even new components for your vehicles. So if you really want to get the most out of your vehicles and of course Belzebub and his friends, you can't avoid one or two side quests. As is typical of the genre, you can also level up the Demon Prince and his companions over the course of the adventure to unlock new active and passive abilities. However, you have to use the skill points carefully with your AI buddies, because they have to share them.
Atmospheric anime look
As much as we were frustrated by the sometimes long walking paths, the repetitive puzzles and generic side missions, we could hardly get enough of the game world. This is particularly due to the really atmospheric anime look, which can really shine, especially in the well-staged cutscenes.
We particularly liked the desert in “Sand Land” because the fact that the air literally shimmers in the sweltering heat or that the characters’ eyes first have to get used to dark caves or bright daylight are nice little details. Forest land impresses with its strong colors and sometimes lush vegetation.
There are two wonderful contrasts that collide here. Thanks to well-used tightening lines, everything has a subtle, hand-drawn touch that brings Akira Toriyama's manga to life beautifully. However, the action role-playing game on the PS5 still has to contend with various problems such as flickering textures, reloads, pop-ups and small stutters.
The atmospheric soundtrack and the good English and Japanese speakers convinced us. Unfortunately, we have to do without a German dub like the anime series offers.