Bandai Namco offered us hands on time with a few hours of Sand Land gameplay, which was set about 30 hours into the game's adventure. According to Bandai Namco, that's roughly halfway through Sand Land, which suggests that fans of the manga series are in for an epic journey. And after having played the game in a more comprehensive setting - close to a year since seeing Sand Land at Summer Game Fest - it's clear that fans will find a lot to like about the game.
The demo featured three separate segments from Sand Land: a story mission that sees Beelzebub and crew rescuing Ann, a boss fight with a giant tank, and the opportunity to explore the open world of Sand Land and Forest Land. Ultimately, the preview highlighted the vehicular combat that Sand Land offers in many different forms, while giving some small teases of the story ahead.
Vehicle Combat Shines in Sand Land
Customization is a big part of Sand Land's vehicle combat, allowing players to mix and match pieces to suit their play style. The iconic tank of Sand Land is a key fixture of the gameplay, with players able to modify the engine, chassis, weapons, and other aspects of the vehicle. Some might choose to be more nimble and pepper enemies with weaker artillery hits or machine gun fire, while others can go for brute force, packing the sturdiest frame with the strongest weapons. Every option felt viable in the preview and it was a ton of fun finding a personal favorite among the various strategies.
While the tank is a key part of the vehicle selection of Sand Land, Bandai Namco has packed the game with a variety of traversal and combat options. There is a dirt buggy, a motorcycle, a jump-bot, battle armor, and more – all of which can be customized in a similar fashion to the tank. The battle armor, for example, acts like a more lumbering version of the third person combat that Beelzebub can perform, using steel fists and artillery to decimate foes.
With its vehicle combat, Sand Land feels like a genuine sandbox. Players can choose how best they want to approach the designs of their vehicles, switch between them at the press of two buttons, and change things up along the way. Loot also seems to play a big part in the open world exploration and questing, urging players to complete more tasks in order to gain better upgrades for their vehicles.
There is a unique cadence to the vehicle combat as well, with most offering two offensive weapons to switch between. Each weapon is limited in terms of ammo, so the player must regularly swap between their weapons while the other reloads. As a result, players will need to be mindful of the situation, using quicker weapons on weaker foes and then saving their more powerful attacks for key openings or more imposing enemies. It's all well done and never feels overwhelming, but the setup allows for more strategy when taking on bosses, for example.
Beelzebub's Adventures Continue in Sand Land
Vehicle combat may be a key pillar of Sand Land, but it's not all that the game has to offer. Any time players wish, they can take control of Beezlebub and partake of some third person character action. It's standard fare for a Bandai Namco game, with Beezlebub able to dole out damage with one or two-button combos and then dodging when necessary. Players also have access to a series of special abilities (powered by an energy meter) that allow Beezlebub to unleash flashier, more devastating attacks on his own or ask his teammates like Rao to deal some punishment to an enemy.
The third-person combat is solid and should be familiar to fans of the genre. Using the abilities allows for a little more strategy, but it doesn't seem too complex to be confusing. That said, when there was a chance to use a vehicle that felt like a more fun option.
Sand Land doesn't rely on outright combat either; there was a fair bit of variety in the preview. The first section of the Sand Land demo was more exploratory and puzzle-based, with Beezlebub using his hovercraft to traverse water to either drain or fill different sections of a vast underground environment. There was also a section that featured stealth mechanics where Beezlebub was sneaking behind and subduing enemies in order to infiltrate a facility and rescue Ann.
Sand Land Sidequests We Played:
- Vehicle Races
- Battle Arenas
- Item Collecting for NPCs
- Defeating Enemies for NPCs
Overall, the preview suggested that Sand Land will be a sprawling adventure packed with varied gameplay and combat scenarios to keep players engaged. You rarely get to scratch the surface when it comes to open-world exploration in these previews, but Sand Land seems to have two pretty big areas to explore and side quests to keep fans occupied while following the main story. Not being familiar with Toriyama's manga, I can't speak to the depth of that storytelling, but what was included in the preview was charming and funny. There was also the suggestion that Sand Land will include some significant revelations for fans of Toriyama's manga series.
And that's what seems to prop up Sand Land more than many other character action games. Toriyama's art style and design sensibilities have been brought to life as a playable 3D video game, and even seeing just a small slice of the game showcased a lot of diverse environments, cool character moments, and flashy effects. If this is to be a 60-hour game, Sand Land seems poised to give fans a lot to sink their teeth into.
