One of the most shocking and most devastating events that we have experienced in recent weeks has been the death of Akira Toriyama. The creator of the Dragon Ball universe left us on March 1 at the age of 68, which was a hard blow for all anime and manga fans as they had to say goodbye to one of the most talented Japanese artists in the world. last decades.
Although the adventures of Goku and company and Dr. Slump They were his most recognized works, he also published another 24 years ago that has gone somewhat unnoticed until recent years. This is Sand Land, a story that is only made up of a single volume and has ended up receiving an adaptation in the form of a film that has only been released in Japan.
However, a version in series form has recently been released on Disney+ and it is also scheduled to go on sale at the end of next month. your own video game based entirely on this fun adventure. In recent days I have had the opportunity to try a great preview of this title, so below you have my impressions after having been at the controls for three hours.
An action RPG that has managed to broadly respect the essence of the original work
For those who don't know anything about what it's about Sand Land, the plot plunges us into a desert world where humans and demons are having trouble surviving due to the extreme scarcity of water. However, Sheriff Rao is convinced the existence of a sacred spring It contains enough water to put an end to this devastating situation, so he will set off on a journey across the desert to find it.
Since the journey does not look like it will be without danger, Rao meets with the demons to request their help, so that the Demon Prince Beelzebub, along with his faithful ally Thief, will be encouraged to help him in this cause for the common good of all. Of course, although the group is constantly made up of this trio of characters, practically the only one who is controlled most of the time is this little pink demon who really has a heart of gold.
From the little that I have seen of its plot I have been able to verify that each and every one of the main events of the manga, the film and the anime series also take place in the video game, so nothing will be missed. What's more, to increase its duration, all the plot has been expanded and certain details have been changed so that they fit better, playably speaking.
The title presents us with a fun action RPG that is clearly focused on all types of users, especially in its difficulty. The combats in which Beelzebub is involved are resolved quite easily by hitting weak punches and stronger ones, although he can also quickly dodge impacts and even use other more powerful abilities that are unlocked on the fly by climbing up. level by gaining experience points.
I also have to say that Most of the fights I participated in were optional. When traveling through its immense open world, there are animals and thieves everywhere that you can mess with if you feel like it, which is not bad at all, apart from strengthening our protagonist, to pass the time and not everything is going from one place to another. Furthermore, within its simplicity, the truth is that the fights are very entertaining.
However, what has not convinced me so much is that the adventure has too many moments of stealth. Every time one of these parts began, the rhythm broke a lot and the adventure became a little soporific. I didn't care about the first one I came across because I thought it would be something specific and not one of the biggest features of the game, but the truth is that they end up being more frequent than I would like.
At the same time, another drawback is that they are not very interactive. Basically you have to remain hidden from the sight of the few enemy soldiers that are around while you move around the stage, so you can choose to ignore them or catch them off guard to give them a scare that leaves them petrified in place, but almost everything the while you are going where the game tells you and at a snail's pace so as not to make too much noise with your footsteps. In short, these sections are the complete opposite of what the adventure offers with its good pace in combat and travel.
The impressive combats with vehicles versus some somewhat simple puzzles
Another section of this test version that I was able to play took place at a later point in the plot. This is where I was able to take an in-depth look at another of the most important features of the game, which is also present in the anime and manga, such as your vehicles. Without a doubt, it is noted that this universe comes from the mind of the creator of Dragon Ballbecause the motorcycles, cars, tanks and robots that you can control are exactly identical to those in the world of Goku and his friends.
Vehicles are a fundamental part of the gameplay. Mainly because they are the means of transportation to travel through its open world at full speed and not having to go on foot, although you can also opt for fast travel if cities or other areas of interest have been unlocked. Even so, it is much more fun to grab a motorcycle or a car and step on the accelerator to go anywhere.
What's more, each of the vehicles can be modified from top to bottom, being able to choose the main colors of each of its components, although what is really important are the improvements that can be applied. Regardless of the vehicle chosen, all its parts can be exchanged for others with their respective statistics and rarity levels. This is where you can also see that we are facing an RPG as we have great freedom to customize them in their entirety depending on whether we want them to be more resistant, faster or even more devastating.
Likewise, you can obtain chips to level up vehicles. Everything that is necessary to make them powerful enough when the moment of truth arrives, because combat piloting them is the order of the day. There are times when numerous groups of enemies gather, some with their own vehicles, leaving no choice but to have to bring out heavy artillery to make them bite the dust.
Regardless of which one is chosen, everyone has their own types of ammunition, among which there are bullets or explosives and also some that take less life in exchange for having more ammunition and vice versa. At any time you can switch between them quickly, which is also very useful while reloading the bullets, which should be noted that they are unlimited.
On the other hand, what you have to keep in mind at all times is the life of the vehicles, because while you are in control of one it is as if it were your own character. In this sense, if your life is reduced to zero while we are at the controls, it is game over. However, it is as easy as opening a quick menu of objects to repair damage or another menu where the rest of the available vehicles appear so you can jump from one to another in just a second.
Overall, the vehicle combat was by far what I loved most about the game. Quite the opposite of its exploration within the dungeons. I'm not sure if they will all follow the same pattern or be similar, but the only one I visited was a kind of water temple in which I had to constantly go through its corridors and more open areas. looking for levers to raise or lower the water level and thus advance along the paths that were being unlocked.
The thing is that the dungeon was somewhat linear and did not offer any challenge by endlessly posing the same objective of finding the levers. As if that were not enough, to move through the dungeon it was necessary to pilot a vehicle that moved over water, but the problem was that it did not fit through the corridors, so I lost count of the dozens of times I had than take it out and put it away. Luckily, the animation is not too long, but after having done the same thing 20 or 30 times, it ends up being exasperating.
The ballot was saved right in the final stretch, where I had to face a final boss in the form of an octopus. I did find this fight to be a good challenge and also very entertaining, having to pilot the same vehicle to riddle it with shots and missiles while avoiding its tentacles and everything it was throwing at me. I certainly hope to see more battles like this in the final version.
Lights and shadows in the first hours that I have played Sand Land. For the moment I'm left with how colorful its settings are, how good it looks artistically, its frenetic combats with vehicles, the trips while you pilot them and how well the original material has been respected. On the contrary, the stealth, the puzzles and the dungeons do not work in its favor at all, so I cross my fingers that all the former predominates more and not so much all the latter when this one goes on sale. nice action RPG.
Sand Land sheet
- Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5 y Xbox Series
- Multiplayer: No
- Developer: ILCA Inc.
- Company: Bandai Namco
- Launch: April 26, 2024
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