Sand Land Preview: Akira Toriyama's Beautiful World Comes to Life

Anime games can often hold a stigma for many gamers and anime enthusiasts alike, but it was clear from laying my hands on a controller to play Sand Land's upcoming video game that Bandai Namco was hoping to break said stigma. Releasing after the tragic passing of creator Akira Toriyama, the producers on the game were working to honor the fallen artist. In creating this preview, there was quite a lot to cover when it came to the world of Beelzebub, which might be a good sign for those looking to explore a meaty anime world.

Sand Land first began as a manga from creator Akira Toriyama in the year 2000. Most recently, the franchise released both a movie and a television series that followed the son of the devil as he navigated a desert locale. The pint-sized Beelzebub might be small, but he packs a powerful punch as he has some serious super strength and some magical abilities to boot. In his digital adventure, the demon is joined by human Sherriff Rao and another demon known as Thief, who can often aid the player with some ancillary mechanics in battles. While the game focuses on the aforementioned Sand Land, it opens up to show just how big Beelzebub's world truly is as he fights evil while learning more about the human world.

Enter Sand Land

Sand Land is an absolute feast for the eyes. The graphics look like one of the best displays of Akira Toriyama's art that we've seen in a video game to date, as the colors pop well and the character models are on point. The world feels unique in the video game landscape, which is a definite plus considering how much time you'll be navigating through the numerous locales. 

One of the biggest shocks that I had specifically was just how massive said world was. When I picked up a controller at Bandai Namco headquarters, those playing were informed that we were dropped into the video game at the "40-hour mark" which was, shockingly, around halfway through the game itself. This fact was confirmed when players could see the vast expanse of the environments they would be exploring as Beelzebub, as the maps themselves are simply staggering in how large they are and how many tasks are available for players to while the time away. 

Sand Land has more than a few mechanics that are granted to Beelzebub and the cast. Players will find themselves fighting giant monsters and armed opponents regularly with their fists, the name of the game is really the variety of vehicles at your disposal. Dragon Ball fans will be familiar with the "capsules" that are at work here, as the son of the devil will unleash vehicles in the blink of an eye using said pocket-sized devices. Turnaround time on hopping into a new vehicle is instantaneous, so you won't need to wait to don a mode of transport should the need arise. 

Speaking of Dragon Ball and Akira Toriyama, this game is one hundred percent Toriyama at his finest. Aside from the detailed designs of characters, there's a level of humor and whimsy here that isn't easily replicated in many other games on the market today. I found myself encountering characters that got a genuine belly laugh from me in their sheer absurdity, while also being drawn in by how wholesome they were when all was said and done. 

In the upcoming anime game, you'll have your fair share of vehicles to summon at will to help quicken your exploration or help blast enemies to bits. Assault weapons such as the tank, the battle armor, the jump bot, and the jet hover have some serious damage capabilities under their hoods. On the flip side, rides like the motorcycle, the dirt buggy, and the uniride allow for some quick conveyance with each having their own unique weapons to call upon. You'll also have more than enough utilities, currencies, and materials to make each of the vehicles your own as the customization is nearly as big as the game's environments. 

You're going to need all these vehicles to take in the vast landscapes, as there are dungeons, bandit camps, cities, forest civilizations, bounty hunting missions, and far more that will present some challenges. The sheer breadth of how big this game is remains stunning weeks after the initial playtime. Aside from the vehicles and face-to-face combat, there are also sections that focus on a stealth mechanic, seeing Beelzebub work his way past an army and scaring them unconscious when he had the opportunity. 

All that glitters isn't gold, however, as the biggest weak point of the game from our time with Sand Land was the combat. For all the variety in the landscapes and vehicular combat, fighting with Beelzebub on his feet doesn't offer as much variety and being unable to take on the roles of Rao and Thief seems like a missed opportunity. Since both of the ancillary characters join you in your battles, jumping into their roles, or perhaps even having an online mode to play collaboratively, would work well here. The boss battles we encountered were mostly in vehicles, and those did give us some serious fun when it came to finding just the right method to take down a behemoth of a creature or a mechanical monstrosity. 

Another major foible that I encountered during my time with the game was the repetition of lines of dialogue. There were numerous occasions when Thief and Sherrif Rao would recycle lines that you had already heard quite a few times during your game. It's a minor quibble but it's one that could get irritating should you be over one hundred hours into Sand Land. 

There are some flaws to be found in this new Akira Toriyama-influenced video game, but from what we saw, there's a serious amount of potential for gamers and it feels like a fitting tribute to the fallen artist. The game's scope and the exploration that is offered to players might demand gamer's attention, especially for those who have felt let down by many recent anime video games. Sand Land might set the bar for how anime can enter the world of video games to garner some serious success. 

Sand Land is set to release on April 26th 2024 for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S and PC.