Sand Land review - A fitting tribute to the legacy of Akira Toriyama

Sand Land might not be a manga many Akira Toriyama fans might remember, but it originally ran from May to August 2000 in Weekly Shonen Jump. It was a short, but comical shonen manga, set in what appeared to be a post-apocalyptic world where Demons and Humans lived on the same plane. The titular area was ravaged by drought, with rivers that had been dry for decades.

Fans who read the manga will find the first half of the game to be very familiar, as it does cover the primary story beats. The second half is based on the 2024 anime, and while I noticed minor bits weren’t there, the most important parts are.

Sand Land gives players a vast, open world, and plenty of amazing vehicular combat. There’s a lot to love about this, whether you’re a long-time fan of Toriyama’s work or not, this game delivers.

Sand Land from Bandai Namco covers the entire story as presented in the current 2024 anime—from the originally 14-chapter-long manga of the same name to the second story offered in the anime. Much like the Dragon Ball games of our past, this game tells a story that many will be familiar with, though perhaps in fewer numbers than the Dragon Ball/Dragon Ball Z fans.

The Sand Land manga wasn’t as big or popular as some of Toriyama’s other works, but it’s just as important. It has the same heart as any of the mangaka’s other works. Like the original Dragon Ball, it blends comedy and combat seamlessly in a way seldom seen in modern media.

Players control the main character, Beelzebub, son of King Lucifer, as he starts the story simply getting water for his village. Like any good manga though, it spins into a much bigger story, with him joining up with Sheriff Rao, and a mysterious female mechanic named Ann. Combat is handled either in