Dragon Ball creator’s Sand Land manga gets open-world ARPG adaptation 

Bandai Namco have released a new gameplay trailer for Sand Land, an action RPG based on the 2000 one-shot manga of the same name by Akio Toriyama, best known for Dragon Ball and his character design work on Chrono Trigger. In a desert world, where both people and demons suffer from extreme water shortages, the player will be tasked with finding the legendary spring so that they can bring back water to the land. 

The trailers and screenshots released since June show dramatic desert scenes of towering rock formations and cities. Teaming up with the manga’s motley crew of characters; Fiend Prince Beelzebub, his chaperone Thief, and Sheriff Rao, there will be a variety of things to do in this action RPG.  

You will be able to build up your base into a thriving city, as well as develop and customize tanks, motorbikes and other vehicles that can help you navigate the harsh desert more effectively. The vehicle customization seems quite extensive, allowing players to tinker around and add on extra parts that they find, such as suspensions, engines and attachable weapons. Creating a Jump-Bot for example, will allow you to bounce over craters and explore hidden corners of the vast desert, as you search for useful loot. 

This game adaptation is based on the original manga, with the cel-shaded look of the character models recreating Akio Toriyama’s style. Sand Land will offer players the chance to explore a huge desert, engaging in battles with strange creatures, strategically building up their vehicles and base, while enjoying the epic story. 

Sand Land is scheduled to release on PS4/PS5, XBox Series X|S, and PC. The release date has yet to be announced.