Sandwalkers Steam Charts & Stats

I haven't had this much fun in a single player rouge-lite in so long. what a lowkey sleeper. would absolutely buy DLC for more content.

There are good ideas here, but the game just feels like a slog, most of the time.

The game is a little rough around the edges. some bugs with getting achievements and with visual elements in combat, but generally is well put together. I didn't have any quest issues that I could tell. I enjoyed the variety of classes and abilities and the roguelite progression. There is a wide variety of world building happening and the voice acting is good too. My only complaint gameplay wise was I felt very hard to kill with certain combinations of classes which meant I beat the whole game in 4-5 runs. That could be partly because i enjoy these sorts of resource management time plotting games and have played many of them.

Its just too easy, honestly is just so unbalanced (in the player's favor 99% of the time) its boring

[b]Sandwalkers[/b] is a good-looking and promising tactical game with rich world-building, but it suffers from design decisions that dilute its potential as it wavers between being a roguelike and a tactical battler. Here's where it shines and where it stumbles. I think this game was recommended to me because of my love for Heroes of Might and Magic (HoMM), and it’s certainly inspired by the classic series. Sandwalkers tries to do its own thing by not including towns or opponents, and instead focuses on the journey and exploration, while presenting challenges in food management and combat. I love the setting. The world feels atmospheric, the desert theme is well done, and the visuals bring it to life. Still, I ran into a lot of questions and issues while playing. [u]World Map & Events[/u] • Why is confirmation needed for some things on the map (an extra click when you arrive on a hex)? For instance, at a mining rock. It’s confusing that some items need this while others don’t. • When text appears in its box, sometimes words jump to the next line because they're too long for the frame. This breaks immersion and makes things harder to read. • I’d like to be able to see my characters’ skills and stats when choosing upgrades. • What’s the difference between “exit” and “leave”? Maybe add context like “exit to x” or “leave for y” to clarify. • What’s the outcome of an event? Why is it just an incomplete notice in the corner? • Some events make you pick between a negative and a positive option, but that’s not a real choice. [u]Combat[/u] • Combat needs a log to help understand what’s happening. • It’s frustrating that if an attack does 20 damage but the enemy has 10 HP, the game says it only does 10 damage. Same with AoE attacks—it only displays valid targets. Just show the full picture; this is confusing otherwise. • Balancing is off. If one attack does 30 damage to a single target and another does 25 to multiple targets, I’ll always choose the AoE since every fight involves multiple enemies. That’s also why classes with AoE attacks feel overpowered. • Another example: “+25% to the next attack” feels pointless. I’d rather deal 20 damage now and 20 next turn than do nothing this turn and 25 next turn. That kind of power-up only makes sense if I can do 50 damage on turn two. Give me a reason to use it. • I tend to use just one or two attacks per character. Battles are a core part of the game, and they should feel meaningful. I want tactical choices—not just spamming AoEs. • One more balance issue: please remove the stun from monsters when their shield breaks. It doesn’t make sense and makes speed far too important. [u]Character Menu[/u] • No sort option? • Maybe add categories to items, like trade, consumable, etc. • Check consistency: a lockpick is marked as a trade item, but it’s used for events and unlocking items. That’s misleading. • It would be clearer if upgrades were named as such. If the attack “Tornado” is upgraded, it should be called “Tornado II”. • What’s the impact of resistances and stats? • What do certain traits mean? For instance, the “Impatient” trait says the character starts battle with Exalted status. What does that mean? Why isn’t it shown in the hover-over tooltip? [u]Conclusion[/u] This game needs a clearer direction. Do you want it to be a roguelike, or do you want it to be more like HoMM? Personally, I’d prefer the game drops the roguelike element, because right now it doesn’t feel like one. Based on what’s working, the game would benefit from focusing on its strongest suit: adventure, journey, and surviving the harsh environment. All elements should then support that direction. To support that journey, the game needs more mechanics that make the experience feel like a story. I don’t want to just pick four random, interchangeable characters whose names and classes I don’t even know. One of my favorite early runs had four weak characters. Some died in early encounters, and after 20 minutes, the team started to feel stable. Then you gain experience and level up. That felt meaningful. In the end, the negatives outweigh the positives. Its biggest flaw is the lack of a clear goal, with too many elements that divert its aim. I wanted to love Sandwalkers. There’s real potential and something fresh here—I just hope it finds the focus it deserves.