27 Mar, 2006 reviewed by Neal

Sandman
by Nitrome

(visit the game site)

Discover the Power of Sand!

The sleepwalkers in this game are relying on you! You are supposed to use your sand to guide them into the portal that's located in each level. The portal can be located in hard-to-reach places, so use your power of sand wisely to get all of your sleepwalkers into the portal!

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You must use your mouse to click on the game screen to drop sand into the level. Using the sand will help build up paths to get up slopes and out of pits in each level. This is how you will get all of the sleepwalkers inside the portal for each level. You can also use your sand to change the direction of the sleepwalkers, if you need to do so. It can be very challenging, so make sure you guide them in the right direction!

You can also use your sand for many other things too! Use the sand to move wheels around to move a certain platform. You will be using the platforms to move your sleepwalkers around a certain level (as shown above). So be careful while moving platforms! Also, you'll be using the sand to cover small invisible blocks in a path in each level so sleepwalkers can pass by (as shown below). Big invisible blocks will also be present in some levels, so pour sand inside the blocks to create a pathway in it for your sleepwalkers.

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Do your best to get as many of the sleepwalkers to the portal, and click Finish on top of the game screen. You will get points awarded to your score for every sleepwalker that reached the portal. Also, you are timed, so try to guide them to the portal as fast as you can! If you guide them to the portal quickly, you will be awarded more points as well!

You must avoid the nightmares in each level, if you see one. They are bad to the sleepwalkers, so if any one of the sleepwalkers gets near a nightmare, they will dissapear! So it is your job to use your sand to move the nightmares around so they will avoid the sleepwalkers! You don't want the nightmares chasing after the sleepwalkers, now do you? These nightmares come from their own dark, purple portal (as shown below).

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Overall, playing the game is very simple! It is up to you to spend time to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the game environment, and the amazing detailed graphics! As you can see, the sand piles up nicely in each level, and the characters in the game (sleepwalkers and nightmares) look very bright and strong in the game. The purplish-dark sky, the string milky looking clouds, and the little bright stars make the background really stand out in the game! The detailed game level environment is also very beautiful, and attracting, and it's something to truly admire in this game! I'm sure you already have a surprising look on your face, just by looking at these screenshots! :o

I'm sure that this game reminds you of Lemmings, doesn't it? Well, there are a few differences in between both of these games. You assign actions to the characters in Lemmings while in Sandman you have no direct control over the sleepwalkers. Also, in Lemmings, there is a limit to the actions you can assign, but as in Sandman, there’s no limit to the amount of sand you want to pour. Pretty interesting, isn't it?

Overview

As I already mentioned, the graphics in this game is truly amazing! Just by looking at the game environment is what makes me to play this game even more! I just can't get my eyes off the screen while I play each level in the game! The characters, platforms, obstacles, sand being piled, the lake of water in the bottom some levels, the wheel turning while sand is poured over it, the invisble blocks... it all comes together in one masterpiece!

SoundFX can be very attracting and soothing to listen to when first playing the game. Truly, I did enjoy the sound clip for the menu screen, as well as the sound clip for the game levels! This helps to bring the liveliness to this great game!

The gameplay is pretty simple actually. As you know, all you have to do is to use your power of sand to guide your sleepwalkers to the portal. You can use it for other things too, but sand is your only partner here, and to use it, all you have to do is "click"!

The concept of the game is enjoyable, and exciting! Making sure to get all of the sleepwalkers in the portal can be a tough challenge, but it gets interesting as you go through the different levels getting the sleepwalkers in the portal successfully.

I have been playing this game for so long... and I know that the lastability should be really high! The amazing graphics and background in this game is a big contributor to the lastability, that's for sure! The challenging gameplay also makes the game fun and enjoyable!

Overall, this game is definitely a great action-packed game full of bright and colorful art! It is a challenging game but yet has easy gameplay, an interesting story, and soothing soundfx! You will understand once you start playing this wonderful game.

This is truly another beautiful masterpiece by Nitrome. =)

Neal





 
 

 
 

 
 
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