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My Time at Sandrock

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My Time at Sandrock
Developer(s)Pathea Games
Publisher(s)PM Studios
Focus Entertainment
EngineUnity[1]
Platform(s)
ReleaseNovember 2, 2023[a]
Genre(s)Farm sim, role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

My Time at Sandrock is a 2023 farm life sim role-playing video game developed by Pathea Games and published by PM Studios and Focus Entertainment. It is the sequel to the 2019 video game My Time at Portia and takes place in a desert 300 years after an event that destroyed modern technologies. The game was praised for its graphics while on the other hand, criticized for its repetitive gameplay.

The game was announced in October 2020 and funded via a Kickstarter campaign, and was initially due for early access release in March 2021. However, this was delayed due to it needing a local rating certification. This game was eventually released into early access on May 26, 2022 for Windows, before fully releasing on November 2, 2023, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S.

Plot

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The setting, like My Time at Portia, takes place in a post-apocalyptic world 300 years after the Day of Calamity, an event that has destroyed previous civilizations and most modern technologies, causing people to rebuild society.[2] The player inherits Mason's Workshop, a retired builder. Sandrock combines elements of farm life sims and role-playing video games. The player first arrives to Sandrock on the first day of summer, unlike other farm sims which start on the first day of spring. There, they meet Mi-am, another builder; Mason, and Yan, the town's guild commissioner. They also meet a local hero named Pen, who warns them of the infamous bandit Logan.

The player and Mi-an's first job is to repair a lift for a mining corporation led by a foreman named Rocky. Once that is done, they are soon given another job: rebuilding a wrecked outdoor stage owned by Mathilda, the town's minister. At one point, they help defeat some lizardmen-like creatures called Gleeglers threatening a moisture farm and has an encounter with their leader. The player later fights the Gleegler leader with the help of a sheriff named Justice, who intends to invade Sandrock, which ends with him falling down an unstable bridge; the Gleeger leader's death results in the Gleegers fleeing away from Sandrock. A new bridge is later built to replace the broken one. Sometime later after discovering water shortage in Sandrock, the player joins Mi-an and her friend Elise to investigate Logan's house, to which Elise believes that Logan is innocent from all the recent attacks, and also helps capture a young boy named Andy whose working for Logan, who is then sentenced to community service. When toxic gas begins threatening the town, the player helps deal with the threat, revealed to be caused giant rats led by the rat queen. An investor named Musa arrives in Sandrock to help with the town's investment, though some people do not like the idea. After saving some mole people from the rat queen, they enter a trading business with Sandrock. Once the player locates Logan, they learn that he is innocent and Yan, Miguel, and Pen are the ones behind the water shortage plot and are working for an evil organization called Duvos. As Miguel attempts to frame Haru, a member of Logan's gang, and then player for the incident, Logan confronts them, which results in Mathilda being shot by Miguel (though she survives) and Andy sabotaging Pen's power gauntlets. The player defeats Pen with some help from Elise. Yan tries to escape, but is stopped by Rocky and the player. After Yan, Pen, and Miguel are arrested, charges against Logan are dropped. Grace, the town's cook, is revealed to an agent working for a peace organization called the Alliance Central Intelligence, who are at war with Duvos.

Duvos later invades and rescues Pen and Yan. Mathilda is revealed to be working for the organization and was operating under the name “Tiger”, who ensures Duvos's victory. As a result, the player is forced to work for Duvos, but is allowed to freely move about. Logan and a mole named Ged rescue them and free the townsfolks. Duvos's commander takes Trudy, the town's mayor, hostage to force them to surrender, but Logan foils his ploy, allowing the player to defeat the commander and forcing the Duvos soldiers to surrender. Aware that Duvos's airship is still here, the player and their friends are sent to investigate with the help of Elise's giant bird friend Daisy. Infiltrating the airship, they defeat Pen and Mathilda, who is sent flying along with her mech. Duvos's airship flees when it comes under attack by Alliance jets. Mathilda is shown to be stranded in space and dies from lack of oxygen. Avery, an Alliance commander, awards the player and their friends for their heroics before taking the Duvos agents and Pen prisoner. Burgess also becomes the new minster and Wei becomes the new guild commissioner.

The player, Elise, and Logan later help with constructing a tunnel to Portia, the town from the previous game, to gain access to water and tourism. They also rescue a suffocating Gleeger named Larry, who allies with them in turn. Turdy then make plans to upgrade the town, which includes building a school and repairing a broken pipeline. A botanist named Luo and his assistant Nia also come to town to help grow new trees. At one point, Grace retires and returns to Sandrock. When attempting to retrieve an algae sample from a hidden laboratory inhabited by Gleegers to help with the tree growing project, they encounter Larry's wicked cousin Gary, who has taken both Larry and his wife Xena hostage and is now the Gleegers new leader. After the player and Logan defeat Gary, he activates a sonic device to stun them, but Nia frees Larry, who fights Gary and destroys the sonic device, but Gary overpowers him and makes himself stronger with a super algae potion. Following Gary's second defeat, he perishes and Larry retakes his position as Gleeger leader. Once the player finishes constructing a new airship, Trudy takes them for their help and the main story ends.

Gameplay

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Players build up the town, farm, mine, gather resources, craft items, accept side quests (known as commissions), and explore dungeons and the ruins of the old world cities. Combat uses hack and slash mechanics. Players can also make aimed shots with gun sights. Due to the fact that Sandrock is located on a desert and therefore has a dry climate, players and residents are asked to conserve water and not to collect water from the lake. Most machines use up water, which is stored in a water tank. This is needed so that the machines do not get too hot. They are also asked not to cut trees and doing so can cause penalties to the player. Players have the option of romancing 21 NPC characters. This allows players to socialise and eventually marry some of the characters[3]

Development

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The sequel for My Time at Portia was announced in October 2020, funded through a Kickstarter campaign.[4] The campaign reached almost 10,000 backers from over 160 countries and pledged a total of $524,770.[4] For comparison, Coral Island, another farm sim that entered early access and fully released in 2022 and 2023 respectively, pledged $1.6 million.[5] The game was initially slated for release in early access in March 2021 followed by a full release in summer 2022.[6] However, after the announcement in March 2021, the early access plan was delayed because it needed to earn a "local rating certification" for online publishing.[7] After a long delay, the game finally released into early access on May 26, 2022, by PM Studios for Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch. During early access, the Knives Out Update was released in April 2023, which introduced minigames, new weather, a narrative, and weddings.[8] The game was fully released on November 2, 2023, having been delayed from September 26, 2023, to ensure it meets the game's quality.[9]

Unlike My Time at Portia (which never planned to introduce multiplayer),[10] the Windows version has co-operative multiplayer.[3] The developers plan to release downloadable content (DLC) packs in 2024.[11] Cross-platform play has been available since June 2024.[12][13] The game was ported onto the PlayStation 4 (PS4) on September 12, 2024[14][15]

Reception

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On Metacritic, My Time at Sandrock received positive reviews for Windows and PlayStation 5, and the Switch version received mixed reviews.[19] Various critics praised the game as entertaining. Some liked its cozy nature, while others praised how the game made them fall asleep. An early access review from Rock Paper Shotgun described it as "a compelling and lusciously detailed life simulator" and praised the gameplay loop.[20]

Despite some technical issues, IGN called it "a joy" and better in almost every way than My Time at Portia.[3] They found the dungeons and combat a bit basic but said the rest of the game makes up for them.[3] Nintendo Life called it "reasonably enjoyable" but criticized the graphics, performance issues on the Switch, software bugs, and what they felt was "a lack of a distinct identity".[21] Digitally Downloaded has also reported on the technical issue and that the game is so laggy that players "can make a coffee in the time that it takes to actually load the thing"[22] However, Nintendo Life said that the patches had fixed some of the technical issues since the launch.[21] Nintendo World Report also experienced performance issues on the Switch but recommended it on the strength of its gameplay loop and enjoyable world.[23] VG247 said it combines the best parts of Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley. Although they felt the concept is not new, they praised the characters, story, and gameplay.[24] TouchArcade's review for the Nintendo Switch stated that the game felt "like one of the best sequels in the genre with how much it improves".[25]

Sequel

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In September 2024, Pathea Games has announced another sequel for the My Time series. This is titled My Time at Evershine.[26] It has reported that the new game will feature better multiplayer after Sandrock "may have failed to deliver on its promises of a fully fleshed-out multiplayer mode".[27][26]

See also

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References

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Notes

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  1. ^ early access release May 26, 2022

Sources

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  1. ^ Farinha, Diego (July 22, 2022). "Integrating NVIDIA Reflex: Q&A with Pathea Head of Technology Jingyang Xu". Nvidia. Archived from the original on November 12, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  2. ^ "My Time at Sandrock". Gematsu. Archived from the original on November 19, 2023. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d Sanchez, Miranda (November 9, 2023). "My Time at Sandrock Review". IGN. Archived from the original on November 20, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "My Time at Sandrock - Thanks for your support!". sandrock.pathea.net. Archived from the original on April 1, 2024. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  5. ^ Dealessandri, Marie (September 2, 2021). "Video games projects raised $13m on Kickstarter during H1 2021". GamesIndustry.biz. Archived from the original on September 8, 2024. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  6. ^ "My Time At Portia Developer Announces Sequel, My Time At Sandrock". IGN. October 26, 2020. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  7. ^ "Steam Community :: My Time at Sandrock :: Early Access Delayed". steamcommunity.com. March 5, 2021. Archived from the original on May 26, 2022. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
  8. ^ "My Time at Sandrock - Official Knives Out Update Trailer - IGN". IGN. April 12, 2023. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  9. ^ Romano, Sal (August 23, 2023). "My Time at Sandrock delayed to November 2". Gematsu. Archived from the original on August 22, 2023. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  10. ^ "FAQ - Pathea". Archived from the original on June 6, 2024. Retrieved June 6, 2024.
  11. ^ Hussain, Mudassir (December 3, 2023). "My Time At Sandrock Sequel May Surprise Fans, Says Dev". eXputer.com. Archived from the original on December 22, 2023. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  12. ^ Romano, Sal (April 10, 2024). "My Time at Sandrock to add cross-play this summer". Gematsu. Archived from the original on May 29, 2024. Retrieved May 29, 2024.
  13. ^ My Time at Sandrock - Official Cross-Play Launch Trailer Archived August 16, 2024, at the Wayback Machine IGN. June 19, 2024
  14. ^ "My Time at Sandrock". Gematsu. April 5, 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  15. ^ Lada, Jenni (September 3, 2024). "My Time at Sandrock PS4 Release Date Set, New Game Coming". Siliconera. Archived from the original on September 4, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  16. ^ "My Time at Sandrock critic reviews [PC]". www.metacritic.com. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  17. ^ "My Time at Sandrock critic reviews [Nintendo Switch]". www.metacritic.com. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  18. ^ "My Time at Sandrock critic reviews [PS5]". www.metacritic.com. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  19. ^ "My Time at Sandrock". Metacritic. Archived from the original on November 19, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  20. ^ Hogarty, Steve (May 23, 2022). "My Time At Sandrock early access review: a wild west life simulator that does it all". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on November 12, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  21. ^ a b Vogel, Mitch (November 1, 2023). "My Time at Sandrock Review (Switch eShop)". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on November 12, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  22. ^ "Review: My Time at Sandrock (Nintendo Switch)". Digitally Downloaded. Archived from the original on August 21, 2024. Retrieved August 21, 2024. According to the URL, the article was published sometime in November 2023.
  23. ^ Corbran, J. P. (November 2, 2023). "My Time At Sandrock (Switch) Review". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  24. ^ Raynor, Kelsey (November 1, 2023). "My Time at Sandrock review: A tight, content-packed life simulator that won't disappoint fans". VG247. Archived from the original on November 19, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2023.
  25. ^ "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring 'My Time at Sandrock', Plus Today's New Releases and the Latest Sales". toucharcade.com. May 14, 2024. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
  26. ^ a b Koselke, Anna (September 17, 2024). "My Time at Evershine is an ambitious sequel harboring all of the cozy elements fans know and love, with a bit of city-builder flair mixed in". gamesradar. Archived from the original on September 18, 2024. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
  27. ^ Koselke, Anna (September 17, 2024). "My Time at Evershine is finally adding the multiplayer mode that fans of the cozy RPG sim series have wanted for years". gamesradar. Archived from the original on September 18, 2024. Retrieved September 18, 2024.
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