The story is certainly unique; sadly the same cannot be said for the gameplay. Following the typical JRPG standard, the game employs the tried and true turn-based strategy found in contemporary roll playing games.

Magic spells and physical attacks are split in two separate categories. Direct attacks are labeled Blow and Flurry and magic skills are labeled Blood and Life respectively. Blow attacks are powerful single attack moves while Flurry are weaker attacks that can be chained into combos. On the other hand, Blood magic spells are indirect attacks aimed at enemies and Life spells are health-enhancing boosts for the player’s party.

Combat is relatively simple, but what makes Sands of Destruction unique is the upgrade system which allowing for customization to the characters attacks. It is limited to just a few  however and there is a trade-off when powering up these moves. For example; upgrading the players attack power will result in a decrease in accuracy. The problem with the system is that at some point, the trade-off almost seems non-existent and the game goes from fairly challenging in the beginning to a borderline cake walk towards the end of the game.

Also, sadly, the customization option doesn’t disguise the fact that the gamplay shows its age, particularly when engaging in battles. When exploring a map or dungeon, the player will be confronted by random battles after advancing even just a few steps. It gets tedious to engage in combat and grinding to the next point of interest ends up being a chore. It doesn’t help that many of the dungeons in Sands of Destruction are complicated, even during the beginning of the game.

The visuals employ a 2D/3D hybrid that can be described as a hit and miss. The character sprites are all in 2D but the environments are entirely rendered in 3D. Though the characters look charming, a few odd camera choices make the game look awkward at times. Zooming in on sprites for example, make the characters look blocky and unpleasant. Thankfully, the animation is rendered well and the special attacks look sweet.

Where the game manages to shine is in the sound department. Sands of Destruction features an incredible amount of voice acting, albeit with a few awkward pauses in-between sentences that mess up the flow of the dialogue. There is also some corny dialogue, but considering the ridiculous nature of the characters (A gruff-sounding teddy bear!) it actually adds to the hilarity. The voice acting would have been the main highlight if it wasn’t for the amazing music. The soundtrack is composed by Yasunori Mitsuda, known for composing games such as Chrono Trigger and Xenogears. The variety of tracks is great and reflect the events in the game well, whether it is the fast-paced nature of a boss fight or the soothing sounds when walking around a friendly village.

There is no denying that a lot of love went into Sands of Destruction. It is a solid game. The problem is that the game feels dated, and only hard-core JRPG fans will likely pick this up. If you can deal with 90s-style gameplay, then be sure to pick it up.

Bottom Line: 7/10