Deep in the Eufuala Desert lies the town of Sandrock. Once a bustling, prosperous town known for its mechanical marvels and adorable Yakmels, resource shortages and population decrease have turned Sandrock into a ghost of its former self. Into this dire situation steps you: the town’s newest Builder, hired to fix, improve, create, and perform any number of chores and tasks the townspeople have for you. Can you restore the town to its former glory? A dire water shortage, a mysterious bandit, and even a sinister conspiracy stand in your way, but, with hard work and careful planning, you can prevail and Sandrock can shine once more!
My Time at Sandrock is the second crafting/farming/life simulator title from developer Pathea Games. It is the sequel to the 2019 game My Time at Portia, although no knowledge of My Time at Portia is required to enjoy My Time at Sandrock. While it carries over many elements from the previous title – most notably the adorable, colorful art style, the system of accepting Builder commissions from various townspeople, and the in-depth romances – it also changes and improves on many other parts to create an experience that truly feels unique within the farming/crafting sim genre.
The heart of My Time at Sandrock is its desert setting, which the game takes full advantage of in every possible way. Unlike Stardew Valley, Rune Factory, Story of Seasons, and even its predecessor My Time at Portia, My Time at Sandrock does not take place in a lush agricultural haven. Instead, it’s set in a barren desert where resources are scarce and many adjustments need to be made for your character’s Builder business to function. For example, cutting down the few trees around the town is forbidden, so you need to gather your wood from scrap piles scattered around the desert. Most of your other resources also come from scrap, including iron, copper, rubber, and stone. Water supplies are limited, as the town is dependent on a single oasis, so you need to either pay exorbitant prices or harvest dew from plants and convert it into water to run your various machines.
While My Time at Sandrock focuses on crafting over farming, its farming elements are also unique due to the desert setting. You need to prepare the soil using straw in order to be able to even plant seeds. Even once you’ve got the soil treated, there are very few plants that can actually survive the desert heat, so you are limited to a few unique, hardy crops. I’ve played a lot of farming simulators, and I loved My Time at Sandrock’s farming for genuinely setting itself apart from the others.
While the core story of “Sandrock is a struggling ghost town” is fairly simple, the game makes it deep and compelling in so many ways, a noted improvement over My Time at Portia. There are constant obstacles threatening Sandrock, from the troublemaking Geeglers to a broken bridge to the eternal, looming threat of the water shortage.
The various plot elements feel genuinely immediate and dangerous. Although the game allows you to play at a relaxed, slow pace with very few actual time limits, the town’s pressing concerns give it a sense of high stakes. Your character’s actions truly feel like they’re making an impact on the town, as you can see the effects the improvements both small and large have on peoples’ lives and the town’s prosperity.
Throughout the entire game, I felt truly motivated to improve Sandrock and fix its many problems, and a huge part of that had to do with the compelling characters who live there. Sandrock’s remaining population are hardy survivors, drawn to the town for reasons ranging from a desire to prove themselves on their own to wanting to be a hero to a genuine religious devotion to fix something broken. There are many fascinating characters living in Sandrock, and taking time out of your busy days to engage with them is extremely satisfying. Some of my favorites included Fang, the quiet doctor, Elsie, the hot-headed rancher, Mi-an, your fellow Builder, and Qi, the absent-minded researcher.
However, My Time at Sandrock’s greatest triumph when it comes to characters is definitely Logan, the mysterious bandit who has been stalking the desert. Logan’s story is beautifully written (although I do admit I’m a sucker for a good redemption arc, so I might be a little bit biased.) When the game starts, Logan is lurking around the edges of things. You see his face on Wanted posters; you hear rumors about him from the villagers – but you learn about him secondhand and don’t get a chance to actually meet him for quite a while. Then, by the time you do, you’re given a genuine opportunity to learn about the person behind the rumors, and form your own opinion of Logan and his actions. If you do choose to get to know him and encourage him to redeem himself, the narrative payoff is amazing (and yes, you can even find love with Logan, should you so choose…). This triumph of a character story is one of My Time at Sandrock’s greatest strengths.
My Time at Sandrock’s only major flaw is that it can sometimes get overwhelming, as there are so many things to do at once. While most quests are not timed, it can still feel like there’s a lot going on, especially because the commissions that you have to take on to earn money and build your workshop’s reputation are, and you generally have only a few days for each one. Combined with the overall resource shortage, especially in the early game, it can sometimes feel like you simply cannot complete enough tasks and earn enough money to keep your workshop afloat.
There’s main story quests, side quests, commissions, resource gathering, ruin diving, combat in Hazardous Ruins, befriending/romancing the townspeople, researching new crafting machines, farming, raising animals, cooking, playing mini-games at the Game Center, participating in festivals and other town events, and much more. I do think that My Time at Sandrock could benefit from a few fewer mechanics. In particular, Inspections – a spot-the-difference mini-game you are encouraged to perform each weekend to raise workshop reputation – feels extraneous and unnecessary.
However, overall My Time at Sandrock is a fantastic game that feels genuinely innovative within the often-stale farming and crafting simulator genre. It makes amazing use of its unique setting to create a genuinely tense and deep story focused on resource management and the restoration of a struggling desert community. Plus, it’s packed to the gills with compelling characters and adorable animals to bond with! I would recommend My Time at Sandrock to everyone, not just dedicated farming/crafting fans. It’s the kind of game you can easily get lost in for hours, and the satisfaction of seeing Sandrock begin to prosper once again because of your own actions is a truly worthwhile reward for your efforts.
Kate played My Time at Sandrock on PC using a provided review code.
