Caravan SandWitch (PS5) Review

It’s been six years since Sauge’s sister, Garance, disappeared. Six years since she left her home planet of Cigalo to live in Space City and pursue her dream of becoming a pilot. But just like that, everything is thrown up in the air when she receives a distress call from Garance’s spaceship – a call originating from somewhere back on Cigalo. Throwing caution to the wind, she hops on the first ride back to find out what happened to her sister.

Cigalo was a once thriving and vibrant world, home to diverse species, until the corporations came, exploited it, and left. Now a collapsing ecosystem, the humans, robots, and indigenous species left behind struggle to survive in a world fast becoming a desert. It is this world that holds the mystery to Garance’s disappearance. And it’s only with the help of the locals that you will solve it.

Caravan SandWitch is best described as a laidback, open-world, exploration and adventure game. There is no combat and there are no time limits. Instead, you explore the world of Cigalo both on foot and by jumping into a van and taking a road trip that will change your life. And those of everyone around you.

The game is heavily narrative-driven and focused on the people around Sauge, from old friends revisited, to new ones she makes along her journey. The side quests, which are broken down into multiple parts, are just an excuse to spend time with the games interesting cast of characters. They may not be quirky or colourful, but they stand out thanks to the relatively realistic writing underpinning each of their characters despite the sci-fi setting.

From Sauge’s Dad who hasn’t seen his daughter in six years, to the couple trying to decide whether or not they should move to Space City for their baby’s future, to the robots seeking freedom from the corporations in cyberspace; these are all wonderfully written characters with endearing stories. The ones that hit closest to home are the people that Sauge ghosted through her need to get away from Cigalo. Some relationships fall easily back on track, while others need some work.

That work consists of doing tasks for the inhabitants of Cigalo and exploring the landscape. There are old ruins to spelunk through, and old technology to scavenge or give a new lease of life. And, of course, there are many errands that need to be run. Despite the light platforming and exploration underpinning the game, Caravan SandWitch is, essentially, one giant fetch quest. It’s the context that matters, however, and the games focus on friends, family, and community is what keeps you hooked.

As a result, the mechanics are simple. Sauge can run, sprint, jump and climb up edges. She doesn’t get new skills but rather new technology to help her out by upgrading the van. There’s a grappling hook that can pull down doors, power electrical conduits, and be used as a zip line; a pulley upgrade for the zip line; and a scanner to detect objects in the environment and hack electronics. This simple setup of tools helps to keep the game focused, even when you’re going off the beaten track to see what’s at the top of a hill or watchtower.

Aesthetically, the games stylised visuals keep the game looking clean, crisp, and attractive in a minimalist way. The environment design leans heavily into the destructive nature of exploitation, with the few green areas of land and water giving over to quarried environments, littered with the detritus of mining operations and the desert sands eating away at what’s left.

While the character designs at times have this 1950’s and 1960’s SF aesthetic, they don’t stand out much. Sauge’s van, however, is a vibrant piece of orange tech in the beige landscape. Yet again, there’s a retro-futuristic design to it, but it’s beautifully modelled and animated with little details in the design and operation, such as the refractions on the glass water bottle strapped to the back of the van – small details that stayed with me long after I’d brought Sauge’s journey to a close. In fact, special mention must be given to the material properties on the glass in this game, which you rarely see outside of the ruins, and the reflection and refraction effects. It’s a small detail that, if you aren’t looking for, you might miss, but it’s a great one all the same.

There are some minor technical issues that hindered this otherwise fantastic journey. The camera can have a fit in tight locations when it bumps up against the geometry, and there’s quite a bit of asset pop-in while cruising around the world – a surprise when you consider how barren the landscape can be.

Wrapping up, there’s an overwhelming sense of melancholy in this bittersweet journey as the game pushes joy and sadness in equal measure. Despite the increasingly timely nature of its environmental themes, Caravan SandWitch is a timeless a game about life and loss and the realisation that both are a journey better taken together.

Caravan SandWitch was reviewed on PS5 using a code provided to gameblur by the publisher. It is also available on PC and Nintendo Switch.