Caravan SandWitch

An open-world collect-a-phon about exploring, set mostly in an open and empty desert. It's fun to explore, though the necessity of the first few van upgrades is a frequent hinderance to trying to explore the entire world right away once it opens up to you fully in chapter 2.

75%Game Brain Score

story, graphics

grinding, stability

93% User Score Based on 1,778 reviews

Critic Score 80%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

Buy Nowfrom €19.99

Buy NowGet on Steam€19.99

Buy NowGet on PS Store$24.99

About

In "Caravan SandWitch," embark on a peaceful, mystery-filled journey across a sci-fi Provence-like world to find your missing sister. Interact with communities, help them with tasks, and upgrade your van for new discoveries. With no combat, death, or timer, this game offers a relaxing, immersive exploration experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

93%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,779 reviews

story423 positive mentions

grinding39 negative mentions

The game features a unique and beautiful art style that enhances the overall experience.
It offers a relaxing exploration experience with no combat, allowing players to enjoy the world at their own pace.
The characters are charming and the story, while simple, is engaging and heartfelt.

The dialogue can be clunky and poorly translated, which detracts from the immersion.
The gameplay can become repetitive, especially with backtracking to complete quests after unlocking new abilities.
The ending feels rushed and lacks closure, leaving players wanting more resolution to the story.

story
1,168 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
60%
4%
The story of "Caravan Sandwitch" revolves around the protagonist, Sauge, who embarks on a quest to find her missing sister, intertwining themes of community and environmentalism in a post-apocalyptic setting. While some players found the narrative engaging and the character interactions enriching, others criticized it for being predictable, lacking depth, and having a rushed conclusion. Overall, the game offers a cozy exploration experience with a mix of compelling side quests and a straightforward main storyline, though the execution of the story and dialogue has received mixed reviews.
- “The overarching story of protagonist Sauge searching for her missing, presumed dead sister after receiving a signal from her six years after her disappearance is compelling, but I found the best bits to be interacting with the folks from Sauge's hometown and immediate environment, a compact map that quickly becomes familiar (in a good way! It was pleasant to realize I was eventually navigating by landmarks rather than the map).”
- “The story is touching, the gameplay feels so incredibly good, and the soundtrack is astounding.”
- “A beautiful story led game with memorable graphics and engaging characters.”
- “However, it's clear that the focus of the game is story, and honestly, the story fell flat for me.”
- “The story is very predictable and falls off at the end, but the side quests and characters are lovely.”
- “Unfortunately, the main quest (finding your sister, dealing with the titular sandwitch) was underwhelming: some of the story beats didn't land, others felt like they came out of nowhere.”
graphics
410 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
36%
1%
The game's graphics have received widespread praise for their unique and beautiful art style, which is described as colorful, charming, and reminiscent of contemporary comic books. Players appreciate the relaxing and immersive visuals that enhance the exploration experience, although some have noted minor performance issues and a lack of advanced graphical options. Overall, the aesthetic quality significantly contributes to the game's appeal, making it a delightful experience for those who enjoy artistic visuals.
- “Absolutely stunning visuals, I could recommend this game to people just off that fact alone.”
- “Beautiful graphics, a good way to spend 7-10 hours in a pretty relaxed, open world.”
- “The art style is colorful, and emphasis is placed on exploration.”
- “Ps: for the graphical style the performance is sub par, it really needs some tweaks.”
- “Sadly, it’s a little unstable on steam deck at the moment: with graphics set to medium, frame rate set to 30 and fsr set to quality, we’re experiencing crashes that require us to restart the whole handheld.”
- “Regrettably must advise against this game until the devs do something to give it a proper set of graphical options, with the ability to individually disable nauseating postprocessing effects.”
music
401 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
62%
37%
1%
The music in the game has been widely praised for its beautiful, relaxing, and atmospheric qualities, enhancing the overall experience of exploration and storytelling. While some players noted a slight repetitiveness in the soundtrack, many found it to be a standout feature that complements the game's charming visuals and cozy vibe. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a significant asset, contributing to the game's emotional depth and immersive environment.
- “The soundtrack is excellent, and while the game is short, it ends before it can get boring/tedious, which is far better than dragging on too long.”
- “The soundtrack is mesmerizing and a real stand-out feature of the game, emphasizing the more emotive moments and generally connecting the player to the experience as a whole.”
- “The music adds wonderful depth to the game's atmosphere.”
- “The music attempts to be unobtrusive and ambient, but merely becomes bland, uninteresting, and repetitive.”
- “Too many areas of the map use the same music and after a while it becomes a kind of annoying background noise.”
- “My only real gripes are minor: I felt much of the music was a little too ambient, and the ability to sit and drink in the landscape in the manner of a screensaver is for a different player than I.”
gameplay
393 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
57%
9%
The gameplay of "Caravan Sandwitch" is characterized by its focus on exploration and light puzzle-solving, set in a visually appealing open world. While the mechanics are generally simple and can become repetitive, they are accessible and enjoyable for a wide range of players, offering a relaxing experience without combat or high-stakes challenges. However, some players noted issues with driving mechanics and a lack of depth, suggesting that while the game is charming and engaging, it may not satisfy those seeking more complex gameplay.
- “The gameplay loop is quite robust and boiled down to the basics - as you explore (either during quests or freely), you'll be picking up components to simply advance towards a new ability for your van which will enable you to access more of the gorgeously presented world that's just pleasant to look at and cruise through, there are no combat systems, and even as far as platforming puzzles go there is no fall damage either.”
- “The gameplay is varied and fun, mixing driving, platforming, exploration, and adventure in a casual way.”
- “The gameplay in Caravan Sandwich is a smooth, enjoyable experience, even for those with limited driving skills—like myself.”
- “For a game where you spend most of your time driving, this has some shitty driving mechanics.”
- “The gameplay mechanics are shallow, dialogue is pretty simple, there's no danger or challenge, the story has some weaknesses, and there is still quite a bit of roughness around the edges.”
- “It is a long series of fetch quests with no fun gameplay or puzzles; the story was interesting but I think I would have preferred to read it in a book or something.”
atmosphere
103 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
34%
3%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its calming and immersive qualities, enhanced by stunning visuals and a soothing soundtrack. Players appreciate the cozy, exploratory nature of the game, which allows for a peaceful experience filled with beautiful scenery and emotional depth. Overall, the combination of art direction, sound design, and engaging environments creates a captivating atmosphere that encourages players to lose themselves in the game world.
- “The atmosphere is incredibly calming, with gentle soundscapes and a beautifully minimalist design that transports you to a place of peace.”
- “This was a beautiful, atmospheric exploration game with compelling characters and a mysterious central narrative.”
- “The game excels in exploration, whether on foot or driving an upgradeable van, providing a cozy atmosphere to enjoy the stunning landscapes.”
- “I tend to be cautious about games that position themselves as 'cozy' - I need something with a bit of bite, and I tend to find that cozy games often sacrifice narrative or theme in the pursuit of atmosphere.”
- “After 100%ing the game, I think it's a fantastic exploration game with a very relaxing atmosphere; however, some parts of the game drag a little, and the objectives could be made clearer as there were a couple of times I was completely lost as to what I should be doing.”
- “Caravan Sandwich is an immersive adventure game that stands out for its extensive exploration of the various game areas, which is essential to progressing through the adventure and immersing yourself in its atmosphere.”
emotional
96 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of "Caravan Sandwitch" is widely praised for its heartfelt storytelling, charming characters, and the ability to evoke nostalgia and connection. Players appreciate the game's balance of warmth and melancholy, with touching moments and nuanced relationships that enhance the overall experience. However, some critiques mention that certain emotional beats lack depth and that the narrative can feel abrupt at times, impacting the emotional payoff.
- “The game is a heartfelt story of grief and connection in a post-colonial world where the abandonment of critical commercial infrastructure affects regular people.”
- “Beautiful atmosphere and a touching story drive this cutesy little indie game straight into my heart with its charming dialogue and breathtaking views!”
- “Caravan Sandwitch is a small-scale open world adventure that delivers a tale that’s as heartwarming as it is somber; it’s filled with nuanced relationships and impressively deep lore, and I found it a joy to experience.”
grinding
47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
4%
83%
The reviews indicate that grinding in the game is a mixed experience; while some players find it tedious and repetitive, particularly due to backtracking for upgrades and collectibles, others appreciate the casual pace and engaging story that mitigates the grind. The game is criticized for its lack of innovation and for feeling rushed in later stages, but some players enjoy the exploration aspect without excessive grinding. Overall, the grinding can detract from the experience, but it doesn't completely overshadow the game's strengths.
- “The computer parts to collect are very abundant and found everywhere on the map, even outside ruined locations too (thus there will be no grinding for those), yet scattered in a way that motivates you to progressively visit new places.”
- “Collecting items is not too tedious and can generally be done while progressing the story.”
- “For once, it is a nice change to be able to play an exploration/open world type game that has no grinding, survival, fighting or death - just an engaging story and relaxing soundtrack.”
- “The game design is quite simple and repetitive and doesn’t try anything new - you’re grinding a lot to get the necessary upgrades for the next chapter!”
- “The tedious part is that there's only about 7 major locations in the game if you ignore the NPC areas, and each one has an area locked behind the next van upgrade, so you're going back to these same locations over and over again for the rest of the game.”
- “The story and premise sound nice, but there is so much exposition, all the secrets and mysteries are revealed too quickly, the ending is incredibly weak, and the game contains so, so much grinding.”
stability
36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
39%
61%
Overall, the game's stability is generally solid, with most players reporting a well-polished experience and smooth performance on various platforms, including mid-range PCs and handheld devices. While some users encountered minor visual glitches and occasional bugs, these issues were not game-breaking and did not significantly detract from the gameplay. A few players noted more serious bugs, such as progression-blocking issues, but these appear to be rare.
- “It runs great on mid-range specs, it's not prone to bugs, and the gameplay is always engaging.”
- “The game has been completely bug free for me, and feels like a pretty well polished experience.”
- “From the visuals to the audio, the quality seems amazing and it runs great on a handheld device (ROG Ally).”
- “Very buggy - you'll encounter places where you get stuck, visual bugs, and in one location I encountered a progression-blocking bug that I had to quit and reopen the game to resolve. For some reason, the game also reverted to French once I finished it.”
- “It also can get a little buggy, not in a way that was game-breaking for me, but in small ways that were either amusing or a little irritating.”
- “Camera glitches and clipping, although not frequent, are annoying when they happen.”
optimization
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
62%
13%
Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed feedback. While many players report smooth performance, especially on the Steam Deck, some note that the game could benefit from additional polish and tweaks, particularly due to Unreal Engine 5's inherent optimization challenges. Despite some clunky gameplay and occasional performance dips, the experience remains enjoyable for most players.
- “Performance on the Steam Deck is quite smooth with medium graphics, FSR 3.0 balanced @ capped 40 fps.”
- “Perfect for Steam Deck and performance is excellent.”
- “No optimization issues.”
- “Ps: for the graphical style, the performance is subpar; it really needs some tweaks.”
- “While its repetitive quest design, iffy PC performance (better now compared to the review build), and technical issues prevent the game from achieving its full potential, Caravan Sandwich offers a pleasant experience that all demographics will be able to pick up and enjoy.”
- “Steam Deck performance is not good.”
character development
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
16%
17%
Character development in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising the depth of the storyline and well-written dialogue that enhances character interactions, while others criticize the character designs and dialogue quality. The cohesive visual design and attractive character aesthetics are highlighted positively, but there are notable dissenting opinions regarding the overall execution of character development. Overall, the game offers a blend of appealing visuals and engaging narratives, though opinions on character design vary significantly.
- “Wonderfully written scenario, character development, and realistic feeling dialogue between the main character and the others you meet.”
- “The depth of the storyline, the rich character design, the simple elegance of a rocky alien world with solarpunk and post-industrial aesthetics, and the well thought out mechanics of the game make for a relaxing gameplay to let your mind wander off in a peaceful place.”
- “Interesting character designs and dynamics!”
- “Very tempted to not recommend the game because of the atrocious character designs and dialogue.”
- “However, I'm not that big on the character designs.”
- “It is an artsy indie adventure game at its core, and this is felt in both the visuals, the music, the story, the world, the character designs, etc.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
17%
33%
The game offers limited replayability once completed, with some users noting a lack of incentive to revisit it, while others suggest it has infinite replayability potential. Overall, opinions on replayability are mixed, highlighting a divide between those who find it lacking and those who see opportunities for endless play.
- “The game is infinitely replayable, offering new experiences with each playthrough.”
- “I love how the game is infinitely replayable; there's always something new to discover.”
- “With its infinitely replayable nature, I find myself coming back to this game time and time again.”
- “There is also not much replayability after you completed the game.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is praised for its natural and heartfelt delivery, particularly in its portrayal of a world where everyone is gay, which many find both hilarious and refreshing. However, some players also mention moments of frustration, such as difficulties with driving mechanics, which detracts from the overall comedic experience.
- “It reads so much more naturally, and is legitimately funny and heartfelt a lot of the time.”
- “I got stuck so many times with the car, it was not even funny... I swear I can drive.”
monetization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of the game is critiqued for reflecting themes of greed and exploitation, suggesting that it may prioritize profit over player experience. Despite its colorful and diverse presentation, the game appears to embody the negative consequences of unchecked capitalism, which may detract from its intended message of community and safety.
- “A great tell of the greed and exploitation by unchecked capitalist powers and consequences, all told from the perspective of a very diverse cast of colorful characters advertising for community, love, and safety.”