Sand.EXE

As a marooned astronaut on an infinite, procedurally generated desert planet, you must survive against endless waves of increasingly difficult enemies, while scouring the dunes for procedurally generated weapons and vital supplies. With rescue an impossibility, your only goal is to survive as many days as you can.

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Sand.EXE is a top-down rogue-like shooter inspired by games like Nuclear Throne and looter-shooters like the Borderlands series. Your goal as a stranded astronaut is to survive as many days (levels) as possible by clearing out all the enemies in an area before continuing on to the next. Enemies increase in both numbers and difficulty as you progress; indicated by their color.

Throughout the level you will also run into both ammo boxes and weapon crates. In the latter you will find shotguns, assault rifles, and snipers, with procedurally generated stats and visuals; following the same color-based rarity system as the enemies. Weapon stats include damage, accuracy, and rate of fire. As you progress in the game, the overall quality of weapons you encounter increases with the enemy difficulty. However, as the player can only hold a max of 3 weapons at once, you must choose wisely.

A red color indicates a weapon is a "special" type. This includes your starting pistol, and if you're lucky, the Bone Spitter, a burst-fire weapon that is rarely dropped from enemies as opposed to weapon crates.

In ammo boxes, you will find various ammo types that can be used across the different weapons. When holding a weapon, it will be indicated on your UI which ammo type will be used. You will also occasionally come across health pickups, which are the only way to heal the player.

There are two distinct areas in the game; the dunes where you begin, and the oasis, with white sands, palm trees, and occasional bodies of water. After clearing 3 levels in one area type, you will be given the option to remain in the same area, or continue on to the next. The game alternates infinitely between the two.

About the project:

Sand.EXE stands as one of my first ventures into game development. Originally released on my personal website in 2018, it was later released on itch.io in 2023. As the solo developer on this project, I handled every aspect, from coding and mechanics to visual design.