Daymare: 1994 Sandcastle

About Daymare: 1994 Sandcastle

Daymare: 1994 Sandcastle is a third-person survival horror game by Invader Studios, published by Leonardo Interactive and 4Divinity and released on 30 August 2023 on Steam, GOG, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox One and Series X|S. A Switch version followed on 5 September 2024 on the Hong Kong eShop. It is a prequel to Daymare: 1998 and tells part of the past of some of that game's characters, but you can play it first. It is voiced in English, with text in 13 languages.

You are Dalila Reyes, a former government spy now working for H.A.D.E.S., a special unit sent into the most advanced experimental research centre in the United States, a secret installation at Area 51, on a top secret mission called Sandcastle. In the darkness of its maze-like corridors and labs, something lethal is waiting.

The horror is in enemies that keep coming back. Electrical energy brings corpses back to life: blue ones go down easily, red ones are faster, stronger and more aggressive, and an enemy you thought was dead can rise again in a new, deadlier form. Bullets are limited, so your main tool is the Frost Grip, a device on your arm that sprays liquid nitrogen to freeze enemies and stop them for good. It also solves environmental puzzles and can be upgraded. A scanner on your arm reveals clues, documents and hidden items, and you manage ammunition and health kits from an inventory built into the game's interface. You choose between Rookie and Veteran difficulty.

Compared with Daymare: 1998, it follows one main character and adds the Frost Grip. Critics were mixed: Metacritic's PS5 score is 65, and TheSixthAxis gave it 6 out of 10, finding the combat and controls clunky and the enemy types few, while players on Steam rate it Mostly Positive. HowLongToBeat puts the main story at about seven hours. It suits fans of 1990s-style survival horror who like scarce ammunition, gory enemies and a story about secret bases and experiments.

How to play Daymare: 1994 Sandcastle

1. Explore the Area 51 research centre in third person as Dalila Reyes.
2. Shoot sparingly: ammunition is limited.
3. Use the Frost Grip to freeze enemies so they cannot rise again, especially the faster red ones.
4. Scan the surroundings with your arm device to find clues, documents and hidden items.
5. Solve environmental puzzles, many of them by finding the right spot and freezing it with the Frost Grip.
6. Save at save points before going deeper into the base.

Tips

• Never assume a fallen enemy is finished; freeze it to be sure.
• Save bullets for the red enemies and freeze them first; the blue ones go down more easily.
• Upgrade the Frost Grip when you can; it is your most important tool.
• Scan rooms thoroughly, since the scanner shows items you would otherwise miss.
• Choose the Rookie difficulty if you are new to survival horror; you can lower it if a fight keeps killing you.

Questions