Little Kitty, Big City
Little Kitty, Big City
Game
Game2018
OF MICE AND SAND -REVISED-
Developer ARC SYSTEM WORKS
On a desert planet in the farthest reaches of space, mice await your command! Direct their mobile fortress, and seek the legendary city of gold! From the Steam store page
64 reactions from 2 sources (Steam reviews, Mastodon) · newest Jul 22, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
71
Fresh
45 positive · 18 negative
95% range 59–81%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 45 | 18 | 0 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 0 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
1 newer reactions are still waiting for a label.
Steam's own rating
Mostly Positive
291 of 365 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What people are saying
Summary pending — the reactions are listed below.
Reactions
60 of 64 · most liked firstThis is a nano-management hell. Really, there is zero automation. You constantly have to edit task queues of your workshops. It is not as bad in the first few levels when you only have 5 or 6 items you can craft, but when you hit like 20 different recipes, it is just annoying. - If a queued task cannot be finished due to missing ingredients, the workshop stops producing instead of continuing with the next task. - Workbench crafting queue has only 5 slots. - There is no option to "craft until…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →6/10 - Overall a recommend, however be wary, if you hate micromanagement give this one a miss. Journey through the lands of a desert planet in charge of a ragtag bunch of mice. Starting off on the desert bus with just a few mice and gradually building up to a behemoth with 100 mice. This is essentially an adventure of building more rooms to build more stuff. And that therein lies the problem. For the sheer number of items and products that are either picked up or made by the player the UI is…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The gameplay of MICE AND SAND is literally just micro-management, ala SimCity style. There's very little of consequence that occurs outside of your sand crawler, and 44.5 of my 45 hours spent beating the game was in making sure I was producing the proper products through a spaghetti-labyrinth of factory dependencies without ever completely running out of resources, or completely running out of space. (In fact, more than half of the time, my sand crawler was parked while my factories did their…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The concept is intriguing, but with this execution it just scratches the surface. This survival strategy relies too much on grind and not enough on storytelling. Besides, the micro management is HELL. Menus demand SO. MANY. CONFIRMATIONS. SO. MANY. Game isn't agile enough. It gets boring pretty fast.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Of Mice and Sand is a nice little game about travelling the desert for 'el dorado' Problem that many people will find is a lot of repetition. Going between towns to do quests, grind resources, and managing many things your crew will need in order to survive. Believe me, I finished the game. I spent a lot of time going between towns, building up my ship, fighting desert creatures, and overall making sure I am ready for the next leg of the journey. My ship was taken down a few times, sure,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is an agonizingly slow uphill grind against RNG from start to finish.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →While it is a fun game, the console versions is much better optimized in the UI and actual gameplay. The switch port runs better, and has more logical controls. the game slows to a crawl speed if I am in anything but the smallest rez on my desktop (AMD Ryzen 7, with Radeon RX 580 card.) Pass the steam version and get the switch one, youl be much more satisfied.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The grind required to progress in this game is simply unreasonable. Maybe it would be more interesting if you weren't just traversing the same exact locations over and over and over, and if you didn't have to painstakingly micromanage the hell out of EVERYTHING constantly. I'm 19 hours in and my understanding is that it takes 55 hours to complete, I simply don't have it in me to go any further. I even started using CheatEngine to duplicate my items and give myself a ton of cash to help reduce…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →*squeak* *squeak* *eek* *Squeak*
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was really into the vibe and aesthetic, but the sheet amount of micromanagement is overwhelming. Can't set targets, or limits. It's hard to even work out what you have or keep track of what you're trying to put together. Menus are kinda frustrating to navigate. And while I kinda thought this would be some sort of adventure, I didn't realize I would be driving in a circle around four outposts to collect enough cash for some next milestone. I've only just started and I can see the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I dunno why people are complaining about the micro managing, like, girl that is the gameplay. You're managing a ship of the desert. If you've played older game titles from before the late 00's this will still feel modern, but with a lot of elements that feel like older games from the 90's and 00's. Plus a mountain of references to many space westerns and post apoc settings, and a really bittersweet story. I haven't beaten it yet so maybe my opinions will drastically change but I find the game…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As many others reviews pointed out, the port of the game is not the best, and you will eventually find some bugs and a bit clunky UI. That said, it's a good game! I'm surprised it didn't had more success on PC, but probably it wasn't marketed enough. There is a bit of grind sometimes, but I found it acceptable. So, I think it's a 7.5/10, and you can certainly try it and get it, especially on sale!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →[8/10] unique resource management games with entertaining world, but too bad that player can't minimize the game while waiting your rodents carries out your plan.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good game, my only real complaint is there's no way to set up "Do X until you have a certain number of Y resources" which leads to quite a bit of micromanagement where it's not really needed.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good but not for everyone. It's very grindy and has a lot of micromanagement. Pros for some, cons for others.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Ever wanted to play a Jawa sandcrawler management game. This is it
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Ever wondered what the life of a Jawa (Star Wars) is like? Now you can find out! Challenging, bit grindy, but good fun!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →⣿⣿⡻⠿⣳⠸⢿⡇⢇⣿⡧⢹⠿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣾⣿⡇⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⡐⣯⠁ ⠄⠄ ⠟⣛⣽⡳⠼⠄⠈⣷⡾⣥⣱⠃⠣⣿⣿⣿⣯⣭⠽⡇⣿⣿⣿⣿⣟⢢⠏⠄ ⠄ ⢠⡿⠶⣮⣝⣿⠄⠄⠈⡥⢭⣥⠅⢌⣽⣿⣻⢶⣭⡿⠿⠜⢿⣿⣿⡿⠁⠄⠄ ⠄⣼⣧⠤⢌⣭⡇⠄⠄⠄⠭⠭⠭⠯⠴⣚⣉⣛⡢⠭⠵⢶⣾⣦⡍⠁⠄⠄⠄⠄ ⠄⣿⣷⣯⣭⡷⠄⠄⢀⣀⠩⠍⢉⣛⣛⠫⢏⣈⣭⣥⣶⣶⣦⣭⣛⠄⠄⠄⠄⠄ ⢀⣿⣿⣿⡿⠃⢀⣴⣿⣿⣿⣎⢩⠌⣡⣶⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣆⠄⠄⠄ ⢸⡿⢟⣽⠎⣰⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢀⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣦⠄⠄ ⣰⠯⣾⢅⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡄⠄ ⢰⣄⡉⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⠄ ⢯⣌⢹⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠄ ⢸⣇⣽⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠄ ⢸⣟⣧⡻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⡻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠄ ⠈⢹⡧⣿⣸⠿⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⠗⣈⠻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡇⠄ ⠄⠘⢷⡳⣾⣷⣶⣶⣶⣶⣶⣾⣿⣿⢀⣶⣶⣶⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠇⠄ ⠄⠄⠈⣵⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⢸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠄⠄ ⠄⠄⠄⠸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠘⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠇⠄⠄
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is terribly sloppy. The interface is not good at all, for one thing, being obviously designed for something with a controller-like layout instead of a keyboard. The tutorial's just not good enough. My mice won't work and instead run back and forth with no indication of why they're not working. Instead, they start rummaging through my supplies and start eating my sheet metal and copper wire (Wut.) instead of the actual food I have for them. The game says I need to feed them but I do…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A hard game to find almost to the point where it feels on purpose. This is a base management game. You play as a roving group of mice. You assign mice to the various facilities in your vehicle, you upgrade those to gain the ability to make more things, to be able to survive against the more dangerous parts of the world and slowly work your way up as you learn more about the strange world you live in. It's a good base management game, a quirky idea and pretty cool. It's a little grindy but also…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I had a lot of fun with it, and played through it multiple times. Just seeing it on sale here makes me kinda want to play it again. It's one of the few games I've put effort into 100%ing. Very recommended. It takes a little bit to get the hang of mouse management, and balancing survival needs with building up funds and firepower. But anyone who's a fan of "management" type games, from Dwarf Fortress to Rimworld to Craft the World, should check it out. It's worth it at full price, and at $2.49…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Stuttered constantly. And blackscreened my CPU after I tried to toggle full-screen. Then restarted and it did it again after trying to adjust resolution. When i finally got it to work it was stuttering or freezing constantly. I play plenty of higher intensity games with no issue.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is too addicting while feeling like you're wasting time at the same time.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is very crafting-centric. The documentation for this game currently is really sparse, and is making for an explorative adventure in which I must find everything out my own. The biggest downside to this game is the amount of micromanagement required for crafting. The indicators that a supply has ran out is non-existant and looking for the quantity of said supply can be frustrating, as you either have to scroll through a list of every crafted object you have found or know which chest…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →really love this game, bought it the twice for my 2 3ds, and now it got bigger on steam!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Pretty cute little micro-manage sim
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you want Tiny Towers, but instead of being a freemium mobile game and tower it's a massive living tank with no microtransactions. There is a little bit of waiting (i.e moving from town to town), but you gotta keep track of your fuel, build things, and collect resources in that time. If you run out of fuel in the middle of the desert, you're likely going to die. Overall, a great management game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →this is way too addictive.. too funny, cant stop ! woah xD you begin by a trip where 2 mice go in wasteland on some alien planet and those try to find a paradise to create a new colony, you need to use your wits & fast thinking and craft all the way in order to survive. micromanagement, quests, a bit of rpg, the game start easy and become more complex with time, you need to keep your mice healthy with food, water & fuel and upgrade all your stuff soon as you can ! very addictive! in 20hrs of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →No. Just no. If an item in a queue can't be completed right now, the queue must go on instead of stopping. That isn't even a debatable thing, it's friggin' Management Games: 101. I don't even care if such a basic thing would be accessible in the future by upgrades. I won't see it anyway.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →played a ton of hours pirated on the 3ds, felt the need to buy it here. ignore the obnoxious trailer for this, actual game is a really slow paced chill adventure
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love the premise, the artwork and general gameplay. But the manufacturing side of the game is extremely tedious. I would almost call it hostile towards the player. Maunfacturing menus are where you spend a significant amount of your time in the game. They are very clunky and your time with the game soon feels like it revolves around endlessly scrolling to find the item you want over and over and over again.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It can be a little bit repetitive but it's fun and it's cute and it's a neat concept
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A fun game originally designed for the Nintendo DS, where you play as mice running something akin to a Jawa Sandcrawler as you search for El Dorado. I have enjoyed exploring the world (and kidnapping R2 and 3PO several times)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →WARNING addictive you can play all day and notice it at 1.00 am.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I have this game in 3DS 2years ago but never completed the story and I'm so close to El Dorado. I will finish it in this Steam Revised version. And... Gonna buy the switch port to.LOL
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's pretty cool
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →good old games by the way better to set it into 60 fps or else higher fps might ruining your gameplay
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is the greatest game known to mankind and you will be skinned alive and boiled in oil inside of a brazen bull if you do not play this within your lifetime
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was originally a 3ds eshop game, so I'm glad it was ported over, I would've never known it existed otherwise. This game goes on sale often! Usually it goes down to 3 usd, but I snagged it for 1! I find the 10$ price probably worth it though considering how much time I got out of it. Other reviews are right, it is very micromanagey, but I found that it toed the line between annoying and engaging personally. The only other game with automation that I've played is Rimworld; this is nothing…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Cute game, very addictive but also tend to get more and more grindy down the end of the road to El Dorado. Also, sometimes craches when you get a success, so be sure to have the auto save mode on! There are a lot of problems that people already mentioned : shortcuts that you're supposed to be able to change but can't, micro manangement (your queue of task will get blocked if you lack an item and your mice will just stand doing nothing...) but this game has obsessed me! There are a lot of sci-fi…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →OF MICE AND SAND -REVISED-, developed and published by ARC SYSTEM WORKS, is a distinctive blend of resource management, survival simulation, and light strategy that builds its identity around a simple but unusual premise. You guide a group of mice traveling across a vast desert aboard a mobile fortress, searching for a distant promised land while keeping their fragile ecosystem functioning. It’s a concept that initially feels whimsical, but the longer you play, the more it reveals itself as a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →THIS GAME IS ADDICTIVELY GOOD You will loose yourself in hours of playing this game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →They eat food way too fast its impossible to keep them fed and then they just refuse to work, tasks are also a pain to manage
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Interaction is awful, not as fun as it seems to be. I feel a bit despair about this game. El Dorado is in just my dream.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's cute, the soundtrack's even decent, but Christ is this game fiddly and tedious. Micromanagement hell, and I barely scratched deeper than the surface.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I do like a base building game anime`s game is bit looking very nice with apocalypse sands & the pixel art
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Unfair. it is charming and was fun at first, but now mice just die for no reason and every milestone is super grindy. If you had more control over the mice and took out some of the grind it would be and easy 10/10. But as it is now i wonder if its even possible to finish the game. or at least have fun.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Aside from multiple micromanagement challenges, this game will test your planning and survival strategy. Played this upon purchase and been hooked for 12 hours straight, worth it on sale and encountered some bugs on the game. Some tips I can share from this game: - Upon starting, focus on building up you resources to earn cash and save up for your next ship. - Upon acquire your new ship, focus on making the Turret and ammo then Infirmary (this is important since I encountered as there is a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Crazy? I was crazy once. They locked me in a ship. A metal ship! A metal ship with mice, and mice make me crazy!! Crazy? I was crazy once. They locked me in a ship. A metal ship! A metal ship with mice, and mice make me crazy!! Crazy? I was crazy once. They locked me in a ship. A metal ship! A metal ship with mice, and mice make me crazy!! Crazy? I was crazy once. They locked me in a ship. A metal ship! A metal ship with mice, and mice make me crazy!! Crazy? I was crazy once. They locked me…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun and cute management game. The lore is quite interesting. However in the mid to late game, it can be quite grindy and micromanagement heavy. Totally worth it on sale
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I played the original on the 3DS, this is a very great game I hope to see mroe games like these. Driving my base arround is such a great concept. MORE PLEASE!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →its like making a factory on the go, except with mice! If you like factory builders and or cute things, this game is for you.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I've enjoyed the little bit I've played, I like the world and the progression. Fun management as you rumble through the sands.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun little game that managed to draw me in for 30 hours despite it being a bit repetitive. For some reason I didn't feel exhausted by the repetitiveness but rather enjoyed it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →An interesting concept and base gameplay gets dragged down by tedium of repetition and grinding as well as lack of user friendliness and balance. If you feel like managing every minutia of an ant hill or like to otherwise occupy yourself while playing this game by listening to an audiobook or podcast, this might work for you. Otherwise it might feel like menu hell.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I based my MC skin off these little guys, best choice for it. Really fun to make them.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a game that could be very interresting. Alas, for me who never uses any other controller than mouse + keyboard, the interface is just horrible. The mouse is almost useless and the keyboard shortcuts, although they can be changed, are very painful to use. I have no hopes of seeing a true PC interface, so I do not recommend this game, even on sale: it's nearly impossible to play.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Time sink. Needs a lot more optimization. Constantly feels like you are fighting the control scheme to do anything. Whole game feels like an asset flip from mobile, and to even get close to working for PC the whole interface should be scrapped. There is a game mechanic that makes you lose all your money when you don't have someone driving for too long, this happens without warning and often because the driver just decides to quit working. Items are impossible to keep track of since their…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A fine, relaxing little game about traveling a vast desert in a spaceship turned into a desert ship. You'll pick up scrap and other resources on the trip, and through a whole network of tasks and means, will get everything you need out of that, most times. It's not everyone's thing, for sure, but if it looks interesting then I'd highly reccomend it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun Game. Bit Long building up fourth ship though. First 3 ships feel small and you need make up your mind what rooms have priority. It seems more fun first half of game building up your rooms and new ships. I felt a bit overwhelmed trying to build up the fourth ship. it's fun watching your mice try to fight bugs and keep the ship going.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.
You Might Also Like
similar titlesI Was a Teenage Exocolonist
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist
Game
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Euro Truck Simulator 2
Game
STAR WARS: Galactic Racer™
STAR WARS: Galactic Racer™
Game
FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles
FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles
Game
Wanderstop
Wanderstop
Game