Sandman

Sandman is Nitrome's second flash game published under Nitrome, released in 2006. In the game, the player must guide a group of sleepwalkers through the land of Nod using sand.

Controls
Mouse - Click to pour sand

Levels
Sandman has 15 levels, each with their own individual names. In Sandman, the player has to guide Sleepwalkers to a Portal located at the end of the level. A certain number of Sleepwalkers will be spawned at the start, the player having to get at least one to the end. If the player gets more than one to the end, they are rewarded with extra points. Hazards will instantly kill a Sleepwalker. The player has to sometimes interact with wooden structures to complete the level.

01: Stairway to Heaven
The player has to pour sand until the sand reaches the edge of the platforms so the Sleepwalkers can get to the portal.

02: Road Block
The player has to pour sand at the edges of two platforms so the sleepwalkers can walk up, then, get the sleepwalkers out of the cave, the cover the entrance to the cave, then pour sand so the sleepwalkers can get to the above platform.

03: Tap Dance
The player should first pour sand at the edge of the platform to get the sleepwalkers out of pit. Then pour sand above the glass in a certain area to get the sleepwalkers out. Now, when they get into the third pit, pour sand close to the right side of the glass till the Sleepwalkers can get out of the pit and into the portal.

04: Pit Stop
Pour some sand in the first small pit the sleepwalkers are going to walk in so when they fall, they don't die. Next fill up the pit close to Hot Air Balloon all the way to the top. Now pour some sand in the second pit so the sleepwalkers can get out.

05: Walking in the Air
First, pour sand on the six invisible blocks closest to the sleepwalkers. Now pour sand on only 2 of the other 6 six invisible blocks connected to the same platform as the other invisible blocks with sand on them are. Now, pour sand on the three Blocks underneath the other 2 Invisible Blocks that have sand on them.

Now underneath the other 3 invisible blocks are five invisible blocks, pour sand on all of those. Now there are five invisible blocks in a horizontal way closest to the portal, and these blocks have no sand on them, pour sand on all 5 blocks. Now pour sand in the area the Sleepwalkers are in to let them out of the small pit, and let them walk to the Portal.

06: Two of a Kind
In this level, the left side of the level is the same as the right. First, pour some sand on the Invisible Blocks so the sleepwalkers don't fall to their deaths, but leave a gap somewhere so the sleepwalkers can get to the platform that looks like a Sideways "L".

Second, let the sleepwalkers walk on to the small platform, then, cover up all the invisible blocks with sand, then, pour some sand where the sleepwalkers are going to fall so they don't die. Third, pour some sand on the invisible blocks, and where the sleepwalkers are going to fall, drop some sand so they don't die. Repeat this for both sides to get all the sleepwalkers to the end.

07: Hold Up.
Nightmares are your only rival in the game. They turn around when meeting a wall and their only death is water. If a nightmare touches a sleepwalker the nightmare will devour him, nightmares can be stopped by invisible blocks. At the end of level 7 stop the enemies by blocking them by invisible blocks.

08: Deals on Wheels
In this short level, the sleepwalkers need to cross an area with water in it. The player needs to move the sleepwalkers onto the wooden platform, then pour sand on the wheel to make the platform move, to safety get across the water.

09: Access Denied
This is a difficult and tedious level. You cannot pour over glass so you have to start at the top of the screen and pour sand down a maze to get to the bottom. It's very easy to make a mistake here.

10: Wild Goose Chase
A very short level. The sleepwalkers are the right side and the nightmares are on the left side of the level. Quick timing is important. Just make sure the sleepwalkers don't fall off the wrong side of the platforms. The nightmare shouldn't pose a threat.

11: The Great Escape
Another level in which the player has to navigate the sleepwalkers while holding off the nightmares. At one point you need to turn a wheel so a barrier would open and allow the sleepwalkers to pass through. Keep turning the wheel and don't let the barrier fall or it will crush a sleepwalker.

12: Make A Splash
Quick thinking is required in the beginning of the level in which the player has to quickly use sand to build a path across water while blocking the sleepwalkers from falling into the water. Then the player has to use sand to build a path to get onto the platform, and use the wheel to move the platform to get to the exit on the other side.

13: Bridge The Gap
Good timing is critical on this level. The wooden platforms move by themselves so the player must know when to get the sleepwalkers onto the wooden platform.

14: Long Way Round
The player has to navigate through a maze for a roundtrip and eventually reach the exit. However, there is a shortcut. Because the exit is on the platform right next to your beginning platform, you could pour a lot of sand to fill the gap between the beginning and end platforms so the sleepwalkers could just walk through that gap, to complete the level the easy way.

15: Don't Look Down
In this level, the sleepwalkers continuously drop down from a higher to a lower platform. The player must be careful that the sleepwalkers are dropping down to the correct platform and that they don't drop off too much and die. The end portal is on the same line as the nightmares portal so the player has to use sand to block off the nightmares at the end.

Interactive Objects
Things the Sleepwalkers can interact with.
 * Portal - Transports sleepwalkers through the Land of Nod, to the different stages of the level.
 * Dark Portal - Nightmares are spawned out of these on certain levels.
 * Glass - The player cannot pour sand through the glass.
 * Invisible Blocks - Any sand poured on top will stay on these blocks.
 * Wooden Water Wheel - Pouring sand on this moves a wooden beam or platform.
 * Wooden Beam - Helps transport sleepwalkers across gaps. It may be controlled manually or move on its own.
 * Wooden Beam - They may cover an opening or be used as a bridge to cross gaps, depending on their position.

Hazards
These objects will kill a sleepwalker.


 * Water - Will drown a sleepwalker if one walks into it.
 * Nightmares - The only enemies present in Sandman, they will kill the Sleepwalker on contact.

Inspiration
Mat Annal, while being interviewed by gotoAndPlay, stated that the inspiration for Sandman came when "trying to build a sand art application and wondering how we [Nitrome] could make a game out of it".

Trivia

 * The hot air balloon from Hot Air appears in some levels.
 * In level 06, the red squirrel, gray squirrel, and a chick appear on two trees at the bottom right side of the level.
 * If the player confines the sleepwalker in a small space using their sand, they may end up killing the sleepwalker.
 * The music that plays in the levels is a remix of the song "Mr. Sandman".
 * Lee Nicklen, the game's composer, made 2 alpha songs for the game but they were not used in the finished product.