This generation for gaming and in particular for Playstation was been for lack of a better word…weird. Many who are of the Playstation faithful, myself included, were looking for THAT game that really gives us that Playstation feel, and while many of Playstation’s offerings this year for me have been solid there’s been some missing and it was a true mascot that represents Team Blue. Yes, Sony has Ratchet and Clank, Kratos and others but those translate to amazing series games but don’t represent a true mascot. ASTRO BOT is that mascot that Playstation needed and with this new solo adventure. Playstation quite possibly has the GOTY and you can’t change my mind.
Astro Bot is the sequel if you want to call it that from the PS5 packaged Astro’s Playroom. Team Asobi put together a masterpiece of a game that is bred from the inspiration of Mario games and other 3D platformers. Where it’s different is in its mechanics and how the Dualsense makes this game work.
The story begins with Astro Bot’s PS5 spaceship flying around space that suddenly encounters a strange alien that rips the PS5 spaceship apart and scatters its parts and your bot friends that were onboard for the ride throughout the galaxy and the remains of the PS5 spaceship end up on a desert planet which ends up becoming your home base and from there its game on.
THIS GAME IS PRETTY
Level design in Astro Bot is theme based and top notch. It’s what makes this game what it is aside from Astro Bot itself. The levels are engaging, complex, vibrant and colorful and within each level Astro encounters a buddy or a treasure chest that teaches him a new powerup that helps you get through the level you’re on and you can use them in the game as a whole. Easter eggs are carefully and intentionally hidden. Each level is completely interactive and the Dualsense controller adds an additional element of gameplay that works seamlessly and I’m not quite sure I can accurately explain in this review just how well it works. Astro Bot makes the best use of the Dualsense controller to date.
All things told Astro Bot has 80 levels, 6 galaxies and 50 planets. There are 4 levels out of the 80 total that are Lost Galaxy secret levels that are quite challenging. If you decide to be a completionist and platinum this game it should take about 16-18 hours
FIND YOUR FRIENDS
Each level has your bot friends scattered all over, some in east to find places and some in not so easy to find places. What makes the hunt for your bot friends so much fun is how many of them represent iconic past and current Playstation characters from some of your favorite games. Finding them is more so the goal of the game that I found as opposed to just doing the levels and fighting the big bad. There are 300 of your bot friends to find and trying to find them is epic fun.
ASTRO BOT POWER UPS
If there is one thing that Astro Bot does well is give you power ups to get thru every level. Astro has a wide variety of them that give this game most of its charm. From monkey hands that allow you reach far out objects to the ability to transform his size and become a literal sponge or the ability to have a little angry dog attachment that allows you to smash through objects and that’s just to name a few. It’s very Mario-esque and that’s not an insult. It’s part of that “joy” element of this game.
AN ODE TO PLAYSTATION’S 30 YEAR HISTORY
History is on full display in Astro Bot and you get a complete sense of that as you play this game. Home Base is where you’ll landmarks based on the Playstation and its accessories. You’ll see the PS1, the Vita, at the startup of the game when you choose your game save file is a PS1 Memory card. Once again, your bot friends and a level within the game based on one of the most popular Playstation characters is in the game. It’s an ode to Playstation fans and you’ll be filled with good feelings of nostalgia when you playthrough Astro Bot.
ASTRO BOT IS PURE FUN AND THAT’S ALL IT NEEDS TO BE
Astro Bot is a game that’s hard to not have feelings of joy for while playing it. As a Playstation main player myself, Astro Bot is a reminder of what Playstation has given its fans over their rich 30 year history. Astro Bot is a beautifully crafted and well designed game that kind of came out of nowhere so to speak in that we knew it would be good but not this good. In a generation that so far that is seeing Playstation seem very unsure of itself and vague in terms of its 1st party game lineup and IP roadmap it was good to see a homegrown creation wow gamers for no other reason than its great. No, it’s not a challenger to Nintendo and what they’ve created with Mario, this game is clearly inspired by that. This game is an ode to the Playstation faithful and a testament to the history that Sony and Playstation have created with gaming and games and Astro Bot may possibly be the game of the year simply because it’s a game that anybody can play and a game that everybody will love. Fun still matters and Astro Bot proves that.
