Astrobotis a character that since the Playstation's 5 release needs no introduction as he is now consider the Playstation Mascot. BUT who is this Robot?
Astro first debuted with the release of Astro's rescue mission, a VR game released in 2018. The game till this day(Sep 2024) is consider one of the best VR experiences. However, not
many people were fortunate enough to have a VR game set or didnt want to invest their money in Virtual reality games as the tecknology is technically still in its early inception. A quick shut out to Playroom(2014)
a game that used the camera and the Ps4 dualshock to create funny videos. The "game" was using Augmented Reality(AR) and it did include different characters familiar with the Astro universe. Nevertheless in 2020
Sony released their new console, the PS5 and with it came a preinstalled game known as Astro's Playroom. This small 2 hours game acted as a platformer that not only displayed Playstation's history
but also showcased the power of the PS5 Dualsense. More on that on the Astro's playeroom review. Astro's playroom was loved by many and soon everyone were aware of this small robot. Those who experienced the Ps5 verison loved it and it became clear
people wanted more of it.
All the Astro game were developed by a small Japanese studio known as Team Asobi. In 2024 during a State of Play, team Asobi revealed a new 3D platformer known as Astrobot. The game was being developed by them and
it would be published from Sony as a Playstation 5 exclusive in September 2024, 4 months after its reveal. Astro's playroom also received an update where each month a new robot would radomly placed in the game and people would have to
solve puzzles to find them. New collectables were also released including all the hardwares release since 2020(Ps5 slim, Ps portal etc). New room was also added where the days were being counted down till the release of the game and also had a link
that lead to the store in order to pre order the game. A small event also took place in that room during the last hour before the release of the game. In the 6th of September, the game was met with praises as not only did it overtake Final Fantasy Vii: Rebirth(92)
score with 94 on Metacritic(A side where people score games) it also became synonymom with potenial GOTY. Team Asobi also announced a future free DLC will be included in the future.
The game is released as :
Digital Download: Simply includes the game itself
Digital Deluxe: It includes the artbook, the Audio files(87) and in game costumes for Astro and his spaceship
Physical Edition:For the physical enthusiast, the physical edition included a two sided poster.
Story of the Game
The plot of the game is simple and very straight forward. The openning cutscene shows us a PS5 flying around space. Astro and his friends are partying inside until they come across a flying UFO. The alien also known as Space Bully Nebulax sees the PS5 like space ship
and imidietly attacks it. In doing so he steals the CPU and sends the spaceship crashing down. Whilst falling various parts of the spaceship and pretty much most of the crew fell of and scattered in different planets. The central part of the spaceship landed in the middle of a desert
planet alongside Astro who was damaged and was unconscious. The Dual speeder a PS5 Duelsense looking spacecraft, cures Astro. Astro soon sees a something crashing nearby and goes to invest it. He finds a satelite which he activates in order to search for his friends and cres and also
the rest of the PS5 parts in order to fix the mothership. Using his Dual Speeder, he embarks on a journey across various planets in another "rescue mission."
The adventure then finds both Astrobot and Dual Speeder flying to different Galaxies and visiting different planets in order to find lost parts and crew. The adventure will become abit more complicated as other creatures also seemed to have taken a liking to some of the parts of the Mothership and
Astro will have to obtain them one way or another. Will he succeed?
Thoughts on the story
As someone who wanted a full fledged Astrobot experience since 2020, i never had a story in mind. In fact i would always mention how i just want Astro's playroom in a bigger scale. i always believed a good platformer does not require the most complex story as long as the game's gameplay and quality is there.
Astrobot's story is very simple and straightforward and it honestly resembles alot of Kirby and the forgotten lands. The hero is enjoying his time with his friends, then something happens and then he has to go help them. Simple yet good enough. The game doesnt have spoken dialog, but its quality in imagery
is enough to tell you everything you need to know. In that essence the game's plot is perfect.
Gameplay
To its core, the game is an action 3D platformer where the players get control of Astro. The main goal of the game is for the players to search across multiple galaxies and clear the levels found within. Each Galaxy has its own set of Planets. Some are unlocked by clearing the one before whilst others can be
found by smashing the asteroids around the atmosphere. Puzzle pieces can also be found hovering around the area. The player will have to use the Dual speeder to approach them and select them. When hovering above a planet, the users are able to see how many bots(normal or characters) can be saved in that level,
how many puzzle pieces are hidden in there and whether or not there is a secret warp portal.
Upon selecting a level the player controls Astro who is flying towards the landing destination. During the flying intro segment, the players can tilt the controller left and right which will cause the Dual Speeder to mimic the excact behavior
of the players movement. Holding either R2, L2 or Both(L2 + R2) will cause the Speeder to boost. Once the players land their goal is simple, move all the way to the end of the level and claim the top. The collectables can be
found across the levels.The location of the bots and of the Puzzle pieces re sometimes visibly obvious while some other times, they require a sharp eye and the use of thought. For example each time a bot is collected it is placed
in a spot between 1- max number of bots/puzzles found. If the first bot collected is placed in spot 2, it means that the player already missed one which was located somewhere behind the location of the current bot. In case of replaying
the level, the bot will be replaced with a giant silver coin. A great detail regarding the bots, is that when rescued they re placed in the Dual Speeder and the player can play with them by tilting the Dual Sense. They can launch them up and
even zoom in to see them.
Overall the game has a very simplistic approach. Astro can move in a 3D environment and jump to reach high areas. By jumping and holding down, Astro can use his jets to hover on the air for a bit allowing him to cover bigger distance. Any enemy
or breakable platform will die/break by Astro's jets. Despite the "jet" kills, Astro can mellee his opponents by punching them. Holding down the punch button will allow him to spin while hitting anything in its path. Spin punching can also be used
to dig holes or solve other puzzles. The same punch button can be used to pick up items from the ground that he can use to throw towards enemies or unlock platforms. When Astro is not in a boss fight he is always one shot. Any enemy that hits
him or any platfrom is enough to kill him. During boss fights astro gets 3 memory cards representing heart points. Any death will respawn Astro to the latest checkpoint. Checkpoints can be found frequently around the level. They represent a holographic
Astro head. The only levels without checkpoints re the challenge levels that require the player to finish them in one go.
Each level is filled with their own Astro spin. Around the world can be found various NPCs such as enemies, fauna and flora. The enemies are there to stop astro. Team Asobi went full creative with their design and their gimmiks. For example, some enemies
re only killed by mellee whilst others can only be killed by the jet boosters. Other enemies need to attack in order to expose their weak points. In some cases, enemies can be used as platforms, either by stepping on them or using them as a jump pad.
Encountering enemies is fun, and its nice how some enemies differ based on the levels. Flora and Fauna can be seen around the world and they can be used to solve puzzles or to simple achieve a picture or money. For example, spinning on flowers can help them
grow in order to reach great height, using the snakes long body to swing around, blow in the Dual Sense to cause bubbles to platform and others.
So far, the gameplay mechanicks and gimmicks are the same as found in Astro's playroom, with the exception of being more fleshed out and even more polished. A great addition to Astrobot is the fact that the player can use weapon tools in certain levels. Chests
that have Astro's face to the front unlock power ups. The Frog gloves allow Astro to expand his arm and punch enemies. The same gloves can be used to reach items in far away distances. The Mouse power up shrinks Astro and makes a small garden
looking like a full open field where small water prints can be seen as small lakes. There are multiple power ups and the levels on which they re acquired are making the best use out of them. Theres multiple power ups but some of the most unique ones are the transformations.
Some levels are based on iconic IPs such as Horizon, God of War and others. During these levels, the hero character will lend Astro their weapons that play similarly to their own. For example, holding the leviathan axe will transform Astro into a Kratos cosplayer and he
will be allowed to swing the axe around and even throw it on enemies to freeze them. During these levels, the players will rescue bots based on that IP, and also see alot of that IPs references. For example in GOW, the players can summon Jörmungandr and even throw their axe on
the spirit crows(Odin's eyes in GOW Ragnarok). Puzzles take the form of using the Axe to freeze water, freeze the grears and to break pillars. Astro's idle animations and the games music will change based on the IP. When transformed into Kratos, the idle animation will
have Astro smash a green crystal(representing Kratos healing) and when he respawns he screams like Kratos Sparta mode.
There's more craziness to be found on Astro's default home planet. The "home" planet is the one where the players embark on their adventure. Every robot rescued will be appearing in the hub world. The famous characters will be posing based on their IP whilst the normal bots will
try to repair the Mothership. A great addition of realism is seing bots carrying Data boxes into the PS5 ships, whilst other complain of the heat and others excersise to keep in shape. Around the world, there re signs or requires bots, the players will have to assemble the ammount of
bots needed to help them. For example, 20 bots are needed to lift Astro higher to collect somehting or 150 bots needed to help raise a giant rock. In order to clear the base homeworld, the bots need to help Astro.
After returning back from a Boss encounter, Astro and the Dual Speeder will retrieve a core component of the Ps5 mothership. When they land in the home planet the player will have to use motion movements of the controller in order to restore the component to its healthy state.
For example recovering the SSD will require the player to use the dualsense as a Chainsaw to remove certain parts, then again to cut certain small pieces in order to push them in. In other cases the Dualsense is being used as a hammer and the player will have to use motion controls to
nail down pieces. Once again the creativity is beyond imagination.
Thoughts on the Gameplay
In all honestly this game gave me all i ever wanted. A full fledged 3D platformer very similar to Astro's Playroom. The gameplay is similar to playroom which for everyone who did not play it is very simple and easy to pick and everyone can enjoy. The more experienced players can find
multiple ways to speedrun through the levels. The game offers various powerups and transformations that change the gameplay and offer unique gimmiks like. The puzzles found are easy to solve and they allow the player to use their given power ups or the dualsense sensors to solve them.
For example, using the mellee punch to create platforms, blowing on the controller to create air waves that trigger mechanicks or even feel the vibration to push the plate. The way the developers took advantage of the Duelsense is very commentable and offers a unique experience.
Post Game Content
This type of games(3D platformers) usually have the same type of post game. First of all Collecting all the Crew is always a nice activity to keep you revisiting the game and clear all the objectives. The crew members are simple bots(100+) or even a Referential character. These characters represent
a game that played a major role in Playstations History. Characters like Kratos(God of War), Hunter(Bloodborne), Crash(Crash Bandicoot), Jack and Daxter and another 169 cameos. SPOILER: Not knowing whats in the future DLC there is no Square Enix character representation (Final Fantasy, Kingdom hearts etc).
Another form of collectable is the return of Puzzle pieces. Each level has puzzle pieces that astro can use to build a poster. Building a poster will create an item in the world. For example, a poster puzzle reveals the gacha machine which once completed it will appear in the world. The Gacha Machine allows you to spent your in game currency
in order to receive items. These items are usually things to appear in the hub world or things related to the referential characters. For example finding Crash's Aku, Snake's box etc. Once these items are obtain from the machine, the characters will change animations to include these items. Outfits can also be obtain for
both Astro and the Dual Speeder once the puzzle is solved.
Wraps/black holes can also be found that act as a different finish condition and upon going through them they unlock hidden levels. These levels are parts of the Lost Galaxy, they re usually shorter, they contain less number of collectables
and re also way more chalengefull.
Sound and Graphics
Visually the game is stunning BUT it does not push the PS5 boundaries. What do i mean by that, is that the game does not have realistic graphicks like Horizon forbidden West nor fantasy looking graphicks like Final Fantasy Vii Rebirth.
Instead Team Asobi took a page out their own and Media Molecule(Tearaway) and made a game based on their own world. If you played any Astro game, you know what to expect, grass that look like USB cables, trees that seemed to have wires for their trunk. Team Asobi went the extra mile to include more flora and fauna
of different variety. These designs are really beutiful and the fact that Team Asobi made more than 80 wild animals to have walking around is fantastic. The same can be tell with the representive characters. The astro looking heroes look amazing and by seeing them you can identify the game or the character they re meant to represent.
The world of Astro and all the levels were crafted with alot of care into details. According to the game director, team Asobi originally thought of creating an open world game but they decided not to. Classic platform level designs gave
his team more freedom to create a bigger variety of levels without them needed to be interconnected to something. Another great addition to detail in the worlds is the interactivity with Astro. For example, how the water and plants react to
Astro's movement resembles real life. Furthermore some areas have the grass glow up temporarily where Astro was. Very similar punching trees might drop stuff from the top such as boxes, bots and even other stuff like acorns.
Again if someone played the Astro's playroom(you all should, its free and only 2 hours or less :] ) they should know what to expect in terms of depicting a green field or other stuff.
Music wise the game doesnt hold back. Its amazing how simple and yet effective the music of the game is. The background music is always cheerfull or moody based on the planet that you re corrently are. It contains plenty of memories
that will have you tilt your head to the rythm during the game and even after. The game contains more than 80 soundtracks. It is also worth mentioning that the games audio is being filtered based on Astro. For example, when Astro is
currenlty under water a filter will be placed on music making it feel like its comming from outside the water. Each type of ground(grass,ice etc) has a different effect and the same can be said about the fauna and flora when punched by
Astro.
It wouldnt be an Astro game if i didnt mention the gameplay sensation that PS5 Dualsense brings to play. Astro's playroom 2020 acted as a demo that showed the world the haptic feedback the dualsense brings to the new Generation of console and
thus Astrobot is filled with that. Any surface that Astro touches, or any item he hits, moves or picks have a different vibration. You can close your eyes and see, yes im on a sandy area, a snowy area or an ice area. Even when enemies hit you, you can
tell if you get shocked or if you got stomped. The same philosophy applies to the weaponry that Astro obtains through the levels. Team Asobi did an absolute fantastic job using the controller to its maximum.
Final Thoughts
Overall, AstroBot is a fantastic game and definitely the best Playstation platformer as of now. Its definitely gonna go down as one of the best 3D platformers of all time similar to games like Super Mario. The quality is definitely there.
The developers in team Asobi approached the game with love and care as they believe Astro can easily be someones firsts ever 3D platformer. With Such philosophy, and with their experience they did not do anything wrong. The plot of the game is very simple yet
very effective. The gameplay expanded on Astro's playroom whilst keeping the exprerience and fun the same. It is very simple and everyone can adapt to it and enjoy their time. The game never overstays its welcome and it keeps introducing new things to keep things
fresh. Going out of your way to collect all collectables never feels as a chore cause each thing rewards the player. For example, collecting puzzle pieces built stuff in the hub world such as customization(Astro and Speeder), creates the gacha machine and others.
The bots not only hit you on the nostalgia of the Ips but are also needed as they help you discover treasures into the Home world and re needed to break your way into the boss fights. Last but not least warp levels are there to challenge the player and expand the
over all time.
The Level design is pretty good. All levels can be quickly cleared for those who re speedrunning the game and also re very rewarding for those who ll take their time and look around. The levels are filled with different enemies, unique fauna and flora that are beautifully
crafted and can also be used to solve puzzles or create platforms. The animations are very detailed and as mentioned change based on transformations. A great detail can be seen with the mouse power up. If big size Astro steps in water and moves on the ground, when he turns
tiny his big wet footprint will be seen as an enormous pond. The music of the game is very good and cheerfull. Levels based on Ips are also inspired by those. Last but not least the entire experience is elevated by the power of DualSense and the interactivity of the game. Its
quite unique how team Asobi overdone themselves incomparisson to their last Astro game. This will easily go down as a great platformer which will certainly have an impact on future games made by Sony Studios. I cant wait for the free DLC!
Gameplay of the Game
This is a video showcasing some of my time with the the Game
