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Reviewed On: PS5
Price: $59.99 USD
Developer: Team Asobi
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
Release Date: September 6th, 2024
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PlayStation doesn’t really have a true gaming mascot anymore, which is a real shame since they used to be known for things like Crash, Spyro, Jax and Daxter, Sly Cooper, and more that could have been their mascot if everything lined up better, but now Astro is probably the closest thing that they have and I hope they capitalize on it. Sony and PlayStation during this generation of the PS5 have crafted a few new AAA ideas or pretty dang good sequels to PS4 hits, but then they also have done a lot of safe remasters or remakes that aren’t necessary… looking at you Naughty Dog! Hopefully Sony has also reverted from this gung-ho all-in multiplayer live service adventure that they were pushing earlier and instead back to their single player action adventures, which is what they are known for in gaming. I like their single player titles and projects more than their live service multiplayer stuff, so maybe that is just me. Saying this though, I have felt like they needed to go back to the smaller teams and projects for some time now in order for the AAA to feel less sporadic than they have been of recent time. Well, Astro Bot came out last Friday (on my birthday, so that was a nice gift… thanks for that PlayStation!) and man was it an absolute blast.
The story of any platformer is less important in my book than the overall fun that it brings to the player. Astro Bot is no exception for this rule of thumb since it is simplistic, but also well thought out for what Astro has to accomplish. You have to repair the PlayStation 5 console mothership after it crashes into an area thanks to a run in with the villain of the game… an alien spaceship. The PS5 parts were taken by different creatures and it is up to the hero to bring them back by defeating them. Not a very complex story on its surface level, but there is actually a deeper story than just that which is being told in the adventure.
The deeper story about this game, is it has a massive history of what the brand of PlayStation is and has been in the past. There are different cameos and characters that are in the game, but there are also lots of different nods of the past with easter eggs scattered in the many levels. Its true that there are lots of PlayStation characters including Kratos from the God of War franchise, Ratchet from the Ratchet and Clank franchise, Aloy from the Horizon franchise, and much more, but there is more to it than just that. There are also lots of characters from third parties like Sega/Atlus giving a few Persona characters, Crash and Spyro from Activision, Kena from Ember Labs, and much more… all of which came out originally just for PlayStation. There are so many more, with over 150 special bots in the game, involving a connection to the PS brand, and that is more of a story than just the basic one in the game when you dig a bit deeper than the surface.
The gameplay of Astro Bot just oozes charm and joy from the different abilities that you can get in the game levels to the basic abilities already available in your tool kit. There is a jump, hover, and punch as a start and then some levels add in more. Might seem like a little to work with, but it is enough for the platforming that you have to do. There are over 50 different levels to complete in many different worlds, and within each of those there are enemies to defeat, coins to grab, missing bots to collect, puzzle pieces to find, secret exits in some of the levels, and more to explore. To progress past the bosses, there are specific number of bots you need to find, so make sure to grab them when you see them! No two levels in the game are exactly alike, and in all honesty no two worlds really feel like they are copying another. The creativity that is in the game really shines when it comes to level design, and for platformers that is a very crucial thing to pull off correctly. A lot of the levels tend to lean on the easier side, but there are a few in the game that turn up the difficulty slightly and finding that balance is important for games in my book.
On top of the different levels, there is a hub world called the Crash Site. Remember the puzzle pieces and bots I mentioned you can get in the levels, this is where they will go and to be safe once they are found. You can interact with them as well and each have their own personality and action response if you hit them. In order to unlock certain features or areas that the Crash Site offers you, you need to find a specific number of bots and also puzzle pieces for the different aspects in the site such as the change rooms, the gotcha shop, and more. This is where you can change outfits for Astro Bot and the controller once you unlock the different change rooms, or the capsule room where you can get new outfits, colors, and also items that partner with the special bots that are found in the game. Each pull costs 100 coins, and they have a few empty soda cans that you can pull to troll you, and while that seems annoying, it is just overall a fun experience as a whole. I ended the game with more coins than I needed, without the need to grind for them whatsoever.
Astro’s Playroom was the free game included with the PlayStation 5 and while that game showed a lot of promise of the controller and system at launch, this title shows a lot of what the DualSense can seriously do being in the hands of developers who want to really implement it in their games! Sure, we have seen things like the adaptive triggers used before, but this game uses them in every level from the beginning when you fly in and also the end when you fly out of the level. Not only that, using the adaptive triggers throughout the level with the different power-ups the game offers is very critical to success. Motion controls are also very important in order to obtain every item as the opening part of the level sometimes has more than meets the eyes. On top of the adaptive triggers and motion, the rumble in the controllers is off the rails for different things in the game. For example, if you are on a wall or floor you sometimes have to find where the rumble is the hardest and push in that specific spot to unlock an area.
Gameplay gets you very far in a platformer, but you need to back that up with great visuals, art, and the performance of the game needs to be extremely solid. Thankfully, in all three of these areas the game is an absolute stunning piece of work. Throughout my entire 12 hour platinum run in the game, I couldn’t even see any noticeable performance dips whatsoever and I think that is amazing. The art in the game is stunning from the wonderful fields with animals to the stunning ocean that is in the game, to the lush mountains, or the creepy areas. The colors in the game are vibrant and they pop off the screen every minute with none of the levels ever showing weak or lackluster visuals in any way. The character designs from the bosses to the stunningly beautiful bot designs of all of the characters in the game all are well done and look terrific! The look and feel of the game oozes joy, beauty, and creativity that is absolutely infectious!
On top of being beautiful to look at, Astro Bot is also absolutely wonderful to listen and groove with. From my personal viewpoint, it is a true testament to a soundtrack and score when you are able to listen to the actual game music in the background while writing a review for that said game, and that is what I did in regards to Astro. I have only done this a few other times in the past for gaming soundtracks, but if they came out with this as a physical audio cd soundtrack… I think I would have to grab it. The catchiness of the songs from “SSD” playing in the crash site, to the soundtracks for the super special game levels (none of which I am spoiling), it transports you to another place where you really get lost in the world it is portraying. The audio design for the whole entire game is good from the sounds Astro and pals make, to the world around you brimming with life, but the musical score as a whole is just a whole other level that I just absolutely cannot get enough of!
In terms of the game’s problems… I won’t say that it is perfect but it is darn close for me. The really only big issue that I had in the game, was I did have a few crashes that happened in the game. One of them was when I was hovering around choosing a level, another happened in the crash site, and a third happened when I just started into a level. In terms of other bugs… I really didn’t actually experience any personally. Anytime that I did die in the game it was actions I did incorrectly, and not because of a bug or glitch from the game! Honestly, it is one of the most overall polished experiences that I played throughout the year, even with the few crashes that did affect me during my playthrough.
“See you in Astro’s next adventure” is part of the description of the Platinum trophy that you can get from the game… and I cannot wait for that adventure. Hopefully it isn’t going to be a grueling 10+ years for the next one, and hopefully it stays like this one with just more to do. I hope this game gets all the love and support from the PlayStation community as it really needs to show Sony the pull that a game like this can have for people, especially those that claim they want to see the smaller games shine as well as the bigger ones! Astro Bot is such a joy to play, listen to, look at, and just all around a must for any PlayStation fan, Platformer fan, and fans of games that just are there to bring happiness to your life. Astro Bot isn’t getting a perfect score from me, but it is dang close to it. If I could play the whole game while getting the trophies all over again, I definitely would. After 12 hours getting the Platinum for this title, I am sad it is over for now.
Review Score: 9.5/10
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