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I don’t throw statements around like this lightly, so believe me when I say that Astro Bot is one of the greatest games of all-time.
To call it a ‘game of the year’ contender felt too small an appraisal. What Team Asobi have crafted is a joyful and wonderfully immersive masterpiece that builds upon the foundations established in Astro’s Playroom to create an end product that is unlike anything else I’ve ever played. Within minutes, I was beaming with happiness and the smile did not leave my face once during the entire playthrough. It isn’t simply because Astro Bot is impressive and fun that it shines. It’s also a beautifully considered ode to PlayStation history that wholeheartedly reminded me just why I fell in love with gaming in the first place. I simply cannot think of a box that Astro Bot didn’t tick.
In this latest adventure, it’s up to you to pick up the pieces after Astro’s PlayStation 5-shaped ship is attacked by a rather mean alien. With the ship’s components and Astro’s fellow bots scattered across five galaxies, and with the CPU held in the clutches of that aforementioned alien, it’s Astro’s job to reunite his friends and restore the group’s ship.
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Take a look at Astro Bot in action below.
Anyone who’s ever played Astro’s Playroom will likely attest that it’s an unforgettable experience, mainly due to just how well Team Asobi make use of the DualSense controller’s haptic feedback. Everything here is turned up by more than a few notches. The breadth of the immersion is much greater; the tricks at Astro’s disposal more diverse.
The move set that you’re familiar with returns. Astro can jump, spin-attack, and make use of his thrusters just as he could in previous instalments. This time around though, so too is he occasionally joined by new contraptions offering him unique skills that’ll help him traverse particular levels. There’s Handy-D, a monkey-inspired device that allows Astro to both climb and use the hands to enact slam attacks, while Barkster the Bulldog offers a super-powered forwards boost, helping Astro traverse wide gaps or to smash through walls of enemies. Elsewhere in the story, Astro can inflate, shrink down, create platforms, turn into a cannonball, and slow down time.
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It makes for an experience that is about as far from dull as you can possibly get. It’s always a delight to dive into a level and see what type of biome and theme it’s transporting you to, but to have levels dependent on a variety of unique skills adds a welcomed level of challenge to the series, so you don’t simply feel like you’re relying on the same few key moves. In doing so, developers have been able to add traversal obstacles, enemy types, and boss fights that certainly wouldn’t have been possible in previous Astro entries. This is a much richer game.
In addition to simply making it through the game’s various levels, it’s of utmost importance that you also collect bots as you’re going to need their help if you’re to progress. There are 300 in total to collect, which is comprised of 150 standard bots and 150 VIPs, based on the PlayStation IPs you know and love - and there are plenty of deep cuts in there for you diehards. This made for a much more rewarding experience as in Astro’s Playroom, VIP bots were something you simply spotted in the wild. Here, they’re yours to collect and it’s always a treat to stumble upon one.
Each level will also task you with finding puzzle pieces - which unlock various features in the game’s main hub, titled Crash Site - as well as coins and, occasionally, ‘Lost Galaxy’ levels. Those coins will mainly be used in the Crash Site’s Gacha Lab, a returning mechanic from Astro’s Playroom. Here, you’ll be able to unlock little animations for each VIP bot that usually include a couple of props. Once you’ve done so, you can view and interact with these via the Crash Site leading to some pretty memorable encounters, from dancing with Crash Bandicoot to getting frozen by Kratos’ Leviathan Axe.
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This brings me nicely onto what most impressed me about Astro Bot - it's exquisite - and I want to stress that word - attention to detail. I could write a thesis on it. Whether it’s the amusing captions that appear when you rescue a VIP bot, the animations of those bots, an obstacle in a level … nothing is there for the sake of it. Life has been infused into every little item - and much of that life comes from how things are translated through the DualSense controller with Astro Bot making use of both its haptic feedback and built-in speaker.
The steady rumble of the blade as you ice skate, the pitter-patter of rain, the crunching of icing sprinkles under your feet, the soft tread of sand, the drilling of a screw as you fix the Crash Site’s PlayStation 5, there simply isn’t a sensation that you don’t hear and feel, recreated exceptionally as if it was happening in the real world. In one instance, I was hammering in some nails, the sound effects so lifelike that I started to wonder if I might soon irritate my neighbours. Astro Bot is the definitive shining example of why the PlayStation 5 is just so magical. Everything about this game is fantastical - it’s nonsensical, in the best way. Total make believe and yet, never has a gaming world felt so real and tangible.
It’s a game where, at least in my experience, any questioning thought I had ended in an answer of yes. Can I reach that place? Yes. Can I roll the snow into a snowball? Yes. Can I somehow break apart that statue? Yes. Astro Bot may be finite, but it certainly excels in giving the appearance that it is limitless simply due to how well the developers have outthought the player. If there’s something you want to achieve in a level, I can almost guarantee that you’ll be able to do it - and that curiosity is always rewarded. It’s usually in these instances that you’ll find the game’s trickier-to-locate Lost Galaxy levels, or find yourself a stack of extra coins to be spent in the Gacha Lab.
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Each galaxy you complete in Astro Bot will culminate in a very special level, levels that allow you to truly step into the shoes of some of PlayStation’s most iconic characters. I’m loath to spoil anything so instead, I’ll simply use the example that’s already been publicly revealed, God of War. In these particular levels, you’ll acquire that character’s relevant skill, so in this case, the ability to wield the Leviathan Axe as you attempt to collect up to seven bots all themed around that particular IP.
Everything I’ve praised this far is perfectly encapsulated in these themed levels. Naturally, reuniting with the Leviathan Axe is a joy if you’re a God of War fan but the immersion extends far beyond that. These special levels truly make you feel like you’ve suddenly immersed yourself in a completely different game. I found myself hunting Odin’s ravens, listening to an amusing soundtrack that remixed Kratos saying ‘boy’, with Astro Bot’s various monstrous creatures receiving a themed reskin all to boost the experience. I was wholly transported.
And like I said, I won’t reveal what those other themed levels are but let me leave you with the promise that they made me so happy, I must’ve been exuding light like the sun. I stepped into some gaming worlds I’ve been missing for just a short while, and others that I’ve been missing for a very, very long time. Each felt like a homecoming that transported me back to some of my happiest memories in all my years of gaming. How can you ask for more than that?
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As for its level of challenge, Astro Bot strikes the perfect balance. While most levels offer what I’d call a ‘normal’ level of difficulty, you’ll also be able to find various ‘Void’ levels which are more akin to challenge runs than fully fledged levels. It’s in these challenge runs, that you’ll acquire some of the bots themed around PlayStation’s deep cuts - your display of skill well rewarded.
I didn’t encounter a single challenge run that felt impossible but a few took me almost half an hour to finally time everything right. It’s the perfect change of pace from the check-point heavy main levels which rarely have you feeling in too great a level of peril, even if you may find yourself cursing your own silly actions from time to time. So too does Astro Bot boast its fair share of boss battles, each feeling positively unique and oftentimes making use of those aforementioned skill contraptions.
For those hoping to platinum the game, it may not take an age to do so but neither will you ace all levels the first time around. I am exceptionally thorough, and spent every level searching every nook and cranny I could possibly find. I searched high, I searched low and still after rolling credits, I only found myself with 250 out of 300 bots. Having now learnt the game’s tricks though, I’m well on my way to reaching that perfect 300. In fact, it’s proving to be an utter delight revisiting those earlier levels. I can’t say I’ve ever wanted to relive the experience of a game I’ve just played this rapidly.
Astro Bot is true perfection. I entered the game hoping it would recreate the same sense of magic that Astro’s Playroom brought to life so wonderfully, but what I instead discovered was a true elevation in every sense. With this release, Astro has firmly cemented his status as an icon of the platforming genre. This is beyond being an entertaining platformer. It’s one of the most carefully considered and impressive games I have ever played. If you’ve grown up with PlayStation always having been a constant in your life, the journey you’re about to embark on will assuredly be the most heartwarming trip down memory lane. Astro Bot is a monumental triumph that I’m not going to stop thinking about for a very, very long time.
Pros: impeccable DualSense immersion, wonderful level design, heartwarming nods to PlayStation history
Cons: don’t be silly, there aren’t any
For fans of: Astro’s Playroom, Super Mario Odyssey, Sackboy: A Big Adventure
10/10: Perfect
Astro Bot is due to be released on PlayStation 5 on 6 September. A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.
Topics: PlayStation, PlayStation 5, Sony, Reviews