That mothership crash lands on a desert planet after an evil alien attack, and Astro must now travel the galaxy searching for its missing parts and crewmates. Even powers from previous Astro adventures are reinvented to great effect. For example, the Monkey Climber is an evolution of Playroom’s climbing ability, but the assistance of a small robotic ape with huge hands this time means rocks can be hurled and ground pounded to great delight. Laurels are never rested on either, with new ideas and gadgets introduced right up to the final encore.

You’ll dash, swing, and rocket-punch through diverse planets, unlocking 15 new abilities, including using Barkster, the Bulldog Booster, to air-dash and smash enemies. Or, on the other side, celebrate wildly with validation when the game they like is recognized. So thoughtful and it pays such an awesome homage to PlayStation consoles and games over the years. It truly takes advantage of all the different features the PS5 remote offers and is just pure awesome joy.

It’s a grand celebration of PlayStation’s legacy and a sign of what its future can become. What’s amazing is despite how wide-reaching the references are in Astro Bot, this isn’t just a celebration of PlayStation’s first-party stuff but so much of what’s defined gaming for decades. Monster Hunter, Space Channel 5, Wipeout, Legend of Dragoon, Tony Hawk, the list goes on and on.

Astro Bot begins with a PS5-shaped spaceship traveling the stars when its crew of 300 Bots suddenly encounters a mischievous alien who breaks the ship and scatters its pieces and crew across multiple galaxies. As players take control of Astro, they’ll work to repair the ship and rescue their crewmates. Astro Bot is a platformer adventure game released on September 6, 2024, for the PS5, serving as a sequel to Team Asobi’s Astro’s Playroom from 2020 and the third game in the series. Players take on the role of the lovable Astro Bot, embarking on a space-faring adventure through diverse environments, including waves of sandy beaches, lush jungles, and fiery volcanoes. Along the way, Astro gains new powers and transformations to aid in the journey. Released in celebration of PlayStation’s 30th anniversary, the game pays homage to the brand’s legacy by allowing players to find and reunite with over 150 iconic PlayStation characters.

Astro Bot Rescue Mission

Now Team Asobi has been given the chance to unleash all that expertise in playfulness on Astro Bot, a full-scale game that exists for its own ends rather than to serve a Sony marketing plan. When we award the Polygon Recommends badge, it’s because we believe the recipient is uniquely thought-provoking, entertaining, inventive, or fun — and worth fitting into your schedule. If you want curated lists of our favorite media, check out What to Play and What to Watch. Across my 25 hours fully completing the game and earning the Platinum (it took 11 hours to reach the main ending), I could count on one hand the amount of times I died and felt it was the game’s fault, not mine. Most of the Astro Bot cameo characters are pretty easy to identify, but there are a few VIP Bots who are obscure and thus can be difficult to place.

Playstation Innovation

After reaching 100% completion you will have close to 15,000 coins if you don’t spend them on satellites. If you don’t have enough coins you can always replay levels to get more. Sony is releasing another stream of Astro Bot expansions, the first of which is available today, February 13, adding a total of five new levels and as many special bots. This is joined by a PlayStation 5 Pro patch, which allows the best resolution while running at 60 frames per second. Like Astro’s Playroom, Astro Bot is not just a game that PS5 owners can play themselves, but also one that they can share with their less-experienced loved ones. Will this new adventure bring Astro even closer to mascot character status?

Unlike all of the other Astro Bot DLC stages, Winter Wonder is accessed via the Galaxy Select screen. To do so, players will need to find and crash into the floating planet with the Christmas hat. Players will be able to find a Puzzle Piece floating around in space in the Tentacle System, Serpent Starway, Camo Cosmos, and Feather Cluster galaxies. Crash Site serves as a kind of hub world, in which players can find 35 Bots and 11 Puzzle Pieces.

While “toy” has become a derogatory term when talking about video games, Team Asobi sees no shame in embracing it. I can see that when I find a cardboard standee in a construction site level. I poke my head through it, only to summon a flock of pooping pigeons. There’s 100vip co for doing it as it’s not a tracked collectible; it’s just a purely entertaining moment that gets an honest laugh out of me. What elevates that beyond a bit of throwback nostalgia is that developer Team Asobi may be the most skilled studio working today when it comes down to game feel. Part of its secret weapon is Astro’s hover jump, which lets him float in the air a bit longer before landing.

All 200 Astro Bot Cameos / Vip Bots

A follow-up to Astro’s Playroom (2020), it is the fifth game in the Astro Bot series and Team Asobi’s first game since its separation from Japan Studio. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you so much for showing your appreciation. Instead of jumping forward, watch behind you to find the second puzzle piece. After you climb the ramp, follow the light bulb’s path to find invisible platforms to climb, then collect the bulb! From Astro Bot Funko Pop figures to limited edition collectibles, show your support for Team Asobi’s masterpiece.

The basic movement of our little robot pal is great, with his jump, double jump, and hover hitting that sweet spot between floaty and finely tuned. But it’s the temporary abilities that come with each level that make things truly exciting. The Twin Frog gloves are a particular favourite, with their sticky tongues flinging out to provide a grapple swing option. They’re also spring-loaded, meaning any incoming projectiles can be sent back from whence they came, exploding in an enemy’s face. I also very much enjoyed the mouse mechanic, which reduces you down to a super small size, effectively turning on a “Toy Story” mode that lets you clamber up oversized shelves and leaves in search of secrets. Unlike ASTRO’s Playroom, ASTRO BOT is a standalone, full-sized adventure that offers over four times more worlds, 300 bots to rescue and dozens of new powers and features to discover.

When comparing the game to something like Super Mario Odyssey, you could even say that Astro Bot may have taken a lot of inspiration from the Nintendo exclusive. However, the way it presents itself and the way it integrates its older titles into the game make it a unique experience. There are 5 main Nebulas, each with 6-7 main levels, and a few side levels which are unlocked by flying into objects with the spaceship inside the Nebulas.

Astro is revived by his Dual Speeder, a smaller spaceship resembling the DualSense controller, and together they begin reactivating satellites and exploring galaxies to rescue the crew and rebuild the mothership. Along the way, he rescues V.I.P. Bots (guest characters from other games) and explores planets based on Ape Escape, God of War, Uncharted, LocoRoco, and Horizon. Some distinctive PlayStation-themed bots — think one wearing Aloy’s red hair or Kratos’ beard — serve a more special purpose.

The gacha machine mechanic makes a particularly enjoyable return, providing a satisfying way to spend the thousands of coins you’ll collect. It’s not brand-new for the series at this point, but still hits all the right spots. Over 150 of them in fact, as characters from PlayStation’s vast library of games have made their way into Astro’s world in the form of other bots. There are the ones you’d expect like Lombaxes, tomb raiders, and a certain rapping dog but, delightfully, some are plucked from the more obscure end of the scale. It’s light touches of irony and slapstick humour like this that keep Astro’s playful tone going throughout. Some of those biggest unexpected treats are the new powers that Astro gets along his journey.

ASTRO BOT is exclusively available for PS5, taking full advantage of the console’s advanced features including the DualSense controller, 3D Audio, and enhanced graphics capabilities. ASTRO BOT is a single-player experience designed to deliver a focused and immersive adventure. ASTRO BOT is a platformer video game developed by Team ASOBI and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment.