Astro Bot PS5

[QualityChimp]

Gotta cut back on the avocado toast and mocha lattes too.

[hudson]

Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan! Found myself standing atop of a tall tree after getting up there by deflating my ass like a balloon. Looking back at the level I had just traversed. It was beautiful. Meanwhile, in the real world, I lay back in my chair, raise my hands and...

[Tobal]

Reached area 5 with 100% completed in 1 to 4. Quite alot of surprise turnouts from past games, about 7 characters so far i've had no clue about and alot of the characters i do know look and act the part specially when you get their gacha item, really puts a smile on my face. Love the the crash site music.

Only downside so far is 1 major sony IP is missing from Area 1 to 4'n'Losts so i fully expect it to be the final areas themed planet which will be a major disappointment for me.

->Open Spoiler<-

Horizon in no way deserves to be on the same level as Ape Escape, GoW, Uncharted and Patapon, but Sony heads really want to force that crap down my throat, hope i'm wrong and Aloy turns up prior to that

At least 1 major sony company missing in area1 - 4 which doesn't make me hopefully for seeing

->Open Spoiler<-

Psygnosis

work is given the love is deserves.

Also surprised by 3 major 3rd parties missing going into final area

->Open Spoiler<-

Square Enix, EA and Ubisoft, with the former missing being a really strange one with how much they made Psone standout with Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Tobal, Parasite Eve, etc, etc should have a new area all to its self. Namco have had a really small showing so far to, specially when Konomi and Capcom have loads of characters in so far

Only other knock is way to much low quality sound coming through the pad which can be fix be using headphones, often i'm expecting the subwoofer to add some ommpfff to the destruction going on but all i get is some tinny sound from the pad.

[Neon Ignition]

For missing franchises, they've confirmed more are coming in the free updates so some might be being held back

[Lebowski]

i loved the

->Open Spoiler<-

horizon level

i’ve finished this now not 100% but will be going back to mop up the few bots i’ve missed.

The only bits that annoyed me where the shape challenge levels, the one hit nature or astrobot really dosent lend itself well too having to run a massive gauntlet full of insta death. i’m sure i'm in the minority with these levels as people seemed to like the Mario challenge levels in galaxy.

enjoyable but wouldn’t call it my game of the year, played far to many 3d playformers and they have never been my fave genre.

[hudson]

The one hit from a green slime spitter

[Tobal]

100% the game outside a couple of hidden trophies and that external stuff. The Challenge stuff really isn't that tough as at most there are easily under 2 minutes including the master challenge, which took me a good 40 mins to complete. Solid 9/10, main reason its not a 10/10 is the pad audio and later levels just being repeat mechanics.

My prediction for area 5 IP turned out to be true, what a sack of crap that level was, just a repeat of Area 3

->Open Spoiler<-

with a Bow, a bunch of nobodies and most unlikable sony lead ever made.

.

There are ups, the missing sony company and one of its games did made it into area 5

->Open Spoiler<-

with whole level for the Wipeout themed bots dressed as the teams, would have loved it it that was the themed level where we controlled a craft with the tilt and get something different to do like with Area 4s Patapton.

Not got the time now, but i certainly want to talk about my favourite levels, bots and missing sony IPs, missing or extremely low presence major psone/2 3rd parties and IP that i wouldn't associate with the sony brand.

[BaronSqwelch]

I've done everything except the very last level you unlock. I just can't complete it 🤣
Retried it so many times it was starting to make me hate the game. So now I'll have the eternal shame of not being skilled enough to platinum a game for children.

[Neon Ignition]

I'm around 3 levels away from the final boss now, plenty bots and pieces to tick off but nothing too time consuming after that.

I don't mind that it's missing some references (even if some of the included ones seem odd), if the game featured any more PS callbacks it would be easy for Astro Bots own identity to start getting lost in it. If anything holds the game back in terms of 'Mario Rivalry' it's probably that whilst the design is brilliant, it is firmly with a stronger foot in past platformers. It's very true to the prior two games, but they're all more like perfections of PS2/Wii era platformers more than the more open play Odyssey style. I can see how it wouldn't necessarily be GOAT choice overall, but when I consider this years competition it's definitely up there in the running.

[hudson]

I hope future Astro Bot games expand on his moveset. The gadgets are great (keep that aspect for sure). I just remember starting out and trying to jump dive or long jump

[Tobal]

I hope future Astro Bot games expand on his moveset. The gadgets are great (keep that aspect for sure). I just remember starting out and trying to jump dive or long jump

I would like to see more themed gameplay, tougher levels (difficulty setting would be nice) and a return of the vehicles from playroom.

[wakka]

I'm a ways into this now, working my way through world 4.

A really beautifully put together game, made with such obvious care and attention to detail. The graphics, music and animation are awesome and it's constantly throwing new, fun ideas at you.

With all that said - not as good as Mario. And just as Neon and Hudson have pointed out already above, it comes down to two things for me. The level design, which sits somewhere between Crash Bandicoot 4's intensely linear assault courses and Mario's open playgrounds, is not as interesting as Odyssey's. And secondly, Astrobot's moveset is rather simplistic.

There isn't really a skill ceiling as such. It's more of an Uncharted-type game, where it's by and large pretty forgiving and you sort of just bash through it. Whereas with Mario it feels like there is latitude to actually get good at controlling Mario and to become more skilled in navigating him around the levels, due to his more sophisticated moveset and the corresponding level design to give you the chance to make use of it (I'm still blown away by the fact that they mostly nailed it all down back in '96 - although Cappy is a tangible improvement).

With that said, it doesn't detract at all from this game that it isn't as good as Mario. That would be an extremely tall order. It's a wonderfully made game and I'm really enjoying it. The designers are so good at hiding the bots and the portals. You need to be constantly vigilant, in a nice way - and there's a real rhythm to their placement that is so enjoyable when you click with it.

[Neon Ignition]

I'm definitely coming in at a different angle, I just have one thing left to do and then I think the Platinum is sorted and personally I think Asobi have pitched this correctly.

I don't need the cameo's at all, Rescue Mission showcased that Astro stands strong without needing to cater to fan service with Playroom only doing it because of the nature of the product. This games inclusion is really only an extension because it went down well but I don't need the franchise to bury itself with expanding on that front, over half the times it's hard to even determine the cameo's because Sony lacks the number of iconic characters to carry the numbers. If that returns in a sequel I'd prefer it to be contained within the equivalent of the Lost Galaxy, secret/post game unlockable levels, I would rather see Astro's 'world' expanded after three games of using largely the same enemy types and boss character designs.

There's definitely room to expand on Astro's move set, especially given the robotic nature of the character. It's incredibly impressive that Asobi has managed to put together (consistently across multiple titles) a game this strong from such a limited moveset. I've seen a lot of Odyssey comparisons since its launch and I don't really judge Astro in that light, it's unfair because literally no platformer series rivals Nintendo's mascot titles and Odyssey pushed Mario's moveset and design to a point that very likely goes well beyond Asobi's resources and even strained Odyssey in some places. In the world of Mario, Astro is a bit more... 3D Land/3D World.

I imagine we won't see another entry till PS6 is out... time for Asobi to revive Jumping Flash then!

[wakka]

Yeah I agree with pretty much all of that.

The cameos are fun but they're not something that massively excites me - I think putting them in a secret world like the Lost Galaxy would make more sense to me as you suggest. They feel like the centrepiece right now. Which is a bit of a shame when the design of the bots is so cool. I'm not a massive fan of Ratchet & Clank's gameplay but that game does a great job of worldbuilding, and I'd like to see the same in a future Astro. I think that would go hand-in-hand with a reduced emphasis on cameos.

It's incredibly impressive that Asobi has managed to put together (consistently across multiple titles) a game this strong from such a limited moveset. I've seen a lot of Odyssey comparisons since its launch and I don't really judge Astro in that light, it's unfair because literally no platformer series rivals Nintendo's mascot titles and Odyssey pushed Mario's moveset and design to a point that very likely goes well beyond Asobi's resources and even strained Odyssey in some places.

Totally agree. But with that said, I would love to see them challenge themselves on this in the next game and produce a more technical platformer with more depth to the controls. They've got the foundation for it.

Speaking of Asobi's future work, it probably won't happen but I'd love to see what they did with something completely different, an entirely new game. They're a really talented team and a huge testament to Sony's success in building strong first party studios. Astrobot is so polished and this is the first full scale game in the series. Microsoft, this is how it's done!

[Atticus]

I'm back into this after finishing Alan Wake and it's perfect to just jump back into.

I've hit a point now where I'm having to go back to earlier levels to find bots I missed and it's certainly not a chore. Everything is enjoyable ... even those do-it-all-in-one-go sub levels that can be demanding.

The game is just perfectly judged in how it unfolds and builds ... one thing constantly feeding another. And I can't get enough of the sensory feedback and feels the game constantly delivers. It's so considered at all times.

As an aside I see it's been given a 10/10 in Edge (fwiw). Not sure it's quite up there with Nintendo's finest efforts but it's not far off.