The one thing you’ll notice scrolling through YouTube comments on Astro Bot’s official announcement trailer is the overwhelmingly positive response it’s been receiving.
6,000 users agreed that it’s the best game announced during Sony’s State of Play 2024 broadcast, while others are praising it for its strong ongoing IP, nostalgically fun elements, and how much happiness the three minute trailer brought them.
I couldn’t agree more, especially on that last point. The moment I started up the game during PlayStation’s exclusive playtest, I was all smiles.
Even though I didn’t manage to overcome the first “hard” stage due to the limited playtime, I was still smiling, reeling in the joy I felt playing through the opening worlds, which included tackling the very large, goofy octopus boss.
Astro Bot review: Fun, cute, and just the right amount of challenge all in one? Yes, please!
The first title in this video game series was released in 2018. Called Astro Bot Rescue Mission, it was developed by Team Asobi from Japan Studio and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for PlayStation 4.
Assuming the role of Captain Astro, players navigate through a variety of colorful and challenging levels. The game received positive reviews from critics, who praised its use of VR and its varied level design.
It’s sequel, Astro’s Playroom, was released in 2020 and came pre-installed in all PlayStation 5 consoles. Now, the team is back with a third platformer in the series simply titled “Astro Bot”.
Fun, colorful, full of adorable animals, my eyes lit up the moment I landed on the opening stage’s tropical island. And because these onlooking animals were so darn cute, I felt bad punching them — but I tried anyway just to see what happens.
Step by step, you’ll be guided to learn new mechanics for each stage holding the same goal as previous titles — find and save your fellow Astro mates! Some of them may even look familiar as they represent characters from various PlayStation games.
I definitely appreciate games that have just enough challenging mechanics to keep you going but without complicated button pressing (I’m clearly not a very good Elden Ring player and that’s okay). I liked that each world presented a new set of mechanics that do not accumulate: you can concentrate on honing the same move and using it in different situations for that one world. Yay!
Echoing comments in YouTube, Astro Bot really does bring out the maximum potential of what the PlayStation 5 controller was designed and built for, especially in the audio and tactile department. When your character dives into the water, you’ll feel the change gracefully. For the best experience, it’s recommended not to use a headset.
I also like games that don’t take itself too seriously because well, they’re games. You’ll appreciate that interacting with the environment isn’t punishing, and sometimes, hitting things might give you exhilarating surprises. On top of that, the first octopus boss is memorably whacky, packed with Spongebob-feels, and big swinging mechanics. More “lulz,” more smiles.
I am not good at platformers and don’t usually play them, and yet Astro Bot manages to convert people like me because it’s so well-designed, delivering genuine, good fun to players of all ages.
“So cute, so cute, so cuteee!” I said out loud to myself way too many times.
READ MORE: Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree is a symphony of suffering
