It also looks and plays very much like a Nintendo game, which is the highest praise you could give any 3D platformer. Use the whistle (Triangle) to all call bots, then use Camera Mode (D-Pad Up) and move the camera around until you’ve found both explorers. You can try taking a picture as you may get lucky and they’re already close together, but if not walk over to either one and punch and kick them in the direction of the other. Once the two characters are near each other, snap a picture in Photo Mode (not the built-in PS5 screen capture) and unlock the Thick As Thieves trophy.

If you don’t want to replay levels, the most efficient method is to collect everything on the first run. You need most bots anyway to unlock the boss levels in each Nebula. This is the third full wave of Astro Bot downloadable content, which began with a similarly structured five speedrun levels after launch and, until this release today, most recently saw a special Christmas themed level released. 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? If the father and son Doucet saw at Yodobashi Camera is an indication, Astro could very well be on his way to familiarize a younger audience with the PlayStation brand.

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. Like many of PlayStation’s limited edition DualSense controllers, the Astro Bot DualSense is based on one of its many franchises, specifically 2024’s Game of the Year, Astro Bot. The controller features a white and blue trim that perfectly matches the Dual Speeder in-game, as well as a smiling set of eyes on the touchpad. Sony just never seemed to have an answer to Nintendo’s Mario or Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog.

Past that, another level has you growing flowers to make your way up an ascending staircase of giant pots. There are musicals to play through, obstacle courses, giant robots to resurrect, and more. I could go on and on about every unique level, but the wonder of Astro Bot lies in discovery itself. It needs to be said that there’s a real emphasis on Astro Bot in not being punishing; there’s absolutely no penalty for losing a life, and the moment you grab a collectible, it’s yours — even if you respawn, you already have it. That might be disappointing to some, but it’s an intentional design choice that works in the game’s favor, as Astro Bot is much more focused on the “experience” and wants players to have pure, unfiltered fun. There are optional challenge levels that open up later on, however, for anyone who might be craving that.

My wife and I enjoyed It Takes Two but some of the one off I was glad to get rid of. My kid on the other hand hated how you kept learning new stuff only for it to be dropped and never return again, just like this review, and I was getting this for them for their birthday. I just watched the ACG review on YT and this game looks phenomenal, lots of things that remind me of the Mario games and lets be honest, there is not a better platformer out there to take notes from. Also the advantages or lets say unique features this game has over the Mario series are way better graphics and for Playstation gamers all the Bots that remind you of well known games.

While it’s beautiful to see people celebrating online, it is a shame when a moment of joy, such as a less well-renowned title like Astro Bot winning Game of the Year, is tarnished by a negative swell. Combine this with the fact that extreme views increase the number of likes a post gets, and therefore how much it’s seen, and what you’re left with is an environment that’s set up to prioritize strong opinions. An interesting study reported by Scientific American showed that one of the elements that drives online polarization are influencers. As the piece explains, in network science, an influencer is someone who is connected to lots of other people. It’s these individuals or groups who are able to influence swathes of people, sway online opinion, and contribute to radical takes. F168 to Astro Bot winning Game of the Year is a prime example of how the internet and gaming culture can divide people, despite their promise as forms of connection.

Pay Attention To The Dualsense’s Rumble

There are three puzzle pieces in “Trapped In Time.” The first is before the level starts, the second is before you go inside, and the third is before you go back outside. Eventually, you’ll find a platform that has a separate spiral platform to the right, a goop monster above, and a sand waterfall that’s covering a caged bot. To get in there and save the little guy, boost up, kill the blob monster, pull the lever it was sitting on, and jump down to rescue the bot. My only regret is that it’s a PS5 exclusive, and will probably always remain so. Astro Bot deserves a wider audience, but I’m not sure if that’s in the cards.

Gameplay Achievements

Sure, it’s cool to see some forgotten classics in there (Wild Arms made the cut!), but you could take out the Kratos costumes and the game would be as brilliant as it is now. Though the nostalgia or PlayStation love in will eke up the excitement for some fans (and even put some off), it’s not a pillar of Astro Bot, nor is it going to be the reason fans keep replaying this for years to come. “Team Asobi cements itself as an essential PlayStation studio with an imaginative platformer for the ages,” Mark Delaney wrote in GameSpot’s Astro Bot review.

Gorilla Nebula Vip Bots

That nirvana is thrown into disarray when a dastardly alien interrupts the party, stealing the mothership’s parts and scattering hundreds of bots across the universe. Astro Bot’s various worlds have a lot of colorful characters you’ll meet along the way. Astro Bot is developed by Team Asobi, who also worked on previous titles where Astro appeared, including the PS5 console’s tech demo Astro’s Playroom. It’s not for “helpless people who already can’t beat the game”.

Part of the enjoyment of games like this is discovering stuff and figuring out puzzles. Using a complete walk through from day one just reduces the amount of enjoyment you can have. Astro Bot has a full set of PS5 Trophies for you to collect as you make your way through the game. As part of our Astro Bot guide, we’ve got a page dedicated to helping you earn every Trophy, including the coveted Platinum. People have entire online communities based around the enjoyment of a title, whether that’s Elden Ring or Astro Bot. So thoughtful and it pays such an awesome homage to PlayStation consoles and games over the years.