In addition to the new platform-heavy level, players will have a new cameo bot to rescue and can earn a new Trophy called Rolling Rescue to fill out their collection. If you haven’t played Astro Bot yet (and seriously, why not?), it’s currently on sale for $39 as part of the PlayStation Black Friday sale. In the few instances where the hero isn’t wearing an ability, the game still finds ways to reinvent itself.

Astro Bot is a platformer that genuinely thinks like the best platformers out there. It anticipates the things that you will anticipate, and then goes one better. To challenge Bully Space Nebulax, the final boss of the game, you must first complete every main planet across all galaxies. To put it simply, Astro Bot is quite literally a complete package.

It’s pretty worthwhile and honestly a lot of fun to reap sweet rewards from your treasure hunting. We’ve also outlined which character each of them represents, what series they’re from, and where to find them in the game. The game has a total of 300 bots to collect and find throughout the game.

There are optional challenge levels that open up later on, however, for anyone who might be craving that. The superb adventure builds off of the foundation of Astro’s Playroom, the free pack-in game that launched with the PS5 console to showcase the DualSense Controller’s unique features. Over the course of 90-plus levels, Astro Bot makes brilliant use of the DualSense’s adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, touch panel, gyro controls, and built-in speaker. From a mechanical perspective, Astro Bot is arguably the most inventive and playful 3D platformer ever made.

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There are one or two surprising absentees, but on the whole it’s a remarkable selection that had us grinning with every character we recognised. It’s all delivered with so much affection that it’s hard not to love it. Speaking of power-ups, our robo-hero makes use of numerous new toys throughout the game.

Many hope Sony will simply let Team Asobi do its thing and are perfectly content giving the next game the time it needs. You must complete the Great Master Challenge in order to find and collect Chop Chop Master Onion Special Bot. As the name implies, this is one of the most difficult levels in Astro Bot, so be sure to check out our full walkthrough for tips on how to complete the Great Master Challenge. Now, G28 ’m sure the gamers who haven’t tasted the sweet joys of Astro Bot yet will agree with me once they get their hands on this PlayStation title. So, congratulations on your well-deserved award and success, Team ASOBI.

Astro’s Playroom

It’s a lovely idea, and we hope it finds its way into other games that could use it similarly in years to come. Other abilities, like the Monkey Climb has you scaling walls with long extended arms. The Frog punch is similar in appearance, but has you punching like the cast of Nintendo’s ARMS.

The lack of story in Astro Bot reflects the character’s origin in PlayStation 4 tech demos The Playroom and The Playroom VR. As such, he’s never been given any backstory and he only communicates in baby talk. Except for wearing a cape, he looks identical to all the other robots and, quite frankly, he’s beginning to seem under-designed – especially when one of this game’s main gimmicks is dressing him up as other PlayStation characters. I am annoyed I can come up with animal abilities for better navigation/quest access in BIomutant, oh no we have gliders (other features, a merchant like BOTW I’ll never find again) and vehicles but why can’t I dig, fly, swim?

Part of that Nintendo feel is also shown across the game’s bosses. Astro Bot crams in nearly two dozen boss encounters, some that repeat in certain ways, but all of them are truly special events. From flying atop a bird as you smash away at its helmet, to a Djinn or a Gorilla, these fights are simple in their design, but due to the wondrous abilities and the slick controls, are engaging and often magical. That said, the final battle is likely the weakest, coming across as the less creative design of the entire bunch, which is a shame since the game goes to great lengths to show us Nebulax between each world. [newline]Still, the other fights are very impressive and constantly shine.

Many of the PlayStation characters appear as short, charming cameos, but a handful play fully-fledged supporting roles. I won’t spoil who gets the star treatment here, aside from one – the previously revealed Kratos. His introduction sees you wield his ice-infused Leviathan axe and take on the role of the exiled Spartan himself in a thrilling change of pace, the frosty blade boomeranging around the level. It’s here where Astro Bot becomes truly magical, elegantly blending nostalgia with new ideas. Such moments essentially let you play these iconic games in miniature, lending Astro their powers and letting him loose in a level entirely built around familiar stories and settings, soundtracked by remixes of heroic themes. They’re charming and often the real highlight of the experience.

Firstly, when talking platform games, getting the basic move set and control nailed down is crucial. This has always been a strong point for Nintendo and Team Asobi as well have managed to pull it off. Astro’s basic running and jumping have a satisfying feel and rhythm to them. These are far from the only references to other games you’ll see. Of the 300 bots you need to rescue, over half of them are dressed as characters from some of the most iconic games to grace PlayStation over the last 30 years. While a lot of them are based on first-party properties, like The Last of Us, Shadow of the Colossus, and Ape Escape, there are many more based on third-party titles — some of which are amazingly obscure.