With the basics on lock, Team Asobi lets players focus on Astro Bot’s wildly inventive level design. In one level, I get a power-up that lets me shrink Astro down to the size of an ant on command. That leads me through a fantastic puzzle-platformer gauntlet where I need to shrink down to climb into a lock or hop up a tree’s leaves. Another level drops me in a casino and puts a time-slowing PSVR on Astro’s head. I use that ability to freeze a giant slot machine as it rains down chips, turning them into platforms. Ingenious one-off mechanics like this feel like they could serve as the basis for an entire game; that’s how well-crafted they are.
Especially since a family-friendly 3D platformer like Astro Bot is also the type of game that the PlayStation’s library has been lacking. But maybe the PlayStation didn’t need an answer to Nintendo and Sega’s beloved mascots. Games were entering an era in which more realistic human characters like Cloud Strife, Solid Snake and Lara Croft were becoming the new industry icons. As this more mature stream of gaming culture evolved, cutesy mascot characters and the 3D platformers they called home became less and less common.
What Are All Special Bots In Astro Bot? Samanosuke Akechi – Demon Swordsman
There are a few different reasons for this, the first of which is that Astro Bot’s core gameplay is as solid as titanium. If you’ve played any other Mario-esque platformer, you know what to expect here, but Team Asobo has really created a game that feels astoundingly satisfying to play, even in the most minute ways. You have absolute control of Astro’s jumps and punches, with smart features like lasers that come out of his feet opening up even more options for gameplay. The simplest way to describe Astro Bot is honestly to compare it to Mario, as it employs a similar kind of “world” structure. Astro Bot is filled with standard platformer tropes, but it pulls off a sense of wonder in their presentation.
They tend to lag in their back halves when they’ve played all their cards, but have more levels to go. Even Astro Bot dips into that in its final world as it begins repeating power-ups and enemy types. TD88 CLUB doesn’t have trouble keeping its double dips to a minimum, though.
What Are All Special Bots In Astro Bot? Kena – Spirit Guide
Stephen has been part of the Push Square team for over six years, bringing boundless enthusiasm and a deep knowledge of video games to his role as Assistant Editor. Having grown up playing every PlayStation console to date, he’s developed an eclectic taste, with particular passion for indie games, arcade racers, and puzzlers. He’s also our go-to guy for Sonic-related matters, much to his delight/chagrin. It contains special challenge levels, and each of them contains a Special Bot to unlock. Astro Bot is an adventure platformer where you control Astro as he explores six galaxies and over 80 levels across 50 planets to find his scattered crew. The crash site hub world has its own areas to explore and is packed full of quirks, such as eventually letting you customise your ship and outfit.
The bright graphics and little PlayStation references make it even better. Astro Bot received PlayStation 5 Pro support and new, more challenging levels back in February. Team Asobi’s platformer won numerous Game of the Year awards, including at 2024’s The Game Awards and the 2025 BAFTA Awards. Originally announced during Sony’s June 2025 State of Play, the update adds a new galaxy, the Vicious Void, for players to explore. Four of the levels are titled Twin-Frog Trouble, Suck It Up, Handhold Havoc, High Inflation, with Team Asobi keeping the name of the fifth as a surprise. The addition of the new levels brings Astro Bot’s total level count to over 90.
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.
There’s still room for an expertly designed collect-a-thon platformer that’s filled with love and wonder. I won’t spoil what characters appear here, but know that it isn’t just your average Kratos and Aloy cameos. There are shocking deep cuts here from every corner of PlayStation’s history, including its indie partners.
To access these new levels, you will need to have completed the main game. Critics praised the gameplay, level design, and content, with some comparing the game to Nintendo franchises, particularly the Super Mario series. Astro Bot won multiple awards including Game of the Year at the Game Awards 2024, the 21st British Academy Games Awards, and the 28th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. As Astro, the player embarks on a quest to save lost robots, retrieve parts for the PlayStation 5 mothership, and defeat the alien Space Bully Nebulax. Much like the previous title Astro’s Playroom, Astro Bot uses DualSense controller features including adaptive triggers and haptic feedback. There’s a jungle planet, a volcano planet, and worlds of pirates, ghosts, and gardeners.
Since all PS5 consoles come with “Astro’s Playroom” for free, it’s more than likely that “Astro Bot” will become a big hit for Sony. This is because every console owner has played the previous installment and are likely to want more from the character. I expected it to be a pretty fun little cartoon romp where the main draw would be pointing at the screen and going “Look! It’s Nathan Drake!”. What I got was one of the greatest platformers I have ever played, in terms of creativity, consistency, and cleverness, that just so happens to have a bunch of PlayStation mascots inside it.
It anticipates the things that you will anticipate, and then goes one better. It only really has a few universal mechanics to learn, and most of the game will have you interact with the stage gimmicks for the most part. Where it shines is the game’s level designs, unique gimmicks, and usage of everything the PS5 has to offer. It’s been quite a rough few weeks for Sony and PlayStation fans out there, and it’s great to know that it’s not all doom and gloom as Astro Bot is here to save the day. As a casual fan of platformers, Astro Bot blew me away and reminded me of the nostalgia and fun that is to be had with the genre. The last time to do this was Nintendo’s Super Mario Odyssey, which is a very high standard to beat or match in recent years.
Astro Bot follows the tiny but brave Astro as his PS5 mothership is attacked by his galactic nemesis, scattering the crew throughout space. Only Astro can set things right, and he needs your help to rescue the stranded crew and rebuild the mothership on his biggest mission yet. Team up with iconic PlayStation heroes to save the galaxy and experience the game’s immersive world through the DualSense wireless controller.
Japan Studio was sadly dissolved in 2021, with many of its staff folded into Team Asobi to make Astro Bot. Its wild characters and artful, innovative games are particularly favored in Astro Bot’s directory of PlayStation history. You tend to start writing lines in your head when compiling a review, and one that stuck with me early was to call Astro Bot ‘the best platformer since Super Mario Odyssey’. Then I played a little more and started to think ‘maybe it’s better’.
