Astro Bot

For the 2018 PlayStation VR game, see Astro Bot Rescue Mission.

Astro Bot
Developer(s)	Team Asobi
Publisher(s)	Sony Interactive Entertainment
Director(s)	Nicolas Doucet
Composer(s)	Kenneth C. M. Young
Platform(s)	PlayStation 5
Release	September 6, 2024
Genre(s)	Platform
Mode(s)	Single-player

Astro Bot is an upcoming platform game being developed by Team Asobi and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. It is a sequel to the 2020 game Astro's Playroom, and is the third game overall in the Astro Bot series. The game is scheduled to release for the PlayStation 5 on September 6, 2024.

Gameplay

Astro Bot is a 3D platformer where the player controls the title character, a small robot named Astro Bot, through the use of the DualSense controller. Astro's core moveset is identical to how it is from previous entries, maintaining his ability to jump, hover, punch and spin-attack (achieved through charging up his punch), as shown by a poster given as a bonus for pre-ordering the game. The ability to swim underwater also returns from Astro Bot Rescue Mission, having been absent in Astro's Playroom.

The game boasts over 80 levels, which are split across six galaxies and 50 planets. Each of the levels fall under three different difficulty settings: Easy, Normal and Hard. The main story levels primarily fall under the easy/normal difficulty, whereas the optional challenge stages fall mainly under the hard difficulty. Each level also contains a difficulty indicator, which is highlighted before entering the level. Traversal between these galaxies is achieved through the "Dual Speeder"; a spaceship shaped like a PlayStation 5 DualSense controller. The Dual Speeder is controlled by holding down the analog triggers and physically tilting the DualSense. It can move around freely on the level selection screen

Similar to Rescue Mission, every level contains a set number of Bots which Astro has to rescue, ranging from seven Bots in the main platformer levels to only one or two Bots in the boss fights and challenge levels . There are 300 bots that can be rescued and recruited in total. Unlike in Rescue Mission, however, "V.I.P. Bots" (Bots which reference various PlayStation characters in their visual appearance) can also be rescued and recruited. There are said to be over 150 V.I.P. Bots which can be found, with more rumored to be arriving via free DLC updates. All of the Bots that have been collected can be viewed in a centralized location (described as a museum), where they can be viewed and interacted with.

Collectable coins are scattered across the planets, which can be used to purchase a variety of things. The main way to spend your coins is in the Gatcha machine, gifting you items for the V.I.P. Bots. These items are specific objects which were used by the characters, causing them to perform specific actions which reference their home games. In addition to this, the coins may also be used to purchase a helper, allowing them to collect any missing Bots or puzzle pieces. The helper is only available for purchase from the second attempt of a level onwards.

Astro has access to 15 new abilities, which attach onto him and enhance both his traversal and combative capabilities. Some of these new abilities include Barkster the Bulldog Booster, granting Astro the ability to air-dash through enemies and terrain, and the Twin-Frog Gloves, allowing Astro to punch enemies from a distance and swing/slingshot off of certain surfaces. The boss battles present at the end of each galaxy are fought using these abilities.

Astro Bot will not be playable on the PlayStation VR2. This is in spite of the fact that previous Team Asobi games featuring Astro (such as Astro Bot Rescue Mission and The Playroom VR) required the use of PlayStation VR in order to be played.

Development

Development of Astro Bot started almost immediately after Astro's Playroom was completed, and took roughly three years with a development team of around 60 people. It is reportedly the largest game that Team Asobi has developed.

Astro Bot heavily utilizes the DualSense controller's features in gameplay, specifically the haptic feedback and the adaptive triggers. In order to make the most out of the DualSense's features, Team Asobi formed a small group solely dedicated to getting as much out of the controller as possible. Nicolas Doucet, the game's director, notes a few examples of some of these features, which included using the adaptive triggers to simulate squeezing water out of a sponge by changing its resistance level and using the haptic feedback to feel certain irregularities on a surface to uncover a hidden secret.

Each of Astro's abilities also utilize the DualSense's features heavily. Doucet notes the difference in how Playroom and Astro Bot went about utilizing the DualSense in abilities, with the former segmented the platforming and abilities into different sections, and the latter instead integrated the abilities into the platforming gameplay. He also mentions that, because of the stronger emphasis on platforming during development, the touchpad was used much less frequently, since "using the touchpad means your fingers are coming off the jump button and it becomes a clunky way to play."

In an interview with Edge, Doucet stated that he and Team Asobi considered giving the game an open world structure, but ultimately decided on focusing more on a level-based structure instead. He stated the reason for this decision was "because that was the one that gave us the most control over the game's variety." In order to make the game accessible for gamers of all skill levels, the difficulty of each of Astro Bot’s levels were put into great consideration. The main levels were designed to be relatively easy, allowing anyone to beat the game regardless of their skill level. The optional levels, meanwhile, were designed to be much more difficult as a way of satisfying the more experienced gaming crowd.

The game was given the name Astro Bot without any subtitle, unlike its predecessors Astro Bot Rescue Mission and Astro's Playroom. Doucet says the reasoning behind this is "because we treat this as a new beginning."

V.I.P. Bots

Astro Bot alongside various other V.I.P. Bots, referencing the characters (from left-to-right) Atreus (God of War), Kulche (LocoRoco), Kratos (God of War), Spike (Ape Escape), Aloy (Horizon) and Nathan Drake (Uncharted)

Doucet has mentioned the significance of the V.I.P. Bots referencing prominent PlayStation IPs on multiple occasions. He notes that Team Asobi made the decision to “double down” on the number of references present in Astro's Playroom. The reason he gives for this decision was because it could potentially work as a generational bridge; a child wondering who a certain bot is referencing could receive an explanation from their parent who had played the games previously.

One challenge that implementing the V.I.P. Bots presented was how the team had gone about representing these longstanding characters. Carried over from Playroom, punching these bots causes them to have a funny reaction and reference something specific from their respective games. Doucet noted there was a balance to be had with maintaining this aspect of the Astro games while also being respectful to the legacy of the characters they were “taking the piss and being funny with”. Various PlayStation Studios studios (such as Santa Monica Studio and Naughty Dog) have reportedly responded positively to the Bots.

Another challenge that came about from the V.I.P. Bots was how the sheer amount of PlayStation characters referenced could overshadow the identity of Astro himself. Doucet said he and Team Asobi had considered not implementing any PlayStation branding in the upcoming game, instead allowing Astro to “stand on his own feet”. He and the team ultimately decided against this, however, reasoning that fans of Astro's Playroom would likely be disappointed at the lack of PlayStation references.

Music

Kenneth C. M. Young will compose the soundtrack for Astro Bot, having previously composed the music for Astro Bot Rescue Mission and Astro's Playroom. This was confirmed through his Twitter account.

Marketing and release

Astro Bot was announced on May 30, 2024, during Sony's State of Play presentation. The game is scheduled to release for the PlayStation 5 on September 6, 2024.

The 400th issue of Edge features 10 front cover variants, each of which hightlights a different V.I.P. Bot (with some examples including Ratchet & Clank from their self-titled series and Aloy from the Horizon series).

Kiosks featuring a playable demo of Astro Bot were present at Summer Game Fest and EVO. They highlighted five different levels; two of which were the platformer stages (named Sky Garden and Construction Derby, the latter of which referencing the video game Destruction Derby), one being a boss fight against an octopus (which utilized the Twin-Frog Gloves ability), and two being the shorter, more difficult challenge stages (named Swinging Senteries and Slowdown Showdown, both of which were also themed after different PlayStation symbols). Astro Bot was also one of the games featured at ChinaJoy, where parts of the demo were livestreamed on the website Weibo.

To help further promote the game, Astro's Playroom received a free content update on June 7, 2024. It added in extra artifacts in the Gatcha machine (such as the PlayStation VR 2 headset and the PlayStation Portal), and new bots which could be rescued, referencing characters such as Lady Maria from Bloodborne and Selene from Returnal. The Bots collected in Playroom can be transferred to Astro Bot as a part of the starting crew.

A DualSense controller modeled after the Dual Speeder was announced on July 29, 2024. It will be available for purchase alongside the game's release in limited quantities.

External links

• Official website