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Astro Bot |OT| Robot in disguises

R6Rider

Gold Member
100%'d World 1 over the weekend and that's it. Im gonna slow roll the fuck out of this one. It's magical and once it's over, it's over. Gotta savor as much as possible.
There's multiple save slots for a reason.

Ice Hockey GIF
 
Between four different profiles me and my three kids sunk over 20 hours collectively in to this thing over the weekend, and no one is even half done yet. If you've got a family you're really gonna get your money's worth out of this one, lol.
 
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hinch7

Member
Finished it. Brilliant game and some real nice surprises and moments of pure joy from playing it. I guess thats what you get when you add decades of nostalgia in a fun package. Andmost of the levels are just so damn creative. I wouldn't call it a 94-5 game but its certainly in the 90's and one of my top games of the year. Nows time to work on the rest of the master challenges.

Also anyone else had more fun with a level here than a whole franchise lol -
Horizon
That was a pretty awesome and alot of fun.
 
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Ogbert

Member
Finished it. Brilliant game and some real nice surprises and moments of pure joy from playing it. I guess thats what you get when you add decades of nostalgia in a fun package. Andmost of the levels are just so damn creative. I wouldn't call it a 94-5 game but its certainly in the 90's and one of my top games of the year. Nows time to work on the rest of the master challenges.

Also anyone else had more fun with a level here than a whole franchise lol -
Horizon
That was a pretty awesome and alot of fun.
Very much so. Have replayed the level a few times as the combat is so satisfying.
 

hinch7

Member
Very much so. Have replayed the level a few times as the combat is so satisfying.
That weapon + mobility feels so good to use. Love that you can do some cheeky quick shots in between. Still have yet to collect everything but will get on that again. Nows time to plat the game.
 
What a ride:

lphiiBO.jpeg



I have so much to say and not exactly sure where to begin. Let's try this: after finishing Shadow of the Erdtree I said nothing is touching it as my GOTY. Removing SOTE from the conversation (since it's DLC after all) I said repeatedly nothing is touching FFVII Rebirth as my GOTY. I've bought and completed a lot of games this year, I feel it's important to quantify one's statements:

Prince of Persia (plat trophy)
Tekken 8
Infinite Wealth
Helldivers 2
Rebirth
Unicorn Overlord (plat trophy)
Rise of the Ronin (plat trophy, underrated)
Stellar Blade
Animal Well
Hi-Fi Rush
Have A Nice Death
Dragon's Dogma 2
Darkest Dungeon 2
Kunitsu-Gami
System Shock
Wukong (plat trophy)

Astrobot is now my GOTY and I can definitely say *nothing* is touching it.

Astrobot is the distillation of pure joy, a whimsical adventure that taps deep into a well of nostalgia and happiness. This is a game that put a smile on my face from the very start and didn't relent until the credits started rolling. It's a game that's masterfully paced and balanced, wisely opting to have it's levels on the easier side, nothing in it's main path tedious or invoking frustration. Welcome to the Garden of Astro Delights, don't think too hard, listen, *feel*.

And boy will you feel it, the DualSense once again showcasing why it's the most next-gen thing about this generation. Every bump, whir, crash and electrical buzz a tactile experience taking what is already a god-tier game into another realm entirely. Combine that with some of the most gorgeous visuals this side of heaven and an OST that is a shoo-in for soundtrack of the year and you get a package that delivers it *all*.

Sights and sounds would mean nothing without the gameplay to back it up, Astrobot delivers in *spades*. Does it borrow from the likes of Mario? Absolutely! Some of these ideas are familiar, I've seen them before in both 3D and 2D platformers so it's not really a question of *what* Astro does but *how* it does it. Art should inspire art, I couldn't care less about who did it first or where a game borrows from, my only concern: is it GOOD?

Astrobot is *exceptional* and it very much has an identity all of it's own. There are so many standouts but these are a few of my favourites: Downsize Surprise, Trunk of Funk, Apes On The Loose, Slo Mo Casino, Bathhouse Battle, Free Big Brother, Dude Raiding, Balloon Breeze, Luna Sola, Turtles in Trash. It's also the best controlling/feeling 3D platformer since SM64 and if we want to compare to Nintendo's latest Mario it nukes Odyssey from up on high (as much as I enjoyed that entry it's no contest).

Perhaps more than anything else, Astrobot is a love letter to all things PlayStation. As a diehard, OG PlayStation fan this game is nothing short of a dream come true, a journey tinged with sunny nostalgia, a whimsical walk down memory lane. Countless characters emerge from the PlayStation's vast library, I couldn't *believe* some these throwbacks and I could count on one hand the ones I was fuzzy on/unfamiliar with, these are some of my faves:

Alundra, Kain, Raziel, Klonoa, all MGS stuff, Tokyo Jungle, all Resident Evil stuff, Polygon Man (wild!), Alucard, Ape Escape (give Asobi the IP!), Patapon, Demon's Souls, BB of course, Tearaway, Sackboy, Puppeteer (remaster and sequel please!), Teddy, Arthur, my boy Kaz (animation is so good!), Onimusha, Pyramid Head, Killzone, Jak .

Yet crucially, this is a game *anyone* can pick up, play and fall in love with even with ZERO familiarity with PlayStation and it's venerable legacy. On Sunday I was watching a movie with my wife (a TOTAL non-gamer), she fell asleep, Astrobot time! She wakes up 2 hours later, is staring at the screen in amazement, "なにこれ!?" (what is this!?). I tell her I'll finish the level and we can resume the movie, she says no, keep playing, she wants to see more, the whole time she's commenting "the people who made this are amazing", "woooooooow", "how did they think of that!?" and so on and so on but it gets even better!

She comes home after work yesterday, I'm chilling playing Hotline Miami 2 (what a contrast! 😂), she says "what about the game from yesterday??" I tell her I 100% cleared it, she literally looks sad! I tell her to come over, I'll show her a couple of my favourite levels, she has a huge smile on her face, this is the power and charm of Astrobot! I imagine there are many stories like this because more than being a homage to all things PlayStation Astrobot is an encapsulation of all things that make this hobby called videogames special, it should be celebrated no matter what platform you prefer to game on.

If you've read up until this point I thank you, I tend to go long and deep (heh heh) when it comes to games I'm passionate about. I could go on (and WILL add some thoughts to a follow-up post lol) but I'll leave it at this: Astrobot is my GOTY, it's one of the best games of the generation, it's one of the best games PlayStation ever produced, it's in the conversation for best 3D platformer of all-time. Let us hope Asobi is given whatever they need to make whatever they want, sequel or otherwise, I can't wait to see what's on the horizon, the future is bright!
 
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farmerboy

Member
Perfect game to play in bite size chunks or an extended time. Absolutely gorgeous, fun, funny and the music is great too. You can definitely tell the game was made as a labour of love, the level of polish here is top shelf. Everything just exudes confidence and an extreme level of polish.
 

Ogbert

Member
I thought the Uncharted one was a bit weak if I'm honest. The God of War and Locoroco were absolutely brilliant, though.
Agree. The quick shot and reload isn’t as satisfying.

GoW and Locoroco were both incredible. And I actually loved Horizon, even if it’s not an IP I’m interested in.
 

[Sigma]

Member
Ok i've started playing and have done 4 stages so far. I really like the design of them so far along with the abilities so far he gets. Also the game looks beautiful. I have HDR on idunno how good it is, I got the HDR(in astro bot menu) on bright and that looks the best. But it's still not amazing looking like i've seen a few games make HDR look so I guess the implementation is on the acceptable side. Still again the game already looks beautiful.
 
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[Sigma]

Member
Finished the Gorilla Nebula. Construction Derby may have been my favorite level in it but almost all were good. Already the devs have made more and good uses of the DualSense, which is saying something considering how much they did in the Playroom. The devs already in just this small sample size are really imaginative on both the levels and dualsense end. The crash site is cool stuff.

EDIT: the physics are cool too.
 
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Muffdraul

Member
I've rescued 295 bots. 100% all constellations except the last two, the chameleon and the bird. The last 5 bots are one each in those insane "void" levels, one square and four X. I haven't even tried any X levels yet, that last square level is beyond me.
(The one where you have to use the rubber duck pick-up to squirt water on lava to cross it and to defeat fire enemies.)
After probably 20 attempts and not even getting halfway through it, I pretty much resigned to the notion that I will not be rescuing all 300 bots. Sorry, little buddies. Suck my dick, Team Asobi.
 
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DoomGyver

Member
Needs a camera sensitivity adjustment. Watched a review and there was no mention of this omission. Its fun but I want to be able to whip the camera around.
 
I have very small issue….I change my controller’s colour but when boot the game back up it goes back to its default colour. Is this a bug?
Doesn’t happen here. Although, I don’t think I have actually closed the app since day one. I do quit to the title screen each time, though.
 
Finished up the platinum last night - some brief thoughts

+ Beautiful visually
+ Wonderfully paced game, always doing something different
+ The level of interaction with the environment is outstanding. Almost everything has a custom animation and interaction
+ Great to have a new PS5 game that feels like a PS5 game.


- The best power-ups are only used in one stage (mouse, sponge) and the power-ups that are repeatedly used are the less interesting ones (dog and chicken are horizontal and vertical versions of the same idea).
- Enemy design becomes pretty boring by the end.
- I think the "tribute to playstation" stuff is wearing out it's welcome and I hope that their next game gets away from this...it's starting to feel like a crutch in place of having real personality and creating a new world.
 

Bert Big Balls

Gold Member
Finished it. Brilliant game and some real nice surprises and moments of pure joy from playing it. I guess thats what you get when you add decades of nostalgia in a fun package. Andmost of the levels are just so damn creative. I wouldn't call it a 94-5 game but its certainly in the 90's and one of my top games of the year. Nows time to work on the rest of the master challenges.

Also anyone else had more fun with a level here than a whole franchise lol -
Horizon
That was a pretty awesome and alot of fun.
Definitely one of the most creative games I think I've ever played.
 

Bert Big Balls

Gold Member
What a ride:

lphiiBO.jpeg



I have so much to say and not exactly sure where to begin. Let's try this: after finishing Shadow of the Erdtree I said nothing is touching it as my GOTY. Removing SOTE from the conversation (since it's DLC after all) I said repeatedly nothing is touching FFVII Rebirth as my GOTY. I've bought and completed a lot of games this year, I feel it's important to quantify one's statements:

Prince of Persia (plat trophy)
Tekken 8
Infinite Wealth
Helldivers 2
Rebirth
Unicorn Overlord (plat trophy)
Rise of the Ronin (plat trophy, underrated)
Stellar Blade
Animal Well
Hi-Fi Rush
Have A Nice Death
Dragon's Dogma 2
Darkest Dungeon 2
Kunitsu-Gami
System Shock
Wukong (plat trophy)

Astrobot is now my GOTY and I can definitely say *nothing* is touching it.

Astrobot is the distillation of pure joy, a whimsical adventure that taps deep into a well of nostalgia and happiness. This is a game that put a smile on my face from the very start and didn't relent until the credits started rolling. It's a game that's masterfully paced and balanced, wisely opting to have it's levels on the easier side, nothing in it's main path tedious or invoking frustration. Welcome to the Garden of Astro Delights, don't think too hard, listen, *feel*.

And boy will you feel it, the DualSense once again showcasing why it's the most next-gen thing about this generation. Every bump, whir, crash and electrical buzz a tactile experience taking what is already a god-tier game into another realm entirely. Combine that with some of the most gorgeous visuals this side of heaven and an OST that is a shoo-in for soundtrack of the year and you get a package that delivers it *all*.

Sights and sounds would mean nothing without the gameplay to back it up, Astrobot delivers in *spades*. Does it borrow from the likes of Mario? Absolutely! Some of these ideas are familiar, I've seen them before in both 3D and 2D platformers so it's not really a question of *what* Astro does but *how* it does it. Art should inspire art, I couldn't care less about who did it first or where a game borrows from, my only concern: is it GOOD?

Astrobot is *exceptional* and it very much has an identity all of it's own. There are so many standouts but these are a few of my favourites: Downsize Surprise, Trunk of Funk, Apes On The Loose, Slo Mo Casino, Bathhouse Battle, Free Big Brother, Dude Raiding, Balloon Breeze, Luna Sola, Turtles in Trash. It's also the best controlling/feeling 3D platformer since SM64 and if we want to compare to Nintendo's latest Mario it nukes Odyssey from up on high (as much as I enjoyed that entry it's no contest).

Perhaps more than anything else, Astrobot is a love letter to all things PlayStation. As a diehard, OG PlayStation fan this game is nothing short of a dream come true, a journey tinged with sunny nostalgia, a whimsical walk down memory lane. Countless characters emerge from the PlayStation's vast library, I couldn't *believe* some these throwbacks and I could count on one hand the ones I was fuzzy on/unfamiliar with, these are some of my faves:

Alundra, Kain, Raziel, Klonoa, all MGS stuff, Tokyo Jungle, all Resident Evil stuff, Polygon Man (wild!), Alucard, Ape Escape (give Asobi the IP!), Patapon, Demon's Souls, BB of course, Tearaway, Sackboy, Puppeteer (remaster and sequel please!), Teddy, Arthur, my boy Kaz (animation is so good!), Onimusha, Pyramid Head, Killzone, Jak .

Yet crucially, this is a game *anyone* can pick up, play and fall in love with even with ZERO familiarity with PlayStation and it's venerable legacy. On Sunday I was watching a movie with my wife (a TOTAL non-gamer), she fell asleep, Astrobot time! She wakes up 2 hours later, is staring at the screen in amazement, "なにこれ!?" (what is this!?). I tell her I'll finish the level and we can resume the movie, she says no, keep playing, she wants to see more, the whole time she's commenting "the people who made this are amazing", "woooooooow", "how did they think of that!?" and so on and so on but it gets even better!

She comes home after work yesterday, I'm chilling playing Hotline Miami 2 (what a contrast! 😂), she says "what about the game from yesterday??" I tell her I 100% cleared it, she literally looks sad! I tell her to come over, I'll show her a couple of my favourite levels, she has a huge smile on her face, this is the power and charm of Astrobot! I imagine there are many stories like this because more than being a homage to all things PlayStation Astrobot is an encapsulation of all things that make this hobby called videogames special, it should be celebrated no matter what platform you prefer to game on.

If you've read up until this point I thank you, I tend to go long and deep (heh heh) when it comes to games I'm passionate about. I could go on (and WILL add some thoughts to a follow-up post lol) but I'll leave it at this: Astrobot is my GOTY, it's one of the best games of the generation, it's one of the best games PlayStation ever produced, it's in the conversation for best 3D platformer of all-time. Let us hope Asobi is given whatever they need to make whatever they want, sequel or otherwise, I can't wait to see what's on the horizon, the future is bright!
I agree with everything you said. My partner doesn't game, but she asked me for a go on this. The next evening, she said "are you going to play your game". I asked why. She replied, "because I want to have a go". She has NEVER been interested in gaming before and has not once asked me if she could play something. That's the sign of a truly fun, great game.
 

Dacvak

No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
Man, Sony really reverse-shit-sandwiched their news cycle. Started with the embarrassment of Concord, but then immediately picked things up with Astro Bot. Then fumbled the ball again with the PS5 Pro.

I wish they would have waited longer to announce the Pro, or announced it before Astro Bot. My guy could have really used that extra time in the news cycle. I really want this game to sell well.
 

kevboard

Member
mVYdyuQ.jpeg

got the platinum. the final trophy I got was getting a photo with Lara Croft and Nathan Drake, which was harder than I thought as I had to call all the bots over, and then punch Lara across a field of gathered bots until they were next to eachother, and then quickly take a photo before the other bots push them away again lol

the game was easier than I expected, especially after seeing that one of the fomer GoW Devs apparently had a meltdown over one of the levels (I only skimmed over the first post of that thread so not even sure which level it was)
even the hidden bonus levels didn't really get too bad.

the only level where I had slight problems was the one where there's some goo on the floor and a wall of fire chases you. I thought that part was kinda bullshit, but I found a way to cheeze it, so ultimately also not that hard.

the good:
-nostalgia bait works on me
-cute artstyle
-great boss battles
-good controls
-decent puzzle elements
-fun gadgets
-PHYSICS!
-FLUID SIMULATION!

the not so good:
-platforming mechanics almost too basic
-lack of enemy variety
-not a fan of the game stopping you from running off ledges, especially because it seems random at which ones it will do it
-the shrinking gadget was criminally sidelined... only 1 level? come on!

all in all an 8/10
looking forward to the free DLC levels they announced. hopefully one of them will use the shrinking gadget! lol
 

[Sigma]

Member
I've finished Gorilla Nebula and now Tentacle System. Did all I could in the crash site so far(outside of the gacha stuff which i'll probably do last). I feel like I have already got my money's worth. The levels are so great in this game. I love the Papa Tree song on the Trunk of Funk level. And also played the Bot of War level of course which was awesome.
 
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