New ASTRO BOT coming to PS5 in 2024

It’s not often that systems come with games anymore and while I can understand the business side as to why they don’t, there is something magical about experiencing a new video game system with a brand new game tailor made for the exact piece of hardware when you first unbox it. I’m sure almost everyone watching this has a fond memory of unboxing the Wii and then playing Wii Sports with everyone in the family.

CHECK OUT OUR REVIEW FOR ASTRO BOT HERE or WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW

Unfortunately, pack-in games quickly faded out of existence, but in 2020, Sony bucked the trend releasing the PlayStation 5 with Astro’s Playroom. The Team Asobi project took up about 11GB of the PS5 hard drive, and about 4 hours of your time but every megabyte and second were packed with PlayStation nostalgia. Obviously, Sony had a good reason as the DualSense was one of the first steps forward with controllers in almost a few decades when the Wii released with the Wii-Mote.

With Team Asobi bringing back Astro with the newly announced game, ASTRO BOT on September 6, here are some of the ways that the sequel will have its work cut out for it.

DIFFERENT EXPECTATIONS

Expectations and hype play a big role in reception. The first two games were great, but they had an advantage that ASTRO BOT wont have. The first game, Astro Bot Rescue Mission was a PSVR exclusive, which means that people were hungry for PlayStation exclusive VR titles that were more than just bite size experiences. If you give someone a glass of water after being stuck at sea for days, without a doubt, it will be the best glass of water they ever tasted.

As for Astro’s Playroom, it was free and it’s really hard to be upset with a free game. People were also slightly euphoric after finally getting their hands on a scarce PS5. This doesn’t take anything away from these games and they are critically acclaimed for a reason, but ASTRO BOT wont have the same leniency as the first two titles did and it will need to earn its acclaim a little harder.

HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH? (TIME AND MONEY)

Astro’s Playroom was an incredible experience but it was only about 4 hours long. It impossible to say if just a longer version of that would be fun or if it would lose its appeal if the game was stretched out. On the PlayStation Blog, the studio director said it “will include 6 galaxies and over 80 levels in search of your scattered crew”

The first two games have set a standard for the franchise with the first being at a budget price point and the second technically being free. ASTRO BOT has announced its price of 60 USD/80 CAD, which is likely more than people were expecting. Considering how much fun was packed into Astro’s Playroom, it will likely be more than worth it, but Team Asobi will have their work cut out having to convince some gamers of this.

DUALSENSE

The biggest reason that Astro’s Playroom was included with the PS5 was because there was a new controller that Sony not only wanted to show off, but wanted to show you in detail why you needed to spend the money on a PS5.

Back in 2020, the DualSense was new and people still loved it, because it was fresh. These days most people turn off most of the Dualsense features. This could be because the novelty of the controller wore off over the years, but it also could be because developers just didn’t make it a priority like Team Asobi did. “With over 15 new abilities offering unique play styles that take full advantage of the DualSense again”, The big question is can Astro show us how the DualSense can enhance the gaming experience once again?

NOSTALGIA

Obviously, the DualSense capabilities were a large part of the success and enjoyment of Astro’s Playroom, but we shouldn’t ignore the nostalgia. Astro was able to tap into four generations of memories. Having seemingly drained the well for nostalgia, would Astro still have the same charm without it. Astro’s Playroom mostly focused on exploring the PS5 while finding classic bits of hardware along the way. You could also encounter other bots acting out classic PlayStation software memories. Is there still more area for Team ASOBI to explore the PlayStation heritage.

What we know at the moment is that on each level, you need to find your scattered crew, which sounds like 5 bots to find per level with 2 of them being PlayStation themed surprises. In the trailer we still saw Astro Bot mini version of Nathan Drake, Kratos and many others, but how much will they lean into nostalgia, can it still surprise us like in Astro’s Playroom and will it still resonate?

WILL ASTRO BOT BE THE BEST PS5 EXCLUSIVE IN 2024?

Early indications are very positive for the success of Astro Bot. For starters, we can’t wait for the game, but outside of that, according to IGN, during the Summer Game Fest period, the number 1 wish listed game out of everything shown was Astro Bot.

This does bode well for the PlayStation 5 exclusive platformer, but time will tell if this translates to commercial success.