Over the course of last week, I played a lot of Astro bot and I really want to talk about everything that I liked about it and few things that I disliked (is anything really). I felt like it was needed because I finished the game 100% and I really never do that with any game other than the Uncharted games.

LIKES!

• The platforming is some of the best this year, and maybe even rivals Mario’s platforming.
  • Everything is smooth and tight.
  • Making jumps from questionable distances feels even better when they are successful.
  • The complexity of the platforming, when there are environmental hazards, is weighting when it’s heavy stuff and fantastical when it’s ice.
• The level design is some of the best in a recent game.
  • Everything is just so complex. Levels are quite long with a bunch of stuff to collect, which makes stopping to enjoy the level and search for crap more fun.
  • THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENTLY DESIGNED LEVELS.
    • You got have space levels, island levels, ice levels, toy levels, galaxy levels, retro rumble levels, jungle levels, ancient ruin levels, and night/day levels. THE LIST JUST KEEPS GOING.
• The upgrades that you can get are just plain fun to use. Some of them are reinterpretations of older game upgrades but there is a slew of new ones that just elevate the gameplay.
• I always like how Team Asobi is the only developer to take control of all the fancy gadgets on the PS5 controller. It’s fun to shake it and blow into it to see the pinwheels in the game turn.
• Sony finally figured out a mascot, because Astro is adorable.
• Astro bot looks so good.
  • The physics is something else entirely.
    • knocking stuff around is just as fun as collecting the bots and even playing the game. This goes for playing in the water and messing with the gems and stuff that litter the floor in levels.
  • The game is incredibly polished and everything is so clean and colorful.
  • A steady, non-chugging framerate makes for a pleasant experience the whole time.
• Astro bot is accessible to everyone.
  • My wife does not play games much and she could take control of Astro and just play.
• The soundtrack is top-notch. Every theme hits and the remixes of Sony’s AAA games are also really good to listen to.
• The 300 bots to collect really add another layer to the game.
  • It’s always a fun game to see which Sony homages I knew and which ones I didn’t and apparently, that is a lot of them.

DISLIKE!

• I wish that the game had a little difficulty indicator to show which levels may be a little too difficult for first-time players.
  • There were times when the levels were so difficult that my wife was getting a little frustrated and had to put the controller down.
    • and the next level that I played was so much easier.

Other than that I think that Astro bot is in contention for A. Top 5 games of all time and B. Its in the top 2 for the best game this year. Everything that is done in Astro bot is down perfectly and with love. The game is just so much fun.

10/10

*No .5’s here so it gets a 10