The rumors were true -- we're getting a new Astro Bot game on PlayStation. Announced during last week's PlayStation State of Play, the new Astro Bot game is a "standalone, full-sized adventure" starring the cutesy little robot who has become sort of the defacto mascot for PlayStation.
"Board ASTRO's trusty Dual Speeder and get ready for an amazing adventure through spectacular worlds that are full of fun, secrets and surprises," the description reads. "The PS5® mothership has been wrecked by ASTRO’s alien rival, leaving his crew scattered across multiple galaxies. Can you help ASTRO rescue his stranded bot buddies and rebuild the mothership?"
Up until now, the Astro Bot games have been pretty limited in scope and were generally used to showcase the PlayStation's unique hardware. But despite serving largely as tech demos, the Astro games always felt like they had more potential. This was most apparent with Astro's Playroom, the pack-in title included for free with every PlayStation 5 console.
In the 3D platformer, players controlled the title character, Astro Bot, navigating a series of worlds that explore the history of PlayStation. The game not only featured varied level designs, but tons of collectibles scattered across five worlds that are themed after each component of the console.
Although the game was relatively short, it laid the foundation for what a full standalone Astro Bot game could look and play like. Four years later, we're about to find out what Team ASOBI, now part of PlayStation Studios, can do with free reign.
The trailer for Astro Bot showcased a few new features and gameplay mechanics, such as the all-new Dual Speeder, a PlayStation 5 controller transformed into a plane-like vehicle. We also get a glimpse of some new powers for the little robot, including some sort of move where he transforms into a giant PlayStation 5.
Team ASOBI has confirmed that Astro Bot will offer four times more worlds than Astro's Playroom. The previous game contained five worlds that were themed after each component of the console. This new game seems to be more inspired by some of PlayStation's iconic IP, rather than the console's hardware. Throughout the trailer, we see glimpses of various robots that pay homage to the legendary characters from PlayStation's history of rich games.
According to the game's description, there are "over 150 iconic VIP Bots inspired by legendary characters from 30 years of PlayStation history" that need to be rescued. It's also confirmed that the Gatcha Lab is returning, which means plenty of collectibles for you to unlock with coins you earn throughout the stages. And no, there won't be any in-game purchases aside from what you buy with the coins that you collect on your journey.
Astro Bot is set to release on September 6, 2024. It won't be free like Astro's Playroom, but pricing has not yet been revealed.