Summary
- Astro Bot lacks difficulty modes and health bars, making it necessary for a sequel to add these features for all player types.
- Co-op is missing in the mainline Astro Bot games, so a multiplayer update for the sequel would enhance the overall experience.
- Astro Bot's potential sequel should include hero stages representing various franchises and test out different genres beyond platforming.
Astro Bot, as a character, seemingly started as a generic tool for Sony to showcase how their new consoles worked. The race of these little critters appeared in a demo to illustrate that they lived in the PS4 controller called The Playroom. They were used to a better degree in Astro Bot Rescue Mission, quite possibly the best VR game on PS4 and there was another spinoff for VR too called The Playroom VR.
Astro Bot: Every Boss, Ranked
These larger than life bosses can give even veteran platformer fans a challenge.
Then there was the built-in game that came with every PS5, Astro’s Playroom, which operated more like a traditional 3D platformer albeit a very short one. Now, at long last, a more fully featured game is here aptly titled Astro Bot. It’s getting great reviews which is having fans already ask for more. So, what should appear in the next Astro Bot starring game?
6 Difficulty Modes
Or Add A Health Bar
Surprisingly, Astro Bot has very few settings. The only one of note allows players to turn off the motion controls to switch it to the left analog stick besides a few sound and video settings. As a game aimed at all ages, especially the younger demographic, it’s wild that Astro Bot doesn’t feature any difficulty modes.
Assist options are increasingly becoming more and more prominent in AAA games such as another recent release, Star Wars Outlaws. Also, Astro Bot will die in one hit except for boss fights when he is given two extra hearts. There’s no other way to earn those extra hearts which is strange. An Astro Bot sequel should include difficulty modes, assist options, or a health bar to help out struggling players and the hardcore players deserve a higher challenge option too.
5 This Series Is In Dire Need Of Co-Op
Imagine Multiplayer With 300 Friends
The more mainline Astro Bot games including this adventure, Astro’s Playroom, and Astro Bot Rescue Mission do not have co-op options. It makes sense for Astro Bot Rescue Mission not to include the feature since that is a PSVR game but it makes less sense for the other two examples. Sony has gone through a lot of platformer mascots, the last of which were the Sackboys from the LittleBigPlanet series.
Every Astro Bot Ability, Ranked
From turning into a sponge to rolling around lava, there are lots of cool powers to discover in Astro Bot.
Those games were all about co-op and since Astro Bot is seemingly the platformer successor, he and his fellow bots could use some multiplayer adventures too. Whether the sequel includes two-player, four-player or anything beyond that is up to Team Asobi. Astro Bot is a delightful adventure that would just be more fun with a friend or two playing along online or on the couch via co-op to strengthen those good vibes.
4 More Heroe Stages
Renew Old Legends Through
One of the highlights of Astro Bot is the Hero stages. After defeating the bosses of the five main galaxies, Astro Bot can take on the form of characters from Ape Escape, God of War, Horizon, Loco Roco, and Uncharted for themed levels. They are some of the most creative stages in the game, and a sequel all about forgotten and modern franchises would be a blast.
For example, there could be a stealth mission wherein Astro Bot has to infiltrate a facility like in Syphon Filter. There could be a stage wherein Astro Bot has to become demonic to take on a boss in Bloodborne and the list goes on. Multiverses are still hot right now and Team Asobi should strike while the iron is hot. It’s a cheaper way for Sony to give props to their old franchises via levels in an Astro Bot sequel instead of fully funding individual sequels like the aforementioned ones.
3 Tackle Different Genres
Imagine An Astro Bot RPG
If the Astro Bot sequel does not want to go whole hog on representing lost franchises then it could go another route to freshen things up. Team Asobi could test out other genres for some remarkable surprises. The core gameplay genre of Astro Bot is a 3D platformer but it goes outside of those boundaries in some stages. For example, most of the hero stages could be considered more action games than platformers especially the one themed around God of War.
The first mission in the final act, PlaySquadron Go, is an old-school space shooter. There are even RTS-like elements in the game like when Astro Bot summons his fellow bots at the Crash Site to rebuild things or pave a new way forward. It’s a gameplay mode akin to the Pikmin series and an actual stage fully themed around this concept would be one example for the sequel to test out. It would also be interesting to see Team Asobi test out a turn-based RPG like for a Final Fantasy 7- themed stage or boss fight.
2 Name The Collectables
There Needs To Be More History Preservation
Another great thing about Astro Bot is all of the VIP bots represent dozens of franchises from first-party and third-party studios. For example, there are plenty of franchises from Capcom including Street Fighter and Resident Evil, and Konami has Suikoden and Castlevania. Rescuing bots may be fun but not everyone is going to know who obscure characters are like the hero from Suikoden, Tir.
Every Stage in Astro Bot (All Planets List)
Every stage in Astro Bot provides its own challenges, forcing players to think outside the box or make use of unique power-ups.
There is no biography section in the options to fully dive into where these characters come from. It’s kind of up to players to look this stuff up online which seems uninviting. The sequel should take better care to fully explain and celebrate these franchises in other ways besides themed bots. Nintendo does a quality job in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate with similar statue-like setups in their history section. Team Asobi could look at that game for help.
1 Customizable And Quality Of Life Features
Go Beyond Costumes
These examples could be patched into Astro Bot right now via a future update. Whether that happens or not is up to Team Asobi, but these features should at least come up in the sequel. For example, an ability to customize the color of their Astro Bot would be nice beyond the costume setup especially if there is going to be multiplayer. The map at the Crash Site is not that useful as it does not show where individual bots are stationed.
If there is a HUB World similar to Astro Bot in the sequel, a more detailed map would be nice and maps in stages would also be beneficial as there are none in Astro Bot. There is a photo mode in Astro Bot but it is hidden and players have to collect quite a few Puzzle Pieces before they can unlock it, which will probably be halfway through the game. It seems counterproductive, so a fully featured photo mode at the start of the next game would be appreciated.
Astro Bot
- Released
- September 6, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Team Asobi
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5
- Genre(s)
- Platformer
