- 01
Humble beginnings
Team Asobi, the creators behind Astrobot, was formed in 2012 as part of Japan Studio in Tokyo, led by Nicolas Doucet. The team's name, "Asobi," fittingly means "play" in Japanese, reflecting their creative mission. Their first project was The Playroom (2013), an augmented reality game for PlayStation 4, designed to showcase the potential of the PlayStation Camera and DualShock 4 (Remember the playstation camera?). The tech demo allowed users to interact with a bunch of cute little robots using the Camera and the controller's new features, and from there, they built the foundations for what would eventually evolve into the Astrobot we know and love.
- 02
Another Dimension
In 2016, Sony once again turned to Team Asobi, this time to produce a tech demo for their upcoming VR headset. The team created a collection of fun little party games where one player wears the VR headset and experiences being inside the game world while others use controllers to see the game on the TV. The Playroom VR was fun and engaging, but one game in particular showed potential to become a full game. In this game, you control a specific robot (named "A5081," which cleverly resembles the word "ASOBI") and are tasked with rescuing other robots while platforming and fighting tiny enemies.
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- 03
A Daring Adventure
After two tech demos, Team Asobi was ready to deliver a full-fledged game, and boy, did they! I'm not exaggerating when I say that Astro Bot: Rescue Mission is one of the greatest VR games ever made—and one of the best games, period. It's not just good; it's Super Mario Galaxy levels of good, and that comparison is no accident. Rescue Mission delivers the same pure joy and excitement that we all felt playing Super Mario Galaxy for the first time—that feeling of, "Oh! A game could be this!" Rescue Mission is colorful, whimsical, funny, and just an absolute joy to play from start to finish. It's easily one of the best games ever made, in my opinion. The only downside was that not many people owned a PlayStation VR headset, so not many could experience this gem.
- 04
Astro Bot for Everyone
Team Asobi's next game took a step back into "tech demo" territory, but this time, it came pre-installed on every PlayStation 5 sold, meaning everyone could experience the magic of Astro Bot. The concept remained the same—you play as Astro Bot and rescue the scattered robots across various levels. Essentially another tech demo, this game demonstrates all the new features of the PlayStation 5: the blazing-fast SSD, the powerful GPU, the controller's haptic feedback, and adaptive triggers. Today, nearly four years after the console's launch, this is still the best showcase of these features, and the game remains one of the best Sony has to offer. It's a celebration of all things PlayStation, and even on your 10th playthrough, it's an absolute joy to play. Not bad for a game that comes bundled with the console.
- 05
Buy This Game!
Today marks the release of Astro Bot, which, while technically the sixth game in the "series," is the first true, full-length, non-tech-demo, not VR specific, unrestricted game featuring this charming robot—and I think you should buy it! I don't usually recommend games before fully playing them, but this time, I'm making an exception. I've pre-ordered the game, and it's already pre-installed on my PlayStation because, at this point, I trust Team Asobi. They've earned it. This team understands gameplay and knows how to create fun, clever, engaging, and joyful experiences. Their games are always rock-solid, free of bugs, and filled with tiny, clever details (like, have you noticed in Astro's Playroom that the raindrops are shaped like little squares, circles, Xs and triangles?). This team deserves a commercial hit after delivering so many wonderful experiences without actually selling any of them.
- 06
Review Coming Soon
Of course, I'll post a full review of the game once I finish it. I hope you give this game a chance. In a world where so many "triple-A" games are rushed, broken, bug-ridden, and plagued with season passes and microtransactions, we gamers need to show companies like Sony that if they make good, honest, fun, and engaging games, we're willing to buy them.
- 07
Watch the trailer!
