Astro Bot Is a Celebration of PlayStation History That Other Game Companies Need to Learn From – The Global Tofay

The most effective PlayStation nods of all are the V.I.P. Bots based off of PlayStation’s vast gaming library, stretching as far back as games released in the ‘90s for the original PlayStation. Of the 300 Bots to rescue in the game, over half of them are V.I.P. Bots, nodding to the first-party properties that Sony is actively developing and promoting, such as Horizon and The Last of Us, as well as older properties Sony hasn’t worked on in years, like Shadow of the Colossus and PaRappa the Rapper. Even the initially Japanese exclusive title Vib-Ribbon gets its own V.I.P. Bot, showcasing the breadth of history covered in Astro Bot.

This extends to third-party properties too that, while not entirely exclusive to Sony consoles, each played a major role in helping make PlayStation the juggernaut brand it is today. Konami’s Metal Gear Solid and Silent Hill characters appear prominently as V.I.P. Bots, as do characters from Capcom’s Resident Evil and Devil May Cry. With the prevalent presence of these properties that have been released and found success on other companies’ platforms, Astro Bot isn’t just playing the Sony hits, but everything that made PlayStation great.

Blending Past and Future

More than just a parade of cameos, there are also a number of themed levels in Astro Bot, including several that serve as epilogues after defeating each world’s boss. Each of these levels are modeled after major Sony gaming properties, and even bring back the familiar soundtracks from those games, in addition to introducing even more V.I.P. Bots for Astro to find and rescue. While retaining the core gameplay of Astro Bot, these levels also replicate the gameplay sensibilities of the properties that they’re homaging, in some cases going as far as to feel like a bonafide revival of a game series.

If you’re looking for an epic hack-and-slash adventure, there’s a God of War: Ragnarok level that keeps things family-friendly while evoking Kratos’ war against the gods. The gun-toting action-adventure of Uncharted gets its own level, with Astro channeling his inner Nathan Drake as he fends off baddies while exploring ancient ruins long-lost to nature. 

Among the most surprising is a level modeled after Ape Escape, a Sony franchise dormant since 2010, with Astro hunting down errant chimps around the level. Launched in 1999, Ape Escape was one of the biggest successes in the final years of the original PlayStation, blending puzzle-solving with 3D platforming, making it a natural choice for homage in Astro Bot. Though Ape Escape would spawn a line of sequels and spinoffs, even getting directly referenced in Metal Gear Solid 3 and LittleBigPlanet, Sony hasn’t done anything substantial with the franchise since PlayStation Move Ape Escape for the PlayStation 3 in 2010.

What Astro Bot essentially does in its homage to the franchise is give players a brand-new Ape Escape level, with Astro taking the physical appearance of Spike, the recurring Ape Escape protagonist. Armed with Spike’s trusty Monkey Net, Astro tracks down Ape Bots hiding throughout the level and catches each of them, the familiar music and visual presentation of Ape Escape further setting the mood.