Thanks to analytics company Newzoo, we learned what kind of next-gen games Americans played in the first days after the launch of PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. A full walkthrough will take you step-by-step from the start of the game to 100% completion, while the Collectibles section helps you find every Artefact and Puzzle Piece in the game! There’s even a Trophies section to help you earn that coveted Platinum Trophy. The gameplay features minimal cartoonish violence across each stage. For PlayStation die-hards, a run through Astro’s Playroom will be true bliss.
Here, you’ll have to pull some cables to reach a new area above and defeat some nearby enemies. However, before you get through the wall by pulling the cables in some rock ahead, look to the left and walk into the flower petals to reveal a Special Bot. As the precursor to Astro Bot, Astro’s Playroom is a great platformer that all PS5 owners will have for free when they first get their console. It has four key sections, all referencing other PlayStation games and devices while remaining a challenging platformer that uses all the unique design choices the DualShock 5 controller offers. The frog suit of Cooling Springs is an absolute treasure in its DualSense use, though the levels are not necessarily my favorites.
Upon jumping into the Cooling Springs level, I didn’t have to play long before feeling just how next-gen this controller is. Walking on the sand in this level provides feedback in the controller that actually feels like you’re on sand. Later in the level you’ll be in a frog robot suit equipped with a spring on the bottom of it. By holding the R2 trigger down you’ll press that spring down to jump and as you are doing it you feel the resistance in the trigger. Similar feelings are conveyed when you walk on ice, have water droplets falling on you, and other things that I won’t spoil.
Then hold down the Square button to attack the plant that sprouts with a spinning move, causing it to grow so you can climb up the CD leaves. There are 4 Special Bots to find in Astro’s Playroom, each located in a different world. Holding the square for a long while will charge a special rotating attack. Astro then for a few seconds begins to rotate and hit everything in reach. If you have only unlocked one or two in Astro’s Playroom, they will appear here individually, meaning you can return and get the rest when you are ready. When you are ready to unlock them, approach their locations in the Crash Site hub.
It’s a phenomenal thing, taken even further with adaptive triggers that provide meaningful, forceful feedback. Astro’s Playroom has a new tool in that regard, of course, with the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller and its haptic feedback. Find release dates and scores for every major upcoming and recent video game release for all platforms, updated several times per week. While Astro’s Playroom’s new update was subtle, Team Asobi and PlayStation have been promoting Astro Bot’s new free DLC content. The first two new levels launched on February 13 and 20, and a new level is to be added weekly until March 13. After completing all DLC levels, a new game mode called Time Attack will be available as well.
Artifact 2/2 “PlayStation Multitap” – At the checkpoint take the left path. Artifact 1/2 “PS One LCD Monitor” – Continue along that path to the end where the group of bots are and pull the wires on the ground to reveal this artifact. Puzzle Piece 1/4 – Once in the main area where you are rolling around as a ball, this puzzle piece is underneath a bridge to the left. Puzzle Piece 2/4 – You will progress through a path of electrified mines to a checkpoint.
In-between the D-Pad lights described above is a camera on a hemisphere. This is taken from the PlayStation Eye for PS3, which is itself unlockable in the Bot Beach level of Cooling Springs. Several of the game’s Trophies reference taglines for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. These include “It Only Does Everything” and “Welcome to the Third Place” (PS3), and “Greatness Awaits” and “For the Players” (PS4).
Air Combat was originally an arcade game released in 1993, but the port was scrapped and a new game was made using the same name. Tearaway is also references in the PlayStation Labo area, where it’s on the PlayStation Vita Game Pack artwork, and the Vita itself will boot to “Botaway” if you hit it. The same as the previous artefact, but specifically designed to be held by a right hand!
This is a reference to 1998’s Spyro the Dragon on PS1, developed by Insomniac Games. Spyro’s wings notably use the inaccurate anatomy present in the original game; later titles gave it correct bat anatomy. Horizon has a second reference with the “Ready for the Proving” Trophy, awarded for shooting a Spitter’s shot with the bow and arrow in Raytrace Ruins. Um Jammer Lammy gets a second reference in the “It’s All in the Mind” Trophy, awarded for beating three enemies quickly with Punches. This is a reference to Chop Chop Master Onion, who gives Lammy this piece of advice early in the game.
Steam Users Have Until December 30 To Claim Yet Another Game Completely Free Of Charge
Both titles are solid 3D platformers and must-haves for a PS5 owner – granted, one of them comes for free, anyway. The platform design is rarely all that inspired though and we’re still very disappointed that all the enemies are direct rip-offs of Mario enemies, even relatively obscure ones like Pokey and Wiggler. They act and are defeated in exactly the same way, which seems like the act of a hopelessly uninspired wannabe, which is the exact opposite impression you get from every other aspect of the game. From here, jump right through two glass panels, but instead of using the switch on the right, jump left to get onto a platform with water on it, then left again through some glass.
In case you’re having trouble unlocking the four special bots, make sure to check out Astro’s Playroom’s community on PSNProfiles, which has solutions to the most common issues players are facing. Alongside releasing the four special bots and a new launch trailer for Astro Bot, Sony has announced a “special celebration countdown” for the game in Astro’s Playroom. Players have until September 6 to pre-order the game and unlock costumes and paints for the DualSpeeder before everyone else. The final Astro’s Playroom update for all four special bots is out now, and the DLC can be carried over to Astro Bot when it launches on Friday, September 6, for the PS5. The special bots are from Bloodborne, Returnal, Gran Turismo, and Ape Escape. HM88 are awarded for finishing specific stages in Astro Playroom.
Final Thoughts On Astro’s Playroom
Rescuing all the Special Bots not only unlocks the corresponding trophies but also adds them to the CPU Plaza, where they can be admired and interacted with. Gold trophies often require numerous attempts and a willingness to learn from mistakes. By maintaining a positive attitude, embracing the challenge, and refining your skills, you can achieve these prestigious awards and solidify your status as a true Astro’s Playroom master. Puzzle Piece 4/4 – When going down the section where you are blown by two clouds, make sure to stick to the right after the second cloud to get bounced to this puzzle piece.
The PS5’s Pulse headset is a headset designed to use 3D audio with PS4 and PS5 games that support it, allowing for sounds to be heard as if all around the player, similar to a surround sound system. It also features two microphones that can cancel out background noises, and still has a 3.5mm jack to use as a standard headset. The PS VR Processor Unit was a box that both the PlayStation 4 and PSVR connected to. It enabled Social Screen video output to the TV, which meant it adjusted the VR headset’s display so that it was viewable on a television. This also allowed it to be used with asymmetrical multiplayer modes such as those used in The Playroom VR, and handles normal 2D content. A revised version of the Processor Unit allowed for HDR passthrough, which was a feature added to all PS4s via firmware.