Astro Bot feels like it’s showing off at times, but never in a way that pats itself on its back. [newline]It’s ceaselessly cute and clever, and feels more like a little kid delighted to show you their toy collection than a braggart displaying their trophies. The only ability that doesn’t work as cleanly as others is the one used in an underwater level. Meant to mimic a dolphin-like dive ability, the controls used for this one never feel as intuitive as those for other abilities. In this level, I found it unusually tricky, albeit not exactly difficult, to collect all the secrets. A few of them demanded a deft diving ability the backpack is meant to offer, but it doesn’t have the same accuracy of other abilities in the game, which led me to whiff on some sections in a way that was unique to this level. It was manageable, but if any secret levels–which tend to be some of the game’s hardest–also use this mechanic, I expect them to become some of the game’s few frustrations.

There are three puzzle pieces in “Trapped In Time.” The first is before the level starts, the second is before you go inside, and the third is before you go back outside. Eventually, you’ll find a platform that has a separate spiral platform to the right, a goop monster above, and a sand waterfall that’s covering a caged bot. To get in there and save the little guy, boost up, kill the blob monster, pull the lever it was sitting on, and jump down to rescue the bot. My only regret is that it’s a PS5 exclusive, and will probably always remain so. Astro Bot deserves a wider audience, but I’m not sure if that’s in the cards.

As usual, happy to answer any questions about the game and the review Thank you for reading. If you want to collect these yourself in your own game, check out our guide to all bot locations, or the 100% walkthrough. If you’re curious about some of the most obscure characters, we have a guide to 21 of the more tricky ones, with details on where you’ve seen them before. The second puzzle piece can’t be reached until after you break the first blue hourglass, drain it of liquid, and then pop the cork. From that platform, turn left and kill the green blob sitting under the platform. Use it in conjunction with your rocket ability to reach the top of the platform where you fought the slime.

And while there’s nothing to quite rival the GPU earworm of four years ago (despite the best efforts of a giant singing tree), the music is a consistent delight throughout. Here are the games released during 2025 that have won major industry awards or received nominations for those awards. We’ll update our awards tracker whenever new awards and nominations are announced. Customers praise the game’s quality, describing it as a champion of platforming games and one customer noting it’s the best arcade-meets-open world-chapter experience. Dive back into supersized adventures with ASTRO and this limited-edition controller!

Worm – Worms Series

While it’s beautiful to see people celebrating online, it is a shame when a moment of joy, such as a less well-renowned title like Astro Bot winning Game of the Year, is tarnished by a negative swell. Combine this with the fact that extreme views increase the number of likes a post gets, and therefore how much it’s seen, and what you’re left with is an environment that’s set up to prioritize strong opinions. An interesting study reported by Scientific American showed that one of the elements that drives online polarization are influencers. As the piece explains, in network science, an influencer is someone who is connected to lots of other people. It’s these individuals or groups who are able to influence swathes of people, sway online opinion, and contribute to radical takes. The reaction to Astro Bot winning Game of the Year is a prime example of how the internet and gaming culture can divide people, despite their promise as forms of connection.

What Are All Special Bots In Astro Bot? Nariko – Heavenly Warrior

There’s so much to collect, levels to conquer, and secrets to discover that it actually feels weird that it’s not charged at the normal AAA premium. They even announced that the game will be receiving free DLC in the near future. If there’s one thing to criticize, it’s the exclusivity and the need to buy a PS5 to experience this masterpiece. Everyone should be able to experience this kind of fun, as with the amount of games there are, it’s only a few games that really go the distance. As a platformer, Astro Bot is definitely the best to come this year.

What Are All Special Bots In Astro Bot? Mudokon Follower

Like everyone else, I was thoroughly impressed with the game itself, not to mention all the free content it’s gotten since launch. But even if I think Astro Bot was every bit as deserving, I had my proverbial money on Elden Ring being the first game to win GOTY twice, with secret hopes for Balatro to pull an indie upset and turn the Game Awards on its head. Still, F168 can’t deny that Astro Bot deserves every bit of praise it gets. Instead of leaping to the boss fight, approach the large snowball that’s being nurtured by two penguins — after you defeat all the enemies. Grab the snowball from them and roll it around until it gets nice and big.