Unknown Soldier
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I'm only LTTP because I only got my PS5 2 days ago, but does mean I'm almost 3 years late to this generation of consoles. It doesn't feel like it because a certain virus ended up ruining the first 2+ years of the generation and even now the first true PS5 exclusive title (Final Fantasy XVI) is just coming out this June.
Astro's Playroom is this little bundle title that comes pre-installed on every PS5. Out of curiosity, since it's literally already right there, I opened up to check it out. Made by Team Asobi, which is today all that remains of the shuttered Japan Studio, it's a pretty straightforward 3D platformer which reminded me a lot of Super Mario 3D World but which also has unique sections where you play with special mechanics, such as climbing in a giant robot gorilla or maneuvering in a little robot spaceship. You hop and bop cute PlayStation themed enemies on PlayStation themed levels in 4K/60 fps while listening to this absolute fucking banger of a soundtrack. Really, the music of this game has no business being as good as it is.
This little game is both cute and fun and certainly worth the price of $0. (Let's ignore the $500 cost of the console it comes with.) It's great not necessarily just because of the actual 3D platforming gameplay, which is certainly solid, enjoyable, and mechanically tight. No, the star of this game is PlayStation itself, which is the subject of a nostalgia-filled trip from the 1994 original PS1 to the new (as of 2020) PS5. You go through the PlayStation themed levels and collect "artifacts" which are 3D models of various PS hardware products and stop during levels to gawk at over 60 cute references to video games that defined nearly 30 years of PlayStation's history.
To put it simply, it's a fun trip down memory lane that just absolutely overwhelms you with nostalgia. If you don't get a little choked up when you see some of the game references and bits of Sony's long hardware legacy, you probably didn't grow up with Sony and Nintendo the way I did. But if you're about that age when you're starting to realize the older you get, the better you were, and you can also count your childhood by which PS console you began with, then this game is a really amazing little journey through your happy childhood memories. Oh yeah, and the theme song is a real bop. You can easily spend 5+ hours in it depending on how much you want to collect everything which is pretty nice for a free bundled title. I'm legit considering going back and getting the Platinum on this because I want to get all the artifacts. I'm still missing the OG PSP and I have to go back for that, I have the PSP Go and the Vita but not the OG.
Astro Bot should be the mascot of PlayStation. Also if I were Sony I would be producing a sequel to this game which is a full-sized platforming title because I would pay for another 20 hours of this.
A complete list of the classic game references:
https://www.ign.com/wikis/astros-playroom/Every_PlayStation_Easter_Egg_in_Astro's_Playroom
Astro Bot's theme song:
"I'm your GPU":
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