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With the upcoming Astro Bot, developer Team Asobi is leaning hard on PlayStation easter eggs, with over 150 characters from other PlayStation franchises set to make appearances in the game, in addition to themed levels, cosmetics, and more. That is, of course, something that the IP’s previous outing, Astro’s Playroom, became known for as well, but should we expect this to become a franchise tradition going forward?
According to creative director and studio head Nicolas Doucet, future Astro games don’t necessarily have to feature cameo appearances from PlayStation characters. Speaking recently with VGC, Doucet said that though including PlayStation icons in the upcoming Astro Bot was decided early on in development, that doesn’t necessarily have to be a mandate for future instalments. As per Doucet, thanks to the flexibility of Astro as a franchise, Team Asobi isn’t “precious about details too much”.
“When we started this game, we had discussions about whether we should or shouldn’t lean on PlayStation,” Doucet said. “There were various opinions, with some questioning whether we should fly with our own wings and not be held back, but actually we decided it was the case that we were already doing that, but then also adding this layer of PlayStation because we can – and why not?
“That was our mindset. If, in the future, we had an adventure that was all Astro and PlayStation wasn’t part of it, I don’t think that would be a problem. As long as the core elements and qualities of the game are great, then I think anything is possible.
“It’s a very flexible IP and that’s one of the things that I love about it. We approached with a light heart and didn’t write a backstory: we’re not precious about details too much, other than the design of the character, which needs to be respected. The rest is really open, and thanks to that, we can feel quite relaxed about where it’s going next.”
Astro Bot is set to launch for PS5 on September 6. It will retail for $60, won’t have any microtransactions, and will also receive free post-launch DLC.
