4.5/5 ★ – LukorDaDragon's review of ASTRO BOT: Rescue Mission.

Being introduced to the Astro Bot series late I played these games out of order however, I think in some backwards way, it was the perfect order. Playroom -> Bot -> Rescue Mission. What I collected from playing this way was a beautiful perspective of how far Asobi has come with this adorable soon to be Mascot but also a new vision of what any future tech demo or stand alone title could provide. After finishing Astro Bot I was concerned that it would be the send off for our exciting new PlayStation Mascot. We did the fan fare trek across the universe and relived all of our favorite PlayStation memories. What more could there be for Astro to do? Well Rescue Mission ensured me that Astro is far more than a gaming historian but an innovator himself. Getting to see him stripped away from the over the top Playstation branding and set more in his own universe Rescue Mission did a lot without the focus of saving icons. Sure this was more or less a tech demo for the PS VR as was Playroom for the PS5, but it didn't feel that way. Rescue Mission felt like a look into the potentially vast world that Astro lives in. Towering Cityscapes, Lost canyons and scary but exciting Graveyards. There are so many different places this game brings you it almost feels like an Odyssey. Collecting bots is the primary objective which presumably set the standard for the future entries but being a collect-a-thon fan I don't hate this model. The VR was so interestingly integrated into the gameplay. I was worried I would be up, moving and RPing as Astro himself but instead you act as the camera man following him along. Don't get confused, you still play as Astro but instead of your typical 3rd person perspective, you are on a rail track that moves forward as Astro does. Fortunately only getting motion sick once but due to my own inexperience with VR. Moving my head around to look for secrets in the levels or getting a better perspective to a jump was not something I knew I wanted or needed until experiencing it. In order to unlock secret stages you must lock eyes with Chameleons which are hidden in each stage. That made for an exciting search each time especially if I had to return to a level I missed. I could keep gushing for paragraphs about everything I loved in this game but to save some surprises for folks. All I’ll say is you are going to want to grind those coins and clear out that claw machine this game has the best rewards for it. We did end up 100% this game as well as the other Astro Games and I don’t regret it in the slightest. These games are very respectful of your time and the trophies are all fun and unique to find. If I however was asked to mention one negative thing about this game, it would be its age. If this game came out on a more modern VR console I think it could be perfect but being stuck with the first model PSVR it suffers from a lot of limitations. The PS Camera is not very reliable in keeping track of your controllers positioning so many times your in-game controller will be backwards or upside down, especially when plugged in to charge. Which given the overarching gameplay wouldn’t be so much an issue. However in the game they have you use your controller to Spray Water, Grapple Hook, Shoot bullets / Shuriken's and some more functionalities. These segments are the most challenging when the hardware doesn’t want to cooperate making for an unfortunately frustrating time. Though I stand by this is not the game's fault but rather the circumstances of its birth. Honestly after playing Astro Bot: Rescue Mission it makes me even more excited for what's to come in this already loveable series. If Team Asobi is allowed to expand on the world of Astro more like they did in this game, I think we could have a genuine 3D Mario contender.