Sony's plans to expand its family-friendly game offerings are fueled by the remarkable success of Astro Bot. Read on to discover more about Astro Bot's achievements and PlayStation's potential revival of legacy IPs.
PlayStation Expands into the Family Genre
Astro Bot Surpasses 1.5 Million Copies Sold
Since its September 2024 release, Astro Bot has enjoyed phenomenal success, selling over 1.5 million copies and earning the coveted Game of the Year award at The Game Awards 2024. This success has spurred PlayStation to further explore the family-friendly gaming market.
During Sony's Q3 Earnings Announcement on February 13, 2025, President, CEO, and CFO Hiroki Totoki highlighted Astro Bot's triumph, noting its four Game Awards 2024 wins, including Game of the Year and Best Family Game. He also cited the success of Helldivers 2, winner of Best Ongoing Game and Best Multiplayer Game. Totoki emphasized that these wins in targeted genres, including family games and live service titles, represent significant progress in broadening PlayStation's game portfolio.
PlayStation's Family-Friendly History
PlayStation boasts a history of family-friendly titles, though many have seen limited activity recently. As noted by The Gamer, franchises like Sly Cooper, Ape Escape, and Jak and Daxter haven't received new installments in over a decade. The departure of classic IPs like Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon to Xbox further limits PlayStation's current family-friendly lineup, leaving Ratchet & Clank, LittleBigPlanet, and Astro Bot as its most recent prominent entries.
In a December 2024 interview with Famitsu, PlayStation Studios CEO Hermen Hulst underscored Astro Bot's importance to Sony, stating, "Astro is very, very important to PlayStation," and praising the small team's creation of a "great game…a celebration of everything PlayStation."
The Potential Return of Beloved IPs
Astro Bot's success, featuring appearances from various PlayStation characters, has brought attention to dormant IPs. Hulst previously emphasized the value of PlayStation's extensive IP portfolio, stating, "Our extensive IP portfolio is an important asset for PlayStation, and as part of our efforts to strengthen our portfolio, we continually explore opportunities to leverage our legacy IP as well as develop new franchises."
The recent Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater trailer showcased the return of Ape Escape monkeys, originally featured in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. The success of Sly Cooper on PlayStation Plus' Classics Catalog, becoming one of the platform's highest-rated games, further highlights the potential of these legacy titles. While no official announcements have been made, this suggests a possible resurgence of PlayStation's family-friendly legacy IPs.
New Astro Bot Content Arriving February 13, 2025
Five New Levels and Special Bots
Starting February 13, 2025, Astro Bot players can enjoy a free update. In a February 13, 2025 PlayStation.Blog post, Team Asobi Studio Director Nicolas Doucet announced five new levels within the Vicious Void Galaxy, including the level from the PlayStation XP Tournament Final in London:
- February 13: Tick-Tock Shock
- February 20: Thrust or Bust
- February 27: Cock-A-Doodle-Doom
- March 6: Hard to Bear
- March 13: Armored Hardcore
These updates, released every Thursday at 6:00 AM PT, 2:00 PM GMT, and 10:00 PM JST, will feature increased difficulty, new Special Bots to rescue, and Time Attack mode with online rankings. PS5 Pro players will also experience a boosted 60fps frame rate. Astro Bot is available exclusively on PlayStation 5. Visit our Astro Bot page for more details.
