Team Asobi ‘doesn’t think it would be a problem’ if PlayStation wasn’t a part of a future Astro game

Team Asobi studio director Nicolas Doucet isn’t ruling out a future Astro game that doesn’t lean so heavily into the history of PlayStation.

Like Astro’s Playroom, a free platforming game included as a pack-in with the PS5, upcoming sequel Astro Bot is a celebration of Sony’s gaming division, only on a grander scale.

Set for release in September, it tasks players with rescuing “over 150 iconic VIP Bots inspired by legendary characters from 30 years of PlayStation history”, according to Sony.

But in an interview with VGC at Summer Game Fest, creative director Doucet called Astro a “flexible IP” that’s capable of standing on its own two feet.

“When we started this game we had discussions about whether we should or shouldn’t lean on PlayStation,” he 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?

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He added: “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.”