Introduction: The popularity and success of Astro Bot, a relatively small game that came out inside of the PlayStation ecosystem has been one of the more unusual recent developments in the global gaming industry. The end of the year and the Game Awards ceremony underlined its success when Astro Bot was awarded the Game of the Year title, along with several other accolades. The recognition that this game and its team received only once more showcased a very real trend of 2024 – traditional single-player gaming experiences made a big comeback across different platforms and their popularity will likely keep expanding in the year to come.
Article: In the current video game market, very few titles that have big aspirations can afford to come out with little to no promotional effort. However, when Astro Bot came out at the start of September 2024, it generated very little pre-launch buzz. Instead, its developers from Team Asobi focused first and foremost on the fact that Sony Interactive Entertainment published the title for PlayStation 5 to coincide with the console’s 30th anniversary. Not long after that launch, it became clear that Astro Bot was turning into a huge hit. It quickly morphed into one of the best-selling games for PlayStation 5 so far, as it managed to ship over 1.5 million copies as of November 2024. That is a huge achievement, considering that the PS5 came out at the end of 2020 and has big-hit titles that have been on the market for two or three years. The tiny space bot and its adventure managed to beat many of those in a matter of weeks.
Not only that, but the same game, which is a PS5 exclusive, managed to once more rekindle interest in this console that is slowly reaching the middle of its production cycle. At the same time, the game in many ways goes against the grain of big hits of the contemporary video game market. It is a single-player, lighthearted adventure that offers about 11 hours of gameplay time, which is miniscule compared to many other big games, not to mention multiplayer titles. Here as well, Astro Bot did not take the regular path and offers a pure single-player, narratively-based arcade adventure experience. This shows that in 2025, the global video game industry should pay more attention to what was considered niche or atypical player preferences – in this case, that includes self-contained games that people experience, enjoy, and move along, instead of coming back to play the same multiplayer game week in and week out.
Single-Player Formula
The Astro Bot release from 2024 was not a stand-alone title. Instead, it is a part of the wider Astro Bot series and franchise which began more than a decade ago. Team Asobi, back a part of the Japan Studio entity, published the first game in the series in 2013 under the title The Playroom. Since then, the team, now on their own, published an Astro Bot game every two to three years and did it exclusively for the PlayStation console. The series focused heavily on the PS Camera and DualShock controller systems, allowing for the very impressive use of these console gaming technologies. In the case of Astro Bot, these took a backseat to the fact that the game is a 3D platformer. Still, the release does employ the DualShock controller system as the players act as a small robot Astro.
This player character is tasked with saving Lost Bots and finding parts for the mothership which looks exactly like a PlayStation 5 console, all the while battling the main villain of the game, Space Bully Nebulax. If all of this sounds generic and familiar, it is not by accident. The developers were influenced by classic Nintendo games like the Super Mario series. They were also adamant that the game they were making should be a singular and wholesome experience that players take on and eventually beat. That dedication to a single-player type of process is refreshing for the modern market, but also a showcase of the bigger change to come.
Critical Success and Game Award 2024
In many ways, the experience that Astro Bot offers might seem simplistic, but it also includes many layers. This is best seen in the game’s V.I.P. Bots, which are characters that mimic famous video game names from other titles. These include Kratos from the God of War Series, Aloy from Horizon Zero Dawn, and many others. That type of layered approach immediately won over the critics and the audience alike. The game presently holds a rating of 99% according to Metacritics and has been lauded as one of the best games in the past 12 months. The Game Awards also were very generous to Astro Bot, allowing it to win Best Action Adventure Game, Best Family Game, Best Game Direction, and the biggest one of the bunch, the Game of the Year. Because of that, it is now nearly impossible to debate whether or not Astro Bot offers a perfect showcase of all-around excellent game development quality. Simply put, Team Asobi did not make a single misstep with their latest game and no one is saying otherwise.
Year of Singular Gaming Experiences
It is always problematic to envision with certainty what the future of game development holds, even if that period is relatively modest, like for example, the year to come. However, having in mind not just the success of Astro Bot, but also other single-player games like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle or Black Myth: Wukong, a clear pattern emerges. In the previous couple of years, the video game market has been saturated with both massive multiplayer competitive games and free-to-play mobile titles. Those experiences often differ, but reside on the same bedrock principle – getting as many players to play as long as possible. In games like Fortnite or Marvel Snap, the developers want to see their players have a level of retention that is measured in weeks or months. Astro Bot, like other mentioned games, just wants to provide a good 10-hour period of great fun to their buyers and nothing else. Clearly, the global audience is not just fine with this deal, but more of them are seeking games just like that. This does not turn everyone away from multiplayer or mobile gaming but does make a growing segment for single-player offers as well. The same fact is a really good development for the overall health of the video game market and an incredibly positive sign for the diversification that could take shape during the coming 12-month period.
Author: Ivica Milaric, game designer and assistant professor of game design at the Novi Sada Academy of Arts, Republic of Serbia