Astro Bot developer Team ASOBI has taken home the title of Studio of the Year at the Golden Joystick Awards 2024.
It was no surprise to see Team ASOBI in the running for this award, given that Astro Bot was at the forefront of nominations by getting shortlisted for no fewer than four individual categories this year after launching to widespread critical acclaim in September.
The team fended off challenges from the likes of Frostpunk 2's 11 Bit Studios and Arrowhead Game Studios of Helldivers 2 fame, and you can see the full list of everyone included in the Golden Joystick Awards 2024 nominees for Studio of the Year below:
- 11 Bit Studios
- Arrowhead Game Studios
- Capcom
- Digital Eclipse
- Team ASOBI (winner)
- Visual Concepts
In our five-star Astro Bot review, we praised Team ASOBI for delivering a varied and creative experience that "soars above and beyond to serve up a near-perfect platformer to rival – and possibly surpass – the best of Super Mario's Mushroom Kingdom romps." With "immersive, organic DualSense implementation," it really takes advantage of Sony's hardware without feeling gimmicky or intrusive.
Building significantly on its previous offering, the pre-installed PS5 launch title Astro's Playroom, this new adventure sees Astro Bot blasting off into space and travelling the galaxy, in order to rescue over 300 of their Bot friends while recovering the missing parts of their mothership (a PlayStation 5-shaped spacecraft) that were stolen by a rogue alien. This involves jumping, climbing, and blasting your way through a wide variety of planets, including levels themed on iconic PlayStation titles such as God of War, Tomb Raider, and Uncharted.
Team ASOBI hasn't rested on its laurels since the launch of Astro Bot, and has recently released free DLC that includes new time trial levels, online leaderboards, and even more VIP Bots to rescue for your collection. With at least one more update promised, we can't wait to see what the team does next.
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
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