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    “Astro Bot” and the best games of September so far in the test

    Caradoc Wyn Posted on

    September kicked off with the release of the flawless PlayStation platformer Astro Bot, the cinematic horror of The Casting of Frank Stone, and the gothic camp of Space Marine 2. NPR’s Corey Bridges, Allen Walden, and I discussed these early signs of a promising fall gaming season.

    “AstroBot”

    Rich music blares from my TV and cheerful sound effects emanate from my controller as I jump, spin, punch, roll and rocket through Astro Bot. This PlayStation exclusive, which comes out Friday, had me so hooked that I almost finished it in four days. As inviting as Kirby and the Lost Land and as inventive as the best Mario games, Astro Bot is my pick for 3D platformer of the year.

    I first encountered the game’s robot hero in “Astro’s Playroom,” a free PS5 tech demo that showed off the hardware innovations by moving gameplay into a fantastical PS5 itself, whose various systems (cooling, memory, data storage, etc.) served as unique levels. Four years later, “Astro Bot” imagines that console as a spaceship haunted by an alien tyrant who steals its parts and hurls its robot crew across dozens of planets.

    If the game weren’t so exquisitely designed, it would be hard to forgive this shameless self-promotion. Their small metal feet ensure that different sound effects are emitted from the controller’s built-in speaker depending on the surface they are running on. The triggers adapt to what you press or pull, giving each object and power-up its own texture. Even well beyond the lifespan of the PS5, “Astro Bot” and its predecessor “Playroom” are still among the few games that make full use of this haptic feedback.

    Astro Bot encounters cute versions of Kratos and Atreus from "God of war." (Courtesy of Sony Interactive Entertainment)
    Astro Bot encounters cute versions of Kratos and Atreus from God of War. (Courtesy of Sony Interactive Entertainment)

    An unparalleled attention to detail makes the hunt for lost crewmates even more exciting. These bots dance and squeak when found, and many are dressed as characters from PlayStation’s 30-year history – Metal Gear Solid, God of War, Demon’s Souls, Uncharted, The Last of Us, Horizon – the selection goes far beyond my brand knowledge. While I didn’t catch all the references, their sheer variety spurred me on to track down 289 of the 300 bots!

    Mutually reinforcing systems reward this complementism. Bots unlock boss levels and populate your home base (like the Waddle Dees you free in Kirby and the Forgotten Land). When they’re not connecting limbs together to form bridges, ladders, and ramps to help you explore the central world, they congregate at your crashed spaceship. Most of the time they just stand around, but you can spend collectible coins to pull random items for them that come with new animations. For example, I was lucky enough to snag Pyramid Head’s colossal sword. Hit him and he’ll throw it into the sky in surprise, only for it to come crashing back down on him. I love these slapstick Easter eggs and wanted to catch them all.

    But even though I discovered every secret planet and defeated every boss in about 16 hours, the game’s toughest challenge levels dashed my hopes of 100% completion. Here, the game betrays a gratuitous sadism that’s at odds with its otherwise forgiving design.. Thankfully, the rest of the game was as rich as Super Mario Galaxy and almost as brilliant as Super Mario Odyssey. Astro Bot may be a glorified advertisement for all things PlayStation, but it’s also the best Nintendo game Nintendo never made.

    — James Mastromarino, producer of Here & Now and head of gaming at NPR

    “The Cast of Frank Stone”

    The Casting of Frank Stone is a visually stunning and terrifying horror adventure from Supermassive Games, a studio known for cinematic experiences such as Until Dawn (2015) and The Quarry (2022). This latest title brings the “playable movie” ethos to the universe of Behavior Interactive’s popular multiplayer survival game Dead by Daylight.

    In The Casting of Frank Stone, you play characters who are the target of a ruthless serial killer in both 1980s Oregon and a remote English mansion in 2024. You jump from timeline to timeline, switching between heroes ranging from a grizzled cop to an obsessed film director to a reluctant actor.

    Frank Stone in all his bloody glory. (Courtesy of Supermassive Games)
    Frank Stone in all his bloody glory. (Courtesy of Supermassive Games)

    Supermassive has always tested players with quick-time events (press A to dodge the axe! etc.), but Frank Stone introduces timed encounters similar to the generator repair minigame in Dead by Daylight. Hidden collectibles don’t provide clues for future decisions like they did in Until Dawn or The Quarry, but they’re still there for eager completionists. Instead, Frank Stone adds a new post-game feature, Cutting Room Floor, that lets players return to specific moments, replay their decisions, and completely change later outcomes.

    Overall, I really enjoyed The Casting of Frank Stone. With its time-warping narrative, seemingly endless replay value, and genuinely creepy antagonist, it’s everything you could want from a Supermassive game—and it’s perfect for some friendly couch co-op this Halloween season.

    — Corey Bridges, associate producer, The Indicator

    “Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2”

    “For the Emperor!” I shout as I plunge headlong into swarms of Tyrannids in Space Marine 2, out September 9. The game’s immersive campaign captures the same magic as your favorite Halo title, with gameplay in the style of Doom Eternal and Mass Effect that feels like a gift from the divine Emperor himself. A quote from Warhammer sums it up well: “Burn the heretic. Kill the mutant. Cleanse the unclean.”

    Chain swords and Gothic Sci-Fi Camp decorate "Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2." (Courtesy of Saber Interactive)
    Chain swords and gothic sci-fi camp adorn “Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2.” (Courtesy of Saber Interactive)

    The player character, Lieutenant Titus (or one of the six classes available outside of the main campaign), brings dignity to cinematic combos and finishing moves that make each weapon feel distinctive but appropriately brutal. Combined with a dense story, intense music, and sharp, satirical writing, Space Marine 2 is an excellent sequel for fans of Warhammer 40,000 and first-person action games. I can’t wait to play the short but enjoyable campaign again with co-op partners, and look forward to diving into the game’s other player-versus-environment and player-versus-player modes.

    — Allen Walden, senior production operations specialist at NPR

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    Caradoc Wyn
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