Since its launch on 6th September 2024, PS5's Astro Bot has been making waves in the gaming community thanks to its high quality and ingenuity. By taking heavy inspiration from Nintendo (and specifically the Super Mario franchise), developer Team Asobi has undoubtedly crafted one of the finest platformers in recent memory.
One individual who has been spending time with the game is none other than Masahiro Sakurai, the legendary creator behind the Kirby and Super Smash Bros. franchises. In an effort to plug his latest YouTube video on game runtimes, he posted a tweet to state that he has completed Astro Bot and rescued all 300 of the lost bots. He says that while this didn't take a great deal of time, he found the game interesting enough that he simply couldn't help but play it.
"Cleared "ASTRO BOT" by rescuing 300 people. This doesn't take that long, but I found it interesting enough that I couldn't help but play it. Great game.
"I want you to be satisfied with the time you spend playing games!"
Team Asobi then quoted Sakurai's post and simply said "Dear Sakurai-san, thank you so much for taking the time to play ASTRO BOT! Love from Team ASOBI".
Team Asobi is, of course, a Japanese company comprised of many developers from the now-defunct Japan Studio. Given the similarities between Astro Bot and Nintendo franchises, we reckon Team Asobi was pleasantly surprised to read such glowing praise from a renowned developer like Sakurai.
There are, however, some who think that Astro Bot crosses a line when it comes to taking inspiration from Nintendo, and we asked what you fine folks thought on the matter just the other day. If you missed out on the conversation, then be sure to cast your vote via the article below and let your voice be heard.