There are more than 150 cameo characters in Astro Bot, but those aren’t the only references to Sony’s many groundbreaking IPs that can be found throughout the game. As they make their way through the main story, players will need to complete five special hero stages, each of which is inspired by a big PlayStation franchise and sees Astro taking on a unique hero power.
All of these stages feature their own unique mechanics and do a wonderful job of bringing these beloved games and characters into the world of Astro Bot. However, the very best hero stages find ways to go above and beyond the player’s expectations, offering up epic boss fights, familiar collectibles, and good old-fashioned fun.
Warning: The following list contains spoilers for Astro Bot. Readers should only continue if they have already completed the game or have no intention of ever doing so.
5 Going Loco (LocoRoco)
Unlocked After Beating Mecha Leon in Camo Cosmos
Going Loco is far from a bad stage, and the hero power that Kulche bestows upon Astro is an interesting one as well. Unfortunately, however, there are just too many great PlayStation franchises that could have taken this spot instead, many of which would likely have led to a much more enjoyable stage.
Players could have been swinging around like Spider-Man or swinging around a samurai sword like Jin from Ghost of Tsushima. In that respect, Team Asobi’s decision to look past some of Sony’s bigger and more popular IPs in favor of a LocoRoco-themed stage was a brave one, but it’s one that didn’t quite pay off.
4 Dude Raiding (Uncharted)
Unlocked After Beating Lady Venomara in Serpent Starway
Dude Raiding does an excellent job of capturing the essence of Naughty Dog’s Uncharted games. Granted, the hero power is a little underwhelming, especially once players realize that they can just spam the triggers as much as they want to, but exploring the stage remains a lot of fun, as too are some of the puzzles that can be found throughout it.
The stage offers up an excellent boss fight as well, although it loses a few points for its simplicity. It would have been nice if players had been made to time their shots rather than just spamming the trigger while moving up and down a rope whenever the boss fired its laser. Still, the presentation here is top-notch.
3 Apes on the Loose (Ape Escape)
Unlocked After Beating Mighty Chewy in Gorilla Nebula
Apes on the Loose is the first hero stage that players will get to experience in Astro Bot. Up until this point, most will likely have had no idea that this kind of thing would be included in the game, and so to suddenly find themselves playing a mechanically accurate version of Ape Escape will have come as a pretty awesome surprise.
Just like in the classic PlayStation series, catching some of the apes in Apes on the Loose can be a little frustrating, but that’s arguably all part of the fun. The boss fight at the end of the stage is a little underwhelming when compared to some of the others, but the stage itself is excellent and helps to start things off with an emphatic bang.
2 Bot of War (God of War)
Unlocked After Beating Wako Tako in Tentacle System
Much like Dude Raiding, Bot of War does a wonderful job of capturing what it is that makes the series that inspired it so fantastic. From the epic music to the numerous God of War references and Easter Eggs scattered throughout the early parts of the stage, players will know right away that they’re in for a good time.
Hunting down eight of Odin’s ravens is a lot of fun, as too is summoning the World Serpent and taking down a familiar foe at the end of the stage. However, being able to use Kratos’ Leviathan Axe is probably the best thing about Bot of War and what helps to make it one of the best hero stages in Astro Bot.
1 Machine Learning (Horizon)
Unlocked After Beating Falcon McFly in Feather Cluster
Aloy’s bow isn’t quite as fun to use as Kratos’ axe is, but it at least requires some level of skill due to the fact that players will need to aim it for themselves. As for Machine Learning, it doesn’t really do enough to distinguish itself from some of the regular stages in Astro Bot when it comes to scenery alone, but it more than makes up for this in other areas.
Tricking enemies into running into Tripcaster lines and climbing Tallnecks is an absolute blast, but it’s the boss fight at the end of the stage that earns Machine Learning its crown. Players will need to take down a rampaging Blunderjaw, which manages to feel every bit as epic as one of the big set-piece boss fights found throughout the two Horizon games.
