Astro Bots and the Ape Escape monkey perform CGI-free synchronized dance in New Year collaboration video with Sony’s toio
Team Asobi and Sony are celebrating the new year with an Astro Bot x toio collaboration video. 50 toio platforms were programmed for a 1:28 video in which paper Astro Bots and a Pipo Monkey from Ape Escape dance and form a “Happy New Year” greeting in a physical recreation of the Crash Site hub area in the Astro Bot game.
Toio is Sony’s toy platform released in 2019 that lets people affix blocks and other creations (i.e. papercrafts and other toys) onto a moveable cube. The cube can be moved with a ring-shaped controller or programmed to follow commands via a computer. Sony created toio to foster creativity in children and teach aspiring computer wizards the basics of programming. The toios in the collaboration video were programmed by the product development team, which explains why the toys are so well synchronized. Sony adds that no CGI was used to make the dance part of the collaboration video.
Atop each of the 50 toios stands an Astro Bot or Pipo Monkey cutout. These designs will be made available for free on the Astro Bot webpage and the official PlayStation Japan X account at a later date. Even if you don’t own a toio, you’ll still be able to create a cute cutout of Astro Bot or a Pipo Monkey to liven up your desk.
Astro Bot took the gaming world by surprise last year, amassing over 100 Game of The Year awards from different publications and surpassing Hazelight Studios’ It Takes Two as the most-awarded platformer. With Astro Bot’s cuteness and the simplicity of the toio, the collaboration video will likely draw the attention of players both young and old.
