Days Gone director likens character in Astro Bot to “a cartoon shill”

Not everyone is happy to see their protagonist reimagined as a robot.

Days Gone director John Garvin has said it’s “kinda sad” that protagonist Deacon has been represented in Sony platformer Astro Bot, likening the character’s inclusion to “a cartoon shill”.

In case you’re unaware, Astro Bot tasks you to rescuing a number of fellow Bots, with some dressed in the garb of classic PlayStation characters. I’ve only been playing for a couple hours — as Sony still doesn’t like the idea of Stevivor playing its games ahead of release — but I’ve run into Bot representations including Crash Bandicoot, Solid Snake, and Resident Evil 2‘s Leon and Claire.

“[Deacon] has been reduced to promoting other games”, Garvin said on Twitter, noting his character’s inclusion. “Well done Bend Studio! Way to protect your legacy!”

Garvin doubled down when another user suggested that he “calm down”.

“I see my character reduced to a cartoon schill [sic] promoting some small game and I’m being harsh? Sit down, my brotha, adults are talking,” he wrote.

Deacon’s voice actor, Sam Witwer, had a very different response.

“Gonna buy the game now,” wrote Witwer.

While we can wholeheartedly recommend Astro Bot — a wonderful mix of polished gameplay, Mario-style platforming, and a wonderful sense of joy that not only celebrates PlayStation but gaming itself — we didn’t say the same thing about Days Gone back in the day.

“The current state of affairs means Days Gone practically goes out of its way to hamper enjoyment; unoriginal yet decent systems are continually hampered by a lack of polish quite uncommon in Sony first-party titles,” I wrote at the title’s launch.

Astro Bot is currently available on PS5; don’t be a stick in the mud and go try it!

Astro Bot 6 September PS5   Buy on PlayStation: Amazon, PlayStation Store