Days Gone creator slams Astro Bot for turning his character into “cartoon shill”

Team Asobi’s Astro Bot has given Sony a much-needed win after the disastrous Concord, but one person not happy with the former’s success was former Sony employee John Garvin.

The ex-creative director of Bend Studio and writer/co-director for Days Gone took to X/Twitter on September 7 to criticize the inclusion of references to Deacon – Days Gone’s main protagonist – in Asobi’s acclaimed platformer.

“Kinda sad that Deek has been reduced to promoting other games,” Garvin started, continuing to berate his former workplace with sarcastic remarks. “Well done Bend Studio! Way to protect your legacy!”, he added.

Besides being lauded for being a best-in-class platformer in its own right, Astro Bot pays homage to numerous Sony IPs, including Uncharted, God of War, and Horizon Zero Dawn, among others. Following his initial post, Garvin was drawn into debating his original comments with other users.

“Calm down my brotha”, came one reply, adding, “You were the creative director of the game [Days Gone], you brought this character to life. Don’t keep that magic stored away.”

Garvin’s response? “Haha, I see my character reduced to a cartoon schill promoting some small indie game and I’m being harsh? Sit down, my brotha, adults are talking.”

The back and forth continued with numerous others until Garvin concluded to one user challenging his comments that he was “done giving you air”.

Garvin left Bend Studio in 2019 to focus on “personal projects”. In a 2021 interview with VGC, Garvin admitted he was fired from Bend Studio due to his “disruptive personality” with little specifics provided beyond that.

Astro Bot was released on September 6 exclusively for PlayStation 5. The game holds universal acclaim on Metacritic with near-perfect critic and user reviews. Expect to see it make the shortlist for numerous gongs at 2024’s Game Awards in December.