Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando

Can Going Commando reverse the decline of mascot games?

The large amount of mascot games released last year was like a time warp to the days when platform games were king and Mario and Sonic were the royal court. Alas, history did not repeat itself and even the Italian plumber?s sunny return didn?t sell like the old days. One notable exception was a little game called Ratchet & Clank, which proved to be anything but little. Its 35-plus hours of gameplay, RPG elements, and story-driven level progression hit a cord with gamers, to the tune of 1.7 million units sold worldwide.

The King Is Dead, Long Live the King!
When we last saw our two heroes, evil had been vanquished from the galaxy and all was once again well. Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando finds the duo with an empty schedule as the celebrity-like buzz over their accomplishments has died way down. They suddenly get a call from Abercrombie Fizzwidget, CEO of Megacorp, who needs the pair to track down a secret experiment in the galaxy of Bogon. The adventure packs plenty of plot twists and allegiance changes as the two pursue a mysterious masked figure who seems to be the culprit behind it all. Throughout the game, look for a matured Ratchet, who is more self-assured of his heroic stature and eventually becomes a commando, hence the title.

It?s a relatively simple tale, and you shouldn?t be too worried that having missed the original will prevent you from enjoying the sequel. Oliver Wade, animation director for Insomniac Games, comments, ?Although a player who hasn?t played the first game may miss out on a few references to characters from the previous game and may not know the story of how these unlikely heroes got their start, none of that affects the story being told in the sequel.?

Upping the Wow Factor
Following up a deep and involved game in the space of a year is a daunting challenge. Ted Price, president of Insomniac Games, explains, ?We began working on visual concepts for the new worlds in Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando as soon as we hit alpha for Ratchet & Clank.? With a head start on the project, what?s the next step? Brian Hastings, VP programming for Insomniac, answers, ?We first try to come up with a few ?Big Ideas.? These are the things we think will really grab people's attention and give the game that Wow Factor.?

The ideas Brian refers to include enhanced RPG features, spherical worlds, and space combat. The additional RPG elements allow Ratchet to gain experience points and upgrade his weapons (more on that later), while the spherical worlds are basically circular levels that give gamers the feeling of navigating a small planet. Space combat takes place in much the same way the race levels played out in the original except it is now under the umbrella of the Maxi-games. ?Maxi-games are challenges that can be played and replayed to earn money and upgrade health,? says Design Director Brian Allgeier. ?They have more depth and replayability than the standard mini-game in that they have multiple, differentiated challenges.? Other Maxi-games include arena gladiator battles and hoverbike races.

Longer, Harder, Stronger


Expect the enemies and the difficulty to be ramped up in this chapter.
You wouldn?t expect a game that had almost 40 hours of gameplay to get even longer, but Going Commando will do just that with levels from 150 to 200 percent larger. The challenges and enemies Ratchet and Clank face are also more daunting as foes feature smarter A.I., work in teams, and take up to 10 times more damage than before. What is a lesser skilled warrior to do against such odds? Mark Cerny, design consultant for Cerny Games, explains, ?If you're doing poorly, the game actually compensates by making Ratchet stronger!? This is achieved through gathering additional bolts to buy better weapons and gaining XP (experience points) that add health and attack damage. ?The good players see it double in the first few levels of the game, and the poorer players see it more than double,? says Cerny. ?The weapons you use also get XP, so if you use the weapon long enough, it will transform into a more powerful weapon!?

Only the Strong Survive
Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando certainly is loading its arsenal with features and tweaks that should once again set standards. However, there is one potential hurdle Insomniac didn?t have to contend with last year. When asked about the impending showdown this fall with Sony?s other big-name platform game?Jak II, developed by friend and rival studio Naughty Dog?Ted Price replies, ?I think we?re all excited more than worried about it. Jak II is shaping up to be a beautiful game as well, but I think the two are different enough that consumers will have legitimate reasons to buy both.

Comments [0]

post a comment

Post a Comment