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PS2 | Adventure | Ratchet & Clank

Boxart for Ratchet & Clank
Ratchet & Clank 48 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 5.0
  • SOUND: 4.0
  • CONTROL: 4.0
  • FUN FACTOR 4.5
  • AVG USER SCORE 4.8
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 4.1
Winner of the GamePro Editor's Choice Award

Update: Ratchet & Clank

Update by FENNECFOX | 08/16/2002 | 16:54:12 PM PST

In which a yellow alien and his cute robot sidekick take over the galaxy with nothing but a few simple store-bought parts. If only it were so easy.

The last time we caught bouncy-eared alien space mechanic Ratchet and his diminutive robotic partner Clank, they were platforming about a pleasingly picturesque cityscape in one of the most "there" demo games on the E3 show floor. Now that a more complete six-level version has fallen into our hopeful hands, we can confirm for ourselves what we long suspected: Not only does the game shine graphically, but developer Insomniac Games has shoveled so much sheer gameplay value into Ratchet & Clank that it's actually longer than some short RPGs.

When asked what genre Ratchet & Clank fell into, co-designer Mark Cerny, after a good few moments of thought, came up with "action RPG...sort of." Although the preview version definitely based most of its gameplay on the rock-solid tenets of 3D platforming, this is far from another exercise in lazy "collect 100 wimzendoofers and take them to the Great Googly Wizard near the save point" game design.

The main difference lies in the game's weapon system. As the little yellow man and his traveling companion traverse the game, they pick up bolts which act as currency in the game's many shops. Although you have a standard short-range weapon (a wrench), you'll find that later levels become extremely tricky unless you buy a few helpful accessories along the way.

The sheer variety of weapons is impressive, ranging from your basic blaster to a rocket launcher, minelayer and even a cannon that sucks up small enemies and spits them out Kirby-style. You'll also have to use helpful tools like a Hydrodisplacer to raise and lower water levels, a Trespasser to hack into door locks, and a Swingshot to go Tarzaning across some airy sections. All of this action is attached to a story that takes the duo across 18 planets, which they'll have to revisit from time to time as they get new gadgets and gain access to new areas.

There was very little to complain about in the preview build. Insomniac is obviously trying to make each level as busy-looking as possible, with spaceships and transport robots flitting across the sky and epic battles taking place in the background, and the lovely vistas they've created are so well made that you can't help but sit and stare at them in motion from time to time. Control also worked fairly intuitively, with simple camera control and a well-designed weapon selection interface.

Although Insomniac claims that a fair amount of animation and graphic polish (including weather effects) remains to be added, Ratchet & Clank could already more than hold its own in the current PS2 marketplace. It's due to hit stores November 8.