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Special thanks to Rod Oracheski for the
following review:
It's more of the same, but when it's
Ratchet & Clank isn't that a good thing?
After dropping Resistance on shelves for the PS3
launch, Insomniac took some time on their next
project - the latest in the Ratchet and Clank
series: Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of
Destruction. Forgive me if I keep it simple by
not typing that all out again in this review. If
I say "Ratchet and Clank" then just trust that,
unless I say otherwise, I'm talking about the
PS3 release.
After putting out Resistance, an original IP for
the launch, Insomniac went back to the
platforming well for their second PS3 title.
It's familiar territory for them, as Ratchet and
Clank is a franchise that they've mined a
considerable amount out of in the past few
years. Since the original released in 2002,
they've been on a game-a-year pace.
Can they keep it fresh with that kind of
scheduling? It's a platformer, after all, not a
sports game that just needs a new coat of paint,
a gameplay addition or two, and updated rosters
to keep us happy.
Gameplay
Let's get it out of the way - outside of a few
SIXAXIS-centric inclusions, there's really
nothing original here. That's nothing new for
Ratchet and Clank as a series though, the
franchise has concentrated on recycling and
refining basically the same gameplay system for
quite some time now. If you've played past
games, you'll find that familiar feeling washing
over you from the start.
You start with a wrench, some grenades, and
basic gun, then use the bolts you gather to buy
up what turns out to be quite the impressive
arsenal by the time you're through to the game's
final levels. As in past games, the more you use
your weapon (the poor, neglected wrench aside)
the more it levels up, increasing its damage and
modifying (slightly) its appearance. You can
also augment your weapon with Raritanium, buying
upgrades that increase damage, clip capacity,
firing rate, etc... Each upgrade tree also
includes a special ability to be bought, adding
additional damage or a special effect (freezing
enemies, for example) to the weapon's basic
operation.
The game's levels have some variety in how
you'll move around and though the basic
'running' is still the most common means of
transpot, you'll also bound off jump pads, ride
in a gyro-cycle, slide along rails with your
magnetic boots, and even do a bit of flying
around (SIXAXIS-controlled, but fear not -
nothing like Lair here) and skydiving. There's
even a quick bit of flying around in a
spaceship, shooting down enemy craft, just to
spice things up.
What could have used some spicing up was the
storyline - which is ultimately a forgettably
bland experience. I don't know if I can fault
the writers as the script itself is dynamite,
loaded with tons of great dialogue, but the
storyline is threadbare and weakly delivered. As
you progress through the levels you'll get a
barebones plot to drive you to the next planet,
but not much beyond that.
You'll power through the story in short order,
particularly if you're familiar with the
previous games in the series, as there's a
depressing lack of challenge. Previous games in
the series haven't exactly been 'Ninja Gaiden'
levels of difficulty, but this one feels
especially simplistic. There's really no
ammo-management concerns to deal with thanks to
ammo-dispensing vendor bots that appear
constantly, nor worries about dying and losing
progress - it's as simple a 'run and gun'
platformer as could feasibly be delivered
without putting the audience to sleep.
Once you're through with the game's final
chapter, you can choose to enter the Challenge
Mode. Here's a word of advice: don't, if you
want to explore. Disappointingly, choosing this
option doesn't create a new save file with the
harder difficulty setting, but overwrites your
existing save and therefore erases your ability
to explore the areas you've opened up until you
get to them again. I wasn't happy to discover
that, after the fact, and it didn't help that
Challenge Mode isn't any more difficult than the
normal playthrough. There's a combo system that
multiplies the bolts you earn though, allowing
you to pick up the high-cost top-tier weapons
(only available in Challenge Mode) far sooner
than you'd think when you first see the
outrageous pricing.
Graphics
Ratchet and Clank is one of the more impressive
PS3 titles out there, with dozens of onscreen
enemies and huge explosions with very little in
the way of framerate stuttering. There is some,
particularly when doing the cross-city bounces,
but it never really interferes in battles. It's
a bit disappointing to see a huge city laid out
in front of you and have access to only a few
select areas, though. The illusion of the huge
city is a great background, but it makes you
wonder how much fun a playground it would have
been.
The character designs are as solid as ever, with
a nice variety in the enemies you'll face from
level to level. The boss encounters are made
more memorable by the attention to detail on the
design of your opponents, something that is
occasionally lacking in games these days. The
environments also get that top-level treatment,
with a great variety of landscapes to see (and
blow up) in your travels.
The highlight of the graphics packages, aside
from the large vistas, is the weapons work. The
effects displayed by most, if not all, of the
weapons are incredible, with a ton of particles
and smoke accompanying the destruction. When you
fire up a fully-upgraded Tornado Launcher and
tear apart a level, sucking up crates, enemies,
and anything else not nailed down, it's one of
those moments you'll nudge your friend next to
you and make sure he/she sees the destruction
you hath wrought with your divine wrath.
The only downside to the graphics is the
somewhat wonky camera, which (as with most 3D
games it seems) can be more difficult to deal
with than the enemies at times. You have the
ability to lock the camera to strafe, but it
will occasionally fail on you at the worst
moments. Strafing is also the primary cause of
running sideways (or backing up) off of cliffs -
which may be your most common cause of death.
Sound
Much like the graphics work is largely about the
weapons, so fares the audio portion of the game.
The weapon effects are great, with more than
enough boom in the explosions to appease even
the nuttiest of gun nuts. If you've got a
surround sound setup, it'll get a workout here.
There's also some great work done by the vocal
talent, who have a really solid script to work
with. Quark is stellar once again, though the
dread pirate Slag also has some memorable lines.
Unfortunately, the rest of the audio work is
pretty generic. I can't even remember the
background music, though I'm sure there was
some, aside from the pirate level and its
accompanying tunes.
Lasting Appeal
For some reason, though it's become a staple in
the series, multiplayer was left out of this
release. Left to rely solely on your OCD-esque
compulsions for completing all the weapon
leveling and Holo-plan gathering, you might
squeeze some more time out of the title above
and beyond the 9-10 hours it takes to breeze
through it. I had hoped the Challenge Mode would
actually ratchet [no pun intended] up the
difficulty, but after blowing through a handful
of levels I have to say it feels largely the
same - far too easy.
Ratchet and Clank also features Skill Points,
the Achievement-like system where completing
tasks (most of which do indeed require actual
skill) will earn you some rewards - videos,
etc.. It's still not quite the addiction that
Achievements have proven to be, but they're
closing in.
Fun Factor
While it's not the most original platformer out
there, presenting basically the same gameplay
each iteration, just further and further
refined, Ratchet and Clank is at least fun to
play. I was a fan of the writing, moreso the
script than the story however. Where the story
meanders along with very little motivating you
to continue along the merry path of
righteousness, the dialogue is often hilarious.
Sometimes it falls flat, but that's comedy for
you...
Overall 8.5 [ Very Good ]
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