CLASH OF CLANKS
Also for: Playstation 2
Some games are not made for words. Fun though it is to play, writing about
Ratchet & Clank 3 is no more inspiring than writing a third review
about a movie like, say, Guardians of the Galaxy. So little separates
the different entries of this franchise, you could copy-paste each review with
but a few alterations and make it work. Their zaniness is more fulfilling to
experience than picking apart and analyzing. I'd rather just get this text out
of the way so that I can get back into playing the series.
From an objective standpoint, this third chapter of the franchise is probably
the best one yet, since it has all those quality-of-life improvements that you
didn't know you were missing from previous entries. I'm referring to things
like the strafe button (which I hardly used in the second game), quicker bolt
(money) collecting and overall better pacing. Most of the tedious gameplay
segments come better distributed or are removed altogether. The Clank gameplay
segments feel less restricting, less frequent and shorter. The only thing I'm
missing now is a good dodgeroll.
However, I still rate my time with the first game higher simply because of its
originality. It did all the heavy lifting. All that is good about this
franchise is the legacy of Insomniac's ingenious initial
invention. I'm not crazy about the new additions to Up Your Arsenal - like
a Captain Quark-starring sidescrolling platformer, a new lockpicking mini-game
or a conversational, timing-based mechanic in an alien language (although I
love the weird responses you get when failing the latter).
In their third adventure, the fox-and-robot duo fights the blue, one-eyed
Tyhrannoid alien army of Dr. Nefarious, an evil robotic mastermind whose machinations we can literally see working through the translucent glass of his
conehead. His plans for world domination are not clear at the outset, but the
revelation is so hilarious I'll leave it to the reader to discover. Needless
to say, they are nefarious. Also needless to say, the goal of the game is to
thwart them. The storytelling conveys some great Pixar-resembling
comedic timing with fun, low-key puns and surprisingly understated reactions.
As usual, you travel from planet to planet following a trail of crumbs that
leads towards a difficult final confrontation with the villain himself. Along
the way you meet both new and familiar faces. You visit weird
Star Wars-inspired planets with one standout characteristic, like a
suburban planet here, a jungle planet there, and we all love the aquatic
planets, right?
The levels follow the tried-and-tested design formula - narrow pathways
through open environments, corridors through factories, tunnels leading from
cavern to cavern - each interrupted by enemy encounters of varying kind. For
gamers fed up with open worlds, this is somewhat outdated 3D-gaming of a
diametrically opposite kind: linear progression. Sure, you can run back and
forth, and some areas open up a little, but that line is still a line. Call it
antiquated if you will, but I think it still works like a charm.
To prepare, you need to build an arsenal of weapons, tools and gadgets by
looking around or buying them from vendors. I enjoy how you usually learn
about their cost long before you can afford them, which fuels your
bolt-collecting greed. Anything destructible in the environment - lamp posts,
boxes, windows - garners income. This ironically means you support world
salvation by destroying it.
With Ratchet & Clank 3, the series keeps moving away from its more diverse
action-platformer roots into pure shooter territory. Insomniac focuses on the
arsenal, as they sprinkle the levels with situations that brings forth each
weapon's strengths and weaknesses, be it spread, range or other special
properties. Some planets have mission-based combat scenarios of differing
quality, where you get juicy bolt rewards for helping ground troops achieve a
certain goal. I'll not pretend like they're anything extraordinary, but a good
way to earn a quick in-game buck.
The more you use each weapon, the stronger it gets, until they transform into
something truly devastating at their maximum level. The firearms'
characteristics are beginning to repeat themselves from iteration to
iteration, however, and the only truly original ones are the Plasma Whip (with
some striking whip-physics) and the Infector, none of which I found
particularly useful. I fear Insomniac are reaching the limits of their inventive
prowess when it comes to weaponry.
Nonetheless, next to the combat challenge itself, upgrading your arsenal is
the central progression, even more so than the fun, cartoony story. It's a
levelling mechanic that makes me think of the evolution of
Pokémon-monsters. You cannot help but wonder how they'll evolve
throughout the game. Which ones will be feasible options against the late-game
onslaughts? You will have plenty of opportunities to decide in the lead-up, as
the great boss encounters and different combat arenas should help you separate
the wheat from the chaff.
Looking back on the words I've just written, I realize the gun fetish is
strong with this one. In a sense, I guess Ratchet & Clank picks up the
mantle of the cartoon violence and innuendo of TV shows in the past. Repetitive cartoon shorts like Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry come to mind. Anyone
missing those days should feel right at home in this setting. I certainly do,
and like those shows the story canon doesn't matter. Just grab whatever game
you come across and lose yourself in the inventiveness, slapstick and mayhem.
[Screenshots from MobyGames: www.mobygames.com]
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