Introduction
Insomniac created a PS2 masterpiece late last year, and it was called Jak and Daxter. The game was huge for a platformer, and actually offered some unique twists to the genre. Well, Insomniac has raised their own bar this time with Ratchet and Clank. R&C does everything Jak and Daxter did, only a little better.



Gameplay
Graphics wise, Ratchet and Clank rocks. Each level is huge, and there isn’t any draw-in or pop up to be seen. Animations are smooth and fluid, and the monsters and bosses are very colorful and designed very well. This one of the best looking PS2 games I have seen. The world of Ratchet and Clank has a very “Saturday Morning Cartoon” look to it, with colorful locations and cool character designs. And the voice acting is top of the line as well. Clank’s voice and delivery matches his character exactly, and Ratchet also has a pretty decent voice, for a video game character. All of the other over the top characters have hilarious dialogue. You can tell just by listening that Insomniac put a lot of work behind the voices. Sound effects aren’t anything special, but since I don’t really give a flying fudge about sound effects, I’ll just move on.



Story
Unlike most action/platform games, you won’t finish R&C in a weekend (unless you play the game 10 hours a day, psycho!). This game is massive. You explore 18 planets, which are basically levels, and have to complete missions for each planet. To help you complete these levels, you get a huge variety of creative weapons and gadgets. Magnet Boots, Blasters, Suck Cannons and lasers that turn enemies into chickens are just a couple of the 15+ crazy gadgets you get to use. You can buy new gadgets at vendor stations in the beginning of the levels, and you use bolts as currency. Bolts are spread all over the levels, and you collect them by killing enemies and smashing a bunch of stuff. Some weapons require you to find 20,000+ bolts, but believe me, there are plenty of them to find. In fact, one of your gadgets actually finds buried bolts from earlier planets! Very cool.


Graphics
Ratchet and Clank really gets tough towards the end of the game, but if you are hardcore, you won’t mind the extra challenge. R & C is a great platformer for just about anyone who is remotely interested in video games. Here, take a look at this handy equation to see just how good Ratchet and Clank is: Sly CooperJak and Daxter. Pretty simple, huh? Withouth the mathematical jargon, I can tell you that Ratchet and Clank is one of the very best games on the Playstation 2, and certainly shouldn’t be missed by anyone.