Nut Load. Mini reviews of games old and new. No fuss. No spoilers. Occasional shock face.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction (2007)

Genre: Platformer | Players: 1 | Developer: Insomniac Games

The first part of a trilogy of Ratchet & Clank: Future games.  Tools of Destruction came out early in the PS3s life and wasn't the huge leap ahead that fans were expecting; instead it delivered the same tried and tested platforming and guns formula Insomniac used in previous R&C PS2 games but with tighter controls and bigger areas to explore.  The HD visuals are pretty to look at but beauty is only skin deep, it’s the solid gameplay that kept fans from being disappointed.  After the arena-based Ratchet: Deadlocked (aka Ratchet: Gladiator) it was nice to get back the freedom to explore open areas again.

You run, jump, double jump, strafe, swing, shoot, drive, grind and fly your way through levels kicking bad-guy butt as you try to get closer to evil-tyrant and all-round-sulky-meanie Tachyon.  He's attempting to ruin everyone’s day by bringing back the banished Cragmites.  Everyone knows a Cragmite is a butt-hurt killjoy, so hooray for Ratchet and Clank (and ... er... Capt. Quark).

The game uses the tilt function of the PS3 Sixaxis controller.  That dumb-ass addition that Sony thought was the future after Nintendo made millions from gamers and non-gamers alike with their Wii.  There are some flying sections and some puzzles that require you to move the controller about on an X,Y,and Z axis, spraining your wrist in order to progress.  It’s a feature that irks.  The Sixaxis was arse-paper and remains Sony’s second greatest shame (only surpassed by the PSP).

Your weapons level up the more enemies you kill with them, making them more powerful, which is necessary as the enemies themselves get harder to kill.  You can also purchase unique upgrades from vending machines if you have the cash. Doing so adds extra functionality to each individual weapon, most of which are useful.  It's platforming at its best and another great addition to the R+C cannon.

Buyer’s Guide:
Available for PS3 only, on blu-ray disc.  It's old now so you should be able to find it for cheap in the trade-in section.

3½ Lombax tilts out of 5

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