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If the Spyro series is any indication as to how creative the team can be, conceiving a groundbreaking project shouldn´t be a terribly frustrating endeavor. As Insomniac soon found out, however, starting with a clean slate is an exciting proposition, but one filled with infinite possibilities. On a daily basis, the team would meet---on the roof of their development studio of all places---to discuss what they wanted to do next. Hundreds of interesting ideas were thrown around, several of which could have been transformed into inventive games in their own right; but the team wasn’t in complete agreement until Brian Hastings, a veteran designer at Insomniac, proposed a concept of a character traversing space to visit different worlds. This idea intrigued the entire staff, and would allow for the creation of an expansive Star Wars-like universe where discovery is constant and uncertainty lurks around every corner.
Ted Price, Insomniac’s President, comments. “At this point, the team immediately began toying with this concept. We knew what we wanted to do.” Even though the design screamed for a character who embodied the essense of Marvin the Martian, Insomniac wanted to create a hero of a mascot proportions that reflected the true nature of an action/plat former game. As luck would have it, the team knew exactly what they wanted in terms of a hero. Within just a matter of minutes, a fuzzy, attitude-driven mammal named Ratchet was born. His name stems from his love for mechanics and gadgetry. Most action/platform characters, even Mario, have a distinct look, but don’t really have an identity. Insomniac wanted to shatter this perception. Thus, a monumental story was penned---one that brings Ratchet into the forefront and expands upon his personality throughout the course of the adventure.
The game takes place in a galaxy very different from ours; a place where robots, spaceships and high-tech gizmos are the norm. Ratchet lives on a backwater planet at the edge of the galaxy. Much like Luke Skywalker, he has always wanted to explore the cosmos. The similarities with George Lucas’ most famous hero are such that we wouldn’t be surprised if Insomniac incorporates a panoramic shot of Ratchet, looking longingly at two setting suns.
Working as a mechanic, Ratchet comes to the conclusion that the only way he’ll leave this boring rock is through the construction of his own spaceship. Although extremely talented and dedicated to his cause, Ratchet knows that his odds are slim, especially since he doesn’t have a robotic ignition system---a component that is extremely hard to obtain. All, as it would seen, is lost.
Meanwhile, in another part of the galaxy, an evil race know only as the Blarg have come to wits end with their living arrangements. The Blargarian planet is overpopulated and heavily polluted. All life will perish if action isn’t taken immediately. The Blargarian leader has devised a brilliant plan to save his people, but the consequences will be immeasurable. Whether his intentions are just remains to be seen, yet this mysterious being has decided to create his own synthetic utopia by cutting pieces of other worlds and joining them together. Naturally, every planet he dissects will be destroyed.
To ensure his plans aren’t foiled, he’s strategically placed robot factories throughout the galaxy. Working around the clock, these factories continually spit out heavily armed automatons with the goal of making every planetary race an endangered one; thus reducing the threat of planetary forces resisting the eradication of their world. All is working to plat until one of the war factories malfunctions and spits out a defective robot. Unarmed, minute, and surprisingly intelligent---the exact opposite of the original design---the robot emerges with a personality all his own. His name is Clank.
No mindless drone, Clank is self-aware and intent on stopping the leader’s plan. Clank manages to flee the factory and rockets into space. After a laser-filled escape through the stars, the robotic hopeful is shot down, crash-landing on Ratchet’s planet. As fortune would have it, Ratchet stumbles across the unconscious machine, tossing Clank on his back, believing some of his parts can be used as scrap.
As Ratchet labors away on his spacecraft, Clank awakens and frantically urges his newfound companion to help him save the galaxy. While a little reluctant, Ratchet agrees; but at this point, he would accept any offer if it resulted in leaving this boring place. Clank’s ship is demolished, but it just happens that he has the components needed to finish Ratchet’s ship. Out of convenience, the two team up and blast off to combat the cosmic scourge.
This is how the game, which bears the appropriate name Ratchet and Clank, begins. Although fate brought them together, our two protagonists have little in common and are basically using one another to get where they need to go. The conflict between the two of them will play a large role in the game’s storyline, which is much more complex than the average game of this type.
With his robotic accomplice at his side, Ratchet is finally fulfilling his lifelong dream. Little does he realize, though, that Clank is jeopardizing this endeavor. Without warning, the Blarg swoop in and pursue their ship. Armed to the teeth and intent on destruction, the Blarg assault the escaping vessel with laser fire, quickly disposing of it. The remnants of the craft trickle down onto an unknown planet’s surface. Miraculously, the two passengers are unharmed---but are once again stranded.
Although brimming with lush scenery, this world is hostile…even more so with the Blarg invasion.
At this point the players are thrust into the action at hand and we begin to see what kind of gameplay experience Insomniac has in store for us. Right off the bat, you can clearly see this isn’t your typical “Easter egg hunt” platformer. There isn’t a damsel in distress who has been taken hostage by an overgrown turtle. Nor will you be required to find a specific number of items to progress. The only concern at this point is survival.
When you take your first steps into this foreign land, you can’t help but look on in disbelief. (Insomniac will henceforth be call In in this message). In has always excelled in delivering visually stunning works, but the level of detail in this game is staggering. Seeing our reaction to the graphical magnitude that unfolded before our eyes, Al Hastings, head programmer said, “The sheer size of this project would not have been possible until now.” The artistic direction that accompanies this portrait-like environment has a distinct feel of this developer, where vibrant colors blend in perfect harmony with harsher steels and magnificent constructs. Much like J&, the entire world is rendered in real-time and is not hidden beneath fog or shrewd programming techniques. If you see something a mile off in the distance, there’s a good possibility you will eventually reach it.
We found ourselves equally impressed with the gameplay mechanics. The general movements are user-friendly and controls lend themselves nicely to the complexity of play. When you move, you can almost feel the character making each step. The same applies to jumping and the essence of gravity. At this point, your only weapon is a wrench found in the wreckage. He’s quite agile and can perform quick three-slashes with ease. Ratchet can also jump and bring the wrench down on a foe. You soon realize that you won’t get a neat little tutorial or a lead by the hand through this, you’re on your own to do what ever the heck you want. No objectives presented, or exit sign. You can explore every inch of it. And you have an intricate map to keep you righted. It tells you where you’ve been and where you need to go eventually, to get on a ship to get out of this mess. The game has a economic system of nuts and gears that defeated robots drop, nuts are worth 5 bolts, gears equal 10.
The 2nd planet has shopkeepers that will sell you weapons (RPG-like). The action will work around the 35 types of gadgets and weapons you can acquire to defend yourself with, short, medium, long-range and special. There’s a bomb glove, flamethrower, and even guided missiles to take out enemies from far, far away. The more bolts you get, the more weapons are you disposal.
A lot of blow the crap out of enemies stuff, but certain weapons are best for certain enemies. Clank has upgrades too, helicopters, rocket sled propellers.
The plot though is an important part of the game. The two characters are associated because they both need something from one another. This won’t always be the case for the whole game. The personalities of both characters change dramatically and tensions will flare up between them. They even break up at one point and Clank will become an individual, playable character, with his own unique abilities and movements. Incorporate the best elements of action/platform, adventure and RPG games, you’re continually exploring new planets. You have to navigate alien cities, terrain, you’ll need to keep your eyes peeled for friendly locals, stranded visitors, and little robots called info bots that will allow you to go from planet to planet by giving you their coordinates, they also tell a little story in the form of an ad, distress call or newscast from another planet. Both characters talk, fully lip-synced and animated. Cinematics between levels and in them. The world are quite life-like, and loaded with looping and scripted sequences. On one planet, a war is erupting. Planes are storming the skies, later on, swoops in and bombs a bridge.
This game should be coming out for this holiday season.
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) donc je pourais comparer