Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando (PS2)
Publisher: SCEA Developer: Insomniac Games
Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando is a sequel to last year's Ratchet & Clank. The duo is back, and things are better than ever! The claim to fame with the previous installment was the number of gadgets and weapons available in the game, they've outdone themselves this time. There are over 50 weapons and gadgets available this time, along with a few favorites from the previous game (literally... I'll explain later.) ...
The game follows a similar planet to planet chase that it did last time, and it feels very similar to the first game. I'm totally glad they didn't make any major changes. Many games change things around too much for a sequel, and it usually seems to make things messy. It sure is nice to see a company following the old "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" theory.
Gameplay: 9.1
Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando plays almost identical to it's predecessor. This is wonderful, as the game still has a customizable control scheme, excellent camera controls, and all around easy of play. The game is fun to play, and easy as well.
As I said before, the "hook" to the game is the weapons and gadgets. This one doesn't disappoint. There are several new additions to the game, including many new gadgets, various short and long range weapons, and a whole heap of new things to do.
One noticeable change in Going Commando, is the fact that Ratchet levels up as you play through the game. When you've killed a certain number of enemies, Ratchet's health increases by one bar. This is completely different from the first game, as health was very hard to get upgraded. After a few hours of playing, mine had already been upgraded 5 or 6 times. It's definitely a welcome feature.
In addition to Ratchet being upgraded, the weapons also seem to gain levels as you use them. Early in the game, I was firing away with my Lancer, which upgraded itself to become the Heavy Lancer. This not only upgraded the power of the weapon, but it upgraded the ammo capacity from 200 to 300. That's a cool idea if you ask me! All of the weapons will eventually have an upgrade once you use them enough.
Early in the game, Ratchet plays without Clank, and it's a few planets before you finally hook up. Once Clank comes aboard, he comes standard with all of the upgrades he had gotten in the previous game. (Ratchet seems to find a few of items he used in the first game as well. This saves time, as you don't have to look for stuff you already got in another game. You can find new stuff!) Clank's solo fighting style is still similar, as he can control mini-armies of robots to do his dirty work. The only difference this time around, is that there are different types of robots, including a Bridge Building Robot (who builds bridges) and a Lifting Robot (who as you might have guessed can lift heavy blocks).
Going Commando plays roughly the same as the first game, as you're trying to get from planet to planet to track a thief. There are a few little things that do drive me nuts, however. While traveling between planets, the ship will come under attack, and you'll have to fight off enemy ships. While this is fun to many of you, this wasn't fun for some of us, and it's really frustrating at times. You have one ship, and you have to fight several waves of 25 enemy ships. Sure, that seems fair. If you die once, you have to start back at the beginning of wave one. (I've been killed by the last ship of the last wave. It really sucks.) ...
Annoying side missions aside, the regular missions vary greatly, and this gives the game a nice variety. It's loads of fun, and you can easily sit down for several hours to play. Time goes pretty fast when you're playing Going Commando, believe me. I just realized that I had been playing for the past 4 hours, so I decided to stop for a break.
Graphics: 9
Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando has roughly the same graphics as any other game out there today. They're almost identical to the previous installment, and things still look good. There wasn't a moment where things looked awkward, and it was always pleasant to see. The cut scenes were beautiful as always, and gameplay graphics were great looking too.
Sound & Music: 8.5
The music was standard for the series, and the voice acting was once again good. I didn't get tired of hearing any of the music either. This is always a plus. The voices of the new characters were typical "alien" sounding voices, and some of them were kind of funny. I enjoyed all the sounds I was hearing.
Story: 8.5
The story picks up right where the first Ratchet & Clank left off, and they were being interviewed for a "Behind the Hero" TV show. Some crazy old man sees them on the show and enlists their help to find a thief. Ratchet agrees, and embarks on a few missions solo. He eventually finds that Clank has been kidnapped, so Ratchet stops his thief search to get him back. Once the team is back together, they continue the search for the crooks.
The humor is evident from the very beginning of the game, and most of the cut scenes are pretty funny. As entertaining as they are, they also provide information about what you should do next, so pay attention.
Replay Value: 7.5
Going Commando does have a few unlockables the second time around, so many people will play it again. It's fun, so going through everything again isn't a major undertaking (besides your time). Once you've got everything though, you might not rush out to play it again. You'll probably pick it up every few months on a boring Saturday when there's nothing else to do.
To buy or to rent?The game has at least 15 or 20 hours of play available for a one time quest. If you think you might be able to finish that (and won't want to go through it a second time) then rent the game. This is an awful long time to play with a rental though, so in order to experience everything, you'll have to buy it.
Overall: 9.3
Overall, the game has a nice feel, and I think it's even better than the first one. It's a heck of a lot of fun to play, and it really gets more fun when you're getting more gadgets and weapons. The puzzles and mini games can keep you busy for hours, so there's always something fun going on. I will say that it's definitely worth the under $40 price tag.
Additional Information:
Genre: Action/Adventure
Players: 1
Memory Required: 475K
Rating: T (for Teen)
Extras: Dolby Pro Logic II Sound
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