Improves on nearly everything the first game did right.
PROS:
- Considerably long game time for its genre. (15-20 hrs)
- Improves on nearly everything the first game did right.
- 100% game completion takes about 40-50 hours.
- Over 30 different weapons to level up.
- Ratchet no longer behaves like a moody teenager.
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CONS:
- Doesn't fix any of the mistakes the first one made.
- Collecting enough bolts for 'mega' weapons can be a nuisance.
- Combat is virtually reduced to button-mashing.
- Spherical world Clank battles are no fun.
- Ship battles are also no fun.
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Gameplay: 8 - It appears that just about everything that the first entry in the explosive 'Ratchet and Clank' series did right is present in its sequel, except with a couple of noticeable improvements; but unfortunately it also appears that it has also made just about all of the mistakes the first one did as well. You still have to face off against numerous waves of the same enemy, but now combat has been virtually reduced to button-mashing. During most of the battles you will have to face, you will have to tap on the circle button in rapid succession in order to shoot your enemies until they pass away, it eventually gets boring, but luckily the monotony doesn't begin until about 40-50 hours into the game, so Ratchet and Clank: Locked and loaded (Going Commando in the US) still has some pretty good lasting value.
It seems that Developers Insomniac games decided that they would give Locked and loaded a few RPG elements, such as to kill off your enemies in order to gain experience points in order to level up your nanotech (to maximum of 80) and level up your weapons, (to a maximum of 5 each) this is actually a really great move for the series, this is one of the main improvements Insomniac did upon the first one. They also decided to replace the Gadgetrons with Megacorps as well, but the concept is pretty much the same, one of the main things that makes Megacorp an improvement upon Gadgetron is that there is also another Megacorp vendor that lets you buy suits of armour for a competitive price.
Another great feature is that now Ratchet can strafe, by pressing and holding down the R2 or the L2 button while moving the directional buttons or the left analog stick in the direction you would like to go. The concept of having spherical moons that Ratchet can walk around is a fairly good concept, such a shame you will spend most of your time on those moons beating up a boss as Giant Clank. (I'm sure we all remember him) It may sound like fun, but it's actually not, considering that in Giant form, Clank moves sluggishly, which kills off a lot of fun, mainly because it will take quite a while for you to unleash your first attack upon your enemy. Not only does the sluggish controls weigh the fun down, but it takes about five to ten minutes for you to finally manage to beat the boss so the monotony can finally end. I will say that the spherical moons is an excellent concept, I just wish they had of put them to better use.
Another new addition to the series that isn't particularly very fun either is the ship battles that take place in between ever three or so worlds, like in a lot of video-games, these uninventive and unneccesary mini-games that take place in between every few levels, they aren't any fun at all by comparison to the rest of the experience. Luckily the 'Infiltrator' mini-games aren't nearly as bad.
Ultimately, the positives of Ratchet and Clank: Locked and loaded overweigh its negatives by a landslide, sure you will have to put up with the Clank and ship mini-games every once in a while, but thankfully very are very occasional.
Sound: 9 - The music and sound scores of Ratchet and Clank: Locked and loaded are great, one of the main differences between the sound of R&C 1 and 2 is that Insomniac got someone else to voice Ratchet, no longer does he behave like your average moody teenage boy, now he is much more mature, his behaviour towards Clank is much more friendly and he no longer cares just about himself and practically nobody else who he knows or affiliates with. I feel that the new and deeper voice had a great effect on his newly developed personality.
Graphics: 9 - If this was a game that was just recently released for a console such as the Playstation three or the Xbox 360, these graphics would be mediocre at best; but for a game that was released about three years before either of those consoles were even put onto the shelves of gaming stores, these graphics are top-notch. The explosions are very well-exacuted, the character models are superb and each and every planet and/or environment you visit is unique and incredibly different from the last, and there are a lot of planets in this game. (twenty to be precise)
Value: 8 - If the games combat system didn't rely so heavily on button-mashing, this would definitely be one of those special types of games that will stay in your video-game collection, because of the button-mashing, the enjoyment of playing Ratchet and Clank 2: Locked and loaded should last around 40-50 hours, which is just enough time to complete the gameone hundred percent and unlock the Insomniac museum. So after you have finished the game 100% once, I doubt you are going to be playing this game again, one of the main problems with that is that the game is highly addictive, so the whole game is likely to take a month or two to finish, depending on your skill.
Overall: 8.5/10
Ultimately, Ratchet and Clank 2: Locked and loaded is only slightly less surprising and fun then the superbly fun first game in the series, (which I overall gave a solid 9 out of 10) probably because it's just basically the same gameplay, despite a few added features, although the amalgamtion of platforming and shooting has been combined even better, and a couple of added features, it just feels like your playing the same game over again which in the end makes Locked and loaded feel more like an expanison pack then an actual sequel. And since the gameplay is basically the same, Locked and loaded is more likely to appeal to newcomers then people who have already played the first game for at least 20 hours or so. If you are merely satisfied by the first Ratchet and Clank game, you will probably feel very little want or desire to return to the same gaming formula, but ultimately the game is still worth at least one playthrough.
Thank you for reading my honest review of: Ratchet and Clank 2: Locked and loaded (Europe) Ratchet and Clank: Going commando. (United states and Austrailia.)