Ratchet and Clank is a breakaway platformer that very few on the system can compete with.
The story follows Ratchet, a strange cat-like character (known as a lombax). One day while fixing his spaceship a ship crashes down on his planet. When he investigates the wreckage he notices a little robot lying on the ground. Ratchet decides to keep the robot and takes it back with him. The robot wakes up and informs Ratchet of the evil Chairm Drek. He and his species, the Blargs, are taking the resources of planets to create a new planet since theirs is completely uninhabitable because of pollution. The robot is in search of the famed superhero Captain Quark, whom he believes can stop him. Ratchet decides to nickname the robot Clank and agrees to help him on his search. The story of the game isn't terribly original, but it is very entertaining to see it unfold thanks to the humorous writing and characters you interact with.
The game is set as a 3rd person 3-D platformer, but rather than having an emphasis on collecting you need to reach specific points within each world you visit. Once you get to specific points often you will be given an info bot, which shows you a recording that gives you coordinates of the next planet to visit. It may sound boring, but it's anything but. What makes the journey to each point fun is the designs of the stages and the gameplay itself. Each world is varied in their location and each one feels much different than the one before. The level designs are top notch and it's fun to blast through the various enemies you come across. Each level doesn't feel drawn out or monotonous, but rather it moves at a rather steady, if rather streamlined, pace. Once you do get to where you need to go, the game doesn't force you to backtrack all the way to the very beginning in order to artificially lengthen play time (unless you really felt like it). Instead they give you a shortcut back to your ship. One of the biggest differences between this and other platformers is its more action-oriented gameplay to accompany the platforming. You start of with a big wrench, but as you progress you will come across a ton of different weapons, each very fun to use and useful in their own right. Weapons range from a glove that throws bombs, a flamethrower, a blaster, a cannon that sucks up enemies, a glove that throws little robots to wreak havoc, and many other kinds of unique weapons. There are also some gadgets to obtain to help you get through certain paths or solve puzzles. As you explore the worlds you will be collecting a lot of bolts, which act as the game's currency. Tons of bolts are scattered around the worlds, inside enemies, and in a lot of crates. Weapons and ammo can also be purchased using the bolts you have collected.
To accompany the excellent gameplay are the tight controls. You control Ratchet (and occasionally Clank) with the greatest of ease, and the camera generally works well for a platformer. Switching between weapons is a little finiky, but nothing really troublesome.
Ratchet and Clank is also a visually stunning game for the system, especially since this is an early title for the system. The environments are large, excellently designed, and full of detail and variety. What's probably most impressive are the character models, which not only look good, but have very fluent animations and realistic expressions. The game manages to retain a buttery smooth framerate even with all of these details. The music upbeat soundtrack is great as well as the voice acting and dialog.
To sum things up:
PROS:
-Excellent graphics with fantastic character animations
-Great soundtrack
-Excellent voice acting and dialog
-Fun gameplay
-Never feels monotonous
-Varied worlds
CONS:
Chances are, if you love platformers you will certainly find a lot to enjoy in Ratchet and Clank, from the varied worlds, to the many zany weapons to use, to the great characters, and many more. This is certainly a must own for your PS2 library.