Insomniac Games offers weapons class at PAX

Who was there: Insomniac's Weapons 101 panel at the 2009 Penny Arcade Expo was hosted by Brian Allgeier, creative director at Isomniac Games, who was the sole speaker.

What They Talked About: After a mock start where Allgeier showed off an intimidating slide that featured a detailed grid on weapon-balancing characteristics to make the audience think the panel was going to be a GDC-style run through the actual process of balancing weapons, he switched over to pictures and video of the upcoming A Crack in Time.

The focus of the panel was to run the attendees through the process of creating the weapons in the series. Allgeier shared the three pillars the team has used as the basis for weapon creation: comedic, strategic, and fantastic. The pillars weren't much of a revelation for anyone who has played the games over the years, but Allgeier backed them up with a run through some key weapons that have appeared in the series.

However, the centerpiece to the panel was the revelation of three new weapons that will appear in R&C: A Crack in Time, the Chimp-o-matic, the Rift Inducer 3000, and the return of the R.Y.N.O., now dubbed the R.Y.N.O.V. The Chimp-o-matic turns enemies into one of two kinds of monkeys--organic foes get turned into normal monkeys, while robotic enemies become mechanical cymbal-bashing simians.

The Rift Inducer 3000 is essentially Ratchet's personal on-demand portal of doom to unleash on enemies. The weapon creates a portal to another dimension, presumably something on the demonic side, that's just big enough for the tentacles of something that's clearly not in a very good mood to poke through and grab whatever's close.

Finally Allgeier showed off the new model of R.Y.N.O., the overpowered weapon that lives up to its "rip you a new one" abbreviation, the R.Y.N.O.V. This time out the gun will feature its own soundtrack when fired, the "1812 Overture." If it sounds a little weird, the trailer Allgeier played after discussing the weapons put everything into perspective and sold the idea to the crowd. The over-the-top trailer was a showcase for the game's finely honed sense of humor and an array of weapons.

Takeaway: Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time is shaping up to give fans plenty of explosions and humor.

Random Triva: Insomniac has a running list of weapons that haven't made it into a game yet that range from ninja bombs (bombs that spawn ninjas) to weapons that make use of rainbow-colored afros. Note: Allgeier seems intent on getting the rainbow afro weapon in a game one day.