Ratchet & Clank

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Some advice for ITN: don't try to collect every single Gargathon Horn straight through. It really fucks up the pacing and led to me being disappointed in the game when I played it the second time.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Beat Into The Nexus.

Definitely a better stopgap than QFB, with quite a lot to do for such a little game. The weapons were really good, and the level design was fairly creative and reminded me a lot of Going Commando at times. Who also knew that Mr. Zurkon was married? I didn't. I liked everything except the 30fps which makes cluster-fudge battles choppy and hard to see. They really should have gone with 60.

Otherwise, I like it. Good end to the Future saga and leaves it open for whatever comes next.

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Yeah, 30FPS and dragginess of the 100% Gargathon Horn collection aside, ITN is excellent. The latter is forgivable since it's optional, and hopefully the former will be rectified in the PS4 game(s).

Unlike QFB, it definitely feels more like an actual game than a glorified DLC pack. It also reminded me more of the PS2 games than the other PS3 titles did. Yerek and Silox are some of the best planets in the entire series, so I can easily forgive the lack of environmental variety, shorter run time, and bothersome frame rate. Overall, while it's far from my favorite R&C game, it's a worthy entry in the series, and I can't wait to see what Insomniac does with the next full length release.

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When I think about it, I feel like the PS3 games may have been a sort of transitional period for this series. While TOD and QFB have all the elements that made the original trilogy great, the platforming and shooting feel too segregated from each other, and since the guns weren't as good as in the PS2 games, the exclusively combat scenarios don't fare nearly as well as they did in UYA's battlefield missions or DL. What I mean is, I think GC and UYA (for the most part) had a perfect blend between jumping and shooting, but TOD and QFB tended to keep those two aspects completely separate from each other, only combining them in the former's best levels. After that, we got ACIT, which was more like R&C1 in terms of being mostly platforming-oriented, and then ITN, which finally brought back the more varied gameplay style from the second and third games.

Perhaps Insomniac was burned out on the series after releasing four entries in as many years during the PS2 days, leading to them losing their way a bit in terms of adhering to/advancing the formula. But I think they really got back on track - after a long break - with ITN (which would have been more obvious had it been a full length release), especially since I remember seeing a video where one of the developers said they went back to play the original games for research purposes. Sunset Overdrive's quality and mainstream success bode well for the future of the studio, and with next year's Ratchet 1 reimagining being "the biggest game they've ever worked on," I have a feeling that the inevitable PS4 trilogy might contain the finest Ratchet & Clank titles yet.

Also, any ETA on your GC post, Spark?

[Spark Of Spirit]

I'm gonna have to put a pause on it, unfortunately. Mostly all the distractions I had.

In related news, my father wanted a next-gen system so I talked him into a PS4. Why? Well, because I might be able to sneak in a R&C game when he's not looking. 

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Paul Giamatti, John Goodman, Sylvester Stallone, and Rosario Dawson are all going to be in the Ratchet & Clank film and PS4 game! Giamatti is playing Drek, which is an awesome choice, but I'll definitely miss Kevin Michael Richardson.

[Spark Of Spirit]

It wasn't one of KMR's better roles so I won't miss him too much, but that's a pretty good cast.

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I've grown really attached to KMR as Drek, though. I just love his voice.

[Peanutbutter]

Wait, Drek's going to be in this? How is that possible? Is this actually going to be the first game adapted, or does he just happen to be the villain of the story they came up for this? Anyway, that's awesome the main characters will be reprieved by their actors while being on the same cast as Rosario Dawson, John Goodman and frickin' Sylvester Stallone himself. How they'd get him?

[Spark Of Spirit]

It's a remake of the first game. It's not like the first few games have very involving stories, so they can really add a lot to them if they want.

[Peanutbutter]

Well, the first game already felt like an animated movie. All they have to do is make sure Ratchet doesn't get too whiny like he did in the first game before Taylor started voicing him. The trailers made this look awesome so I really hope this becomes a big hit.

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It's not a straight remake, more of a redo. There will be a lot of new levels (segments and even planets), and a complete reworking of the storyline. Since it's sort of a partial reboot, they might even include elements from the other PS2 games (I'd love it if DreadZone was the arena) to tie in better with the Future quadrilogy.

The game and film have both been delayed until April 2016. This can only be a good thing, as that month's usually pretty barren in terms of high profile releases, and it also gives Insomniac a chance to polish their game more than usual. Sony might finally be doing right by them again.

Well, the first game already felt like an animated movie. All they have to do is make sure Ratchet doesn't get too whiny like he did in the first game before Taylor started voicing him. The trailers made this look awesome so I really hope this becomes a big hit.

I think one of the main goals behind the semi-remake is to make Ratchet less of an asshole. His development in R&C1 is actually pretty solid for a mascot platformer, but it turned a lot of people off of the game/series, which is why they hired JAT and completely changed his character for the sequel.

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So, uh... looks like Kevin Michael Richardson isn't too happy about Drek being re-cast.

SagAftra sent a check for Paul giamati to me so I mailed it to him,not only did he never say thank you, that mother f%%er took my job !

He also retweeted these:

I am SO PISSED that you weren't cast as Chairman Drek in the new Ratchet and Clank movie!!! MY ANGER IS AN ETERNAL FLAME.

I can't believe they recasted you in the Ratchet&Clank movie for a character you brought to life. They're out of their mind.

I guess they never even offered him the role? That really sucks.

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Some details about the new game I found exciting:

The music is kind of hard to hear, but if you go to around 0:29 in this video and turn your volume way up, you can hear some pretty funky techno beats. Either David Bergeaud is finally back, or they decided to return to the PS2 style of music (at least partially). This makes me extremely happy.

Also, the Clank gameplay from Going Commando seems to be back. He clearly uses a Bridge Bot in the trailer.

Confirmed planets:

Veldin, at night this time

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Novalis

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Kerwan (of course)

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Blarg Tactical Research Station, which appears to be combined with Umbris this time around

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Rilgar, including the hoverboard race

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Gaspar

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Pokitaru

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What looks to be a combination of Hoven and Batalia

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Kalebo III

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Sorry for this perhaps uninteresting post, I'm just way too excited! The reveal trailer/footage is making me really nostalgic and happy.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I see a lot of locations from R&C1. Of course, those are also the most memorable ones from that game.

Honestly, they could cut Batalia, Orxon, and Oltanis and I wouldn't really care. They weren't great levels and they have really no story significance, so combining them with others might be a good idea. I'm curious as to what levels from the other games might make it in like Florana or Aranos which were awesome levels in the original games.

But enough of that. Where's Annihilation Nation?