Ratchet & Clank - On this day
At the turn of the generation between the first and second PlayStation, Sony lost ownership of Crash and Spyro, which went to other platforms as well. However, they were replaced by Jak and Daxter, Sly Racoon, and Ratchet & Clank. It was this last duo that was launched on this day exactly nineteen years ago.
Ratchet & Clank found himself on the road between a platformer and a third-person shooter and remained praised for his imaginative characters, enemies, and crazy weapons. The game came to life primarily due to the collaboration between two studios - Insomniac Games and Naughty Dog, as it was created on the technology originally developed for the Jak and Daxter games. It is interesting that both studios have been in the "same family" since 2019 and are owned by Sony Interactive Entertainment.
The title duo changed many forms during development, so Ratchet was a lizard at one point, but later, due to its association with agility, moved to the cat class. Clank, on the other hand, was supposed to be presented as a three-part robot, but its designers realized that this would unnecessarily complicate the character. However, Clank can use other robots called Gadgebots in the game.
Although the gameplay was mostly reduced to platformer elements, collecting screws and fighting enemies, there were also some separate mini-games, such as hovercraft racing. One of the more impressive levels involved an air battle where players controlled a Ratchet & Clank spacecraft.
Ratchet & Clank achieved a notable result for one platformer. By 2006, it was among the 50 best-selling games for the PS2 console in the United States. Sequels followed at intervals each year, and by 2013 there were as many as eleven. By switching to the PlayStation 4, the game received a remake that was also accompanied by a film adaptation. Unfortunately, the film was not very successful, so the future of the series in the form of a film is now in question. However, this year we got a completely new game in the series - Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, which picked up great reviews and sympathies from the owners of the PS5 console.