Sometimes things are better the second time round - and this is something the developers at Insomniac Games know. While things have been quiet for a while on the Ratchet and Clank front, 2016 looks set to be the year the dynamic duo step back into the limelight, with a new animated film, and a game due out this year! And now we know exactly when - the new Ratchet and Clank game will be available in the UK from 22nd April, on the 20th April in Europe, and the 15th in France.
Part tie-in, part remake, Ratchet and Clank on the PS4 is a platform game that looks to offer a fresh take on the duo's first game, way back when on the PS2. Telling the same story, only in a slightly different way, the gameplay side of things promises to marry features from the original game with those from the more recent Future series, which was on the Playstation 3. In practice, what that means is that along with including gameplay tweaks featured in the newer games, like strafing, and new flight sequences, you'll also have access to plenty of the series' trademark ridiculous weapons, too (we're hoping for the return of the Groovitron, which infects anyone nearby with the uncontrollable urge to strut their stuff, and everyone's favourite one-line spewing destruction-bot, Mr Zurkon).
There's plenty of baddies that need bashing with that space spanner, too
As you'd probably expect from a Playstation 4 game, Ratchet and Clank looks set to be a game that's very easy on the eyes, with huge, crisp cityscapes stretching out as far as the eye can see, and plenty of exotic planets to explore. As an added bonus, the game also features clips from the film - although with the PS4's graphics being as fancy as they are, it can sometimes be tricky to tell which is which! As regards the story, the game takes place in the Solana galaxy and centres around Ratchet who is a Lombax (a kind of space cat thing) and Clank who is his robot friend, as they travel through the universe trying to save it from the evil Chairman Drek and the his alien race the Blargs. There will be planets to visit, bosses to defeat and of course the general saving of the universe to be done.
Based as it is on the pair's very first game, Ratchet and Clank also promises to be the perfect place for newcomers to hop on-board too - but while it may be a companion piece to the film, it doesn't follow quite the same story. While the film's told from Ratchet's perspective, the game will instead be told from the viewpoint of Captain Qwark, Ratchet and Clank's take on Zapp Brannigan, who's well known for being a loveable idiot.
So if you're a fan of Ratchet and Clank then get excited for April! With the film out at the end of the month (or more specifically, on the 29th, at least in America), and the game beating it to market on the 22nd, Ratchet and Clank look set to return with a bang.
