Ratchet and Clank Full Frontal Assault Review

 Title: Ratchet and Clank
           Full Frontal Assault          
Platform: Playstation 3
Developer: Insomniac Games
Genre: Tower Defense
Rating: E

 

When Insomniac suddenly announced the release of an all new Ratchet and Clank game, two emotions overtook me. First like any fan I was excited and then I unexpectedly began to feel really old because FFA was in fact a celebration title dedicated to the tenth anniversary of everyone’s favorite lombax and his mechanic sidekick. The price was also a pleasant reveal being only twenty dollars. That’s a bargain no matter how you look at it now in days right? Insomniac has really catered to their fans by releasing the HD collection of the first three PS2 titles and FFA was to be the icing on the cake. However, one can’t help but wonder if that cheap price tag is a representation in terms of quality. Did Insomniac go for a quick cash grab or is this another adventure fans will cherish for years to come? Well it turns out it’s kind of a mixed bag.

Ratchet stands up for his friends no matter how vain they may be.

First of fans will be surprised to learn that FFA is not a new platforming title that series is known for. That is because FFA is a tower defense game with platforming elements mixed in it. The game does tell a story that involves Ratchet, Clank, and Captain Quark coming under attack from a familiar foe voiced by the always hilarious Richard Horvitz. The Q force chases him down from planet to planet in an attempt to free areas under enemy control all the while struggling to keep their own bases from being overrun by waves of angry aliens. The story stays true in providing the usual zany humor the series is known for but most will find that the laughs may come to a close sooner than they expect since the campaign exists merely as a tool to train players on the new gaming mechanics and takes a back seat while multiplayer is the main focus.

Invader Zim voice actor Richard Horvitz returns bringing many laughs along with him.

Controlling Ratchet and his friends are handled just like they always were with the main difference being that instead of getting from point A to point B, players work to build up their defenses and plan assaults on their foes. As mentioned earlier, FFA is a tower defense game that consists of two teams with their own designated base. Within the bases are a bunch of generators that each player makes the attempt to destroy but before anyone can attack they must rack up points in order to buy various defense/offense upgrades. Points are earned by capturing numerous key nodes strewn throughout the map. Once enough currency is a retrieved, players can devise defense strategies on their base while purchasing regiments to attack their opponents.

Keeping opposing players out of your base just got a lot easier with the help of Mr. Zurkon.

A typical match consists of three rounds. At the start players first have a limited amount of time to venture out and capture as many key nodes as possible - all the while keeping opponents away from the ones they already claimed. The more nodes one captures, the more currency they earn and each newly captured area rewards players with classic weapons from previous games. Once time runs out, the second round starts allowing players to purchase infantry to storm the other player’s base along with whatever defenses they can afford. Key nodes cannot be captured during this time and players have a few moments to plan before the final assault begins. In the third round players must defend their base at all costs from the oncoming horde cast down their opponents while their own troops set off to do the players bidding. If both teams are successful in defending their territory, the rounds start over until someone ends up victorious.

Various upgrades can be purchased on the fly thanks to the intergalactic gun show loophole.

While that may seem a little intimidating at first, it actually works very well. There is a plethora of different infantries one can buy ranging from small foot soldiers to giant heavily armored tanks along with various barricades and turrets that can be used for protection. There’s so much stuff to buy that it’s practically impossible to buy everything within one match. Ranked games can be played one versus one or in two teams of two which in my opinion is vastly superior.

Ratchet's ship is impressive but provides little use within the game.

From a visual standpoint FFA doesn’t show any improvements over the previous game. In fact it takes a step back in terms of graphics. However, it is still pretty to look at with the usual cartoonish animation style and it always runs smooth at sixty frames per second no matter how much chaos is being shown on screen at any given time. No noticeable lag ever showed up on any of the online matches either.

In space no one can hear you derp.

As far as music goes FFA retains its epic space adventure style but nothing outside the theme song will stick out in one’s memory and the sound effects are just what they’ve always been. The voice over work is top notch as expected being performed by the same actors that have stuck with the franchise from the beginning making the characters their own.

Tanks require a lot of firepower to stop and can really wreck one's advantage rather quickly.

FFA does have an Achilles heel however that simply cannot be ignored and that is the game’s longevity. It is shockingly short- so short that the campaign mode only has five levels and two of them are exactly the same with different textures and creatures added in. Even the multiplayer – the main purpose of this release – sports only three levels and for some reason the matchmaking loves to stick with the Korgon Refinery map. Insomniac will be releasing a new map in March but even that may be too little too late because even though it’s only January, the online users a few and far between at this point. That’s really pathetic when your game is just over two months old. Furthermore, developers didn’t give FFA an offline competitive mode only allowing two people at home to play co-op in the campaign mode.  That being said by time the new map arrives, it’s most likely going to be really difficult to find anyone online and by time May rolls around online is going to be a barren digital wasteland leaving players with a meager five level campaign that can be beat well within four hours. Costumes can be unlocked offline for replay value but at best that would stretch the total time to maybe six hours leaving absolutely nothing to draw players back in afterwards –not even as much as a difficulty setting.

A villian points out that Quark's bathrobe is way too revealing.

Overall what you get in Ratchet and Clank FFA isn’t a bad game, It just doesn’t have a lot to offer in terms of the bang for your buck- even with the price tag being as cheap as it is. It will most likely hold no replay value since the online population is already dwindling and the call to leave out an offline competitive mode was an insane call on the developer’s part. It is fun to play but keep in mind that before the end of this year’s first quarter is over, this game most likely won’t offer anything other than a shockingly short campaign. Even if you are a fan of this series like I am, I sadly can’t recommend purchasing this title. It would’ve been another story if the online community was stronger but in the end, a one day rental will be more than enough time to drain this game of all it has to offer.       

Ryan Pierce

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Pros:

Flawless platforming action spliced with fun tower defense elements.

Online mode is a blast to play.

Really cheap price tag.

Cons:

Campaign mode is shockingly short.

Online sports only three maps at the time of launch.

Rapidly fading online community.

No offline competitive mode.