Ratchet & Clank Aims to Redefine Movie-Based Games

We have never been so impressed by a movie-based game as we have with the new Ratchet & Clank title coming to PS4.

Insomniac Games' tagline for the new Ratchet & Clank on PS4 says it all: "Play the game based on the movie based on the game." Remember that horrible game based on Street Fighter: The Movie that featured live action characters? This new Ratchet & Clank game takes the same approach, but in an excellent way. It's based on the upcoming Hollywood movie which is based on the original game of the series for PlayStation 2. This new PS4 game takes some of the elements and characters from the original 2002 hit game, but steers it all in a completely different direction. Ratchet & Clank (PS4) will rally together Ratchet, Clank, Captain Qwark and a bunch of new allies to take on the nefarious Chairman Drek and stop him from wreaking havoc on the galaxy.

Here's what Insomniac Games' Community Lead James Stevenson said about the project on the PlayStation Blog:

We knew early on that we didn’t want to just up-res Ratchet & Clank for PS2. We started out thinking of Ratchet & Clank on PS4 as a “re-imagining” of the 2002 original, revised to tie in with the deeper version of Ratchet’s origin story (as seen in the film). We envisioned a curated Ratchet & Clank experience that borrowed from the spirit of the classic PS2 games while infusing some of the best elements from the Ratchet & Clank Future games.

We ended up with a new game, with elements based on the original — but now with modern controls, several new planets, new and updated gameplay segments, all-new Clank gameplay, all new boss fights, new flight sequences, and more… all constructed to take advantage of the graphical prowess of PS4. Throw in James Arnold Taylor as Ratchet, and you have a new beginning.

We have to admit that this trailer looks absolutely stunning. It's hard to tell which portions of the trailer were cutscenes and which were actual gameplay. The gameplay portions featured third-person shooter mechanics, but everything looked so impressive. As always, Insomniac Games knows how to tap into the full potential of PlayStation hardware. In terms of guns, Ratchet & Clank's arsenal mainly features weapons that weren't in the original game, including brand new weapons and a few fan favorites from the entire series.

Ratchet and Clank was expected to hit theaters on April 26, 2016, but both the movie and tie-in PS4 title have been slapped with a Spring 2016 launch window. Pre-ordering the game will get you The Bouncer weapon from Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando.