Quick Look: Ratchet and Clank: Into the Nexus

I've not followed this series at all, but wow, I haven't heard of this game existing at all until the quicklook. I'd think that designing this title as a PS4 game with up-res'd graphics would have made that launch slightly better and given the game itself a whole lot more attention.

What the heck, I'm a huge R&C fan and I had no idea this existed. Sony sending out games to die again?

In any case, I really appreciated how well prepared Patrick was for this quick look, thanks Patrick.

When did this series become sub-30FPS? The ultra-smooth 60FPS of the originals was great and made all the animations feel that much more alive, not to mention that 60FPS is fantastic for platformers, even when the games are a little light on platforming.

I don't get how Into The Nexus is a dirty joke of any kind but Ok?

@paindamnation: Boy you said it.

What was fun about Crack In Time was speeding around with the pegasus boots. Can you do that in this game?

Never played a R&C game before, but picked up tools of destruction some days ago and I'm having a blast. The weapons are awesome, the action gets a little repetetive sometimes but it's still fun, the graphics are still pretty good, especially on the character-models. I like the characters too and there is some pretty funny dialogue in it. It kind of takes me back to the platformers of ps2 in a way.

How did I not play this series up until now?

Ratchet games are always a fun time.

This game is indeed a return to form for Insomniac, I really enjoyed it. I'm almost done with my second playthrough (on Hard + Challenge mode) as it stands. Gonna level up all my weapons (of which there are 12, more than Patrick had guessed) and get that hot platinum trophy.

Yup, you get the rocket boots later on. One of the planets is basically a swamp with a lot of hot jumps to make with your boots.

This game is easily on par with A Crack in Time. Spectacular and only $30.

Really freaking me out, that girl voiced by Hynden Walch.

I'm such a huge fan of this series. So happy to have a more classic R&C back!

I don't get it either; it's not like the PS3 was dying sales-wise or the PS4 was B/C. /boggle

Can someone please explain to me what the pun in the title is here?

Ratchet and Clank is, like, the 3D equivalent of Mega Man for me. That is, you keep releasing them, and I'll keep buying and enjoying them. Don't even need to change up the formula at all (although, I do think that forgoing the planet-hopping style for an interconnected world gated by your acquired abilities would be a perfect fit).

Should have prettied this up and put it out on PS4.

I only ever played a few hours of Quest for Booty and couldn't get into it at all.

Can anyone suggest if that means these games aren't for me or is QfB not representative of the other games in the franchise?

It's funny when Vinny doesn't agree with things Patrick says...he just goes quiet about the topic. Like, the games-less Vita and the Borderlands-style enemy.

Vinny hates confrontation!

Up Your Arsenal was one of my favorite games ever - one of the few games that I truly 100%.

I might need this...

The PS2 games really are great. I didn't agree with Patrick about them being hard to go back to - the 'chunky' style and really nice character models still hold up today. In fact if anything I think the PS3 sequels have been a disappointment in terms of improving graphics - this quick look didn't really wow me - I'm more wowed by the fact the original game is 10 years old and still looks as good as it does.

If this came out for the PS4 launch and not Knack, I would have a PS4 right now. This looks great!

Also, how is "Into the Nexus" a pervy joke? D: I guess I'm not getting it.

Looks good.

Quest for Booty is pretty bad compared to the other games. But the core gameplay is pretty much the same.

I don't think it actually is, but the original name they wanted to go with was "Into the Nether Regions". I wish they had gone through with it.

Asks about lock-on and strafing in the game. Opens gameplay menu, an option to turn on

"lock strafe" is there, closes menu. Must not be able to lock on or strafe in this game.

I wasn't expecting to see commercials or adds for this game, but I never heard this game mentioned once at E3 or by the media. So I didn't know it existed until like 2 weeks ago.

Ouch, framey.

The PS+ purchase thing is great. I've already "purchased" Resogun and Contrast for the PS4 I'm likely getting next year. And given that Dragon's Dogma and Binary Domain were PS+ offerings this month, they're still doing pretty well by PS3 owners.

It's weird there's been almost zero hype for this game but I guess that's what happens when you release your game during the launch of a new console generation.

Seeing as you are watching a Quick Look of one...

@aishan: You say this like it it's a bad thing, like you're actually rooting against charming platformers. Grow a heart, man.

Good to know I'm not the only one that thought Crack in Time was one of the best of the generation.

After A Crack in Time Insomniac said that they would switch over to 30FPS due to constantly making sacrifices to the visuals/mechanics of the older games to keep them running at 60FPS. While a bit of a bummer, this one still looks great compared to 90% of the PS3 library.

Is Vinny really going to play Dark Souls 2 on PS3? With the spongey triggers and potentially spotty frame rate he's experiencing in the current game?

Provided the PC version of the new game is a good port it seems the obvious choice.

wait wait wait... you mean to tell me this is a new game and sony didn't make this happen on PS4 in a bigger way??? clearly a missed opp to sell more consoles.

PS2 R&C games were the first games I played on my system. Such a shame they've not been given their due from Sony lately.

Man, I need to play this. I love R&C, and I never really get bored of playing them. Might even be able to squeeze it in before GotY.

Less than 10 minutes in, and we're already balls deep talking about "psychological compulsion loops" in a Ratchet and Clank game.

This looks fun, but doesn't seem to match--or even approach--the quality and fun of Up Your Arsenal. I loved the series for the original trilogy, but after the mediocre Deadlocked and the by-the-numbers Tools of Destruction I fell out with the series. It's cool that there's still a fanbase for these games though.

Great franchise, one of the few that as forever entertained me.