Insomniac's Secret Title Revealed!!!

[Perfect Stu]

http://www.psxnation.com/news/newsstory?idnumber=001113

For what seems like an eternity, the next project from the creators of the acclaimed Spyro the Dragon series has been a well-kept industry secret. Names such as Project Racoon have been tossed about with wreckless abandon, with the sole piece of concrete information known about the game being merely that it would be mind-blowing.
Well, the secret is finally revealed, and it's set to be the hottest holiday title of 2002 exclusively for Playstation 2.

Ratchet & Clank, developed by Insomniac Games, is the development team's first project for PlayStation 2. Since shifting development to the PS2 immediately after finishing work on the final Spyro game for PSone, the team has been working feverishly behind closed doors trying to re-invent the wheel, so to speak.

In what's being described as a "new dynamic, action-filled, weapons-based adventure game set in a fantastic sci-fi universe", Ratchet & Clank will allow gamers to travel through a fantastic sci-fi universe, visit planets and encounter mutiple species.

You play as Ratchet, and your sidekick, Clank, is somewhat along the lines of Daxter from Naughty Dog's recent PS2-platforming hit, Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy. It's unknown if his role at any time becomes playable. Not much is known about the story as of yet, but a few gameplay details have been leaked.

The gameplay focuses mainly on the action/shooter genre, as you can blow up pretty much everything that stands in your way.

The scope of the game is utterly massive, and the few lucky staffers that have been fortunate enough to see the game in action have been left completely speechless. With an extremely advanced particle effects system, the visuals are said to be much more impressive than the aforementioned Naughty Dog platformer.

More details are sure to flood the net in the coming days, just remember where you read it first. We'll have screens and more info on the storyline shortly...

From Game Informer:

Ratchet and Clank.

While exciting for consumers, the 2001 calender year proved to be incredibly frustrating and overly competitive for game manufacturers. If a product didn't have a significant historical backing, or an innovative feature that really stood out as extraordinary, it was essentially destined to be buried within the overwhelming amount of new software hitting the market. Two shining examples: Grand Theft Auto 3 offered an enticing and completely original gameplay experience, while Metal Gear Solid 2 sold by namesake alone. On the other hand, a title like Jak and Daxter, which was at the top of its genre, didn't have the name recognition or the unique appeal to truly make it stand out as a must-have property. Upstart franchises are subject to failure---no matter how impressive they may be. In this day and age, the driving force behind success of games is immediate recognition and the ability to deliver a revolutionary playing experience. With the overabundance of quality titles on the market, there really is no place for complacency.
Following up on the release of Jak and Daxter, Naughty Dog's President Jason Rubin expresses frustration with the current shape of the industry. "Movie people will go watch Meg Ryan fall in love with the actor of the day; break up; cry; get back together; and have a happy ending once a year, every year to the tune of 50 to 100 million dollars in the box office. They never say,'Wait a minute! That's the same plot with a different city!' They never say 'madlib movie'. In our industry, the gamer doesn't want to see another Meg Ryan movie. They want to see something new in every game that they play. The consumer has expectations for the movement of the video game industry that outweigh anything that's happening in any other entertainment medium."
Insomniac Games, creator of the critically acclaimed and best-selling Spyro the Dragon series, has run headlong into this dilemma. Despite having assembled one of the most talented teams in recent memory, Mark Cerny, who contributed in the creation of Crash Bandicoot, Spyro and Jak and Daxter games, questions "Is it still possible to make a genre breaker in the year 2002?" Even if this goal is attainable, another hurtle tower like a monolith in front of the Insomniac team. Does the PlayStation 2 still cater to the actio/platformer audience? As of now, it doesn't appear so.
One can't overlook the fact that Grand Theft Auto 3 and Metal Gear Solid 2 went on to sell millions of copies within the blink of an eye. Violence and serious themes are the current trend-setters. The success of these games clearly shows that a significant portion of the PS2 adopters are, in fact, adults. Right now, the majority of gamers are looking for the next experience along these lines. A fuzzy character doesn't even register to them at this point. So, can the action/platformer genre reclaim the spotlight? Most definitely.
All it really take is a groundbreaking effort.

Main Article

If the Spyro series is any indication as to how creative the team can be, conceiving a groundbreaking project shouldn't be a terribly frustrating endeavor. As Insomniac soon found out, however, starting with a clean slate is an exciting proposition, but one filled with infinite possibilities. On a daily basis, the team would meet---on the roof of their development studio of all places---to discuss what they wanted to do next. Hundreds of interesting ideas were thrown around, several of which could have been transformed into inventive games in their own right; but the team wasn’t in complete agreement until Brian Hastings, a veteran designer at Insomniac, proposed a concept of a character traversing space to visit different worlds. This idea intrigued the entire staff, and would allow for the creation of an expansive Star Wars-like universe where discovery is constant and uncertainty lurks around every corner.
Ted Price, Insomniac’s President, comments. “At this point, the team immediately began toying with this concept. We knew what we wanted to do.” Even though the design screamed for a character who embodied the essense of Marvin the Martian, Insomniac wanted to create a hero of a mascot proportions that reflected the true nature of an action/plat former game. As luck would have it, the team knew exactly what they wanted in terms of a hero. Within just a matter of minutes, a fuzzy, attitude-driven mammal named Ratchet was born. His name stems from his love for mechanics and gadgetry. Most action/platform characters, even Mario, have a distinct look, but don’t really have an identity. Insomniac wanted to shatter this perception. Thus, a monumental story was penned---one that brings Ratchet into the forefront and expands upon his personality throughout the course of the adventure.
The game takes place in a galaxy very different from ours; a place where robots, spaceships and high-tech gizmos are the norm. Ratchet lives on a backwater planet at the edge of the galaxy. Much like Luke Skywalker, he has always wanted to explore the cosmos. The similarities with George Lucas’ most famous hero are such that we wouldn’t be surprised if Insomniac incorporates a panoramic shot of Ratchet, looking longingly at two setting suns.
Working as a mechanic, Ratchet comes to the conclusion that the only way he’ll leave this boring rock is through the construction of his own spaceship. Although extremely talented and dedicated to his cause, Ratchet knows that his odds are slim, especially since he doesn’t have a robotic ignition system---a component that is extremely hard to obtain. All, as it would seen, is lost.
Meanwhile, in another part of the galaxy, an evil race know only as the Blarg have come to wits end with their living arrangements. The Blargarian planet is overpopulated and heavily polluted. All life will perish if action isn’t taken immediately. The Blargarian leader has devised a brilliant plan to save his people, but the consequences will be immeasurable. Whether his intentions are just remains to be seen, yet this mysterious being has decided to create his own synthetic utopia by cutting pieces of other worlds and joining them together. Naturally, every planet he dissects will be destroyed.
To ensure his plans aren’t foiled, he’s strategically placed robot factories throughout the galaxy. Working around the clock, these factories continually spit out heavily armed automatons with the goal of making every planetary race an endangered one; thus reducing the threat of planetary forces resisting the eradication of their world. All is working to plat until one of the war factories malfunctions and spits out a defective robot. Unarmed, minute, and surprisingly intelligent---the exact opposite of the original design---the robot emerges with a personality all his own. His name is Clank.
No mindless drone, Clank is self-aware and intent on stopping the leader’s plan. Clank manages to flee the factory and rockets into space. After a laser-filled escape through the stars, the robotic hopeful is shot down, crash-landing on Ratchet’s planet. As fortune would have it, Ratchet stumbles across the unconscious machine, tossing Clank on his back, believing some of his parts can be used as scrap.
As Ratchet labors away on his spacecraft, Clank awakens and frantically urges his newfound companion to help him save the galaxy. While a little reluctant, Ratchet agrees; but at this point, he would accept any offer if it resulted in leaving this boring place. Clank’s ship is demolished, but it just happens that he has the components needed to finish Ratchet’s ship. Out of convenience, the two team up and blast off to combat the cosmic scourge.

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