Not too long ago, after the release of the beta, quite a bit of convincing evidence for characters, stages, and other details leaked. Now, four of those characters and a stage have solid confirmation. These include: Ratchet & Clank, Sackboy, Dante, Spike, and a staged based on the cargo plane segment of Uncharted 3. Once again, I’ve painstakingly reviewed each character’s reveal trailer to extract as many details as possible. I don’t know much about Spike from Ape Escape, so an in-depth analysis for him is absent. Here’s a look at the rest of the new cast:
D
ante:
Yeah, yeah… It’s the new Dante from Ninja Theory’s upcoming DmC. Get over it already! Both that game and his inclusion here look great. The raven-haired rabble-rouser seems to string together effortless combos, much like he should. Like his hack-and-slash hombre, Kratos, he seems to have a good balance close combat and ranged attacks. He can tear you up at close range with his sword, Rebellion, which also transforms into its angelic, scythe-like, Osiris form or the demonic, axe-like, Arbiter form. Or he can unleash a barrage of bullets in all directions with Ebony and Ivory. His ultimate super is sure to hush even the harshest critics, as he enters Devil Trigger mode and ditches his new look for his trademark red jacket and white hair.
Sackboy:
Sackboy’s implementation was something I was really scared about. SuperBot had two roads: incorporate all the great things from the LittleBigPlanet universe or allow him to wear costumes and copy others like Kirby. The Pop-it plays a large role. Various hazards, like electrical and burning platforms can be emitted. Checkpoints can be created and used as a method to teleport. A spider web sticker makes a brief appearance as a means to stun. The sequel’s Cakeinator, bounce pads, power gloves, and grappling hook are all present. And for those of you who wanted Sackboy to be like Kirby, at one point he mimicked PaRappa. His top super fills the level with prize bubbles, trapping the other players inside who must simply await their almost inevitable popping. The whimsy, creativity and humor of the franchise is represented well, placing Sackboy in a league of his own.
Ratchet & Clank
Last but certainly not least, this was the character I’d been waiting for. With an arsenal of epic proportions, I know some of the stuff I want won’t make the cut; there just aren’t enough buttons on the controller. What I did see was more than enough to satisfy most of my desires. Weapons range from the ‘standard’ favorites, like the Combuster, Warmonger, and R.Y.N.O. V, to the more odd, like the Sonic Eruptor, Suck Cannon, and Plasma Whip. There are quite a few assist gadgets too, like the Tesla Spikes, Agents of Doom, and Mr. Zurkon – a personal favorite of mine. It appears that the R.Y.N.O is the level 1 special. Level 2 gives Ratchet a break, allowing Clank to take center stage, lobbing time bombs and smacking people around with the Chronoscepter. For level 3 the duo hops in their ship, Aphelion, and enter a first person mode, shooting both fast lasers and slower clusters of missiles. I was really hoping for the hilarity of a Groovitron super. Maybe it can still appear as an item. Who doesn’t want to see Kratos and Sweet Tooth dance?
The Uncharted level was only briefly shown, but the mash-up involves the city of Colombia from Bioshock Infinite. This is a bit confusing, as the earlier leaked stages featured a level with Colombia in the foreground. Are these linked? Does the plane crash? Will it be weird to play as Big Daddy in the city in the sky? Did Ratchet use the suck cannon to throw PaRappa off the plane? Now I only have more questions!
If all the details from the leak still hold true, we can probably expect to see Raiden, Sir Dan, and Evil Cole. Plus, there are still a heap of stages to see in action. Hopefully there are a few mores well kept surprises that they are holding until the end (Crash and Spyro).
One last note: Vita owners will be happy to find out that with the purchase of a PS3 copy, you’ll receive a downloadable copy of the Vita version. You can cross-play and cross-save until your heart is content.