I just finished this last week, and I'd say it's the best Ratchet & Clank game yet, and it's one of my favorite ps3 games. It's a real step up from Tools of Destruction.
Between an interesting story involving time control and the history of the Lombaxes, fun new characters like Sigmund the Junior Caretaker, and new gameplay elements that involve the altering of time, A Crack in Time is Ratchet and Clank's most well-crafted and excellently paced adventure yet.
The first thing you'll notice while playing the game is that the graphics are really good, and arguably the best to be had on ps3 at the time of the game's release. The in-game graphics are already very nice, but the FMVs feature improved AA and lighting quality that provides an almost Pixar-like presentation during cutscenes, though sometimes the visuals come closer to claymation.
This excellent presentation is best shown off through the host of new environments found in the game, most notably the Great Clock.
The Great Clock is the great time keeper of the universe, controlling the flow of time across all systems and galaxies. It is through the Great Clock that Clank gains the ability to alter and even somewhat control time, leading to the coolest puzzles yet seen in the series.
Aside from some obvious tricks like being able to slow down objects, Clank is now able to create recordings of himself within certain areas, and at times he must use multiple recordings in parallel to activate various switches and interact with different objects in order to continue on to the next room. They can be quite the brain teasers, and even when you figure out exactly what you have to do to advance, it can be fun replaying puzzles in an attempt to decrease the time and number of recordings it takes to reach the end.
These new puzzles are mixed with a few other new gameplay elements (and many older yet trusted elements) to create a very well-paced overall package, one that rarely feels repetitive or stale. In terms of gameplay, A Crack in Time is the most comprehensive and fun Ratchet & Clank title yet.
I'd highly recommend this title to anybody who likes platformers or third person action games.
And since I'm here, I'd also like to take this time to mention the Quest for Booty, my favorite PSN title.
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The Pirate theme is really a cut abover Insomniac's other work, between the music, dialogue, and art, and taking into account the game's new gameplay tricks (walking up walls all SMG-style, plus using your new wrench to move platforms around), it's overall a fun though very short romp with Ratchet on his quest to find Clank. The cast of Quest for Booty return to host Pirate Radio in A Crack in Time, so be sure to check out the metal-themed station when you play that one as well. And the ast is great. Stinky Pete is hilarious.
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While Tools of Destruction felt like a fairly typical Ratchet & Clank game, they've managed to freshen up both the franchise's aesethetic and gameplay through Quest for Booty and A Crack in Time. I really hope they come up with another cool theme for the next R&C title, like pirates or time, while continuing to provide a great mix of old and new gameplay elements in whatever they decide to work with. I'd gladly take another title if it's as good as A Crack in Time, and word is there's already another Ratchet title on the way!
