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From the time you put the game in your PS2 and start up a new game, you are in for a treat. Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal, created by Insomniac, is the third installment of the Ratchet and Clank series, and it doesn’t disappoint. Let’s check out the features.

The game starts off at the end of the second game, Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando, where our heroes, Ratchet and Clank, are relaxing at home when they see Ratchet’s home planet, Veldin, being invaded by a race of aliens called the Tyhrranoids. They both rush to the planet to stop the alien invasion. What ensues is a hilarious journey all over the galaxy to stop and evil robot named Dr. Nefarious from turning everyone into robots. A hilarious amount of tongue in cheek antics follows throughout the game (such as when one of the robots says “ I don’t wanna die, sarge!”.

Like most action platformers, this game has lots of running and jumping and collecting items. But, one of the innovative parts of the game that keeps it apart from the crowd is the vast array of weapons you can use tol; destroy, smash, blast and vaporize your enemies. Such weapons, like the Shock Cannon and the Plasma Rifle, are a blast to play with. One of the newest additions to the weapon library is the Plasma Whip. Each weapon can be upgraded with continuous use, adding a role-playing element to the game. Not only that, playing through the previous games will give you the option of getting free weapons from the previous games. You can also upgrade your armor during the game as you kill your enemies and gain the currency in this game, bolts. And speaking of enemies, there will be times that there will be many enemies on the screen and there will be absolutely no slowdown.

The game has some great graphics and level design. From lush jungle, complex cities, to giant war zones, the game never just gives you the usual “ice level” or “lava stage”. They have changed from their usual formula of platforming by having some of the worlds being comprised of Battle Missions, which have different objectives for each mission. The AI doesn’t let up on the difficulty, for there will be some times that the enemies will have you down for the count. The boss battles are huge and over the top, with giant robots and giant monsters to give you a challenge. One of the best features making a return is the battle arena, which you can complete various times of challenges for Bolts, such as obstacle courses, fighting with one weapon, and many different scenarios, which adds a load of replayability. There are also some 3D side scrolling element in the form of Vid-Comics, which are comic books that you can play in the form of a game, which is a nice extra built into the game.

The best part of the game is the on-line play, where you can play against other players on the maps available. There clan that is a statistics counter that measures your wins and losses and you can even start or join a game that lets you play with all your friends. The modes range from capture the flag and the usual death match.

RNC: UYA is a finely created game with only a few problems. The only gripe I have with this game is the color of the menu screen. Insomniac has once again given us a great gaming experience that will be an example of platforming genius.