This Review Contains Spoilers For: Tools of Destruction, Quest For Booty & Crack in Time.
Its been a long time since the dynamic duo have starred in a proper game. 2009 saw the release of A Crack in Time and since then they have appeared in games based solely around mulitplayer or out of their own series (All 4 One, Q-Force & Playsation All-Stars).
So 4 years have passed and now we have an epilogue to the 'Future' series, not that it really needed one but who cares its more Ratchet and Clank!
So for those of you who missed what happened in the series so far, here is a little recap.
The evil Emperor Tachyon attempts to bring a race called the Cragmites through from another dimension using a Lombax device called the Dimensionator in order to rule the galaxy and kill the last remaining Lombax, Ratchet. After defeating Tachyon and deactivating the Dimensionator, Clank is kidnapped by a robotic race called the Zoni. Ratchet and new character Talwyn Apogee along with her robot assistants Cronk & Zephyr begin to hunt down Clank and must stop a pirate called Capitan Darkwater from coming back from the dead.
Ratchet discovers that the evil genius Dr. Nefarious survived their battle a few years before and is behind the kidnapping of Clank, he wishes to use Clank to access 'The Great Clock' and turn back time in order to win the battle against Ratchet. Ratchet reunites with Clank and the duo battle Nefarious and prevail again, however Ratchet decides against using the Great Clock to bring back the Lombax race as the implications could be too dangerous.
Alright so Nexus kicks off with the duo escorting a prisoner by the name of Vendra Prog when their ship is attacked by her twin brother Neftin Prog. R&C are in an abandoned sector at the edge of the galaxy as it is believed to be haunted, however this is all part of the Prog twins plan to use a makeshift Dimensionator to access the Netherworld and allow a species called the Nether to cross into their dimension which could spell disaster for the entire galaxy. So it's up to Ratchet and best buddy Clank to stop the twins, however doing so means that Ratchet must yet again choose between having the ability to save the Lombax race, or save the rest of the galaxy.
From the off, Nexus feels separate from the Future trilogy (Tools of Destruction, Quest for Booty & Crack in Time), though at the same time it does feel more connected the more the game progresses.
This is ideal for newcomers as they don't have to have an understanding of the previous games as the story is relatively self contained and references very little to the Future trilogy, however people who have played the Future trilogy already will have a wealth of understanding that newcomers wont making the story a much more meaningful and poignant experience.
The game is also very short, due to it being coined as an Epilogue rather than a full game. Though it is longer than Quest for Booty which came in at just under 3 hours, it only lasts around 5 hours and that's if you are collectible hunting (of which there aren't many).
That being said Nexus is the most enjoyable R&C game I have ever played and the reason for that lies in its gameplay.
My main gripe with the Future trilogy is that it never really had a set gameplay style. ToD was all action with very little else, QfB was the opposite and had barely any combat and though CiT sort of got the right balance between the two, it was held back by being the final game and not having the opportunity to have this style of gameplay ever flourish as the story took centre stage.
Nexus has a large overhaul in its gameplay, it plays very much like Ratchet: Gladiator with a very heavy emphasis on combat due to a tweaked combat system yet it has all the joy of the QfB & CiT platforming sections.
The overall product does have more combat than downtime, with the majority of your time being spent shooting at things but unlike Tools of Destruction which felt awkward and frustrating due to its over reliance on combat to move the game forward, Nexus thrives on making combat the driving force of the game.
There are less mechanics, all shooting is now handled with just two buttons instead of the 3 or 4 buttons the previous entries and all non-essential combat mechanics such as the 1st person view have been removed from the game.
There are less weapons for you to get your head around, but more variety in what they do. You can still level up your weapons and back is the applying Raritanium for special upgrades last seen in ToD but its all on a much smaller and simplified scale than previously.
In short, Nexus is everything Tools of Destruction wanted to be and it does it brilliantly rather than making it a muddled mess like ToD ended up being.
Clank's gameplay sections are back but this time bear a 2D platforming style rather than the 3D puzzle solving we are used to. As Clank you must traverse the Netherworld and close rifts between it and your own dimension. These sections are not only good, but make a refreshing change of pace from the rest of the game.
In terms of graphics, Nexus raises the bar for visual standards much like the previous R&C games. Environments are beautiful and vividly coloured, the new lighting engine really makes the game look a lot more beautiful thanks to some awesome shadow effects and depth of field effects. It really is pushing the PS3 to its limit, without making it break a sweat like games such as The Last of Us & GTA V have done recently. If I have one gripe, its character models. Though Ratchet & Clank look great, Ratchet in particular. The other characters seem to look a little rushed with many of them looking more like they came from Borderlands than Ratchet and Clank due to thick black almost cartoon detailing on them, compared to something more like a Pixar animated film look that the series has come to associate itself with.
The sound is also yet again top notch with great reprisals from all the returning characters and the new ones are just as great too, hopefully this wont be the end of the Prog twins as they quickly became my 2nd favourite R&C villains (Just behind Nefarious & Lawrence of course).
Ratchet & Clank: Nexus is, besides the length, what a R&C game should be. Beautiful, have some great platforming & puzzle sections but above all have some kick ass combat to tie everything together. I have very little criticism towards Nexus but my biggest gripe is the length, even though we knew it was going to be short, when it finished all I wanted was more because it had finally got the gameplay the series deserved.
Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and Nexus not only finished rather abruptly but also brought the Future series to a define close. Hopefully however characters such as Talwyn & the Prog's will return in the inevitable forthcoming R&C titles. If you own a PS3, you owe it to yourself to not only play Nexus, but the entire Future series as its easily one of the best franchises on the PS3 system.
Ratchet & Clank: Nexus – 8/10
+The Best Gameplay In The Franchise
+Great Finale To The Series
+Visually Stunning
-Some Rough Character Models
-Far Too Short
