Secret Agent Clank QJ.NET review – Shaken, not stirred

Last week, Secret Agent Clank stealthily made its way to the store shelves. The title’s also infiltrated our PSP, which gives us an opportunity to post our very own review. You can read it over in the full article – just remember to destroy all evidence of the material after you’re done.

Last week saw the launch of Secret Agent Clank, the latest in the Ratchet & Clank series of games. High Impact Games has taken some bold steps with this release, with the introduction of several game innovations that would look right at home in a Bond film.

So, is agent Clank’s latest adventure really all that and more? We won’t spoil it just yet, but you’re welcome to read through our blow-by-blow review, available for your eyes only below.

Clank. Agent Clank.

Perhaps the biggest innovation Secret Agent Clank offers to the Ratchet & Clank franchise is its focus on stealth rather than combat. Much like another well-dressed operative you may know, Clank will have to do much of his work in the shadows, which leads to some interesting new gameplay elements.

For starters, you’re given several means of sneaking about. One way involves keeping out of sight, and using several indicated hiding spots as you attempt to clear a room. The other way, which becomes available when you get the Holomonocle, is to disguise yourself as one of the goons. Speaking of stealth, we’ll be moving on to the next portion – assassinations.

If you sneak up behind a guard, you’ll be prompted to activate a four-button sequence to take them out. Pulling this off successfully treats you to an amusing combo animation, aside from keep your presence from the sentries incognito.

Foul it up, however, and not only will the guard see you, but he’ll most likely alert his buddies. Sure, you can opt to go Rambo, but given the number of enemies you tend to encounter when you raise the alarm,  you risk running out of ammo, walking away badly beaten, or dead.

Clank’s mission eventually transition into two distinct portions: The Gadgetbots, and a rhythm-and-action segment. The Gadgetbot side-quests tie in directly with Clank’s current predicament, and consists mostly of puzzle-based challenges wherein you free Clank from a vault, or protect him from traps.

The rhythm portion, as you’ve guessed, will have you inputting button commands according to a set tempo. Not entirely original, but the sort of moves Clank pulls off on a successful run are certainly worth the effort. The ballroom dance scene alone is to die for.

Ratchet: From hero to zero 

Ratchet’s doing hard time for attempting to steal the Eye of Infinity, and it’s about to get harder. The prison he’s been shipped off to also happens to hold the goons and thugs he put away from the past games and needless to say, they would love to return the favor, albeit terminally.

So, what’s an ex-galactic hero to do in such a hairy predicament? Easy – blast your way to survival. Ratchet’s segment reprises the tried-and-true gameplay of the Ratchet & Clank franchise where your goal is to pull out your favorite big gun, and mow down any hostiles that come your way with a steady stream of explosions and bullets. For the record, my favored weapon is the mine launcher.

Upon completing each of his stages, you’ll also get the option of replaying the scenario under different rules. For example, a battle in the prison showers requires that you keep a frequently towel-less Ratchet from getting his picture taken by one of several cameras floating in the area. Strategically placed censor bars ensure that it doesn’t get too obscene, aside from adding more flavor to the humor.

Aside from occasional gems like that, however, most of these battles tend to devolve into pretty mundane slug fests. Regardless, Ratchet’s prison fights are one of the best ways for you to earn bolts. And to blow stuff up.

Qwark: Tall-tales-R -Us

For his part, Qwark’s been commissioned by an unknown third-party to write his autobiography. And blow hot air he does – his segment consists of you re-living his past battles, which range from giant mechanical Godzilla-like monsters to a totally random stage production… with lemurs.

Actual gameplay-wise, Qwark’s bouts are best described as Ratchet “Lite.” His segment plays out similarly to the Lombax’s prison, save that you’re stuck to just one blaster and the occasional power-ups. Said power-ups range from vacuum cleaners, heat vision, to giant animal-shaped sponges, so while Qwark’s lacking in the hardware department, you can at least look forward to some very amusing ways of offing the opposition.

The Highs:

Secret Agent Clank‘s humor is definitely a big plus, thanks in part to Clank’s trademark dry wit. Qwark steals the show to a certain extent with his crazy ad-lib biography, although his lackluster gameplay crippled what could have been an utterly hilarious ordeal.

Clank’s weapons are another crowd-pleaser. I especially like the way they broke away from the franchise’s “big guns” approach, instead opting to give us something more discreet without sacrificing functionality.

For example, the Tie-A-Rang is not only your primary long-range weapon and fashion accessory, but is also a tool for cutting down cables, either to lower a bridge, or to drop something really heavy on an unsuspecting foe.

One other weapon I’ve come to like is the Tanglevine Carnation, a seemingly harmless corsage that creates a vicious man-eating plant when it’s dropped on the ground. Sure, the Cuff Link bombs do more damage, but you can’t beat the sight of a giant toothed flower that suddenly  pops out of the ground and swallows your adversary whole.

The Lows:

All that said and done, you’d think that Secret Agent Clank would have made made its mark as another hard-hitting title in the Ratchet & Clank franchise. Unfortunately this isn’t the case.

For one, the stealth segment of the gameplay just doesn’t deem quite as rewarding as it was intended to be. Sure, sneaking about is fun and all, but honestly, I was more concerned with trying to save up bolts for my next weapon purchase/upgrade. I quickly realized that this was much easier to do if I just let myself get spotted, and wiped out the ensuing mob that appeared.

Another problem I’ve encountered were those pre-fab attack sequences. Maybe it’s just me, but there are times I wished that instead of being just a spectator, the devs could have instead let me activate those attacks one move at a time, on command. Anybody who’s played God of War will know what I’m talking about. Same goes for the rhythm segments

In general, Secret Agent Clank‘s biggest problem was the way its challenges and gameplay aspects just didn’t seem to fit in. Rather than one cohesive game, it felt like I was playing through an amalgamation of ideas, each not quite sure of how it was supposed to interlace with the one next to it. For one, the way the game suddenly transitions from Clank’s plot to either Ratchet’s or Qwark’s has a way of breaking up the pacing.

We appreciate that High Impact’s effort at trying to introduce some fresh ideas like the stealth action into the series, but from the way it turned out, this title could have used just a bit more polishing to allow its elements to effectively follow through. 

The Verdict:

“Jack of all trades but the master of none” best describes Secret Agent Clank. It could have been better if its individual elements were tied neatly together, and perhaps made a tad longer. It’s still loads of fun despite these shortcomings, and just as funny as the likes of Tools of Destruction or Size Matters. We give it three stars out of five.

On a related note, I think it’s high time Qwark got his own game.