Jump to content

A weak and shallow remake


Sir-Syzygy

Recommended Posts

Pre-rant disclaimer: As some may notice, I don't have this game on my trophy list or on my Backloggery. This doesn't mean I haven't played the game, I had a chance at a friend's house. Regardless, what I have seen from this game I feel is enough for me to make an informed opinion piece. 

 

After this 2016 remake/reboot became free to all PS+ members, I decided to do some research regarding the game to see if it would be worth my time (including actually playing parts of it at a friend's house), and frankly, it looks like a shallow and sterile imitation of the 2002 version.

Character issues: The main leads seem to have had their edge and depth stripped away in order to be more universally appealing for the film that was realised in tandem with this PS4 version. Not to mention the complete slaughter of the original character arcs each character went through. Such as Ratchet going from a basically a reluctant anti-hero, to the saviour of the galaxy, or Qwark's trilogy-long-arc of becoming less of a scumbag and the general dumbing down of all the aliens that are met over the events of the game. 

Now, normally this would be fine if the gameplay was good. Although, all accounts from people I've asked hint towards this remake being watered down and even on the hardest difficulty, seemingly easier than any previous main series instalment.

Gameplay issues: I don't have nearly as many qualms with the gameplay as I do the character changes. However, I still find the gameplay a poor imitation of the original game that came out over a decade prior. Put simply, it's incredibly easy. When I finally got my hands on the HD collection for the original trilogy (I say this because even though I had played the PS2 versions, it was when I was still a small child and my older cousin played through all the hard parts) I had a genuinely tough time beating the original 2002 game, and I'm a guy who thinks Crash Bandicoot is relatively easy. 

 

You may now give your opinions and thoughts

 

EDIT: Don't get your knickers in a twist. If you post an aggressive, personal attack in reply to this topic, your post will most likely be removed. A few have been already, please do yourself and your fellow PSN users a favour and don't be the next person removed.

 

Edited by Crispy78923
Original topic only mentioned character issues. Topic has been edited to include gameplay critiques.
  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 minutes ago, Crispy78923 said:

While I never owned the original PS2 classics, I did play it whenever I visited my older friend who used to play all the famous PS2 platformers constantly. After this 2016 remake/reboot became free to all PS+ members, I decided to do some research regarding the game to see if it would be worth my time, and frankly, it looks like a shallow, sterile and desperate imitation of the 2002 version.

The main leads seem to have had their edge and depth stripped away in order to be more universally appealing for the film that was realised in tandem with this PS4 version. Not to mention the complete slaughter of the original character arcs each character went through. Such as Ratchet going from a basically a reluctant anti-hero, to the saviour of the galaxy, or Qwark's trilogy-long-arc of becoming less of a scumbag and the general dumbing down of all the aliens that are met over the events of the game. Also, it seems the original plot-twist regarding Drek (which for the sake of those who haven't played the old trilogy, I won't spoil) was lazily revealed upfront for the sake of a lame joke.

So I ask of any of you who've played this 2016 remake, does the gameplay make up for these shortcomings? Are things better in context then they seem based on my research and opinions I've heard from others? Is this remake a triumphant return to greatness for the series? Or a tragic demise of what once was great? 

You're right about the sterile, saccharine characters and story at least, but the gameplay is decent enough, if a bit inferior to the earlier games. Personally I was not a huge fan of it due to the lower frame rate (which Insomniac flat out stated they were sacrificing in favour of visuals after they finished A Crack in Time), removed planets (and cut sections from existing planets) and awful animations (the in-game cutscenes are incredibly stilted and there's animations in general that are missing. The PS2 games had more expressive animations). Like I said, it's good enough but if you're a fan of the previous games you're gonna be a bit disappointed, and I was a bit more annoyed considering this was the same company. Looks nice, though. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm just going to keep it simple. I love it. Not my first time with Ratchet series so I know a bit of the story shit already. So just here for gameplay and pretty visuals. More playing less analyzing every flaw and the world may be a better place....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, iamjax said:

 

I mean, not everything needs to operate on this very polar extreme sort of basis where it's either the greatest thing ever or a plague on humanity; it's a good-to-even-great and fun game, but I prefer the douchier kind of Ratchet in past games rather than this kind of sterile boy scout we got in this version.

 

The visuals are stunning, the gameplay is a blast (great trophy list, too), and I loved all the colorful worlds, but I dislike the movie tie-in cutscenes (especially considering the movie sucked) as well as some of the funkier animations in the game that come off as kind of plastic (see: Ratchet's response to getting the hoverboard from his hero... very awkward).

 

It's an 8-8.5/10; a very good follow up to a fantastic franchise, but probably not the best. I wouldn't use the word "triumphant", but if this is the quality we can expect to see going forward, then it's a good sign.

@iamjax I completely agree that not everything should be judged as either great or grotesque, I merely used the two extremes because that's how I felt after having seen what I have looked at to do with this game.

Anyway, thanks for the reply. 

41 minutes ago, ERGOPROXY-DECAY said:

I'm just going to keep it simple. I love it. Not my first time with Ratchet series so I know a bit of the story shit already. So just here for gameplay and pretty visuals. More playing less analyzing every flaw and the world may be a better place....

@ERGOPROXY-DECAY Aren't you a cheeky one, with the snarky comments. Very nice, even if you did exaggerate my intentions. 

Edited by Crispy78923
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, LunchCannon54 said:

You're right about the sterile, saccharine characters and story at least, but the gameplay is decent enough, if a bit inferior to the earlier games. Personally I was not a huge fan of it due to the lower frame rate (which Insomniac flat out stated they were sacrificing in favour of visuals after they finished A Crack in Time), removed planets (and cut sections from existing planets) and awful animations (the in-game cutscenes are incredibly stilted and there's animations in general that are missing. The PS2 games had more expressive animations). Like I said, it's good enough but if you're a fan of the previous games you're gonna be a bit disappointed, and I was a bit more annoyed considering this was the same company. Looks nice, though. 

@LunchCannon54 Yeah, that's what it seems like based on what I've seen. Hopefully, if they remake the other PS2 games, or make entirely new titles, they'll have more depth and personality.

1 hour ago, TJ_Solo said:

What's so hard about downloading a free title from PS+ and just playing the game?
You might like it or you might not. All of the changes have been covered by the devs already. The dust settled 2 years ago and the game won't cost you anything directly if you already have PS+. Play it, you might be less bitter.

@TJ_Solo It's difficult for me to start a game and then not finish it. Not to mention the fact I don't exactly have a lot of vacant memory space on my PS4. I find your judgement of me as "bitter" just going off this thread as sad, I'm sure you're a nice guy but that's no way to talk to a stranger.

1 hour ago, Golden Devil Gamer said:

I haven't played the new R&C yet, but the change in tone is what's putting me off from the series. I had the game on hold for almost two years, though I should actually give it a try someday (maybe after playing the HD collection). Gameplay wise, it seems similar to the previous games, and the game's got some pretty visuals. Hopefully those make up for the lackluster change in tone. There's a pretty good video that goes in-depth with the tonal change. 

 

 

@Golden Devil Gamer Since I only ever played the PS2 games with my older friend, I essentially just watched him play during most parts, so I picked up the HD collection recently. It has a few visual glitches as a result of a sloppy transfer but overall it's still the same old, amazing games, the original Ratchet & Clank from 2002 might be one of my all-time favourite games.

Edited by Crispy78923
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

From what I remember I do recall the story and characters getting dumbed down a bit in comparison to the old games, mostly for what felt like the necessity to tie in with the movie (which I've heard was awful btw ... what a surprise a movie based on a game that sucks ass? never heard that one before :P ) and a general tone shift, which felt like it was trying to appeal a bit more to the kids. 

 

None the less the gameplay was still was still very much enjoyable and the visuals are a treat to behold (even if the frame rate has been cut down a bit in favor of this as someone else already pointed out) so I'd say its definitely still worth playing, especially since its free with ps+ right now :)

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, TJ_Solo said:

 

It looks easy to start and not finish a game to me. You could even start the game on an alt account and delete the account in order to just test the game out. The space on your PS4 is just memory. Delete, Download, install, repeat at many times as necessary. You're going to need to clear space anyway for new games.  You look bitter with all your excuses and apparent distaste for this game. You clearly don't like it. No point in dragging out this topic only to defensive when someone just says "try it" to you.

 

What does an alternate account have to do with anything? I'd still be personally starting the game. Just because you can find something fine, doesn't mean others will. Consider other people, don't be restricted to thinking about only yourself.

Also, you literally never said "try it", go ruin someone else thread, please.

 

Edited by Crispy78923
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, TJ_Solo said:

 

It looks easy to start and not finish a game to me. You could even start the game on an alt account and delete the account in order to just test the game out. The space on your PS4 is just memory. Delete, Download, install, repeat at many times as necessary. You're going to need to clear space anyway for new games.  You look bitter with all your excuses and apparent distaste for this game. You clearly don't like it. No point in dragging out this topic only to defensive when someone just says "try it" to you.

 

Please stop derailing this thread.

Anyway, to address the original topic, I played this game start to finish at a friend's house, and yes, it's really bad. Don't bother with it.

Edited by Rusty2366
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, HusKyCode said:

Coming from someone who played R&C 1 and 2 last year on PS2, I absolutely loved it. Sure, might be different to originals but it's a lot of fun, and the visuals are beautiful.

@HusKyCode Good to hear from someone who played the old games. Maybe I will try the new one.

 

2 hours ago, Rune2303 said:

From what I remember I do recall the story and characters getting dumbed down a bit in comparison to the old games, mostly for what felt like the necessity to tie in with the movie (which I've heard was awful btw ... what a surprise a movie based on a game that sucks ass? never heard that one before :P ) and a general tone shift, which felt like it was trying to appeal a bit more to the kids. 

 

None the less the gameplay was still was still very much enjoyable and the visuals are a treat to behold (even if the frame rate has been cut down a bit in favor of this as someone else already pointed out) so I'd say its definitely still worth playing, especially since its free with ps+ right now :)

 

 

@Rune2303 Completely agree about that terrible film. It seems that most agree the gameplay is great with this remake, not too much of a surprise actually. I am worried that the treatment of the story will render the experience negative regardless. I understand that's not fair and a bad way to judge a game, so I hope (if I play it) I don't end up being that way, but I have a strong feeling I won't be able to get over it.

 

7 minutes ago, Rusty2366 said:

Boo hoo. Go cry to someone else, stop derailing this thread.

Anyway, to address the original topic, I played this game start to finish at a friend's house, and yes, it's really bad. Don't bother with it.

@Rusty2366 I share your thoughts of this troublemaker but try not to be so rude here. I like you but I have to be fair about attitude, it is the site rules after all.  

Edited by Crispy78923
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Crispy78923 said:

@HusKyCode Good to hear from someone who played the old games. Maybe I will try the new one.

 

@Rune2303 Completely agree about that terrible film. It seems that most agree the gameplay is great with this remake, not too much of a surprise actually. I am worried that the treatment of the story will render the experience negative regardless. I understand that's not fair and a bad way to judge a game, so I hope (if I play it) I don't end up being that way, but I have a strong feeling I won't be able to get over it.

 

@Rusty2366 I share your thoughts of this troublemaker but try not to be so rude here. I like you but I have to be fair about attitude, it is the site rules after all.  

Very true, I'll edit my comment.

Edited by Rusty2366
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It doesn't seem awful at all unless you're blind as hell and can't judge anything rationally.

5 hours ago, LunchCannon54 said:

You're right about the sterile, saccharine characters and story at least, but the gameplay is decent enough, if a bit inferior to the earlier games. Personally I was not a huge fan of it due to the lower frame rate (which Insomniac flat out stated they were sacrificing in favour of visuals after they finished A Crack in Time), removed planets (and cut sections from existing planets) and awful animations (the in-game cutscenes are incredibly stilted and there's animations in general that are missing. The PS2 games had more expressive animations). Like I said, it's good enough but if you're a fan of the previous games you're gonna be a bit disappointed, and I was a bit more annoyed considering this was the same company. Looks nice, though. 

Insomniac said that because consumers don't give a shit about 60FPS. And they were correct. Sucks, because ACiT visuals were fine and I didn't personally notice a huge step up in Nexus. Hard to count the spinoffs since they're different kinds of games.

Ingame cutscenes were shit in the Future games as well. It's just the nature of moving away from only telling the story in pre-rendered/scripted cutscenes. Reboot had the best ingame animations so far, why people focus so hard on that aspect as if it's a huge negative that only exists in a vacuum of the reboot is beyond me. Welcome to the series, I guess.

5 hours ago, Golden Devil Gamer said:

I haven't played the new R&C yet, but the change in tone is what's putting me off from the series. I had the game on hold for almost two years, though I should actually give it a try someday (maybe after playing the HD collection). Gameplay wise, it seems similar to the previous games, and the game's got some pretty visuals. Hopefully those make up for the lackluster change in tone. There's a pretty good video that goes in-depth with the tonal change. 

 

 


As soon as that video came out, people shifted from loving the game to shitting on it and parroting the talking points of it like sheep. To each their own I suppose.

Edited by Elvick_
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Skip the first paragraph if you don't care about what R&C experience I had.

 

For information, I have played this game before it came to PS+. I have also played R&C 3 (PS2), R&C Gladiator (PS2), R&C: Tools of Destruction (PS3), R&C: A crack in time, R&C Quest for booty, R&C Trilogy (PS3), R&C All 4 one, R&C q-force demo, R&C Nexus, R&C 2016 (this one) and that weird nexus mobile game. I also bought R&C Gladiator for PS3 but haven't played it yet.
I have also seen the movie.

Besides the mobile game (duh) and q-force, this is probably the worst game in the franchise I've played. This games only redeeming qualities compared to the first game are the graphics and the smoothness of the gameplay (which is expected if the games are that many years apart).

The first thing I want to address is that this game advertises itself to be a remake of the original game for the PS2. Although this is partially true, It quickly turns into its own storyline. Yes, it does tell you the origin story of R&C but its main villain which is supposed to be Drek is pushed to the side (in my opinion way too far) to make room for another villain that goes by the name of Dr. Nefarious. Which wasn't introduced originally until the 3rd installment. The rest of the story is quite boring as a whole, and the humor is really bland, which in other games is one of the selling points of the franchise (in my opinion). The boss fight also feels very anticlimactic and repetitive in comparison to the original Drek boss fight in the PS2 game. There isn't much more I can add to the story, as its so far off from the original (except for the first few levels). I will say though, that if this is your first R&C game. You are being given the impression that this is a bland story with nothing special going on. So you might want to try other R&C games first if you can. (more in the next reply, there seems to be a character limit.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wrote a status update about this game a couple of days ago and what was keeping me interested to play it is

1) it's my first entry in the series and so I have no expectations or had none I should say.

2) I am able to skip cutscenes because I couldn't care less about what's going in. I just want to jump into the gameplay. Gameplay wise it is pretty fun and the visuals are really stunning. I am playing on a pro ableit on a 1080p TV with Supersampling

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To be honest, I do not remember that well about the gameplay of the original R&C game. But like I said earlier, as the years pass the gameplay of games in general, will of course, smoothen over the years, so there's nothing wrong with that in this ''remake''. It feels smooth and fluid and I have found that R&C has near perfect experience as far as gameplay goes since the late PS3 Era. So no complaints there.

 

Graphics wise this game is stunning compared to all the other R&C games, but this is mainly due to the fact that this is the only R&C PS4 installment. Still, the graphics are nice even for a PS4 game. I do find the level design to be partially underwhelmed. I can't exactly describe it, but I always kinda missed the cohesive feeling of it all. Everything feels like its own section and does not really bind the game together, but that is just my personal observation as an R&C veteran.

All in all, this game is pretty good initially but fails to deliver the charm, humor, and storytelling which you will have to find in other R&C games (but don't look at any mobile games, q-force or all 4 one). I personally don't like to call this a remake as the story is immensely different from the first game (except for the first few levels as stated earlier.) If you have seen the movie and thought it was good, then you will like this game (it also uses cutscenes directly from the movie btw). If you are new to the series this is a bad place to start. If you are a veteran you are gonna be disappointed most likely. And if you are a trophy hunter this game(, like any R&C game) will be easy as pie.

Edited by gamesfourever
Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 hours ago, Elvick_ said:

It doesn't seem awful at all unless you're blind as hell and can't judge anything rationally.

Insomniac said that because consumers don't give a shit about 60FPS. And they were correct. Sucks, because ACiT visuals were fine and I didn't personally notice a huge step up in Nexus. Hard to count the spinoffs since they're different kinds of games.

Ingame cutscenes were shit in the Future games as well. It's just the nature of moving away from only telling the story in pre-rendered/scripted cutscenes. Reboot had the best ingame animations so far, why people focus so hard on that aspect as if it's a huge negative that only exists in a vacuum of the reboot is beyond me. Welcome to the series, I guess.


As soon as that video came out, people shifted from loving the game to shitting on it and parroting the talking points of it like sheep. To each their own I suppose.

I haven't watched that video yet and I have a negative view of the game. Not everyone is the same. 

60fps doesn't matter? People don't care about it? That is simply not true, most people would take a higher frame rate over fancy graphics any day. Some of the most popular games of all time have primitive graphics (Minecraft, Undertale etc...). Frame rate actually affects gameplay, especially in a shooter/platformer, because timing is imperative. I'll admit that for the most part, I don't notice frame rate differences often, but a lot of people do and on the odd occasion frame rate is an issue for me, it's a HUGE issue.

Edited by Crispy78923
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Quote

How would an alternate account help with that? I'd still be personally starting the game, your logic is nonsensical. The rest of what you're saying really doesn't make much sense. Don't respond anymore please, you're just making things worse.

 

You ask me questions then say don't reply. I never said that you wouldn't be playing the game. Being on a trohpy site some would be be bothered to have incomplete games on their profile. You voiced an opinon that matched that mindset. An alt account would mean games you don't intend on finishing would be "out of sight, out of mind".  You should have made yourself more clear. 


Here's a question. If you've decided to not play this game then what's the point of this topic or continuing this dialogue? 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Crispy78923 said:

@HusKyCode Good to hear from someone who played the old games. Maybe I will try the new one.

 

You should definitely give it a shot. However, I do agree that the story is not as good compared to first game (mostly because they decided to merge this game with the movie). The last boss is also incredibly easy to beat compared to Drek in the first game.

 

Personally, I enjoyed the game a lot, even the dreaded Groovitron trophy. If you go for trophies, be aware of the few missables for sure.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As a Plus 'freebie' there's no harm playing it, it is good fun, looks good, plays well, and does retain some of that R&C goodness...some.   However, as a fan of the franchise there's no denying it was disappointing, IG would've been far wiser to remaster/rebuild the originals with all the bells and whistles instead of the making the mistakes others have mentioned.   The story and characters were tinkered with for the worse and some 6 or 7 planets were cut from the original experience, been a while since I played it but iirc skill points were missing too.   It does have some nice ideas and it's still an R&C game, but comparably, with it's original counterpart, a real disappointment.   That's not to say it's a bad game, it's not, just that the originals were better.

 

I know IG have Spiderman incoming, but for a studio I once loved, they've been making a mess for a long time, Resistance and Ratchet were handled badly and Spyro is lost in limbo.   What I'd give for a new 'proper' entry in those franchises, shame really.

 

Edited by RedMustang72
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...