2nd part
There\'s obviously no shortage of cartoony platformers on the market - what separates R&C from the crowd?
Cerny: Each level introduces more weapons and gadgets. Bombs, a flamethrower, a high tech lockpick, mines, a swingshot that lets you zip around levels like Tarzan or Spiderman, small attack robots that fight alongside you. And for the most part, you buy these gadgets with "bolts," the money that you collect throughout the game.
As a result, some elements usually found in RPGs start to enter Ratchet and Clank. There are more weapons than you can practically buy, so each player\'s experience when playing the game will tend to be a bit different, just like an RPG. Also, in an ordinary action game, if you aren\'t finishing levels, you aren\'t progressing, but in Ratchet and Clank, you\'re gathering money as you go along, which means you can buy bigger weapons. Even if you aren\'t finishing levels, you\'re getting stronger, just like in an RPG.
How many hours do you anticipate it will take the average player to complete the quest?
Cerny: Well, I hate to give specific numbers of hours for play time, because everyone exaggerates. I can say this: Ratchet and Clank is a very large game, and may indeed have the play time of shorter RPGs, such as Final Fantasy IX.
Can you describe some of the gadgets featured in the game and the different gameplay opportunities they offer?
Allgeier: In Ratchet and Clank, we have several categories for the devices Ratchet acquires: "Weapons" and "Gadgets" are two of them. Weapons are used in combat to defeat various types of foe. Gadgets are special tools Ratchet can use to get from one location to another.
Different weapons become useful in various confrontations. There are short-range, medium-range, long-range, and tactical weapons. The Pyrocitor is a great example of a medium range weapon for fending off gangs of swarming attackers. It\'s basically a flamethrower that creates a sweeping flame that immediately torches the smaller enemies.
For the big enemies, it\'s best to use the long-range weapon known as the Devastator. The Devastator is high-powered rocket launcher that\'s great for defeating tanks, flying ships and tough soldiers with missile attacks. For tactical weapons, hover mines can be very effective. When placed, they have a homing capability and track to nearby enemies and explode. They work well when placed in front of force fields that enemies are waiting behind. Deactivate the force field and watch the destruction begin.
As for Gadgets, my favourite is the Swingshot. The Swingshot is a device that fits on Ratchets arm and fires a cable that attaches on to special targets. Timing is required to skilfully swing from one target to the next. Some Gadgets, like the Trespasser, have a puzzle element to them. The Trespasser lets Ratchet "pick" special locks by providing an inside view of the lock mechanism. The player can rotate lasers that line up with sensors inside the lock to open the door.
These are just a few of our weapons and gadgets. Since we have around 35, there are many variations of gameplay that Ratchet and Clank has to offer.
How does the relationship between Ratchet and Clank work and how do their respective sections differ?
Allgeier: In terms of gameplay, there is a big difference between "Ratchet" gameplay and "Clank" gameplay. Ratchet can travel to most areas of the game. At times however, Ratchet cannot travel into areas lacking oxygen. Clank, who is a robot and not oxygen dependent, can explore outer space and toxic areas to acquire items for Ratchet. Since Clank is not equipped with weapons, he will need to find other means of defeating enemies. That is where "Bots" come into play.
Found throughout the Clank sections, Bots are small robotic allies that will accompany Clank. Clank can command a troop of Bots, each with a lethal bite. He can order the Bots to attack large enemies, follow him to a location, enter special devices, or wait while he investigates. Clank challenges will provide the player with some interesting traversal puzzles. These challenges require a bit of thinking which is well suited for Clank\'s character, a very "rational" type.
What\'s your experience of working with the PS2 hardware? How hard do you feel you\'ve pushed the system?
Hastings: The PS2 has been a much bigger challenge than we initially anticipated. The multiple CPU architecture is especially difficult because the main processor and the two vector units each have two instruction pipelines.
The only way to get anywhere near optimal results is to write assembly code that micro-manages all six pipelines, while also taking advantage of all the instruction and data caches. No-one has ever written a C compiler smart enough to handle even a fraction of this complexity, so you simply have to program your entire engine in assembly. We also had to handle all our collision detection and physics in assembly code, since the sheer
number of moving objects in the game would have otherwise prevented us from running at 60Hz.
Beyond pipeline issues, we also use the IOP chip to decompress data on the fly in order to get the most out of the RAM space. Then there is the issue of shuffling several megabytes of textures into VRAM through the DMA each frame. To put it simply, I don\'t think anyone has ever overstated the complexity of programming for the PS2. But, on the other hand, the Xbox libraries won\'t allow you anywhere near the actual hardware, so there is little room for optimisation. Plus, the Xbox doesn\'t have the high speed vector units of the PS2, which may be why even the best Xbox games run at 30Hz.
I seriously doubt we would have been able to make Ratchet and Clank run at 60Hz on the Xbox without drastically reducing the number of moving objects. So, ultimately, I think we\'ve made the best platform choice for our game.
It\'s very difficult to put a number on how far we\'ve pushed the PS2 at this point. If I had to estimate, I\'d say Ratchet and Clank may use about 50% of PS2\'s maximum potential.
What\'s been the most satisfying aspect of development?
Hastings: From a technical standpoint, it\'s very satisfying to think that we have
at least partially conquered the most challenging console in the history of mankind. From a creative standpoint, it has been great to finally have enough memory and speed to design worlds that actually feel like futuristic cities. But ultimately, the most
satisfying part of the development has been playing around with the weapons.
If I ever get in a programming funk, I like to kick back and spend a nice relaxing hour torching a couple hundred squealing enemies with the Pyrocitor.
Can we expect Ratchet & Clank to become a franchise like Spyro? Do you already have plans for a sequel?
Price: We\'d be ecstatic if Ratchet & Clank became a successful a franchise the way Spyro did. But of course it\'s up to the worldwide audience. We hope that consumers really enjoy the game and if they do, well we\'ll be ready to give \'em more.
One thing that the Ratchet & Clank universe has going for it over Spyro is that it\'s very open-ended. With Ratchet\'s ability to use weapons and gadgets plus the idea that Ratchet is flying from a planet we\'re not really constrained when it comes to implementing fresh ideas that fit with Ratchet.
But right now we\'re completely focused on finishing Ratchet & Clank on time and ensuring that the final game is very polished. And if we end up creating a sequel, we\'ll put a lot of effort into ensuring that it continues to push the character action genre in new directions, just as Ratchet & Clank does.
Johnny Minkley
