6. Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack In Time - PS3 - 2009
With so many games released in the Ratchet & Clank saga throughout the 2000s, I was on the border of a nervous breakdown deciding which of these games would represent the series in this list. Tools of Destruction - with its glossy graphics, colourful villains, and imaginative level design - was up there, as was Up Your Arsenal - the pinnacle of the series on the PS2. But in the end, A Crack In Time felt like the mechanical duo had reached their finest point. The game bravely separates the two titular heroes throughout most of the game, as Ratchet goes in search of Clank in the Polaris Galaxy. This lets both of the characters come into their own in terms of both narrative and gameplay. Exploring the Polaris Galaxy as a free-roaming environment imbues Crack In Time with an immense sense of scale and adventure, and each planet you can explore has a unique character that had you giddily anticipated what awaited you as you encountered each new one. Crack In Time didn't do much to evolve R&C series, and feels like it owes a lot to the masterful Super Mario Galaxy, but it perfected one of the best 3D platformer formulas on Sony consoles.
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
