Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal Review

This is the classic trilogy's peak and it wins on the arsenal alone. Every gun now has five upgrade tiers ending in a transformed final form, and the roster is the strongest the studio ever assembled, from the Ripper to the disco ball that forces enemies to dance. Combat encounters were built around that depth, so arenas ask you to switch weapons rather than settle into one. The Qwark vid comics are the best jokes in the series, and the Vox news broadcasts that comment on your progress are a small idea executed perfectly.

Online multiplayer on a PlayStation 2 was close to unheard of, and this one had eight players, three modes and vehicles that mostly held together. The campaign is shorter than the second game and leans harder on combat arenas over exploration, which cost it some of the platforming identity, and the story resolves too quickly. Those are small complaints against a game where every single fight is fun to be in.