While Sony and Microsoft are now mainstays in the gaming industry, they haven’t quite ascertained a figure head or mascot as yet, at least not one with as unmistakable as Nintendo’s plump, butt crack touting mustachioed head thumper, Mario. If you were however to make a list of characters eligible to represent Sony, Ratchet would certainly be in the short list. Starring in over three titles now, Ratchet has clawed his way into the hearts and memories of many Playstation owners.

Ratchet Gladiator shares many common characteristics with its predecessors but now with a few twists. The platform / action driven series has dropped many of the franchises platform foundations, instead shifting the focus of the title more towards out and out arena warfare, as the title Gladiator may suggest. While traveling through the emptiness of space Ratchet and his crew are boarded and taken captive in the name of galactic action entertainment show, Dreadzone. A violent game show that pits former Hero’s against insurmountable odds, Ratchet’s only means of escape lies in working his way up the leader board in order to get a shot at his captivators in person. What follows is a series of arena based campaigns each divided into a series of challenges. While this is the foundation of the games progression, it’s also where the game falls shallow when compared with its platforming roots. Each ‘challenge’ is simply a series of checkpoints that mark that mark the players progress through each arena, ranging from collecting a certain number of items, having bots screw down or decode locks or crossing a plain to get access to a vehicle. These challenges can take as little as two minutes with some of the larger challenges struggling to crack in at the 10minute mark.

Indeed it’s also not uncommon to complete a challenge without even realising you have met the challenges criteria. Fortunately this does at least play well into Gladiators wild, frenetic pace.Beginning rather tame, the challenges in Gladiator quickly descend into chaos; rarely will players find themselves letting go of the trigger command. The engine behind Ratchet Gladiator renders dozens or more enemies to rush Ratchet constantly, only occasional frame drops reminding you how hard the PS2 is working to keep Dreadzones violent denizens on your toes. Fortunately Ratchet won’t be alone to fend off the hordes and fighting along side at all times will be two AI controlled bots.

Renown for over the top weaponry this latest installment doesn’t disappoint. With a healthy selection of upgradeable weaponry Ratchet is more than capable of dealing as much punishment as he receives and coupled with the bots who are also upgradeable, Ratchet is a formidable force to reckon with; it’s a good thing too because Dreadzone’s Arena’s will throw a multitude of enemies Ratchets way.Aesthetically Ratchet Gladiator lacks detail. The environments while reasonably large are rather simple in geometry and mostly static. The game does run at 60fps with only occasional slow down and the engine throws around some of the best particle effects yet seen in a PS2 title. Dreadzones announcers provide some comical relief from the non stop action with the occasional chuckle though this ultimately proves repetitive by the end of the game.Ratchet Gladiator seems to lack any real progression and never really opens up an expansive gaming world, but rather many smaller worlds. Players never get to really explore these however as they will be too busy blasting as much of the scenery as possible instead of taking it in; Clank also only makes cameo appearances as Ratchets manager rather than side kick. After the success of the Ratchet and Clank series it’s hard to understand the need for a change. The series was never really broken so why fix it. Those after a quick blast that doesn’t require any cerebral power will have fun, but may find that due to the games length that a rental first is a wiser decision to out right buying. There are a number of multiplayer modes on offer including network play allowing for co-op, which maybe the lead factor in whether a purchase of Ratchet Gladiator is worth while.

Rating:  3.5/5