Secret Agent Clank is an installment in the Ratchet & Clank series developed by High Impact Games and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was initially released in June 2008 for the PlayStation Portable, and later ported to the PlayStation 2 in May 2009 by Sanzaru Games. It is the second portable title in the series, the second developed by High Impact Games, and the first to feature Clank as the main character. It was also the last Ratchet & Clank game to be released for the PS2.
Clank dons his persona as Agent Clank from the in-universe fictional holovision Secret Agent Clank series, in which he works for a secret government organization simply known as the Agency. The game opens in Boltaire Museum, where Clank spies Ratchet stealing an Eye of Infinity from the museum. Believing that Ratchet must not be the perpetrator, Clank then begins a mission to prove Ratchet's innocence. Ratchet is locked up in a Prison Planet, among which many inmates include enemies he has fought on previous adventures, and must fight for survival. Meanwhile, Captain Qwark trails Clank, to claim credit for Clank's actions as Barney writes a biography on Qwark.
Secret Agent Clank allows the player to control Clank, Ratchet, and Qwark, with Clank as the main character playing his Secret Agent Clank alter ego. Clank's gameplay is a combination of the series' typical third person shooter and platformer gameplay as well as stealth elements. He has access to a wide variety of secret agent weapons disguised as real objects (such as the Tie-A-Rang, the Cufflink Bomb, and the Blowtorch Briefcase), and makes use of Jet Boots for platforming. Ratchet has access to many of his usual weapons, including several returning from Size Matters, while fighting enemies in prison. Qwark's gameplay varies depending on the section in particular, and normally involves him fighting enemies in outrageous scenarios during his own storytelling.
According to a Tweet by the Insomniac Games' Twitter account, Secret Agent Clank is a canon entry in the series, but its events are in-universe fiction. Secret Agent Clank was first described as an episode of the show in Tools of Destruction,[1] though promotional material conflicted with the stance, claiming that Clank's role in the holo-vision shown is a cover for his covert life as an agent.[2] Insomniac Games later affirmed the stance that Secret Agent Clank existed as an entry in the series.[3][4] In-universe, Secret Agent Clank takes place in the same month as Size Matters.[5][6]
Gameplay[]
Overview[]
Clank's stealth gameplay.
Secret Agent Clank is a third-person three-dimensional stealth action game with elements of platforming and shooting. The player controls three characters: Clank, as his Agent Clank alter ego, who makes use of a range of spy gear and Clank Fu combat style while working for the Agency to prove Ratchet's innocence; Ratchet, a lombax who fights for his life in prison after being framed for a crime; and Qwark, who describes outlandish events to his biographer.
The gameplay follows a similar format to previous games in the Ratchet & Clank series, though Clank's gameplay features more stealth elements. Each character has a similar moveset, uses numerated nanotech for their health, and both Clank and Ratchet use upgradeable weapons, and can purchase new weapons, mods, and gadgets from vendors with bolts. Clank has the ability to perform stealth takedowns on guards and some gadgets that help him sneak through areas undetected, earning a "stealth bonus" in terms of experience and bolts rewarded if he does so.
After completing the main storyline, the player can choose to warp back to before defeating the final boss to complete remaining side objectives, or to proceed to challenge mode, allowing the player to keep their current weapons with the option to purchase more powerful Proto and Titan versions against more powerful enemies.
Unique to the games developed by High Impact Games, attaining 65 skill points grants access to hardcore mode. Selecting this allows the player to start a new save akin to a new game, but without being able to save and with permanent death, meaning any death forces you to start all over again.
Clank gameplay[]
Clank can use his weapons for purposes outside of combat.
Clank travels through various locations in the Solana Galaxy, progressing the story by completing missions, before unlocking coordinates to the next location. Missions often require Clank to complete a linear section of the planet, or complete a minigame, to proceed. Clank is able to use stealth to sneak through several levels without engaging in combat, and can perform stealth take downs by sneaking behind enemies and completing a small quicktime-event to kill an enemy, gaining a stealth bonus for doing so. Clank can also explore planets for hidden collectibles such as titanium bolts and alien codes.
Clank using the Holo-Monocle.
Clank has access to usable spy gear weapons and gadgets, of which six are used primarily as weapons, and six are used as gadgets. Clank's six weapons include the Tie-A-Rang, the Holo-Knuckles, and the Thunderstorm Umbrella, and can be upgraded three times to V4, at which point they will improve mechanically. Clank's gadgets include the Blackout Pen to shut off some lasers, the Holo-Monocle to scan and disguise as enemies, and the Omni-Key, which can hack into doors. Clank also makes use of the Jet Boots for platforming, allowing him to glide and jump higher.
Ratchet and Qwark gameplay[]
Ratchet using the Plasma Whip.
At times, the story will give the player control of Ratchet and Qwark in mandatory missions, with largely different gameplay.
Ratchet fights waves of enemies in arena combat in several locations on the Prison Planet. Ratchet makes use of 10 upgradeable weapons, which much like Clank's weapons, can upgrade three times up to V4, and can be modified with purchased mods. Many of these weapons previously appeared in Size Matters, and can be purchased by Clank from vendors (to be delivered to Ratchet in prison). Ratchet fights enemies that return from previous games: the amoeboids from Ratchet & Clank; the Thugs-4-Less, Megacorp gladiators, and security robots from Going Commando; the tyhrranoids from Up Your Arsenal; and the reapers from Deadlocked. Ratchet can complete both mandatory and optional challenges to earn bolts, and his challenges can be replayed at any time.
Qwark fighting space pirates.
Qwark's levels involve him battling a variety of outlandish enemies in a scenario he describes. He always uses his blaster, although some scenarious grant him additional equipment or abilities. Some scenarios simply put Qwark in a single environment and require him to defeat enemies, while others require Qwark to fight through a linear segment.
Minigames[]
Rhythm minigame gameplay.
During many of Clank's missions, minigames must instead be completed. Many missions require Clank to complete a rhythm button game. These include short areas where Clank must traverse a series of lasers, as well as minigames where Clank has to perform a ballroom dance, or win a casino game. Some missions has Clank pilot vehicles, including a boat in Venantonio's canals, or a snowboard. These are on-rails vehicles with slightly different controls and capabilities.
The Gadgebot Mk. IIs in a mission.
On some occasions, the player controls the gadgebot mk.IIs, used whenever Clank is in trouble. The player controls three gadgebots that can be switched between, normally to solve puzzles as a group and complete a linear segment.
In one mission, Clank has to control Giant Clank in an on-rails space section. This section is similar to Giant Clank's gameplay in Size Matters, though he also makes use of a new laser weapon against enemies in space.
Synopsis[]
Setting[]
The skyline rooftops in Asyanica.
Secret Agent Clank takes place in the Solana Galaxy as portrayed in the in-universe fictional holovision series,[1][3] which first appeared in Up Your Arsenal. Secret Agent Clank is a member of the Agency, a secret government organization which supplies all of Clank's weapons and gadgets. During Clank's missions, he visits many locations that spoof a James Bond, 007 spy setting, including a casino (Le Paradis Des Tricheurs Casino), a high-tech lawless city (Asyanica), a palace for a wealthy countess (Glaciara), and an opera house (Venantonio). Similarly, many of the characters and scenarios that Agent Clank run into spoof those of a Bond film, such as a field operator (Cute Anastasia Bot), wealthy female antagonists who flirt with Clank (the Sexy Robot, Ivana Lottabolts), unwitting scientists (Venantonio scientist), and crime lord villains (Number Woo, the Kingpin). He also makes use of Clank Fu to fight through enemies, sneaks past lasers, and makes use of weaponry disguised as clothing items.
Ratchet and Qwark appear in entirely different scenarios. Ratchet spends most of his time fighting against prisoners whom he previously fought on past adventures, such as the tyhrranoids, the Thugs-4-Less, and amoeboids. He fights in various locations within his own planet-wide prison, while guarded by a corrupt and aloof warden, using weaponry delivered to him by Agent Clank disguised as birthday cakes. Qwark's missions, on the other hand, appear in entirely outlandish scenarios, in which he describes heroic but unrealistic deeds for a reporter robot to include in his biography.
Story[]
The Warden visiting Ratchet in his cell.
Clank witnesses Ratchet in the middle of being caught while stealing the Eye of Infinity, the galaxy's largest, most pristine gem in the known universe, from Boltaire Museum. The galaxy holds Ratchet responsible and imprisons him on the Prison Planet, while Clank is determined to free his name. His Agency operative Ms. Cute Anastasia Bot disagrees, but the two align on investigating the Eye's theft believing it to be part of a bigger plot. In prison, Ratchet is taken to Ultra-High Security Lockdown, among other inmates whom he was responsible for putting there, and watched over by a warden who has been bribed to keep Ratchet's stay unpleasant.
Clank after finding the card.
After infiltrating the museum and finding a fortune cookie from Asyanica, Clank travels there, only to walk into an ambush laid by Number Woo, requiring the gadgebot mk.IIs to be called to save him. When he catches up to Number Woo, Woo reveals that he has been told to take the Eye to Ivana Lottabolts on Glaciara, where Clank engages in a deadly dance with her and learns the Eye has been taken to a mysterious crime boss named the Kingpin Rionosis.
Qwark, atop the Jack of All Trades, while Barney transmits his data.
Clank is unable to catch the Kingpin, but learns from taking down his henchman, the Jack of All Trades, that it is being taken to Le Paradis Des Tricheurs Casino. After playing a rigged card game for the Eye, he finds out that the Eye was taken back to the Kingpin on Venantonio. Meanwhile, Captain Qwark, writing his autobiography, followed Clank around the galaxy, telling bogus to his autobiographer, Barney, taking credit for Clank's actions, while Barney reports to the Kingpin.
Klunk revealing himself to Clank.
At Venantonio, Clank rescues a kidnapped scientist, who says he had been told to build a laser for the Kingpin to infiltrate the Bolt Foundry on Fort Sprocket. Clank finds the Bolt Foundry overtaken by doppelgangers, and when he tries to stop them, was locked in the vault, only for the gadgebots to break him out. After following the Kingpin to the spaceship graveyard, the Kingpin reveals himself to be Klunk using a suit, and steals Clank's ship, though Clank is able to escape and transform to Giant Clank, following Klunk to his lair on Hydrano.
Klunk about to activate the laser control device.
In his lair, Klunk reveals he had used a mind control helmet to frame Ratchet for the Eye of Infinity's theft, and built a laser using the Eye of Infinity as a refractor to destroy every planet in the galaxy. With this in place, after defeating Clank and taking Clank's place, he could dismantle the laser, and frame himself as a hero. Clank fights to stop him, and so Klunk reveals a backup plan: by activating a countdown on the laser, if Clank did defeat him, every planet will be destroyed anyway.
Ratchet and Clank with a modified Klunk.
Clank defeats Klunk and, with the help of Qwark, stops the laser. Ms. Cute Anastasia Bot then gives her debrief to President Phyronix: explaining the mind control device, she recommends a full pardon for Ratchet, and explains that Barney had been hired by Klunk to keep tabs on Clank through Qwark, knowing that Qwark would be trailing Clank for stories. Klunk was then released into Ratchet and Clank's custody and turned into a vacuum cleaner.
Development[]
Secret Agent Clank begun development shortly after the release of Size Matters using the same engine,[7] by a team of 45 developers at High Impact Games.[8] The goal was to take the franchise in a fresh new direction, while bringing the popular Secret Agent Clank character from Up Your Arsenal to a full game.[8] It was announced in TGS 2007,[7] after being rumored in July 2007 when series composer David Bergeaud accidentally revealed it in an online resume.
Those who preordered with GameStop received a Secret Agent Clank figure with the game.[9]
PlayStation 2 port[]
The port developed by Sanzaru Games for the PlayStation 2 features several noticeable differences. Most obvious are the drastically different textures and lighting, with both being generally sharper and higher in resolution. However, the lighting lacks the glow prevalent on the original PSP version, and the textures often are entirely different from the originally intended version. Most models are near-identical, although some locations have received makeovers that make them largely indistinguishable from those in the original release, such as the villa on Glaciara, the dam's edge on Hydrano, and the overal skyline in Asyanica.
Specifically the mega enemy models in the Prison Planet have entirely different textures as well. Lastly, bolts dropped by enemies in the PS2 port are worth vastly more than in the PSP version.
Skins[]
In Secret Agent Clank, players can find a code to be used to unlock the Convict Ratchet skin in Tools of Destruction in the Treehouse. The code, which works in the Specials menu, is 
, , 
, 
, 
, , 
. Likewise, a code for the Zoni skin in Secret Agent Clank can be found in Tools of Destruction in the IRIS Supercomputer. Skins from Size Matters are unlocked in Secret Agent Clank for players with a Size Matters save.
Reception[]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | PSP: 72 (based on 56 reviews)[10] PS2: 61 (based on 9 reviews)[11] |
| Publication | Score |
| Eurogamer | PSP: 6/10[12] |
| GamesRadar | PSP: 3.5/5[13] |
| GameSpot | PSP: 8.0/10[14] |
| IGN | PSP: 6.4/10[15] PS2: 6.0/10[16] |
Secret Agent Clank received mixed to positive reception from critics, who considered it inconsistent in quality. Critics were divided on the addition of stealth, overuse of minigames, and criticized Ratchet's missions as repetitive, while generally responding positively to most of Clank's gameplay, the story, and the Qwark missions. Critics drew different conclusions, with Ellie Gibson of Eurogamer and Greg Miller of IGN calling it disappointing due to its flaws, while Justin Calvert of GameSpot praised the game for being fun in spite of them.[12][14][15]
While Clank levels were considered stronger overall, the stealth gameplay as Clank received a mixed reception. Calvert and Miller were both critical of the use of the rhythm mechanic for stealth takedowns and for many of Clank's sections, with Miller stating it was fun until it became repetitive, while Gibson called it out of place for a Ratchet & Clank game.[12][15] On the other hand, Calvert noted that the stealth is "rarely mandatory", but called it a "good addition to the tried-and-tested" formula.[14] Miller also criticized Clank's levels for limited and easy combat, and stated that spending bolts on Clank's weapons feels wasteful.[15]
Reviewers criticized Ratchet's missions as repetitive. Miller described the missions as frustrating prior to upgrading Ratchet's weapons due to their difficulty and repetition.[15] Gibson criticized the lack of variety in Ratchet's missions, describing them as essentially "a series of boss levels".[12] Calvert criticized the level design of Ratchet's arenas, but praised the weapon variety.[14]
Captain Qwark's levels mostly received praise by critics, as they described the levels as amusing, humorous, and entertaining.[12][14][15] However, Miller felt that Qwark's missions hurt the pacing of the game, and contrasted tonally with the spy theme of Clank's levels.[15]
Critics were divided on graphical presentation. While Calvert called the environments' appearances "noticeably better" than in Size Matters,[14] and Gibson praised the detailed and varied environments,[12] Miller criticized the "blank walls" and "muted colors", saying "Size Matters was a sharper game".[15] The PlayStation 2 port received lower scores. Greg Miller, returning to again review the PlayStation 2 port, criticized the port for not improving on the problems of the original game, and criticized the graphics for looking "blocky and jaggy" when scaled up to a larger screen.[16]
Gallery[]
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Citations[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tools of Destruction: The code for the Secret Agent Clank game's Zoni skin found in the Kreeli Comet refers to the game as an "upcoming episode of Secret Agent Clank".
- ↑ PlayStation 2008
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Insomniac Games 2017
- ↑ Ratchet & Clank Wiki 2018 interview with James Stevenson
- ↑ Size Matters menu § "Shock Rocket"
- ↑ Secret Agent Clank menu § "Shock Rocket"
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Haynes 2007
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Nutt 2008
- ↑ Sliwinski 2008
- ↑ Metacritic 2008
- ↑ Metacritic 2009
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 Gibson 2008
- ↑ Kim 2008
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 Calvert 2008
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 15.6 15.7 Miller 2008
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Miller 2009
References[]
- Haynes, Jeff (2007, September 1). "TGS 2007: Secret Agent Clank First Look". From IGN. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Nutt, Christian (2008, May 16). "Interview: High Impact's Lesley Matheson On New Studios, Tech, And More". From Gamasutra. Archived from the original on August 18, 2018.
- Sliwinski, Alexander (2008, May 27). "Secret Agent Clank figure with GameStop pre-order". From Joystiq. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Miller, Greg (2008, June 1). "Secret Agent Clank Review". From IGN. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Kim, Alan (2008, June 1). "Secret Agent Clank review". From GamesRadar. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Calvert, Justin (2008, June 1). "Secret Agent Clank Review". From GameSpot. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Gibson, Ellie (2008, July 1). "Secret Agent Clank". From Eurogamer. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- PlayStation Blog (2008, July 1). "The super secret good guy bio". From PlayStation Blog. Accessed October 21, 2022. Archived from the original on December 26, 2008.
- (n.d.) . "Secret Agent Clank for PSP Reviews". From Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Miller, Greg (2009, June 1). "Secret Agent Clank Review". From IGN. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- (n.d.) . "Secret Agent Clank for PS2 Reviews". From Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018.
- Insomniac Games [@insomniacgames] (2017, January 1). I mean it's clear SAC is a TV show / Movie, right? That's a canon movie/episode inside the R&C world [Tweet]. Twitter.
- Ratchet & Clank Wiki (2018). Interview with James Stevenson. Interview conducted by Technobliterator.