Ratchet: Deadlocked

Ratchet: Deadlocked, (Japanese: ラチェット＆クランク４th：ギリギリ銀河のギガバトル Rachetto & Kuranku 4th: GiriGiri Ginga no Giga Batoru lit. Ratchet & Clank 4th: Final Huge Battle for the Galaxy), titled as Ratchet: Gladiator in the EU, is an action/shooter game, and was the fourth game in the Ratchet &amp; Clank series. This game features many upgrades from its predecessor, Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal. It was released on October 25, 2005 in North America. It has been called both darker and more intense than the previous three games, and was both criticized and praised for its heavier emphasis on combat. A high-definition re-release of the game, including multiplayer was delayed from its original release date of February 2013 and was released in North America on 21 May 2013, on the same day as the PlayStation Vita version of Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault. The game was available as a free download for owners of the PlayStation 3 version of Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault in North America and also in PAL regions including Europe and Australia.

Plot
Heroes from all over the galaxy have been kidnapped and forced to compete on the leading Holo-Vision program in the criminal Shadow Sector of the Solana galaxy: DreadZone. It was the brainchild of the insane media magnate Gleeman Vox, and was watched by trillions of sentient beings throughout the galaxy. It featured illegal, uncensored, gladiatorial combat to the death, with the former hero Ace Hardlight as its uncontested and undefeated champion. After the Starship Phoenix was invaded, Ratchet was forced into becoming the newest contestant on DreadZone, with Al and Clank forced to join him. Ratchet was soon introduced to two combat bots that would accompany him throughout the game, known as Merc and Green. Ratchet is forced to compete in five increasingly difficult Tournaments to advance in the DreadZone Tournament Rankings. After the first tournament, the Marauder Tournament (which was completed in the game's tutorial level), each tournament required Ratchet to defeat one of the Exterminators before he moved on.

As Ratchet moved through the tournaments, his rapidly growing popularity caused concern for both Vox and Ace Hardlight, who were worried that Ratchet would overtake Hardlight in popularity. Throughout the latter portion of the game, the Vox network attempts to ruin the rapidly-rising love of Ratchet and his bots. Hardlight even went as far as shooting Al to anger Ratchet.

While Ratchet was fighting in the DreadZone challenges, Clank tried to find to disable the collars and escape. While attempting to find flaws with the DreadZone Station, he met other heroes, such as Venus, who gave him information to help them escape.

After defeating Ace Hardlight, the last of the Exterminators, Vox offered for Ratchet to become one of the new Exterminators, with promises of wild amounts of money and sponsorships. Ratchet declined angrily, enraging Vox. Vox then sent Ratchet onto a final, nearly impossible DreadZone course known as the Ghost Station. Ratchet had to fight his way off of the station, defeating the ghosts of enemies he had previously killed. After navigating a Hovership and destroying the Ghost Station, Ratchet returned to the DreadZone station. To his surprise, Clank had found a way to escape, but first Ratchet had to deal with Vox, who was planning to detonate the entire Station. After fighting his way to the Arena, he defeated Vox, and was able to save the other contestants and viewers from the explosion.

Alterations from previous games
Ratchet: Deadlocked is quite different from the other games. The large levels and platforming sequences were replaced by shorter, combat-based action sequences that the players may repeat any number of times for extra bolts and Dread Points, skill points, or just for fun.

The skill point system was also altered. Instead of having a single list of skill points, there was a list for each level you visited. This resulted in a much greater amount of skill points than in any early games of the series. Also, for the first time in the series, the skill point requirements were given to the player, rather than hidden.

The weapon customization was also elevated. Although there were only ten weapons in the game, the lowest in the main series, every weapon could be raised up to level 99, and have any combination of Alpha mods as well as an Omega Mod. These mods could be swapped around, removed, and added at one's leisure.

One of the most noticeable changes was the inclusion of Difficulty settings. The game had five different difficulties, with the most difficult only being unlocked after first completing the game. The difficulties were, from easiest to hardest: Couch Potato, Contestant, Gladiator, Hero, and Exterminator.

Multiplayer
The online mode features five modes: A completely revamped version of Siege mode from Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal, now known as Conquest. This game type features nodes which players must capture to sustain the lead. Points are awarded for taking and defending nodes as well as several different kill rewards. Other modes are common multiplayer game types such as Capture the Flag, Deathmatch, King of the Hill, and Juggernaut. Each mode is modified to fit with the Ratchet & Clank universe, but still retain its main objectives and play styles. The online multiplayer's servers have shut down as of 28 June 2012 on PlayStation 2. The game also supports a local multiplayer mode with up to four players on one screen.

Characters



 * Alvaro, Juanita
 * Big Al
 * Clank
 * DreadZone Testbots
 * Eviscerator
 * Eugene
 * Green
 * Hardlight, Ace
 * Hydro Girl
 * Kid Nova
 * Lucy
 * Merc
 * Ratchet
 * Ratchet 2
 * Reactor
 * Sasha
 * Shellshock
 * Venus
 * Vernon
 * Vox, Gleeman
 * Wanamaker, Dallas

Bosses

 * King Leviathan (Mini-boss)
 * Shellshock
 * Reactor
 * Eviscerator
 * Hardlight, Ace
 * Gleeman Vox

Ratchet's weapons

 * Wrench
 * Scorpion Flail
 * Magma Cannon
 * Dual Vipers
 * The Arbiter
 * B6-Obliterator
 * Hunter Mine Launcher
 * Fusion Rifle
 * Holoshield Launcher
 * Miniturret Launcher
 * The Harbinger

All of the weapons in Deadlocked can be upgraded to level 10, and 99 once the game was beaten and the player entered Challenge Mode.

Merc and Green's weapons

 * Pistol Flux LX
 * Range Warrior
 * Bogo
 * Alpha Ravager
 * Beta Ravager



Ratchet's gadgets

 * Swingshot
 * Grindboots
 * Charge Boots
 * Gravity Boots

Merc and Green's gadgets

 * Shield Link
 * Hacker Ray
 * EMP Grenade (classed as a gadget due to not being directly offensive)
 * Wrench (Solely used for nodes)
 * Grind Cable

Omega Mods

 * Acid
 * Shock
 * Freeze
 * Morph
 * Napalm
 * Mini-Bomb
 * Brainwash
 * Time-Bomb

Alpha Mods

 * Ammo
 * Aiming
 * Impact
 * Speed
 * Area
 * Jackpot
 * XP
 * Health

Ratchet's armor

 * Marauder Armor
 * Avenger Armor
 * Crusader Armor
 * Vindicator Armor
 * Liberator Armor
 * Renegade Armor

Items

 * Versa-Wrench Lite
 * Versa-Wrench Multicore
 * Versa-Wrench Striker
 * Fission Lance
 * Obsidian Blade
 * Charge Boots
 * Gravity Boots
 * Medals

Skins

 * Marauder
 * Avenger
 * Crusader
 * Liberator
 * Vindicator
 * Alpha Clank
 * "The Muscle"
 * Vernon
 * King Claude
 * LandShark
 * Squidzor
 * Kid Nova
 * Jak (co-op and multiplayer only)
 * W3RM
 * Starshield
 * Venus
 * Ninja Ratchet
 * Battle Bot (multiplayer only)
 * Dread Bot (multiplayer only)
 * Eviscerator (multiplayer only)
 * ShellShock (multiplayer only)
 * Mr. Sunshine (multiplayer only)
 * Ace (multiplayer only)
 * Reaper (multiplayer only)
 * Thriller (multiplayer only)
 * Renegade (multiplayer only)
 * Eugene (multiplayer only)
 * Santa Ratchet (Japan version only)
 * Genome Ratchet (Japan version only)
 * Saurus Ratchet (Japan version only)

Driveable Vehicles

 * Landstalker
 * Puma
 * Hovership
 * Hoverbike

Species

 * Amoeboid
 * Blarg
 * Cazar
 * Gagnian
 * Lawn Ninja
 * Lombax
 * Reaper
 * Sarathosian Swamp Jaggas
 * Slademan
 * Stygian
 * Tremor
 * Trezor
 * Tron-Dels
 * Tyhrranoid
 * Unnamed Squids of Hydrana 8
 * Zygonian

Planets and locations
(in order of appearance)
 * DreadZone Station
 * DreadZone's Battledome
 * Catacrom Four
 * Sarathos
 * Kronos
 * Shaar
 * Orxon
 * The Valix Belt
 * Torval
 * Stygia
 * Maraxus
 * Ghost Station
 * The Battledome Control Level

Critical reaction
Deadlocked initially received mixed reviews.

IGN Reviewer Jeremy Dunham wrote: "Though diehard Ratchet and Clank fans will probably miss the puzzle and platform elements that made the earlier games a more complete experience (this one included), the shooting mayhem of Ratchet: Deadlocked is still a whole hell of a lot of fun. Insomniac's hilarious storytelling doesn't miss a beat even when presented in this year's more limited form either, and the awesome combat sequences are marred only by occasional (but very noticeable) battle slowdown and infrequent camera issues experienced during rail grinding.

''Ratchet's problems are easy to live with, however, when you realize just how much the multiplayer option has to offer. Five different game types, almost a dozen varying planets, plenty of customizable options, several cool power-ups, and an excellent stat tracking system are just a few of the reasons that you and nine other friends can should enjoy your next few months via Network Adaptor. Throw in a cool co-op mode and plenty of unlockable goodies, and you don't need any other reasons to pick this one up''".

Metacrictic gave it a score of 81%. 1Up gave it a B+. Eurogamer gave it a 7/10. And IGN gave it an 8.8/10.

It is believed to be the most morally ambiguous and darkest of the original series. The weapons appear to be built in a more destructive sense. The co-op functionality also helped make Deadlocked a standout game for Playstation 2.

Cameos

 * Courtney Gears: Seen on one of Big Al's computer screens, and mentioned by Dallas and Juanita. She is recovering after the UYA boss battle and she appears alongside Reactor as his girlfriend in the Reactor: Introspective cutscene.


 * Dr. Nefarious: Makes a brief cameo at the end looking for the DreadZone station. He is still stuck on a meteorite, and still has that head radio flaw, revealing a hilarious voice over with Lance and Janice.


 * Lawrence: Makes a brief cameo along with Dr. Nefarious.


 * Jak: Unlockable skin in multiplayer. Note that only the second player in the co-op mode can use it due to Ratchet and Jak being dimensional enemy counterparts.


 * Captain Qwark: Makes a small voice cameo at the end of the game, in which he says to Ratchet that the whole "heroes being kidnapped" rumor is false, because nobody came to capture him, and "who could make a series about galactic heroes without Captain Qwark?". His cameo is only heard, not seen, for he is talking to them on a phone call. And there is also a cheat that makes all DreadZone Strikers turn into copies of Captain Qwark and makes them slightly dumber and easier to kill.
 * Ratchet 2: Is playable only by Player 2, he makes a cameo on the cover of the Japanese version of Deadlocked.

Trivia

 * An advertisement was found at the back of Jak X: Combat Racing manual and the Greatest Hits version of Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal.
 * On the Japanese cover, and on preview versions of the game, Merc and Green had legs.
 * Oddly on the Japanese cover, Reactor appears on it twice, and in the same spot.
 * Agent Zero's (from Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage) name appeared on the scoreboard of heroes competing in DreadZone.
 * Ratchet is a playable character in Jak X: Combat Racing, if the player had a saved file from this game on their memory card. In this game he wears his Marauder armor.
 * Ratchet's design in Ratchet: Deadlocked is slightly taller than the previous games.
 * The Marauder Armor was wore by Ratchet in the cancelled game in the series, Ratchet & Clank: Clone Home.
 * Despite The Ratchet & Clank Collection including the skins previously exclusive to the Japanese version of Up Your Arsenal, the HD edition of Deadlocked does not do the same.