Ratchet: Deadlocked

Ratchet: Deadlocked, titled as Ratchet: Gladiator in Europe and Australia, and also known as Ratchet & Clank 4, is a action/shooter game that is the fourth in the Ratchet and 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.

Modes
The game includes many of the same modes of gameplay as R&C: UYA such as online games with nine other people (ten people max to a game), and many of the same weapons. New modes and attributes include co-op gameplay in single player mode (better named, "story mode" now), and newer, more devastating vehicles. Also, the addition of a vastly more RPG style in the form of custom armor and weapons.

Multi-Player
The online mode features five modes: A completely revamped version of Up Your Arsenal ' s "Siege" (in which players captured nodes and attacked the enemy base) called Conquest. This new mode features nodes which players must capture and vote upon upgrades to sustain their lead. Points are awarded for taking and defending nodes as well as several kill variations (Sharp shooter for a sniper kill, road kill for running over an enemy, and a Humiliation kill for defeating a foe with the series trademark default weapon the wrench). Other modes are classic multiplayer modes such as Capture the Flag (CTF), Deathmatch (Team Deathmatch is also part of this), King of the Hill, and Juggernaut. The losing players or teams have their Deadlock Collars detonated. Each mode is changed to fit with the Ratchet and Clank universe, but still retain their main objectives and play styles. The online multiplayer is still highly popular, with hundreds of players logging on each day. Insomniac has removed Ratchet's sidekick, Clank, as a playable character. In addition, many of the platforming elements from the previous games, including gadget-based puzzles, have been removed.

The second mode of multiplayer is local play which enbles up to 4 players with the use of a multitap to play against each other. Unlike the first game local play only let's you choose from 4 colors instead of 8. Local Play has all the options of online play except you don't have your name floating above your head. Instead you see Player 1,Player 2,Player 3,Player 4. You also have to share a screen with 3 other players. It's harder to see, but it makes a good party game.

Plot
After the events of Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal, Ratchet and Clank are attacked by robots and kidnapped by a character named Gleeman Vox for his TV show, DreadZone. Ratchet is separated from Clank and is fitted with a Deadlock collar, which will give him an electric shock if he tries to escape (strays into any restricted areas), or explode if he begins to get uncooperative or worse, less entertaining (according to Gleeman Vox). Much of the game will be the tapings of DreadZone.

The single-player campaign also features a co-op mode in which a partner will replace the two combat bots. The story mode will be fully playable in co-op much like  Halo and  Doom 3 for the Xbox. The players will be bound to each other within a certain distance by the game's "Deadlock collars" which will detonate if the players become too far apart for more than 10 seconds. Also as another downside, both players have to share their weapons and ammo; if one weapon runs out of ammo, then neither player can use it, and if one player is using a weapon, the other cannot use that weapon at the same time. There are unlockable skins that can be chosen as well in co-op mode. The second player can unlock a Jak skin from the Jak and Daxter series.

Ratchet is forced to fight the Exterminators led by Dreadzone's favorite hero, Ace Hardlight. The Exterminators consist of Shellshock, Reactor, the Eviscerator and Ace Hardlight.

Weapons and Gadgets
Ratchet has new and old gadgets in Deadlocked including:
 * Swingshot
 * Grindboots
 * Chargeboots
 * Gravityboots

Basic Weapons
Magma Cannon- It is a short-range shotgun-style weapon. Acid Mod and Shock Mod work well.

The Harbringer- is the R.Y.N.O. or Zodiac of this game; it unleashes a hail of sky-based laser pulses, and functions as a sort of "air strike" weapon.

Mini Turret Launcher- The idea was “borrowed” from Megacorp. It releases small combat turrets.

Holoshield Launcher- Launches an energy shield. Ratchet is safe from enemy fire while behind it, and can fire his weapons freely through it.

B-6 Obliterator- A grenade-launcher-style weapon. Its large blast radius is effective in eliminating tight groups of weak foes.

Dual Vipers- This is one of your two starting weapons. It is a pair of automatic submachineguns. The Shock Mod is quite effective when dealing with swarmer enemies; it allows a single shot to eradicate quite a few enemies.

Hunter Mine Launcher- this weapon launches mines about 10-20 feet away from you; they will advance upon enemies who approach. Very effective when used with the Mini-Bomb mod.

Fusion Rifle- Sniper rifle that has a zoom feature. Shots are explosive upon impact, and can penetrate through multiple foes.

Scorpion Flail- Melee weapon. Ratchet slams it into the ground, creating a short shockwave. While carrying this weapon, running speed is decreased.

The Arbiter- A rocket-launcher weapon. Its standard ammo capacity, when first bought, is quite low; however, its damage output and splash damage make up for this fault. It is very effective when equipped with the Time-Bomb mod.

Omega Mods

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

Alpha Mods

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

Power Ups
There are two powerups only accessible through multiplayer online and local play.

Quad Damage Is a temporary powerup giving you 4x the power to ALL of your weapons which usually results in a 1 hit kill.

Allied Shields A temporary shield that will surround you for a minute and protect you from heavy damage.

Bosses

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

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 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.


 * 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.

One of the vehicles in the game, a buggy with a rear-mounted turret, is called the Puma, the name given in the machinima series  Red vs Blue to the Warthog in Halo, a vehicle that performs a similar duty.