Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters review

More and more, it looks like porting moderately successful PSP games to the PS2 might not be such a hot idea after all. Without complete overhauls, the graphics look crummy, the multiplayer features get stripped out and the overall product - even if it was amazing on Sony's handheld - feels watered down and cheap by PS2 standards. That was the case with both Grand Theft Auto "Stories" games, and now we're seeing it happen again with Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters.

Although last year's Size Matters was and still is a great PSP game, on PS2 it comes up short. It's not bad, exactly, but a lot of the flaws that were forgivable on PSP - like herky-jerky controls, long load times and a generally stiffer feel than the console Ratchet games - are a lot more noticeable on PS2. It also brings a few new flaws of its own; the graphics, while obviously redrawn for greater levels of detail, still manage to look murky and washed out (even in 480p) next to the PSP version's bright, colorful visuals. Additionally, the multiplayer options have been pared down, nothing significant has been added to make up for them and the camera controls are somehow less responsive than they were on the PSP.
 
That said, what Size Matters suffers from the most is being compared to the last four PS2 Ratchets, which it can't quite hold a candle to. But even the worst Ratchet is still a pretty good game, and taken on its own merits, Size Matters is still worth playing - especially if you haven't tackled the original.

Like the original, Size Matters opens with catlike Lombax Ratchet and his robot buddy Clank on vacation, which gets interrupted by a suspiciously overeager little girl named Luna. Luna wants to see Ratchet beat up some robots for her class project, but what starts as an innocent robocidal rampage through a tropical community quickly turns sour when she's kidnapped by sinister invaders. Unable to just let that slide, Ratchet and Clank immediately start jetting from planet to planet, following Luna's trail in an attempt to rescue her.