Ratchet & Clank - PlayStation 4 Reviews

Ratchet & Clank - PlayStation 4 Reviews

Features

• A new Ratchet & Clank adventure based on the movie (based on the 2002 PS2 game)
• A deeper version of the origin story, with over an hour of cinematics, including footage from the feature film
• All-new visuals showcase the power of the PlayStation 4
• Collect a massive arsenal including new weapons and fan-favorites from across the entire series
• Several new planets, new and updated gameplay segments, all-new flight sequences, all-new Clank gameplay, and all-new boss battles

Product Description

        Play the game, based on the movie, based on the game! Ratchet & Clank (PS4) is a new game based on elements from the original Ratchet & Clank (PS2). Developed alongside the major motion CG-animated picture coming to theatres in 2016, Ratchet & Clank (PS4) marks the PlayStation 4 debut of PlayStation's greatest heroes. Join Ratchet, Clank, Captain Qwark and new friends as they battle to save the Solana Galaxy from the evil Chairman Drek. With an hour of new cinematics (including footage from the film), Ratchet & Clank (PS4) takes a deeper look at the characters' origin stories and modernizes the original gameplay. Explore the galaxy in a game that features new planets, new and updated gameplay segments, all-new bosses, all-new Clank gameplay, all-new flight sequences, and much more --- with completely new visuals built to demonstrate the power of the PS4! Battle your enemies with an out-of-this-world arsenal, including new weapons and fan-favorite tools of destruction from the Ratchet & Clank Future series. From the brand new Pixelizer (which transforms enemies into explosive 8-bit pixels) to franchise favorites like the dance-party-inducing Groovitron and wise-cracking robotic bodyguard Mr. Zurkon, Ratchet & Clank's arsenal has never been better. Help Ratchet and Clank save the galaxy for the first time, again, exclusively on PlayStation 4! 

Customer Reviews

• By Gabe on April 12, 2016

Platform for Display: PlayStation 4 Verified Purchase

Insomniac's reboot of their most cherished franchise does not disappoint. Whether you're a returning fan who has faithfully followed the series for 15 years, or a newcomer who enjoys platformers, you're sure to be delighted with this latest effort.

For those of us who grew up loving these Lombax adventures, this is everything we could have hoped for. All the things that make Ratchet and Clank so enjoyable are present, but executed at an extraordinarily high level. This is a game with character, a game with soul, and a game with peerless mechanics. Although the story has been slightly tweaked from the original, I feel all the revisions were made for the better, and they improve the development of the characters. Needless to say, the gameplay is also vastly improved, benefiting from the past 15 years of advancements that Insomniac has made, perfecting their platforming formula. There is nothing quite as satisfying as engaging in the twitch-style strafing action, amassing huge quantities of bolts while collecting and leveling up your hilarious arsenal of goofy weapons.

And what would a Ratchet and Clank game be without the visuals, which bring the amazing planets, space ships, aliens, robots, and various creatures to life? This reboot is the best looking Ratchet game by miles (which is saying something), and quite possibly the best looking console game I've ever seen. Although the art styles are completely different, I would argue that it looks as good (if not better) than this generation's heaviest hitters, like The Order and Until Dawn. It's a feast for the eyes, but more importantly - it's sustenance for your Lombax soul!

The icing on the cake is that this game is oddly priced well below standard retail. At $39, it's quite possibly the best investment in the solar system!

• By Crank on April 12, 2016

Platform for Display: PlayStation 4

Ratchet and Clank has finally arrived on PS4. Some thought Insomniac might never get the property again, and we didn't know even if they wanted to have it after making so many games for Sony. But the two are back together and the game is basically amazing. Write one up for the best platformer/action game in years.

Insomniac has tuned their engine quite a bit from Sunset Overdrive on Xbox One, and this game is sure a looker, even for PC enthusiasts such as myself. Better yet, the gameplay is the ultimate refinement of the previous entries, culminating in a series apex, and the story memorable enough to be more than worthy for an origin tale and remake. I say remake because this game basically qualifies as one. It’s that good.

Way back in November of 2002 Insomniac gave us the first game on PS2. It was a great game for its time, but is clearly lacking compared to its sequels, which still look okay today and can be played in the HD collection on PS3. The actual PS3 games were very good as well, though they do show a lot of age in the IQ department. At any rate it’s been quite a while since we had a main entry game in this franchise.

The hilarious Captain Qwark narrates a consistent narrative, if somewhat disjointed at times, with the likes of everyone you knew back in 2002 and more. Insomniac have added some characters and basically remade the entire game on the foundation of the original. Cutscenes are gorgeous and well animated, and some scenes from the movie seemlessly play throughout your journey. The whole enterprise of the going back to the first game with a film and console release seems to have been a very good plan, as the game is inventive and rewarding in all aspects and ties in well with the film it seems. Both are probably helpful in understanding the totality of the adventure. For me I at times wish the game was more thorough in its story, but for what is there the game does it right.

The guns of course must return. And your OmniWrench 8000 is always at your side. You have old favs like Mr. Zurkon and the Sheepinator along with RYNO and Glove of Doom to match new weapons like the Pixelizer. All of them are pretty intricate and worth upgrading. The upgrade systems from the sequels are somewhat translated into the first game, making it that much better in all aspects of gameplay. Maxing each new weapon is a lot of fun. Just seeing all your weapons transform is worth the effort of a playthrough. Replay value remains high here, as there are plenty of collectibles like Trading Cards and Gold Bolts that you will need on the NG+. A few good puzzles to solve along with hoverboarding and air battles round out some of the fun. I found most of the content to be appealing and worth the investment in time.

Not only that but the controls are smooth and responsive. I immediately got the hang of Ratchet's gunplay, and you can use auto-aim or choose to leave it off. Major improvements to the action manifest in the constant explosion of multifluous enemies that animate better than ever. They have really solid designs this time around. The ridiculously sexy magnetic bolts have honestly never been this fun to collect either. The animation on them and the sounds are amazing for such a small element of the game.Though levels can be sometimes a bit shorter than you might expect, this game is one of the prettiest games released on PC or PS4.

From Novalis to Rilgar to Orxon you will find that Insomniac has outdone themselves on not only recreating the original in HD but besting it in every way. The foliage, the explosions, the cities; it all looks pretty damn great. This engine blows the PS3 counterpart that Insomniac used for A Crack in Time out of this world. No joke. This is quality work here that far and away actually makes you feel like you are playing in their world. The PS

While the game runs only at 30FPS, it's solid and the motion blur is fantastic, helping ameliorate some of the chaos of lower framerates. I cannot technically say too much in the negative light about this game. It is clearly a polished release and well worth the very fair price of 40$. Textures and lighting are some of the best seen on PS4. If it had downsampling and spiffier effects we are talking actual late 90s Pixar quality graphic standards in real time.

Furthermore, colors pop everywhere. The resolution of detail is so much more nuanced and lively than the PS3 games. The old HD collections look like antiques. A Crack In Time looks positively aged and forgotten compared to what we have here. And that is a very good thing. The battles get hectic, and traversing the terrain to progress for upgrades and storyline has never felt more involving precisely because of the atmosphere maintained by high-resolution textures and lighting.

While it doesn't have as many options for sound and gameplay as something like Uncharted, I found the sound mix to be pretty good, after a couple adjustments, through a Denon receiver and Beyerdynamic headphones. They could stand to patch some of the leveling I think. But it's easily the most accomplished of any of their games besides maybe Resistance 3. Ratchet's universe is fully realized and voiced, and the actors have a competent script to work with. Organic sounds of each planet are thoroughly covered and implemented well. The weapons all have a nice pop to them, especially if you have some decent sound equipment.

The whole experience is about 12-30 hours depending on your playstyle and rate of completion. I recommend starting on hard right away if you are an experienced gamer. The AI is also much improved from the originals, though, some may find the game a bit easy in certain parts. I think altogether it is very balanced and rewarding, leaving few faults for this newest iteration. For 40 dollars you cannot go wrong.

In the end, Ratchet and Clank on PS4 stands as the best game in the series, and it's a rousing comeback victory for Insomniac. A well-deserved success that should be played by any fan of action and platform games. Do yourself a favor and check it out, if only just for the pleasure of seeing Ratchet and the cast in all their animated glory. A pleasure to play with the family or alone, and the adventure is made all the more immersive and endearing because of the detailed and lush world Insomniac have basically perfected for this outing. Outstanding work.

 

 

Product review: RecorderGear FD50 USB Flash Drive Voice Recorder 8GB

At the time I am writing this review the price of this recorder is around $90 and for the price I expected a better all purposes recorder. It did a reasonable job recording human voice, but did a very poor job recording music. The recorded music is clipped and sounds distorted. When I held the recorder in my hand the recording picked up a lot of crackling. I did not purposely do anything to generate that noise but as you hear in attached audio the difference between me holding the recorder and having it put down is dramatic.



The recorder looks like a regular flash memory stick. To make it discrete looking the interface that makes it work is not obvious. The recording switch looks like a loop for hanging the recorder on a key chain. The switch has three positions left, center, right. The center position is off, and left/right are the two modes. The two modes are "continuous recording" and "voice activated recording". They are indicated by a small dash and two small dots on the front of the recorder. The markings are black on black and are barely visible. The dash indicates continuous recording and the two dots indicate voice activated recording. The charge level indicator is barely visible as it points down when you plug the recorder to be charged. When it is charging you see an occasionally shadow of a red flash. I took about a dozen photos and on one of them I managed to time my photo and captured this flash of red light, so you would know where to look to see it.



To set the time and to see the recorded files you need to use a Windows computer. Normally fat32 flash drives can be read by Linux desktop, but this flash drive is not seen by my Linux computer so it is doing something non-standard. My Windows laptop has no problem accessing the memory stick.



I included several audio clips in my video so you can judge the quality of the recording for yourself.



My video includes four types of clips under different situations:

(1) Two clips with human voice

The recording has some echo, but not bad.

(2) Classical music

Clipped and distorted, not acceptable

(3) Pop song

Clipped and distorted, not acceptable



The recorder can be re-charged in any USB outlet. It runs on built-in 180mA rechargeable Lithium. Documentation states that battery lasts da day on stand-by. The recordings are produced in MP3 audio file format.



RecorderGear provided this voice recorder for an honest review be it good or bad. What is the bottom line? I thought it did a decent job for human voice in a quiet environment. The microphone is pretty sensitive so in a noisy environment it picks up a lot of surrounding sounds. It works for recording lectures and presentations where is one clear source of sound. It did a terrible job recording music. If it was priced in the $20-30 range I would have rated it as 3 star - ok for lecture recording. For $90 (the price at the time I am writing this review) I expected a more general purpose recorder which produced better results.



You can locate RecorderGear FD50 on Amazon via this link.





AshopZones review

Product review: Utility Knife 6" by Zelite Infinity.

Zelite utility knife is midway in size between a Chef's knife and a Paring knife. in the past, I have not used utility knife as often as my chef knife or my pairing knife. But this knife is so sharp and maneuverable that I am using it quite a lot. My most common use for it is for cutting cheese and meats for making sandwiches. It also works well on cutting tomatoes for those sandwiches. I use it when a paring knife feels too short, and chef's an overkill.



Zelite utility knife is very sharp, and its handle fits my hand very well. The knife feels sturdy but it is not heavy. The knife weighs 5.2 oz.



It has a beautiful pattern on the blade. This is because the knife's blade is made out of laminated stainless steel. The higher quality of Japanese knives use laminated steel which has this beautiful pattern. The use of laminated steel improves the strength and rust resistance of the blade (and it looks beautiful).



A note on packaging. I don't often comment on packaging unless there is something special about it. This knive comes in a very attractive packaging, the box packing is sculpted to the knives shape and is made out of red velvety material. The presentation of the knife is suited for a gift.



This knife was provided to me for testing and review by Zelite as part of the new product introduction. It is a nice quality knife and good to work with. Using automobile analogy if the chef's knife is the car's engine, the utility knife is the sun roof. It is not strictly necessary, but often nice to have.



You can locate this Utility Knife on Amazon via this link.





AshopZones review

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon

now in its third generation, tries to bridge the gap between slim, fashion-first laptops and solid business machines. Laptops over the years have become worse and worse in terms of features and comfort, largely because of a push to become as thin and light as possible. Even business-focused laptops, such as Lenovo's ThinkPads, have somewhat succumbed to this trend. The tradeoffs have been a reduction in upgradeability, fewer ports, worse keyboards and trackpads, and shorter lifespans - all things that casual users don't necessarily mind, but are alarming to those whose lives depend on their work machines.

Lenovo knows that style is important, and the X1 Carbon line attempts to bring that sort of appeal into a brand otherwise known to be frumpy and serious above all else. It's all about being slim and light while still offering cutting-edge technology and class-leading comfort. It's a hard balance to achieve, and with a legion of long-term fans, Lenovo doesn't have quite the same amount of leeway as others do when it comes to features and cutting corners.

The 2015 ThinkPad X1 Carbon is a valiant attempt at achieving that balance, and while it is undoubtedly a ThinkPad, it's actually quite modern and stylish. It carries forward many of the hallmarks of its lineage, such as sturdy metal hinges, a black matte exterior, and even the 45-degree ThinkPad logo in metal with a red LED dotting the i. It also pulls back a lot by discarding radical changes made to its predecessor, which caused a huge outcry amongst brand loyalists. The modern touches this time are limited to tech features, such as a big, high-resolution screen, plenty of wired and wireless connectivity, and the latest high-end internals. We're eager to see how things play out for the new ThinkPad X1 Carbon, and whether Lenovo can keep everyone happy.

Verdict
As far as business use cases go, there's a lot to like about the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon - if you have a bottomless expense account, that is. In fact, there's a lot to like for pretty much any consumer use case as well, and anyone who can afford such an indulgence should give this one serious consideration. Sure, it isn't the most stylish or the slimmest and lightest laptop around, but manufacturers seem to be forgetting that the primary reason for having a laptop in the first place is to get things done.The most obvious competitors are the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display models, which both offer equal or better specs in better-looking bodies for quite a bit less money.

On that note, ThinkPads exist for a reason and Lenovo has somewhat successfully managed to pick and choose consumer-friendly "features" that don't make it more difficult to get work done. The 2015 X1 Carbon is a vast improvement over its predecessor in this regard, but more can still be done and we hope Lenovo takes that up as a challenge.

There's no doubt that this is an outrageously expensive device, and for most people, it won't work out to adequate value for money. If you're a demanding creative professional who can really make use of the phenomenal screen but don't specifically need graphics power or a massive battery, this is the laptop you'll want to work and travel with every day.