Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters [PSP]

It also takes great advantage of its networking. There are, of course, ad hoc games for people who are local to each other. But there's also robust infrastructure support for online games. For the last two titles, the developers of Ratchet & Clank have done a wonderful job building full-featured multiplayer support into their games. Size Matters is arguably the best attempt to date. Although it only supports four players at a time, the maps and modes are meticulously built to wring the most out of multiplayer matches.

In addition to deathmatches and capture the flag, there's a set of clever objective-based games with unique rules for each map. For instance, Island Escape has two teams gathering radioactive canisters to power an escape ship. A canister infects you as you carry it, so you'll eventually turn into a mutant and drop it. But when you respawn to recover the canister, your mutant form is guarding it. With twists like this, these four maps manage to break out of the typical run-around-and-shoot paradigm. And even run-around-and-shoot makes great use of the weapons and map tricks. The PSP has had some great serious shooters with multiplayer support, but this is the system's best hope for over-the-top multiplayer action. Let's hope it finds a player base.

This is a short game, with only about a half dozen planets, but in this regard, size doesn't matter so much. Even though it feels about half as long as a typical Ratchet & Clank, it's built to be played at least twice, which is a hallmark of the series. Beating the final boss (and she's a doozy) isn't the end of the game, but is instead the beginning of a whole new level of destruction. The second time through is harder, but more gratifying. With the added difficulty come greater rewards: more cash to buy weapon upgrades, easier access to hidden places, and even entirely new weapons.

Ratchet & Clank has always been generous with the rewards, which is a big part of its appeal. There's a new armor collecting subgame in Size Matters. If you fit Ratchet with all the components of an armor set, he'll earn a special bonus. Furthermore, there's a generous assortment of minigames for Clank to play, including a Lemming style puzzler, a vehicular combat arena, and a sort of robot soccer match. There are multiple challenges for each of the three minigames, which are an important way to earn money and unlock bits of Ratchet's armor.

Dying is usually painless, since you never lose any money, experience to increase your health, or progress towards weapon upgrades. Every moment you spend in a Ratchet & Clank game is forward motion. The approach has almost always been a cheerful, "Hey, you're here to have fun and we're not going to do anything to get in your way. Knock yourself out, kiddo!" It's effective, enthusiastic, infectious, and almost maternal. Along with some of Nintendo's best games, this is a series that wants to make you happy. These guys get it.

So it's no surprise that the developers of Size Matters, High Impact Games, are a splinter group from Insomniac, the original creators of Ratchet & Clank. Almost every polygon, sound effect, and animation will ring true for Ratchet & Clank fans. And for everyone else, it's a splendid return to form that has all the convenience of being played on a handheld. Welcome back, guys.