Ratchet & Clank Trilogy

7 cert, Sony, PS3 ****

Can you believe it’s been 10 years since Ratchet and Clank first made it on to the PlayStation? In honour, the duo are getting their own HD collection with the first three releases on PS3.

You get a good idea of what the Lombax Ratchet and robot sidekick Clank have been about all these years: the quest for bolts. Mario has his coins, Pacman his pac-dots. Ratchet and Clank collect bolts. And to get them, you smash things apart. Fun, right there. Once you have the bolts, you can trade them in to upgrade your weapons to new and better things.

There isn’t much new gameplay here for fans of the series who have already bought, played and moved on from the three; they stay fairly true to the events as they originally played out. It’s nice to see how the games develop from title to title. But the games have gotten a new lease of life on the updated console. New graphics, higher frame rates and trophies have all been introduced.

The animations look great in high definition, and if you want to opt for 3D play, there’s stereoscopic 3D support to make the duo really pop.

The trilogy will appeal to gamers of most ages. The cartoon-style worlds are colourful enough to rope in younger players, but not so colourful that they are childish. Plus, have we mentioned the destruction?

This is worth investing in for both new players and veteranst looking for a nostalgia trip.