Ratchet and Clank, two of the biggest heroes for the Sony franchise are back on the Sony PS2. These two characters have starred in tons of games for Sony's platforms, but only one stars in this release - Ratchet's robotic buddy and partner-in-saving the world, Clank. Secret Agent Clank tracks Clank as he travels all over the universe trying to find who's behind the criminal activities going on and to redeem Ratchet's good name.

Secret Agent Clank was first released for the PlayStation Portable, and now it is being re-released for the PlayStation 2. Most of the game you will take control of Clank as he searches the universe for the Eye of Infinity. It was stolen from a museum in a very secured area at the beginning of the game, and your friend Ratchet has been accused of the crime. So, naturally, the robot version of James Bond goes on the tirade to find out the real culprit and to get Ratchet out of jail.

Usually, Ratchet and Clank games are known for their amazing gameplay and are considered all around great platformers. Somehow, Secret Agent Clank lost a little bit of the“special something”the rest of the series is famous for. Although the story has classic Ratchet and Clank gameplay and humor, some aspects definitely make this game fall short of the other games. The graphics, controls, and glitchy videos really hold this game back from being a great adventure within the scope of the franchise.

The graphics in Secret Agent Clank were absolutely lacking on a lot of levels. Even for the PlayStation 2, the graphics were worst than most of the games you have seen on the platform. Even the cut scenes just looked pitiful at times, and might have some gamers wondering what happened. The controls work most of the time, but you may have some trouble getting the central character to run. If you use the d-pad, it is golden and it works the best to control the characters. For some reason, when using the analog stick, walking sometimes interrupts right in the middle of running. It is quite confusing, but if you stick to the d-pad, you will be just fine. Another mentionable item would be the glitches that precede and follow cut scenes on many occasions. When this happens, the loading icon will start to blink and the sound will continue to repeat like a broken record until the scene is loaded. Although, it doesn't affect the actual video itself, it does get annoying between cut scenes.

The one good thing that stands out in Secret Agent Clank is the gameplay. There are quite a few weapons and upgrades for both Ratchet and Clank. Although you use Clank most of the game, Ratchet has some pretty creative weapons and upgraded punches. Clank also has lots of creative weapons and toys that any spy fan would enjoy. He has dangerous bow ties, an ink pen, and even more special stuff only a spy would have. The combat and overall gameplay is classic, and any platform fan would like it. One thing that is a little different is Clank's moves. He plays a little more like Ratchet in this one instead of past versions where he doesn't do much in terms of action gameplay.

You might find something else disturbing about the gameplay. In some points in the game, you will encounter a“guitar hero”type gameplay to get Clank to get past certain areas and beat certain“bosses to get more information. You will hit a number of button sequences to the beat of the music being played. The beat seems a little off at times, and will turn many gamers off of this type of gameplay. If the music was a little more on beat, it might be a good addition, but it just wasn't there at all.

Secret Agent Clank was a nice new idea to throw into the Ratchet and Clank series of games, but it did not hold up to the strong gameplay and overall great platformer experience of the other games. The glitches before cut scenes and control problems created a game that some players will enjoy and others will hate.