My Top Six Game List of 2005, Part Two

Hi again, everyone! It's time for the next installment in my favorite video games of 2005. Numbers 1-4 will not be in any particular order, but I'm considering naming one of them my favorite. Read on....

Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal for the PS2 is the third in the Ratchet & Clank series. The series has been a hit right from the get-go, because it was a 3-D platformer that got so much right, so little wrong, and was so entertaining and beautiful to look at at the same time. As with the previous games in the series, you assist in the galaxy-saving escapades of Ratchet (the yellow Lombax) and his robotic sidekick Clank, who rides on Ratchet's back and can be upgraded with all sorts of interesting items like a jet-pack and a helipack. Ratchet is a mechanic, and his main weapon/tool is his ever-presen Omniwrench 8000, which is the Swiss-Army knife of his home galaxy. The series is also known for Ratchet's arsenal of hilarious weapons, and this one is no exception. A couple would be the Quack-O-Ray, which turns enemies into ducks, and the Agents of Doom, which are knee-high little mechanical critters that have this fiendish little chuckle and chase down enemies, latch onto them, and explode! A great game, made by Insomniac Games, which also made the Spyro the Dragon series, one of which is also on my list.
Ratchet and Clank enjoy a quiet moment in Clank' apartment watching a holovid broadcast...
Ratchet explores a new planet, on his quest to find the elusive, long-disapeared intergalactic superhero (at least on the holovid broadcasts), Captain Quark!
Ratchet and Clank confront a large, robotic villain...

Next up- Spyro: The Year of the Dragon for the original Playstation. An earlier game by Insomniac Games, the original Playstation Spyro the Dragon series was one of the first 3-D platformers, and also one of the best. Spyro is a little purple dragon who just happens to be in the right place at the right time to be pressed into saving the day for whoever happens to be handy. In this case (Spyro's third adventure), the dragons are having a grand party, and it goes on until everyone falls asleep from exhaustion. While the dragons are sleeping, from a long-forgotten land on the other side of the dragon world, minions of the evil scorceress come and steal all of the dragon eggs! As Spyro is the only dragon small enough to fit through the tunnels that the scorceress's servants came through, he is sent to reclaim the dragon eggs and vanquish the scorceress. Spyro is a typical dragon, who can butt enemies with his head, and of course, breathe fire on them! He is accompanied by a few friends and his ever-present sidekick Sparx the dragonfly, all of which play an imortant role in helping Spyro out at different times as playable characters. It's a great game, and if you play both it and Ratchet & Clank, you can see definite similarities between the two. The great sense of humor, the excellent gameplay, and even some of the situations in the games are similar. Old, yes, but still great, Spyro is definitely one of the best! I actually played all three of the original Plastation Spyro games in 2005, but this was the one I picked to represent Spyro on my list.

Spyro turns up the heat on an unfortunate baddie who dares to challenge a dragon!

As always, all screenshots and boxshots courtesy of www.gamespot.com.

Stay tuned for my final installment and see if I really name my absolute favorite or just declare them all great!