The blending of the PS2 and PSP continues as PSP's Ratchet and Clank: Size Matters appears to be marked for PS2 release early next year. A GameStop listing says the game is expected Feb. 12, '08 for $30, but consider this a placeholder for now.

Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters would join a solid list of games that made the jump from PSP to the PS2. Most famously at this point are the ports of GTA: Vice City Stories and GTA: Liberty City Stories, both of which ended up on the PS2 at the delicious consumer-friendly price of $20. We wouldn't mind seeing God of War: Chains of Olympus make the PS2 leap by holiday '08 -- but let's just get the thing out on PSP first.

Joystiq reader hex08 sends us this image highlighting the differences between the US and Japanese versions of Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. (Also enjoy this Japanese commercial.) It should be noted, however, that this isn't the first time Ratchet has been visually modified for regional preferences. Check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Mario brings his sexy back at 'Galaxy' launch party

News
Game designer talks rebalancing Street Fighter 2 HD
New games this week: Super Mario Galaxy edition
Volleyball, Axelay, Blue's Journey all skulk onto Virtual Console
Whoops! Tesco sells Xbox 360s for £33.24
Peter Molyneux's Populous coming to Nintendo DS
Newell: Prince of Persia 'not a video game movie'
Thrill as the DualShock 3 is unboxed!
Unreal Tournament 3 multiplayer powered by GameSpy
New York Times on tough times for game mags
Mass Effect love scene now less safe for work
Banjo-Kazooie not cancelled ... so what is?
This Wednesday: Shrek 'n Roll 'n Screwjumper 'ngage XBLA
NPD to continue providing monthly console sales data
Non-profit group buying games for soldiers
Infinity Ward addressing Call of Duty 4 PS3 matchmaking issues
'What They Play' keeps parents in the loop
MTV Games confirms Rock Band delay for Canada; coming Dec. 17
Report: TT Games sold to Warner Bros. for approx. $210 million
Tivo alert: Discovery airing 'Rise of the Videogame' Nov. 21

Rumors & Speculation
Is Mistwalker's next DS game a random dungeon crawler?

Culture & Community
Official plush Weighted Companion Cube coming soon
L337Lauren tops other gals on road to Miss Video Game crown
Quiz time: Can you spot the "real" gamers?
Infinity Ward reaches out to EA Chicago devs
MTV's gaming pronunciation guide targets Totilo

May the furries rejoice, the continuing adventures of a Lombax and his robot blows up the PS3 with Rachet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. Apparently everything old about Ratchet & Clank is still old, but it's gussied up and makes excellent use of the PS3 as something other than a movie player. Ratchet & Clank looks to be a boon for games on the system, even if it does amount to what Game Informer deems perfectly as "comfort food."

• GameTap (100/100): "It's rare that a game critic feels the way I do about this game, but in all honesty, I find it really difficult to find something that's not to like. The controls feel great. The graphics look great. The score sounds great. The weapon selection alone make me want to play the game over and over again, just to test out all the cool offered. And that's that's what happens when a smart development team has spent a long time imagining a game like this. It's obvious they've accomplished feats here that they've probably been wanting to do for a long time."
• Game Informer (93/100): "You know how we always say that it's not enough to make a prettier version of a last-generation title – that you really need to offer us something that wasn't possible five years ago? Well, leave it to Insomniac to make me a liar. Because, in all reality, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction sticks extremely close to the formula that made the series one of the PS2's best. There's not much here I haven't seen before. But I don't care, and neither will you, because this is an adventure packed to the brim with vivid characters, amazing gameplay, and heartfelt humor. In a way, it's the ultimate in video game comfort food – a familiar old favorite for those times when you're hungry for nothing but an expertly crafted good time."
• Gamespot (75/100): "Try as it might, Tools of Destruction doesn't achieve the same level of greatness as its predecessors. It's too easy, the story falls flat, and the "throw everything in including the kitchen sink" style of gameplay takes too much of the focus off the tight platforming and fun combat. That said, the gorgeous visuals and generally fun gameplay are enough to make Tools of Destruction worthwhile for the series' fans and newcomers alike."

It looks like Ratchet & Clank didn't show up three hours early to get through spaceport security and will be delayed a week. The boys were expected on Oct. 23, but according to the PlayStation Blog they'll be arriving Oct. 30. Not only has the game been delayed, but the demo expected Oct. 4 on PSN will now show up on Oct. 11. If you can't wait for the demo, remember that you can always pick it up at GameStop with a pre-order of Ratchet & Clank Future.

R&C Future is definitely a game we're looking forward to. Not only because the series has always been solid, but because we like pretty colors and we're getting a little sick of the brown motif in games. A week extra isn't so bad compared to other PS3 delays we've seen.

[Via Gamespot]

Above you'll find the Japanese trailer for Ratchet & Clank Future, and after the break we've got a video showing a little bit how the Sixaxis is implemented in the game. If Ratchet looks a little weird to you (notice the dark eyebrows and eye difference), it's because the Japanese actually have a different Ratchet. Not only that, but they have a different story going on. Localization is funny like that.

If you'd like to know more, PS3 Fanboy has a great interview with Insomniac's Ryan Schneider as he explains the different Ratchets. He says, "In Japan ... they will write their own backstory and they have their own sensibilities. We actively support and encourage that and they're great in identifying what works in that market. Of course, we don't complain because we're one of the few successful Western franchises there period." Although the Japanese Ratchet won't be unlockable in the US version, the Japanese language mode will.

Sony revealed a brand new game at its pre-TGS media event. Unfortunately, it was a game we all knew was coming: Secret Agent Clank, a new PSP continuation of the popular Ratchet & Clank series. First accidentally leaked on the musician's resume, and then accidentally confirmed to PSP Fanboy by a developer, the existence of Secret Agent Clank was ironically not very secret at all.

The brief hands-on time we had with the game highlighted gameplay that strays far from what series fans have become accustomed to. The first part had Clank jumping through laser grids while pressing buttons in a music-based rhythm game that very closely resembles PaRappa the Rapper. The next area showed platforming as Clank, sans Ratchet. Finally, we encountered a boss where we finally got to play as Captain Quark. Like another green-plad video game character, he uses a vacuum gun to suck trash and projectiles and throw it back to the enemy.

The visuals were on par with the previous Ratchet & Clank title from High Impact Games. The game still has a long way to go, and will not be present at Tokyo Game Show this year.

Taking a break from playing the awesomeness of BioShock, it's time to take a quick look at another game that's got us getting excited: Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction. Slated for October 23 in North America (but remember it's not region locked), the game has come a long way since we saw it at E3. Why are we so excited about this particular installment in the series we've come to know and love over the years? Well, Christopher Nicholls, animation director for Insomniac Games, hits it out of the park in the video above saying, "This generation is like how many million colors of gray can you have? How realistic -- with lots stubble and [how] miserable can you make all the characters? I think that's OK, but thing with Ratchet, it's a total breath of fresh air. It's back to old-school, is it fun?"

We've dumped a ton of Ratchet and Clank videos after the break. Is it worth getting a PS3 for? That's in the eye of the beholder and if you've hit your limit with the brown palette. When one can look at a game and the first thing that happens is a smile creeps in because there's color beyond brown and gray -- from a series that has been consistently solid -- it's at least worth thinking that the PS3 is finally getting some traction.

First off, does Ratchet look this good? The answer is clear: yes. But, is that enough to make the upcoming PS3-exclusive Ratchet & Clank Future worthwhile? Not necessarily.

As innovative and new as the graphics may appear, the gameplay feels identical to previous iterations of the Ratchet series. Of course, that's not a bad thing -- the franchise has rightfully earned its legions of fans. However, we couldn't help but feel as though we've played Tools of Destruction before. It feels more cinematic than before, but we were running, gunning, and swinging our wrench as though nothing had changed. Some may point to the new Groove-a-tron weapon, a colorful new weapon in Ratchet's arsenal. But, there are no significant gameplay ramifications: enemies will simply dance, instead of attack Ratchet. There's also a free-fall sequence, where the player must tilt the Sixaxis controller to navigate Ratchet past flying cars. But, these tilt controls do little to add a feeling of innovation to the series.

The polish of the game's presentation is certainly commendable, but we were puzzled by the lack of an adequate targeting system. The on-rails platforming, a series trademark, had us bored. Jumping left or right to avoid oncoming trains was tedious, at best. The utter simplicity of the sequence had us feeling like we were simply going through the motions. We're also disappointed to know that Insomniac has opted to remove a crucial component of the franchise in this latest rendition: multiplayer is gone.

Tools of Destruction might not end up being a bad game, but it did very little to convince us otherwise. We're sure that hardcore Ratchet fans will love it for its story, which will focus on the mysterious origins of its star. Although playing it safe might work for Insomniac and its fans, it's pretty obvious to us that team spent a lot more time focused on its graphics technology than what really matters: gameplay. As it is now, Tools of Destruction is an uninspired experience, one that feels like a backwards step for the series.

Sony's PlayStation site now features a handy little Javascript program that lets you check on any compatibility issues the PS3 might have with the PlayStation catalogue. Instead of a list, however, you have to type in the games about which you are curious into the search box to find out all the glitches.

We understand not making a list of every PSOne and PS2 title that has compatibility issues, but at the same time we are not sure to what extent BC problems are prevalent. We are impressed with how detailed every glitch has been chronicled, so that you know exactly how the game will screw up (major or minor) while being played on the PS3. We decided to run of a few searches ourselves:

• Psychonauts, unlike its Xbox counterpart, "has no major problems" with the PS3. Huzzah!
• The Ratchet series works fine.
• The Jak series is okay, except for a handful of issues with Jak X: Combat Racing.
  
• Almost surprisingly, every Madden title works well. Only Madden NFL 2007 has some issues with static IP / DHCP and online gaming.
• Every SOCOM title has at least one or two issues.
  
• The Final Fantasy series is a mixed bag. X, XII, and Tactics work, but Anthology, Chronicles, Origins, VIII, and IX have issues. FF VII has one graphical anomaly during one of the first battles in the game. Final Fantasy XI has problems using the PS3's HDD, but a future software update promises to fix that.
  

Mess around the search box and let us know what else you find. Don't throw out your PS2 until you check your favorite titles first.

[Via CVG]