It's no secret that the PS3's been hurting for good exclusives lately. Lair was a flaming wreck, and Warhawk and Heavenly Sword - while mostly excellent - were greeted with what seemed like a collectiveshrug from critics. A lot of heavy expectations are riding on the shoulders of Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, and although the game can't possibly meet them all, it certainly doesn't disappoint.

First off, here's what Ratchet & Clank Future isn't: it's not a revolutionary experience that'll make Xbox 360 owners claw out their own eyes in despair. It's not a roaring justification of the high cost of owning a PS3. What it is, though, is a beautiful, relentlessly entertaining shooty-platformer, and easily the best game in the Ratchet & Clank series thus far. Considering that Ratchet & Clank practically defined platform-hopping games during the PS2 era, that's saying a lot.

Fans put off by the combat-focused Ratchet: Deadlocked (Gladiator in the UK) will be glad to know that Ratchet & Clank Future marks a return to all the things that made the series great: free-roaming exploration, cinematic set-pieces and a huge variety of gadgets and explosive weaponry. Clank is back as well, returning to double duty as Ratchet's robot sidekick and propeller-equipped (or jet-equipped, if you prefer) backpack. Also returning is fast-talking idiot superhero Captain Qwark, who actually makes an effort to be somewhat helpful this time.