Yes, folks, I E-mailed Insomniac, and they replied! Since they were so cool, they get a little section on my site outside of the disclaimer. ^_^ Obviously, this first one is a little old, as Going Commando wasn't even announced at that time (I've gone back and added in the dates, so you can see how old they are). And if you notice some strange inconsistancies between messages, you may care to go here to see my own opinion of this, but make sure to go here as well to get the full picture. Just for the amusement of it, did you know that according to BMI charts, I have a lower BMI than Ratchet (21.2 compared to 23.7 {you know a girl has nothing to do when she starts comparing her BMI to that of a video game character}), but that that's probably not true because I sit on my duff all day? Very funny. Anyway...
March 7, 2003, I wrote: Hello! My name is Kristi. I'm an avid gamer and have bought a few of your games, the most recient being Ratchet & Clank. I would like to congratulate you on making a superb game.
There. Now that my messy formal introduction is finished, let's get down to business. First of all, I have a question: exactly how tall are Ratchet and Clank? That's been bugging me for a while. I know, it seems odd, but I got to thinking one day and it's been bugging me.
Secondly, I would like to put in a shameless blurb for my own website. You can see it at http://www.geocities.com/sandychan87/index.html if you'd like. It's a fansite for Ratchet & Clank. You may also visit my friend's site at http://yougottabekidding.bravepages.com/C.html as well. I have searched the 'Net over and I believe we are the only two fanpages in existance. Kind of surprising, actually, considering what a great game it is. We'd both be really flattered if you thought we were worthy enough to have a spot in your "teleportation" section of your site. ;)
Last, I have one more thing to ask you, and I think I speak for all of the fans out there when I ask, "When will Ratchet & Clank get its well-deserved sequal?"
Thank you for your time. I understand that running a big company is hard work, and that fan mail is a low priority for most. And don't ask, "Then why did you write this in the first place?", because... Well, I don't know why. Just don't ask.
Once again, thanks!
Kristi
March 12, 2003, Greg Singer of Insomniac replied: Hi, Kristi.
Thanks for writing.
You have a great site! It is good news to know that you are enjoying the game, its story and characters so much... It makes all of our long hours here at the studio seem worthwhile...
Right now, we are in production on our next game ~ though there is no "official" word yet as to what it will be. You can be assured though that it will be more of the same great adventure that we love to create here ... only better!
Again, thanks for your kind note. I'll be sure to pass it along to the entire team.
Best of luck in your own creative endeavors,
Greg Singer
Insomniac Games, Inc.
ps. Ratchet is 1.25 meters tall, and Clank is 0.75 meters tall.
Jun 14, 2003, I wrote: Hello again. This is Kristi, the weird girl who asked you how tall Ratchet and Clank are. Remember me now? Okay, can I ask you another stupid question? How much do they weigh? Yeah, what's next...underwear sizes? Oops, forgot: "going commando"! Anyway, I was wondering how do people get jobs testing games and previewing/reviewing them for developers? I don't mean technical bug testing (I know I don't have the patience to look for every possible way to make a game freeze), but the kind of testing where you look for public enjoyability. The ones who get put on the back of the package where it says "Four out of five gamers liked this game...and we think the fifth was a monkey in a suit." A friend suggested I write to a company who actually makes games, since no one around here knows, and...well, here I am, writing to the developers of one of my all-time favorite games at 3:45 AM (forgive any spelling mistakes, please). If you have any information or suggestions for me, please respond. Thank you! Kristi
July 16, 2003, Mary Rust of Insomniac replied: Hi Kristi ~
Thanks for writing. Excellent questions. Never stupid! I asked one of our programmers (specifically the one who programs Ratchet) about Ratchet and Clanks' heights and weights. This is what he said:
"Ratchet is 5 feet 5 inches tall, including his ears, which is a little on the tall side for the Lombax species who are typically less than 5 feet tall for the males and around 4 feet 7 inches tall for the females. Ratchet weighs 142 pounds, which is also a bit lean for a Lombax. Typical Lombaxes tend to be a bit more stout and portly than Ratchet, owing primarily to a comfortable and unhurried lifestyle. Clank is 3 feet 2 inches tall and weighs a respectable 17 pounds. His light weight is the result of state of the art nano-technology that compressed the capabilities of a 137 Teraflop supercomputer into Clank's diminutive frame. This was very fortunate for Ratchet who has the responsibility of carrying Clank's weight around on his back. If Clank were much heavier he almost certainly would have impaired Ratchet's speed and agility.
Metric units are also available upon request."
As for testing, I believe you're referring to Focus Testing. During a Focus Test, a publisher (like Sony) will gather people of varying age groups and have them play the game for a certain number of hours and then interview those people. If you would like to actively look into focus testing for publishers, feel free to contact the publishers themselves. Sony is located in the bay area, and they often pick people who have filled in their registration forms. Sony, Universal, Nintendo, Microsoft, Bethdesa, Ubi, Eidos, Acclaim, Infogrames (Atari), and Namco are just some of the publishers out there. If you wanted to contact Sony, you could contact Sony Computer Entertainment America, and their website is: http://www.us.playstation.com/
Happy Gaming!
~Mary Rust
Insomniac Games
I repled: Okay, now you have me confused. The last person I E-mailed from Insomniac was Greg Singer, who said that Ratchet was 1.25 meters tall (which, according to my metric converter, is roughly 4 feet) and Clank is 0.75 meters (2 feet). Now, which of you is right? I understand that his ears add a little hight, but I don't think they're a foot and a half long (even if they are, I don't recall them ever standing straight up like wolf ears, anyway), and 147 pounds would be rather "stout and portly" for anything four feet tall (my estimates put him around 90-95 pounds). At the moment, I beleive I lean more towards the four-foot figure, as Ratchet being 5'5" would make most of the other characters around ten feet tall (a galaxy of Golliaths...).
It strikes me as strange, however: Veldin is a rather arid planet, and yet Ratchet is perfectly capable of swimming with 17 pounds strapped to his back. He must have been on his school's swim team or something, because I know it's hard for me to swim with any extra weight at all. Rather strange, what with his home being a desert and all... Ah, the science of video game worlds.
Yes, I was refering to Focus Testing; I just didn't know what to call it. Thanks for the help. Do you know of any companies in the Houston, Texas area? California is a little far for me. I think I may have sent more than one copy of that E-mail. My E-mail program was messing up, and I wasn't sure it was sent, so I sent it again to make sure. Sorry if it inconveniences you. I know this must being getting close to crunch time, where everthing is real hectic in the preparation of your game. Thank you again.
July 17, 2003, Mary Rust of Insomniac replied: Hi Kristi ~
Sorry for the confusion and conflicting information! Greg Singer was Assistant to Human Resources, and before moving to the reception desk I was a tester where I was always told Ratchet was 1.5 meters tall and the crates were 1 meter tall. I just contacted one of our designers who looked up Ratchet and Clanks' heights in the actual programs. Ratchet is 1.5 meters tall (with his ears), and Clank is .7 meters tall (with his antenna). The 3'2" Clank height was a typo by our programmer (he meant 2'2"). And you're right, the other characters are very tall. Lombaxes are a short species. :)
Ratchet is surprisingly strong, allowing him to swim through water with Clank. All that muscle mass also adds weight to his body since muscle weighs more than fat (which is how some people gain weight but lose inches). According to BMI charts--which probably don't apply to Lombaxes, but just for fun I looked it up--Ratchet's BMI is 23.7, which is a normal weight (for humans anyway).
I hope this clears up the confusion. Sorry again!
~Mary Rust
Insomniac Games
August 21, 2003, I wrote:
I'm sorry to bother you in your biggest crunch time, but I have a question. I am a highschool senior, and I was wondering what kind of degree I should get in college if I was going to become a beta tester and character concept artist for a game company? Or do I even need a degree? Do I just need to know the right people and have a bit of skill and a lot of patience?
Also, I have heard rumors spreading that you're in the begining stages of making a Ratchet & Clank 3. Is that true, or is somebody just blowing smoke to make themselves look good?
A friend of mine says she has "inside information": that the new character called "the unknown" in previews for "Going Commando" is really a lombaxian girl named Angela! True, or is she on some serious nano? And what's this about Clank's love interest?
And now, a fangirl question: how old is Ratchet? Clank is only as old as the game itself, but it's pretty clear fur-boy is older. It's become a hot topic on the GameFAQS.com message board (well, sorta hot). Also, do lombaxes age like dogs (ei, one year to us is five to them), or are their biological clocks set right?
Thank you, and sorry for interrupting. Kristi
Jan 24, 2004, Mary Rust of Insomniac replied:Dear Kristi ~
We don't really have beta testers. We have a QA (Quality Assurance) department that tests the games for bugs, and Sony hosts focus tests where we ask gamers to play the game and tell us what they think.
Many of your answer can be found on our new FAQ page: regarding schooling: http://www.insomniacgames.com/html/about/faq.html#game_industry regarding future games: http://www.insomniacgames.com/html/about/faq.html#next_project
I asked a fellow Insomniac about Ratchet's age, and this is what he
said:
Ratchet ages in Lombaxian years where 1 Lombax year = 5 Human years.
Ratchet is about three and a half now, so in "human" years he's a
teenager of about 17 1/2. Lombaxes mature very quickly, but live very
very long lives.
happy gaming!
Mary Rust
Insomniac Games
September 27, 2003, I wrote:
My friend Atsu (I beleive she is known to you as Angela. She says you used her name for a character in Going Commando by her request. Did you?) says that you don't check your [email protected] E-mail account much, which probably explains why she's gotten a reply and I haven't. ^_^* Heh, I feel silly now. So, here's a copy of my last E-mail, once again resent, and hopefully to the right address this time!
Copy of last E-mail above this one enclosed
January 26, 2004, Mary Rust of Insomniac Games replied:Dear Kristi ~
Sorry about that! gbs was an old address from someone who worked here last year some time. info is now the general email address for us.
Sorry to say that we did not use any name by anyone's request.
Also, sorry to repeat any old questions, but many of the questions in this email can be answered on our new FAQ page:
http://www.insomniacgames.com/html/about/faq.html#next_project
http://www.insomniacgames.com/html/about/faq.html#game_industry
If you have any other questions, let me know!
happy gaming,
Mary Rust
Insomniac Games
December 27, 2003, I wrote:
A while back, I E-mailed you asking how tall Ratchet was. You replied that he was 5' tall and added that he was considered a little tall for a lombax. Now, with the addition of Going Commando (which, by the way, is extremely good), we see Angela, a female lombax, who is very easily six feet tall! This confuses me quite a bit, as it conflicts with what you told me before. Trust the horse's mouth, except when it has a forked tongue, indeed!
What exactly happened here? Was she an early genetic experiment of Megacorp's? Merely a byproduct of living off Veldin (in a completely different galaxy, no less) and - most likely - eating a different diet? Did someone in the graphics department merely make a mistake? ...Or is this a big joke on the fact that 95% of Ratchet's real-life fangirls are taller than him? ^_^
January 26, 2004, Mary Rust of Insomniac Games replied:Hi again Kristi ~
Angela is female (that's why she's taller). :)
happy gaming!
Mary Rust
Insomniac Games
July 29, 2004, I wrote: Hello.
Remember me? Yes, it's been a while since I last E-mailed you. I've come back with some more questions and a few snippets of other things.
First off, although it's common knowledge that Ratchet & Clank have a threequel in the works, I've got a few questions. Since there's going to be an online mode, do you think any fans might have a chance of getting to go up against their favorite developers? Or will you be too busy with your next project? I think a round or two of Up Your Arsenal online would be a good addition to your "Friday Frag Fests" I seem to remember reading about in an interview (and if I'm confusing you with some other team, forgive me, and may I suggest you start one? It might be good stress relief for the team).
Speaking of next projects, will there be a Ratchet & Clank 4? Or do you plan to tie up all lose ends in Up Your Arsenal and move on to a bigger and better project? I beleive it was stated in an interview that you didn't intend to sell the characters as you did Spyro, which I feel is a great advantage to both the series and fans. I'm not quite sure why I'm asking you this, as I'm certain you'll tell me that you can't disclose any details at this time, but I suppose asking never hurt.
As a random, out-of-the-blue question, what has become of Clank's little girlfriend? We hear plenty on Ratchet's new love interest, but precious little for our unnamed fembot. How does she feel about Clank having his own TV show and working around those robotic actresses in their metal minis? Have they settled down, or was there something resembling WWIII between them? Does she ever get a voice, or at least talk to the camera? Very shy little girl...
Speaking of Sasha, there's quite the debate as to her appearance going around. Unofficial sources say she's not a lombax. Can you confirm or deny anything on this?
And, as to a slightly older point, I add a page a while back that may be of some slight interest (or at least amusement) to you: http://www.geocities.com/albinolombax/index.html Even I think I over-analyze just a bit, LOL. ^_^;>
I've also heard that the Galactic President doesn't appreciate his daughter's interest in "Clank's chaufur." Do we get to hear any threats of "I'll sic the Galactic Secret Service on you if you so much as look wrong at my little girl!" from him? LOL.
On a slightly different note, a friend of mine tried to visit your headquaters but was turned away. It seems a bit strange to place not only your adress, but an online map and driving instructions as well on your page, and yet not give tours. I realize that having too many fans running amok in your building could cause quite the problem, but I don't see why a once-a-week walkthrough - with all sensitive information carefully hiden, of course - would be a great evil. I've met several fans who comment on how responsive you are to their E-mails, and I commend you for this (ooo, look at me, don't I sound formal? LOL). However, please don't think me rude for saying this, I find it a little strange to place what appears to be nearly an open invitation with no party at the end.
I'm certain you're quite busy, but a few of my friends have said they've gotten responses from you recently, so I figured I may as well give it a shot. Thanks for your time.
Kristi
July 30, 2004, Mary Stout of Insomniac Games replied:Dear Kristi ~
Thanks for emailing us!
Many of your questions are answered on our FAQ page:
regarding Up Your Arsenal: http://www.insomniacgames.com/html/about/faq.html#rc3
regarding future projects: http://www.insomniacgames.com/html/about/faq.html#next_project
Our address and directions are mostly for prospective employees who come to interview (and vendors and professionals who visit our building). Because what we do here involves intellectual property, we can't give tours of our offices.
Feel free to write again any time!
happy gaming,
Mary Stout
Insomniac Games
August 13, 2004, I wrote:Hi.
There's a debate going on at the Playstation.com forums as to how old Clank is. We know that he's only as old as the games themselves, but how much time has passed since we saw the little robot created?
Thanks.
Kristi
Insomniac hasn't replied yet.
September 20, 2004, I wrote:Hi!
I was just feeling a little curious and decided to E-mail you. Do you think you might could tell me who you've hired as the voice actress for Sasha, the new female lead? I know there haven't been any picture releases (beleive me, I've checked :) ), but maybe you could spare that one tiny detail? Thanks.
October 7, 2004, Mary Stout of Insomniac Games replied:Hi there!
Thanks for writing!
Unfortunately, we aren't releasing that information. However, she'll be in the manual and the in-game credits. The release date is getting closer--November 2, 2004.
happy gaming!
Mary Stout
Insomniac Games
October 23, 2004, I wrote: Hello! ^_^
Sorry to pester you again, but I've got a few questions. First of all, there's been some discussion on the Playstation.com boards about the lombax-ness (lombax-ness? lombaxianess?) of the Galactic President and Sasha. Some are convinced they are lombaxes, since they have five fingers and a lombaxian tail, but others insist they're a million other things. Personally, I think they're lombaxes, based on finger count and other general physical traits. A different subspecies/race, perhaps, but lombaxes all the same. Can you perhaps give some official info on the subject, just to set the records straight?
Speaking of other subspecies, I've also heard that Angela Cross was actually from the Solana galaxy herself. According to the story I heard, her homeworld is Frosca, a cold planet in the same solar system as Veldin that's a little smaller and so has less gravity (and therefore taller lombaxes). Most Froscan lombaxes are white, since there are large dinosaur-like creatures that will eat them, and Angela, being yellow, had to leave when she was little. It makes for a neat story, and it explains a few things, namely Angela's ear shape, height, and clumsiness, due to the difference in gravity and climate. Is it true?
Thanks for all your time and help.
-Kristi
P.S. - Up Your Arsenal looks to be a great game! I can't wait to play it!
October 28, 2004, Mary Stout of Insomniac Games replied:Hi there Kristi!
Actually, The Galactic President and Sasha are not Lombaxes. At this time we're not 100% sure what they are--we're in the process of researching their species.
Some of the main characters (Ratchet, Angela, Sasha, Galactic President) have five fingers, and all others (Clank, Qwark, Darla Gratch, Drek, Fizzwidget, etc) have three. The Japanese avoid four fingers in games and movies. So only a few characters have five, and everyone else has three fingers in the Ratchet & Clank series. This is also true for Spyro! It has more to do with the game character than a particular species. (I'm sorry the answer to your question is more game mechanics rather than in-game story!)
Hmm, regarding Angela, I've never heard that. This is what I know about her:
Angela, like Ratchet, is a Lombax. She is originally from another planet in the Solana galaxy (where Ratchet is from). Because each planet in the galaxy has different gravity some are shorter or taller than others. Her planet, Dangara is further from the sun than Veldin and has a lower gravitational pull. Therefore, Angela is taller and loves colder climates, such as Grelbin.
Hope that helps!
happy gaming!
Mary Stout
Insomniac Games
On January 25, 2005, I wrote: Yep, it's me again. I'm sure you've already run screaming from your E-mail program, right? ^_~
LOL, anyway, just thought I'd pester you on the subject of a species name for the Galactic President and Sasha again. You know, since numerous postings on message boards don't seem to generate a large response, and it has been quite a while since I last asked this way...
Oh, and a little oddity I noticed and had to point out: http://www.deviantart.com/view/14227220/
Just keeping y'all on your toes. :D
~Kristi
Insomniac hasn't replied yet.