Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (2021)

This game was a lot of fun. I was a huge fan of the original—which I still think had a certain vibe none of the sequels matched—as a kid, played the other PS2 and PSP instalments, but then dropped off in the PS3 era. I did play the PS4 reboot/remake which was pretty good but didn’t displace the original for me.

It’s quite nice to see they haven’t really changed the formula after all these years, because it works, it’s fun, and there’s a lot fewer of this type of game today than there was back in 2002. There’s a wide range of entertaining weapons that are rewarding to upgrade, frenetic combat that has you constantly swapping between those weapons to avoid being overwhelmed, and lots of collectibles to seek out. (The original RYNO will forever be the coolest though.)

The technical showcase aspect of Rift Apart is very impressive. It’s visually gorgeous and, while the loading-screen-less presentation doesn’t really add much to the game, it keeps things fast-paced and allows for some particularly bombastic set pieces.

I've been waiting for this to go on sale enough to purchase it as I know it was a little short and didn't want to spend full price. I ended up getting a gamefly 3-month discount and used that to play the game. That likely added a star to my final review since I didn't pay for the game.

First of all, the graphics in-game are amazing. Everything looks vibrant.

The game runs amazingly well on the PS5. Loading is almost non-existent and the rate of moving between some scenes is incredible.

Gameplay is tight and fun. The different guns are a blast and I used a majority of them swapping back and forth as the situation demanded.

The story is fun and wraps up well.

All in all another great game from Insomniac for Playstation.

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart did well at the DICE Awards: Outstanding Achievement in Animation, Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction, Outstanding Technical Achievement and Family Game of the Year. I think no other game won quite as many awards.

Returnal one the award I thought it clearly deserved, Outstanding Achievement in Audio Design, and also took home Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition which I can't disagree with (sorry Mark!).

Not surprised that Forza Horizon 5 took home best racing game, although I did enjoy Hot Wheels Unleashed.

Still somewhat amazed that It Takes Two won best game. I still don't think I've really encountered one glowing review for that game, most have been mixed. But I guess I have to find out for myself one day since I own it on PS4/PS5 and have it on Game Pass.

My PS Wrap Up for 2021 finally worked and I have some stats to report.

Ironically the game I spent the most time in was one I didn’t enjoy but I forced myself to see through to the end. Also, I played four Insomniac games on PlayStation consoles this year but none of them made it into my top five most played (this despite playing Rift Apart twice back-to-back).

Also I played Mass Effect Legendary Edition on my PS5 but my console claims I completed the first game in 29 hours which either means gameplay time is not being counted correctly or I am now able to 100% ME in under 30 hours. The latter is not that far fetched since I basically know the game by rote.

Anyway, here you are:

This is the first I've ever played of this series, and I don't know why it took me so long. When I was talking to other folks about how much I was enjoying it, someone mentioned that they just don't crank these out (no pun intended). Instead, they take their time to craft them - and it shows.

First off, what a BEAUTIFUL game for something that's more on the animated side. The attention to detail and world-building is really impressive. I found myself pausing the game to capture some of the more sweeping landscapes - and there are plenty of them. The storyline is simple, but keeps you guessing so it doesn't get too boring or repetitive. And there's not too much dialogue to bog things down. in fact, there's a sweetness in the characters which are kindhearted and caring.

The gameplay can get a little repetitive, but there's enough variety and fun that it keeps it challenging. In fact, some of the bosses were downright hard - not discouraging - but enough that I had to try them more than a few times before I figured out how to beat them. Speaking of which - the WEAPONS! So much variety and imagination! Once you figure out how to make them work together, some magic happens - really cool stuff.

This isn't an epically long game, but enough to hold my interest to the end and have a lot of fun along the way. Again, a fun game, full of adventure with plenty of stuff to blow up! I really enjoyed this little romp. I'll definitely pay attention to the next one(s) that come out. Well done!

I had a good time with this game! It was engaging and fun, and Rivet is the best. I did have some gripes:

• The double jump is finicky. Like in most games, you hold the jump button for a higher/longer jump. But if you hold it too long, it starts the slow fall state, which apparently means you can't do your second jump anymore (if you don't hold the jump button long enough to start slow fall state, you can still do your second jump all the way until you hit the ground). So there's this unintuitive problem where you have to hold the button for a higher/longer jump, but you can't hold it TOO long--and if you hold it just a split second too long the animation for the slow fall state might not even start yet, which is why it took me a lot of frustration to figure out what was even going on. At one point I was screaming at the TV: "WHY WON'T YOU JUMP?!!?!" My cat did not appreciate that.
• Some use of arbitrary invisible walls.
• I had a third one but I don't remember what it was.

Anyway good game, would recommend!

So some thoughts that I probably won't write in a review. My experience with the series is that I only played the first 2 games through a PS2 emulator and I played Rift Apart on Renegade Legend (the hardest difficulty).

• Traversal is soooo much fun. Speeding through levels with hover boots through linear hallways is super satisfying and I never get tired of using them. I would always use them if I am ever able to which is nearly all the time.

• I think the writing feels undercooked. Ratchet feels too flat in this one as he has very few traits like being uncertain and "he's a hero". Some conflicts do feel undercooked. I think the Nefariouses didn't play off each other as much as I would've liked. And the blowout between Rivet and Kit feels rushed compared to R&C 1. We don't see Kit's side of contemplation and the split doesn't last long. I think the relationship between Rivet and Kit lacks dynamism. I didn't find much of a reason for them to be friends other than "they're counterparts to Ratchet and Clank". I don't recall much playful banter between them as I did with R&C 1 & 2.

• Guns are really tame compared to my current favorite, Going Commando. The Buzz Saw gun especially feels less satisfying than the one on GC. Not much weapons that make you go "HOLY SHIT! THIS IS SO FUCKING COOL!" I still had a lot of fun with the combat as I was using so many of my guns, dashing around, quickswitching like I was playing DOOM Eternal. Plop down the sprinkler, freeze some guys, and go haywire for some maximum damage output.

• Enemy and boss designs are very limited. It makes approaches to combat feel less thought out. Hope that Insomniac improves a lot on this aspect because after playing 3 of their games in a row, I think things need to change.

• How this game shows off what the PS5 could do is amazing. Currently the best game to showcasE the PS5's hardware. This game is gaddamn gorgeous. The haptic feedback is a major improvement from the Spider-Man games which felt lacking. The adaptive triggers are just crazy good. The setpieces help service how fast the SSD loads worlds seamlessly.

• I feel that there should be a disconnect between Ratchet and Rivet. It doesn't make much sense from a narrative perspective where Ratchet and Rivet are separate for most of the game yet the upgrades are shared. Both play identical to one another and I feel there could've been room for different weapons since what we have feels tame. It would make the game harder for the player to fall into a repetitious groove.

• After beating Going Commando, what ever happened to Angela Cross if they're going through with this "last of the Lombax race?"

Right now, I'm feeling in the middle between 3 and 4 stars. Edging slightly closer to 3. I had a lot of fun with it, but things definitely could've been better.

Being the first true PS5 exclusive to test out the next gen features of the console, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this game. After getting the platinum trophy (although an easier one) I'm greatly satisfied with the game and am itching for more. This is the new standard I'll be holding AAA games at going forward, the game just plays and looks amazing. Will be revisiting this game in the future for sure.

Imgur Screenshot Dump

Gameplay: 9

• Great use of the Dualsense controller, really immersive features like rumble and trigger feedback
• Large variety of weapons/gadgets to experiment with, along with decent skill trees to upgrade and improve on.
• The game is rather short although there's a challenge mode after completion that allows you to further upgrade weapons to new tiers and face stronger enemies.
• Awesome blend of action and story that is just straight up fun

Story: 10

• Graphics in cutscenes are borderline movie quality, with a good T.V. it's true jaw dropping
• Seamless transitions from cutscenes to gameplay truly does add to the immersion and flow of the game
• Definitely one of the most thought-out stories put together in gaming as the world is completely fleshed out and everything feels like it exists, a true interactive movie.

Graphics: 10

• The quality is truly next gen, viewing this on a good 4K T.V. is something to behold
• Shadows and Lighting are top notch, with neon lights everywhere and npc creatures walking around.
• Highly recommend playing the 60FPS PERF mode, keeping the steady frame with the added benefits of ray tracing.

Soundtrack: 8

• Overall a great soundtrack, well put together and produced
• Reminds me of a movie score soundtrack, maybe not comparable to the greats but still
• Every track fit the aesthetic and vibe of the location and mission you were on and added to the hype

Just finished it yesterday with 99%. It's a fun game and I've been playing Ratchet since the original, and most of the games in the series.

I liked the gunplay a lot but it definitely got a little bit repetitive at a certain point. The game itself looks beautiful but eventually your eyes get used to it, and then it's a question of "am I still having fun?"

Overall I really enjoyed the experience, although the zooming in of the camera can make it very tricky, especially in the Battleplex where enemies spawn behind you and then wreck you. I still can't beat the low-gravity challenge as there are just too many darn enemies shooting things at you, from behind where you can't even see the projectiles incoming. I just said "screw it" and went and beat the final boss with the difficulty turned down a tad.

One of the higher points of the game was zipping around the level that's out in the desert - that was a ton of fun. Anything in Ratchet where you get to move fast is extremely satisfying to play, and the controls lend themselves to very fast gameplay, which I enjoy.

Same thing can be said about riding around on the snails, but there were a lot of times where I just wanted to get back to the ship and for the life of me I couldn't figure out how to do so. Ultimately I would grab a snail (which depending on the respawn point was a huge pain in the ass) and try to find a ramp around the ship so that I could get out of the water. Of course, by crashing the snail into the side of a floating island, I'd fall into the darn water and thus get location-reset across the map all over again. That was actually extremely annoying.

Why didn't they just add a shortcut to jump back to your ship?

I really enjoyed Clank's little puzzle sections, although they never really got too challenging. The strategy was always "do whatever it takes to get all the balls", then "put them in the right spot". I love this style of Lemmings-type gameplay, I just thought they could have done a bit more with it.

The section where you kill all the viruses with the little robot shooter were... fine at best, boring at worst. You just hold down the right trigger to fire, find the pads, and press left trigger once the virus is vulnerable, requiring zero skill or strategy. Felt a lot like padding.

I recently played Ratchet 2016 and had an equal amount of fun. Did I like Rift Apart more than Ratchet 2016? Hard to say. I think Rift Apart is a great game, but the word "brilliant" gets thrown around far too often these days. I ran into quite a few technical glitches of falling through floors, getting stuck in the environment, enemies falling into no-man's-land which then I could not defeat, meaning the cutscene triggers didn't get tripped, so I had to do it all over again, and of course the aforementioned "how in god's name do I get back to the ship?" that sort of thing. Bugs don't really bother me though, so this is more me saying that I didn't find it "brilliant", just an enjoyable way to spend some time.

The integration with the DualSense was really nice. Again, you do forget about it after a while, which is actually kinda proof that they did a great job implementing the feature in my opinion. It's not SUPPOSED to be this super obnoxious thing that constantly reminds you of it's existence - it's an enhancement to the gameplay, and it did just that. The small footsteps that would change depending on the surface you were walking on, the ultra-satisfying SMACK feeling when you launch electrical blasts or fire your machine gun or rocket launcher, the gentle movements to go along with the pitter-patter of raindrops, all really, really cool.

Overall, I'm really happy with this purchase and I do want to go back and try this "challenge mode" new game+ thing. I do plan on getting a platinum (I never cared about this before, I'm not one of those gamers) because I like the collecting in this game and it's just fun minute-to-minute. Frustrations aside, this was a solid experience that I recommend to long-time players of the franchise, but especially to the Ratchet & Clank uninitiated.

I've played every Ratchet and Clank game and I've 100% every single one as well. This definitely stand the tallest out of all the games. Which is great thing, but the bad thing is that it's Ratchet and Clank there's nothing really anything that changes the game for me. Yes, the rift thing is pretty cool, but I feel like it's not nearly as cool as Titan Fall 2 campaign where did the same thing.

The graphics and sound design is really amazing and truly feels next gen in that sense. The graphics make it feels like something out a Pixar movie and the animation is phenomenal that rivals just that. The sound is amazing as well, I use my 3D audio, but not sure if I'm getting the 3D audio effect on it.

Overall, Ratchet and Clank is great emotion adventure. Is it truly next gen? Yes and no. Yes in the aspect of graphics and SOME gameplay. No, because it's Ratchet and Clank and nothing is really different about. Not to say it's a bad thing but people will point that out.

Definitely the play the game.

During my play through a I noticed Jim Ward wasn’t voicing Captain Quark. However, I didn’t know the reason until now:

Why Qwark Changed Voice Actor In Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Granted, character voices have been changed throughout the series’ history. From the first to second entries alone, Ratchet himself got swapped out. The difference is, Jim Ward - the actor behind Qwark, the failing hero and recurring frenemy - has been here since the start, even appearing in the 2016 re-imagining and its movie counterpart. However, he’s not behind the character in Rift Apart, and it’s for upsetting reasons. Ward has retired as an actor, due to Alzheimer's and a severe case of COVID-19.

“Dear friends, family, and fans of the greatest voice-over actor ever (my biased opinion) Jim Ward, loved by thousands,” his wife, Janice, stated in an open letter. “Jim made people spew coffee at unexpected moments and people pulled over to the side of the road cause they couldn’t stop laughing. Many of you have wondered where our voice deity went. Well, he got sick. At first, it was a mild cognitive memory issue. Once he arrived at Silverado Beverly Place Memory Care, all was well. But, two weeks later, he got the worst case of COVID imaginable, and was allegedly close to death several times due to the impact of COVID on his health.

“He was completely paralyzed and hospitalized for four months where he learned to eat again, walk again, etc. The amazing thing about Alzheimer's is that part of the brain still functions normally. The other part - well, he has no memory, not from a year ago, a day ago, 10 minutes ago, two seconds ago. But he still plays harmonica, guitar, does voices, and sings. He still knows who I am.”

Jim Ward isn’t just Quark, he was a prolific voice actor that’s pretty much been in at least one thing you love, if not ten. This is truly sad. What makes it even worse is they are crowd funding for his medical support, because that’s where people are at in the US. I hope he gets the support he needs and deserves. He’s made a lot of people very happy over the years and his voice will be greatly missed.

A few hours in, I guess around 1/3 through the game. While it's not my favorite thing I've played this year, there are several exceptional things about it that I feel make it a must-play. For one, as many have pointed out, the graphical fidelity is next level, from the extreme detail and clarity on the characters and backgrounds to the cool ray traced lighting effects. The use of the DualSense controller is also a game-changer that makes me reluctant to go back to shooting stuff on the Xbox controller. But it's not just hardware being exercised—there's clearly a seasoned command over the artistic and presentation side being put to work here too that puts this in a similar realm as things like God of War and Final Fantasy VII Remake.

There's a feeling of extreme kinetic energy zipping this game back and forth between its gameplay segments and cutscenes. I had to take a step back and realize how few instances of hard cuts to black or loading I had seen in the game, and how incredibly detailed the game was at all times to blur the line between game and cinematic. That technical beefiness allows such an extra level of expressiveness in the characters, a vibrancy and immersion to its locations, and ups the overall level of excitement while playing a lot. They don't waste this power for a second, and to use a cliché phrase, it really does feel like playing a high-quality Pixar movie.

The inter-dimension aspect of the game is a super cool visual effect that I reckon probably is helped a lot by the PS5 hardware too, and I expect other games to copy it because it's just that good. It's one of those games that has been a big "whoa" moment visually, which you only really get 1 or 2 of each year.

PROS

• Magnificent audiovisual presentation
• Huge variety of weaponry makes combat consistently fun and exciting
• Diverse level design gives every planet a strong identity
• The hoverboots rule

CONS

• The basic R&C structure is starting to feel slightly dated
• Doesn't lean into the dimension-hopping gimmick nearly enough
• Chaotic cinematics make some of the story beats hard to follow, but maybe I'm just old and stupid

Just finished my first run through of Rift Apart. I think it’s tied with A Crack in Time as my favourite game in the series. This game had a lot of love and emotion put into it and it shines. It has a really beautiful story and the new characters are my instant favourites. I’ll put all this and other thoughts on a review after I’ve completed Challenge Mode, but I love this game. For anyone who was a bit lukewarm on the Ratchet & Clank reboot in 2016, don’t sleep on this game, it’s phenomenal.

It also has big Mass Effect energy in a couple spots, and not just because of Jeniffer Hale. I don’t want to spoil too much but there are some moments that really remind me of the strong team dynamic of Mass Effect even if the structure of the game and side characters is not quite the same. It still captures a lot of the importance team camaraderie and trust and conveys it in ways that remind me of moments in ME. P.S. I’m 99% certain the first character speaking to Rivet (Jennifer Hale/Cmdr.Shepard) via comms is voiced by Ali Hillis (Liara). How’s that for a nice little Easter egg ;-) Oh and Kimberly Brooks (Ashley) can be heard as the PA announcer in Nafarious city.

Anyway I’m still welling up with feelings after completing it so I’ll say more later, save for this one thing: it’s all worth it for the Nafariouses song at the end!