Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart - Review

 4 Heroes. 2 Dimensions. 1 Epic Adventure.

Console: PlayStation 5

This article originally published on May 10th 2023. It has been touched up and republished for the games PC release.

I've never played a Ratchet & Clank title until now. I was aware of the series, how could not have been with those ads, but it was never a series I felt like playing. That said, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart did finally catch my interest. I've gotten a bigger appreciation for the platformer ever since playing Super Mario Odyssey and Rift Apart is one of the first 1st party titles on the PS5. It thus came up in conversation enough that I stowed it away in my brain for a later date. Something to put on my birthday list, for example.

Lo and behold: that's what happened this year. It, alongside the entire Uncharted series (overkill: yes, appreciated: also yes!) is what I got his year. With Burning Shores dropping over a week after my birthday I had a spot in my gaming schedule. It was a good decision. Ratchet & Clank is not a very long game, I'd argue it's even short for its 70,- asking price, but it's a fun and quality title nonetheless.

Let's dive in.

As a gift for his best friend so he can start searching for hs lost race, Clank repaired the dimensionator, a device capable of opening portals to other dimensions which he presents to him at the festival. Said festival honouring our two heroes is cut short by Dr Nefarious, a professional mad scientist and supervillain extraordinair. During the fight, the dimensionator gets damaged and blasts the three into another dimension. This other dimension is ruled with a little iron fist by Emperor Nefarious whose evil forces Dr Nefarious quickly put under his command since the Emperor is away on a conquest.  It´s not all doom and gloom though: this dimension is home to another heroic Lombax: Rivet. She rescues Clank from Nefarious's forces and teams up with Ratchet & Clank to repair the dimensionator and take down the Nefariouses.

Insomniac has always put in a lot of effort into the story of their Ratchet & Clank games, more than is the norm with 3D platformers, and that continues here in Rift Apart. The story is well done. It has a good length and pacing with an interesting core idea: how different choices, outcomes and circumstances shape the trajectory of one's life. All the characters in this game are fun and well-performed. I can see why Clank is often favoured over Ratchet, and why Dr. Nefarious has become a fan favourite (loved his little 'PSA' videos throughout the game). If only Emperor Nefarious could've lived up to the threat the game builds him up to be.

With Rivet the story truly shines. What could've easily been a one-dimensional gender-swapped Ratchet thankfully grew over the course of development into a distinct, well-written and strong character. From her cool design that hints at her history and trajectory to Jenniffer Hale's excellent performance that brings out all the character's layers. A bit ironically, because Rivet gets so much focus, Ratchet himself gets the short end of the wrench. His hesitance towards finding the other Lombaxes since he's afraid they'll find him a disappointment and meeting them will mean an end to lose the life he build up is compelling but underdeveloped. 

Rivet and Ratchet.

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is an action platformer with guns. Lots, and lots of sci-fi guns. The game is divided into 9 levels, 9 planets, each of which is made up of platforming, combat and exploration sections. These planets are an entertaining ride. From a desert world filled with remnants of ancient giant robots gladiatorial fights to a half-broken world robot pirates now control and have built a theme park in. Got to pay the bills in between raiding and pillaging, after all!

Besides their theming, the levels have some well-implemented gimmicks, such as the racing sections, and some nice variety and are well-paced. They never feel like they're dragging their feet or overstaying their welcome. Never too difficult either. Didn't even hit the double digits in terms of death count, which just adds to the title's breezy pace and feel.

The combat is where at in this title. Rift Apart sports 20 unique weapons for you to blast away your enemies. We have guns, bombs, blackhole generators and much more. Using all these guns is a lot of fun. Finding a good strategy, like using the electric gun to stun enemies in place before blasting them away is a treat. The weapons have so much variety that even when you find one that doesn't quite work the way you think, there's always another one around the corner that will knock the enemy's shocks off. Not that many enemies have shocks with how many of them are spider-like robots, the game could´ve gone with better enemy variety, but still. 

The platforming itself is fun though clearly not the focus. The game gives you a few tools to tackle these sections, including magnet boots and a swinging mechanic but the platforming itself is basic and uncreative. When you see grind rails you now have to grind. When you see a large cap your rocket boots are needed. These things do get chained together later in the game but even then it's more about just timing things right. That's how difficult it gets.

Better is the game's central gimmick. The dimensional rifts. These rifts are scattered throughout each level for both platforming and combat. Using your rift tether, when you're in range, you can pull the rift towards you and transport yourself instantly to where the rift is. These rifts give some fun platforming challenges, like mini puzzle levels the bigger ones lead to, and give you an edge in combat. Shielded enemies in your way? Transport yourself behind them using a rift and blast them from the back! If only they were used for more than just these two things.

The central 'rift' mechanic in action.

I also have some issues with the amount of content. Like any good 3D platformer, Rift Apart has secrets and collectable for you to find. From different armour pieces that give you small bonuses (which are very superficial), to spy bots that give you better insight into the world. I wish there was more though. The number of collectables and other side content, such as dedicated side-quests, is low. By just playing the game normally, without backtracking and just a basic sense of curiosity, I ended up with a completion rate of 92% once the credits rolled. It shortens the game as well as reduces its replay value of which you have only New Game Plus to dig your teeth into.

It's also a shame that Ratchet and Rivet play exactly the same. Insomniac did this on purpose (never found out why exactly) but a purposeful decision or not I don't think it was the right one. Giving Ratchet and Rivet some differences in how they play, small as they might've been, would've given the gameplay some more variation. Rivet got and entire cybernetic arm. Why not base a gameplay mechanic around that? Also, even though Ratchet and Rivet play exactly the same they are still locked to specific levels. What's up with that? It's not like you'd have to redesign the levels to accommodate them.

The only difference in gameplay styles you have are the two kinds of mini-games. A few times during the story, Clank and Kit enter these dimensional anomalies that are essentially big puzzle levels. You have to create a path so that all these 'ghosts´ can get to the end. They´re fun at first but because they´re very formulaic and have a very homogenous design I did grow bored of them. You also have mostly optional mini-games with Glitch, a small anti-virus program that blasts away viruses in infected consoles. Neat, but they too grow stale quickly because of the same problems.

All of this adds up to a game that, yes, feels like a complete experience but also feels like it could've been so much more. So much deeper and with more content.

On to the graphics, performance and all that. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart looks really good. I already discussed the well-designed world in terms of theming and this praise extends to the graphical fidelity. Lots of detail and a smartly used colour pallet make the environments look stunning and really add to the experience. The detailed character models and their expressions (I particularly love the fur texture on both Ratchet and Rivet) make all these characters that much more endearing.

The plethora of effects, such as the blast effects from the guns, look nice and don't cause any slowdown. Even with all its details environments, effects and dimensional gimmick thanks to the power of the PS5 and the game is an almost perfectly stable experience with lightning speed load-times. Thanks to the SSD the game will load you to your new surroundings when using the rift mechanic instantaneously.  The game also sports multiple performance modes (your traditional performance and graphic modes alongside an in-between option) in which you can set the game run to your preference.

The game isn't without some performance snafus though. Throughout my 14-hour adventure, I encountered some bugs and glitches. A menu refused to disappear so I had to restart the game, I clipped through a level etc. Honestly, more humorous than anything else that last one was. Got to explore one of the levels out of bounds for a bit before clipping even further and getting soft-locked in a never-ending fall.

Pretty sure I'm not supposed to be here...

The controls, which utilize many of the PS5 dual sense controller's unique features, are fine. Just fine. You jump and interact with the face buttons, shoot with the triggers and have a handy dandy quick switch feature between weapons so you don't always have to use the weapon wheel. The haptic feedback of the controller adds some extra functionality, pressing the trigger halfway will only fire one of the shotguns barrels instead of two, for example, but I can't say I find it that 'transformative' to the experience.

Conclusion

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a very fun, quality game. It has a great story with fun, if basic, platforming action and fast-paced action that is never too difficult, keeping the entire experience a comfortable one from beginning to end. The central gimmick, the dimensional shifts, is well implemented in both gameplay and story and is a good showcase of the PS5's capabilities. With all the things this game did or didn't do it provides a solid groundwork for future Ratchet & Clank titles to build upon and create an even better game from it.

The critiques I have aren't all that big. There's only one really worth mentioning here in the closing remarks. The game is a complete experience but compared to my expectations for a 3D platformer and, from what I found in my research, the classic Ratchet & Clank titles the game is light on content and replay value. As such I feel this game is better picked up at a discounted price, 50,- and below, than the 70,- suggested retail price.