It's been five years since the last Ratchet & Clank game came out, a remake/reboot of the first game which tied into the 2016 movie. At the time many fans thought Insomniac or some other developer would continue making the entire series again on PS4, but that was a one and done situation. Now, fans have a new title to explore with Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart.
It’s kind of confusing, then, that this game is a sequel that seemingly skips the remake. Instead, it continues onward from Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus, a 2013 release for the PS3. Some answers were resolved in this game, but others weren’t. This breakdown will contain spoilers for the whole series, in order to figure these puzzles out.
10 What’s Next?
That’s the big question of the whole game. Will there be a sequel, or will Insomniac be too busy making the next Spider-Man to bother with this series again for awhile?
Last time, it took five years before a new game came out. However long it takes, the game seems to hint at the idea that both Ratchet and Rivet want to see their home world. This could make for a nice conclusion to the series.
9 Who Is Mags?
There is a quest in the game that gets activated on Savali. Here, Ratchet is tasked with uncovering audio logs at shrines which were built by Lombaxes. There are twelve in total scattered across the universe all with the same narrator, who reveals their name at the end: Mags.
Who are they? Fans seem to think it is Ratchet’s father, but as this was found in Rivet’s universe, it could be her relative instead. Whatever the case, Mags will likely be important in the future, as they are the one that created the Dimensionator.
8 Playing Side Missions Out Of Order
Most planets in the game feature side quests of some sort. These can range from defeating enemies for a NPC, or gathering items like Golden Bolts. The story related side quests in particular are where this game creates a problem.
Before the point of no return at Zurkie’s, players will control Rivet by herself, as Kit leaves. If players leave the planet and go somewhere she is playable, Rivet no longer has a companion that would otherwise interact with these quests as well.
7 The Power Of The Dimensionator
Just how powerful is this machine? It can create portals to another universe, but only one universe is seen in this game. It is revealed later in the story that that is because of the coordinates Dr. Nefarious locked into the machine.
However, after it goes haywire and breaks, shouldn’t it have ripped other rifts besides the location placed in the log? As this game series is science fiction, it is hard to calculate if this is a plot hole or not, but it seems like something bigger should have happened.
6 Kit’s Transformations
Kit eventually reveals herself to be a robot built by Emperor Nefarious. However, she is the only one of her kind for some reason. Shouldn’t there have been a whole platoon of her at some point?
Also, if she can transform at will, why doesn’t she try this more in the campaign? By the end she can control her feelings, so that may be a reason why. It seems like a mechanic that would have fit right at home in the series though, as Clank could do this in previous titles.
5 Ms. Zurkon
There are several problems with the weapon vendor, Ms. Zurkon, in this game. Is she a hive mind type of robot? That is the only way to explain how she follows the party to different planets. The other big question is in regard to her story status. When first introduced to Ratchet after he entered the new dimension, she seems like a big deal — but that was the extent of her story arc.
Other shopkeepers in this series make more sense, as they are just vending machines. Other video game vendors always seem to end up in an area of senselessness, like the ones from the Resident Evil series.
4 Clank Only Loses An Arm In A Big Rift Explosion
The big event that kicks off this entire game is the Dimensionator exploding. This separates Ratchet, Clank, and Dr. Nefarious in a new dimension.
In that explosion, Clank loses an arm — but that is the extent of damage between all three characters. Based on the amount of power in the gadget, shouldn’t they have all suffered some sort of injury and or realistically have died? Some awfully thick plot armor seems to protect these characters.
3 Ratchet’s Gear Changing Between Games
This element can be asked of this whole series. It’s a problem with any game that directly continues from its predecessor. Why does Ratchet lose some, but not all, of his gear from previous games?
Clank can still use his helicopter blades but not his rocket boosters, as just one example. Weapons are all but lost as well, for some reason. It makes sense from a gameplay perspective, as players would be too powerful if they always kept everything. From a story perspective though, not so much.
2 Cross-Dimensional Gear
Another problem with the weapons and overall gear involves Ratchet and Rivet’s individuality. It’s a bit disappointing that both characters play and look exactly the same, based on armor. It would have been cooler if each got their own unique sets of armor and gear.
Rivet, as of now, is essentially just a reskin of Ratchet with a hammer. From a story perspective, it doesn’t make sense how they each have the same gear, even though Ms. Zurkon tried to explain away the weapons.
1 Emperor Nefarious’ Number One Mistake
Like every game in the series, this title is rated E for Everyone, meaning that it is meant for kids. The villains cannot brutally murder heroes. They instead capture them by throwing them away in prison or in other dimensions.
As smart as Emperor Nefarious is, the idea that he would rule the universe by not killing seems farfetched. It makes sense in order to keep the rating down, but it doesn’t in terms of evil scheming. This is why he ultimately fails.