Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart game review: Best PS5 exclusive in years

Described as being like an “interactive Pixar movie”, this game from PS5 offers the best PlayStation exclusive since God of War 4.

REVIEW

I’m cutting straight to the chase today. I love. This. Game.

So rarely does a piece of entertainment tick all the boxes: It looks good, it feels good, and it’s entertaining as hell.

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart not only ticks those boxes but confidently obliterates them in an explosion of colour, dazzling set pieces and snappy dialogue.

We’ve come to expect a lot from Insomniac Games, the inventors of the Ratchet and Clank, Spyro, and the comic book devotees that brought us two of the greatest superhero games in Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018) and the follow-up Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020).

This time around, Insomniac has delivered the best PlayStation exclusive since God of War 4 and the best platformer outside of Nintendo’s Mario galaxy.

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Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart looks good and feels good.

The story

Since 2002, the Ratchet and Clank stories have remained pretty simple but captivating. Dynamic duo Ratchet, a feline-esque humanoid with a penchant for high tech weaponry and his trusty robot sidekick Clank, battle against villains aspiring to galaxy domination.

Rift Apart is the 11th instalment (including one re-release) in the Ratchet and Clank universe but you don’t need to have played any of the previous titles to fall in love with these characters. Of course, the more familiar you are with the source material, the more you’ll appreciate Easter egg references to its past.

In Rift Apart, we find world-savers Ratchet and Clank at a celebration in their honour despite having “not done anything heroic in years”, notes Ratchet. He panics that their legions of fans now think they’re washed-up, as a self-deprecating nod to the pair’s last adventure which was released back in 2013.

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Rift Apart is Ratchet and Clank’s 11th instalment.

But supervillain Dr. Nefarious — delightfully voiced by Armin Shimerman whose evil cackle ranks as one of the best — interrupts the festivities part way through, stealing the Dimensionator which malfunctions, leaving an interdimensional mess in his wake.

We’re also introduced to Rivet, Ratchet’s female interdimensional equivalent for whom Nefarious is not just a doctor but an emperor, and the two fuzzballs team up to destroy him once and for all. As the player, you’ll switch between them both at various points.

Like Pixar, but better

The best way to describe this game is like an interactive Pixar movie. This is a visually dazzling world where family friendly, cartoonish innocence meet excellently timed jokes that only the grown-ups would get.

Case in point: During your time on Rivet’s planet, you meet a fire-breathing dragon named Trudi who is lying on her side, looking to be close to death. “Aw, up late partying again?” Rivet asks. One of the game’s hilarious misdirects.

Gameplay

In a word, gameplay is fun. Wickedly fun. As your typical dodge-and-shoot, Rift Apart is action-packed and beautifully paced. There’s very little downtime but you don’t ever feel overwhelmed.

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The game is action-packed and well paced.

You’ll acquire new and outrageously creative guns at a fantastic rate, so long as you’ve collected enough raritanium crystals for eccentric weapons dealer Ms. Zurkon.

From classic pistol, shotgun, and grenade launcher mechanics to chain-striking enemies with a blast of lighting and an apocalypse glove that deploys agents of chaos, there is a wide variety of gadgets to choose from and improve through upgrades.

Gameplay makes full use of the PS5’s adaptive triggers, which use resistance and dynamic vibrations to add to the immersion.

Rift Apart makes full use of the PS5’s triggers.

My only complaint is that I found playing as Rivet to be a bit of a missed opportunity. While she’s an engaging character, it’s unfortunate she doesn’t offer anything dramatically different in terms of combat or unique weapons.

But the truth is there is just so much to love about Rift Apart. Between the spectacular set design, astonishing attention to detail (watch Ratchet’s ears flap in the wind), and engaging combat, this is what video games are supposed to be like.

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is out now, exclusively for PlayStation 5.

Originally published as Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart game review: Best PS5 exclusive in years