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Insomniac Games' marquee franchise has been lighting up PlayStation consoles since the PS2. Ratchet & Clank’s unique blend of action, platforming and third-person shooting combined with its unique charm have made it a mainstay across Sony’s consoles. As such, it’s not surprising that a new entry is coming to PS5 in less than a month.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a meaningful title. Not only is it the first game in the franchise to launch on PS5, but it’s also serving as an early showcase for the hardware. Since its announcement a year ago, Insomniac and PlayStation have held Rift Apart up as a showcase for the console’s capabilities. We’ll have to wait till launch to see if it’ll succeed, but Insomniac has shown plenty about how the game uses the hardware to make a better-looking game and enhance the gameplay experience.
Rifting Through Worlds on that SSD
The PS5’s abandonment of the mechanical drive has already proved a game-changer. Since launch, the SSD has shrunk load times to mere seconds. Booting up Resident Evil Village or Returnal only takes but a second. A multi-minute load of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla on PS4 is just a couple of seconds on PS5. The SSD has been a true paradigm shift, but Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart aims to accomplish even more.
Rift Apart’s main gimmick, Ratchet and Rivet jumping through different dimensions instantaneously, is only possible on the PS5’s SSD. Being able to render new assets that instantly make up a world is impossible on last-gens mechanical drives. The feature also has gameplay functions thanks to Ratchet and Rivet’s Wrist Tether, which allows them to grab rifts and teleport to new areas. It’s a neat feature that could help you get out of danger or quickly close in on enemies. It’s a fascinating use case for the SSD and one that could ultimately change the way games are designed.
Tools you can Feel
Insomniac Games' penchant for creativity has always shown in Ratchet & Clank. It’s always been a joy to see what tools of destruction players get to experiment with as they chase down Dr. Nefarious. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart promises yet another set of fantastic new and returning weapons, including the Blackhole Storm, The Enforcer, Lightning Rod, Cold Snap, Ricochet and Negatron Collider.
Making the large arsenal more exciting is seeing how Insomniac Games intends to implement the DualSense controller’s unique features. According to the devs, the adaptive triggers are used for alternate fire, similar to howReturnalhandled that feature. A full pull of the trigger activates normal fire and a half-pull activates alt-fire. The haptic feedback ensures you feel the force of each weapon, and you’ll also hear the sounds of your weapons via the speakers. DualSense implementation so far has been impressive and it’ll be a joy to see how Insomniac improves upon the functionality found inMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
Two Lombaxes are Better than One
For the first time in franchise history, players get to play as another Lombax. Rift Apart alternates between the series protagonist Ratchet and newcomer Rivet. Though both come from different dimensions, they share a base moveset, weaponry and health upgrades. While the fur color may change, playing as Ratchet and Rivet remains similar.
What is new with our heroes is the fact that they’re more agile. Faster strafing and the new Phantom Dash mechanic aim to speed up the pace of combat and platforming. The significant differences between the two characters come from the story. While Ratchet is heralded as a hero in his dimension, Rivet is seen as a rebel in hers. Their different perspectives on life in their different dimensions will have a crucial impact on the story.
Next-Gen Sheen
As a pure PS5 exclusive, there’s a lot of pressure on Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart to deliver a visual experience only capable on the next-gen machine. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales was a good appetizer for the PS5, but Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is shaping up to be the real deal. What Insomniac has shown so far has been impressive, with large-scale worlds capable of delivering a high level of detail. Equally impressive are the high polygon counts on all the models, particularly the main cast. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Ratchet & Clank game without highly-detailed weapons capable of spraying lots of particles. Each showcase has been impressive and a great leap over past Ratchet & Clank titles.
Miles Morales showcased what ray tracing could look like on a next-gen console. It was an impressive effect and it’ll have a more prominent presence in Rift Apart. You’ll see ray-traced reflections in water, glass and metal. Clank’s metallic surface is entirely ray-traced, meaning you’ll be able to watch reflections bend across his spherical surface as they turn the camera. It’s been an impressive sight to see in trailers and gameplay walkthroughs and it’s sure to impress when played natively on a 4K display.
