Ratchet and Clank review: A rollicking return run around the galaxy

Just the right amount of nostalgia and refinement makes for a reboot done right.

Steven Strom 

Boss fights are a scarce but fun diversion from fodder foes.

If I had to pick my PlayStation 2-era mascot of choice, Ratchet and Clank would top the list. Developer Insomniac's conscious blend of 3D platforming and third-person shooter spoke to me a whole lot more than Sly Cooper's sticky thievery and Jak and Daxter's “GTA Jr.” antics, especially in the series' many, many sequels. A dozen or so games later, fuzzy hero Ratchet and defected death machine Clank are still here. Not just that; they've come out the other side of popular culture and made it to full-on reboot territory. In fact, now we have Ratchet and Clank, a game based on the upcoming film Ratchet and Clank. Both are loosely tied into the events of Ratchet and Clank, that original PlayStation 2 game where the duo debuted.

Remember when?

Ratchet and Clank (the new one) is anything but loose. Besides a frame narrative provided by the pair’s frenemy Captain Qwark, the introduction to this latest installment is a beat-by-beat remake of the source material. Mechanic meets robot, the pair become friends, and they set off to warn the galaxy of impending danger. Adventures and hijinks ensue, with ludicrous weapons and gadgets at their heart.
The introductory similarities don't just end at the story and tone, though. The first string of planet-hopping included not only objectives and characters straight out of the 2002 original but specific scenery. Coming up to a bridge on the temperate Novalis—the first "real" level in both games—I recalled not only that the bridge would be destroyed but the exact, iconic three-hole punch of craters that the explosions would cause.
Apparently, I remember way more details from the original Ratchet and Clank than I thought. It was a bit odd to dive in to a brand new Ratchet and Clank that starts with such an incredibly authentic, beat-by-beat remake, and at first I was disappointed at the idea of simply retracing my steps with PlayStation 4 fidelity. Thankfully, Ratchet and Clank 2016 makes more and smarter adjustments to the pioneer of the franchise than it initially lets on.

Characters with more character

There's that frame narrative, for instance. In general, I feel that a little Captain Qwark—the muscled and self-serving foil to Ratchet's and Clank's genuine heroism—goes a long way. His antics are often a highlight of these games, but the egocentric gag wears thin after a while.

Some weapons are more mundane than others, but still useful.

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Qwark's narration is just a sign of greater changes to the narrative, however. The world, or worlds really, of this Ratchet and Clank feels more lived-in thanks to the added helping of all his new supporting cast: the Galactic Rangers. The personality of previous R&C games came from the varied arsenal and the occasional one-liners dropped by incidental NPCs. Here, that heavy lifting is undertaken by recurring characters, a troupe that sticks around long enough to carry on an often charming rapport within itself.
It's not perfect, though. Some of the game's scenes were cherry picked from the movie itself (something I was constantly reminded of through notifications that gameplay recording had been blocked). Like the rest of the game, these "cutscenes" are gorgeous, though it's obvious where interactive entertainment and pre-rendered cinema have been stitched together. As such, it's hard not to get the sense you're catching the highlight reel of a tighter, more focused movie plot; one that doesn't take breaks for the occasional fetch quest and turret sequence.
Between those moments, however, is your regularly scheduled Ratchet and Clank with all the refinements of 14 years of iteration. You jump, you strafe, you launch disco balls of death, and occasionally someone turns into a sheep.
This time around, Insomniac curates a careful selection of its finest weapons from previous games. The overall selection is slim compared to previous entries, but that’s only because most of the chuff has been removed. In previous games, I'd use maybe a third of the arsenal on offer regularly. Here, whether it's a bog-standard assault rifle or the smack-talking attack drone Mr. Zurkon, everything feels genuinely useful.

Busy, busy, busy

That’s good, because you'll use every single weapon. Ratchet and Clank isn't so difficult that the family-friendly veneer feels out-of-place, but it does get hectic.
The game is a joy to sit back and gawk at. One of the reasons for this is the sheer number of soaring bolts, bullets, and (more importantly) enemies that sit on-screen at one time—all without any noticeable drop in the frame rate. With combat getting so busy, it's tough to keep eyes on incoming fire.
My solution was to simply toggle through weapons and field more neon ordnance than such gangs could stomach at one time. When one rocket launcher lamented its lack of ammunition with a dry click, it was time to switch to a shotgun that converts enemies into voxels. Ammo for these and more isn't scarce, but it's spaced out enough that experimentation is a necessity.
It's all a high-wire act Insomniac had plenty of time to practice. Pleasantly, I'd say they've pretty much perfected it this go-round.

Rocket-propelled role-playing game

While you're experimenting, you'll also tap into Insomniac's new and improved tickle of RPG mechanics. Weapons grow in-level as you use them (as they have since the series’ second installment), but that's no longer where the process ends. Earning new gun levels opens up new tiers on a hex-based grid of upgrades, which have to be filled in with the resource Raritanium (earned mostly through combat). This leads to a fair bit of juggling between using weapons to unlock more features and then using those features to get more raritanium to fill in even more newly unlocked features. It’s a pretty slick system.
As those increasingly better and badder weapons carried me deeper into the game, I noticed more and more points where Ratchet and Clank diverges from the original. Despite the nostalgic opening, Ratchet and Clank does eventually become its own animal with distinct weapons, levels, and plot. This includes a clever reimagining of one classic encounter into what is now probably my favorite boss fight in the whole franchise.
By the end, Ratchet and Clank (2016) isn't just a better-playing copy of a now-classic action game; it packs in enough surprises to keep a decade-plus fan like myself surprised. For that matter, "better-playing" doesn't do this remake justice. This is the best blend of shooting, hopping, and humor the series has struck yet. Whether that's enough to overcome origin story fatigue—or general Ratchet and Clank fatigue—is an open question.

The good

• A series peak in blending platforming and shooting.
• One of the best-looking games on the current console crop.
• A more coherent world and characters therein.
• A pared down but perfectly balanced goofy arsenal.

The bad

• Some players may not appreciate the slender weapon selection.
• The seams between movie scenes and in-game action are noticeable.
• Leans just a little heavily on the nostalgia.

The ugly

• Getting shot because your own flamethrower blocked sight of the bullet is never pretty.

Verdict: This is the best Ratchet and Clank game yet even if it's a little familiar. Buy it