“The older the berry, the sweeter the juice,” this seems to be the mantra that has propelled many game developers in this age. The world of video games has, in recent times, been saturated, more than ever before, with remakes and remasters of old and almost forgotten games. While some games were able to capture the essence of their original, such as The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, the Valkyria Chronicles, and more, some others were uncalled for and left a bad taste in our mouth, like the Resident Evil 6.

If you wonder which of the categories Ratchet and Clank would fall into, my answer would be NONE. I sincerely doubt that Insomnia Games was going for a remake when they released the PlayStation 4 installment of the PS2 original. Ratchet & Clank is not exactly a remaster but more of a fully-fledged reimagining based on the original plot while integrating modern gameplay mechanics that we may have seen before. Ratchet on PS 4 finds a balance between the old gameplay we love so much while simultaneously giving us more insight into the eponymous heroes’ origins.

We are taken back in time to reveal how Ratchet came to meet his robotic buddy, Clank. Ratchet is lounging on his planet Veldin when a mysterious ship crash lands. He goes to the crash site to find Clank, a small robot who became his companion. Together, they are tasked with foiling the evil plans Chairman Dreck has to destroy Veldin. Insomniac Games expands the narrative scope of the game. For the first time, we come in contact with future characters of the game.

Weapons and Gadgets

As always, Ratchet and Clanks gameplay revolves around gadget and weapon play. Insomnia has built a reputation of churning out games with fantastical weapons and gadgets that are wrapped in humor, such as is seen in games like Sunset overdrive and other Ratchet & Clank installments. This PS 4 installment of Ratchet and Clanks stands out from the pack mostly because it collects eccentric weapons.

However, the only new weapon brought in is the Pixelizer, with which you can turn enemies into 8-bit pixels momentarily. For newcomers to the game, this may not mean much, but for us, the Ratchet fans, it is a little disappointing to use the same weapons over and over again. On the flipside, not much creativity is needed considering that we can hardly use the weapons from the older Ratchet titles. It can never stop being fun to watch your enemies do their wacky dance once they’ve been hit with the Groovitron, nor could it ever stop being funny using the Sheepinatron to first turn enemies into sheep before they explode. Indeed, in retrospect, Ratchet and Clanks could have been a bore if these weapons were taken away or tweaked beyond recognition.

Apart from being eccentric and outright hilarious, another major thing that endears me to the weaponry in this game is its upgrade system. The game runs an upgrade system where weapons are only upgraded by use. This invariably supports your style of play as only weapons you are most comfortable using would be upgraded. However, for most players, this may be a call to use all of your arsenals just for the fun of it. So very often, I would play an extra round to try at a gun or boost my Pyrocitor to the same level as my Pixelizer. With this, every weapon is just as good as how often they are used.

A Few Tricks off the Old Book

Ratchet & Clanks is as much a platformer game as it is an action RPG; however, what sets it apart can switch gameplay. The game features a few non-combat sessions with activities that are not entirely new to fans of the original Ratchet & Clanks. For instance, activities such as laser puzzles and hoverboard races are chips off the old block. However, this does not mean that there are no new activities that make the game even more worthwhile. One such is the flight fight, which promises the perfect getaway from the grinding of the main game while giving you a beautiful view to take in as you shoot 3D lasers at enemy ships.

Not all the gameplay twists come out as nicely as expected. One major area of disappointment is when Ratchet has to separate from Clanks, and we are made to play sole as Clanks. The central issue with this is that Clank is no brawler, he can barely take impact, and his combat can be extremely tacky. To make up for this, Clank’s session is focused largely on solving puzzles. 

The View 

Never mind that Ratchet & Clank is cartoony; the game is one of the most visually captivating eye-wonders to ever hit your PS4 screen. Ratchet and Clanks have never been one to hold back on graphics; back in 2002 its original also stretched the PS2 to its limits. Everything is stunning, from its environment to the animations. The animations are just beautiful and fleshy, but what strikes me the most is the environment’s detailed rendering. You can read posts off billboards, and that goes to show how alive the visuals can be.

Next Release

Insomniac Games have announced that fans can expect to see the next installment to the Ratchet and Clanks franchise on the 11th of June, 2021, titled Ratchet and Clanks: Rift Apart. The Rift Apart edition would be a sequel to the 2013 Ratchet and Clanks: Into the Nexus. Also, we are expecting to see a Ratchet get a girlfriend – a new playable female, Lombax. There would be an additional arsenal of new weapons available as you journey towards ruining all evil Nefarious.

Wrapping it up

In summary, Ratchet and Clanks is a game that constantly gives its fans something refreshing to play. Reintroducing an old game to a new generation of gamers can be an arduous task to pull off, but insomniac games pull it off just fine and in grand style with Ratchet and Clanks.