Insomniac Games was in a weird spot in 2002. They’d just finished Spyro the Dragon on the PlayStation 1 and basically had to reinvent themselves for a new generation of hardware. What they came up with wasn't just another mascot platformer. It was a weird, industrial, slightly cynical universe where a furry mechanic and a defective robot blew things up with guns that defied the laws of physics. People often forget how gritty the original Ratchet and Clank felt compared to the polished, cinematic Pixar-style adventures we get today.
The original game wasn't just about jumping. It was about consumerism.
Ratchet himself was kind of a jerk early on. He wasn't a hero; he just wanted to get off his backwater planet. When he met Clank, a tiny robot escaping a factory on Quartu, it wasn't an immediate friendship. They argued. They had different goals. This friction is what made the duo feel human, or as human as a Lombax can feel. If you go back and play the 2002 original now, the movement feels stiff because you can’t strafe yet, but the soul is unmistakable.
How the Ratchet and Clank Formula Actually Works
Most platformers give you a double jump and call it a day. Insomniac went a different route. They looked at the success of Doom and Quake and thought, "What if we put a rocket launcher in the hands of a cartoon animal?"
The gameplay loop is addictive for a specific reason: the Bolt economy. Everything you break releases shiny metal bolts. You spend those bolts on more absurd weapons. Those weapons help you kill bigger enemies, which drop more bolts. It’s a perfect psychological circle.
Think about the R.Y.N.O. (Rip Ya a New One). It’s the most iconic weapon in gaming history for a reason. In the first game, it cost 150,000 bolts—an astronomical sum at the time. It fired a screen-clearing barrage of missiles while playing the 1812 Overture. It wasn't just a tool; it was a status symbol.
Evolution Through the PS2 Era
By the time Going Mobile and Up Your Arsenal hit shelves, the series had mastered the "Golden Triangle" of gameplay. This is a design philosophy Insomniac used where the player is constantly juggling three things:
- Moving/Platforming
- Shooting/Combat
- Resource Management (Ammo and Bolts)
Up Your Arsenal is widely considered the peak by many long-time fans. Why? Because it introduced the Dr. Nefarious character. voiced by Armin Shimerman (Quark from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine). Nefarious brought a level of comedic timing that the series had been flirting with but hadn't quite nailed. The writing shifted from "grumpy mechanic" to "intergalactic sitcom," and it worked.
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The Technical Wizardry of Rift Apart
Fast forward to 2021. Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart on the PS5 was basically a tech demo that happened to be a great game.
Everyone talked about the SSD. "No load times!" the marketing screamed. And honestly? They weren't lying. The ability to jump through a portal and have an entirely new level load in under a second was a genuine "next-gen" moment. Marcus Smith, the Creative Director at Insomniac, noted in various interviews that the hardware finally caught up to the vision they had back in the early 2000s.
But it wasn't just the speed. It was the density. The cities in Rift Apart feel lived in. There’s traffic, there are crowds, there’s steam rising from vents. It’s a far cry from the empty, blocky platforms of the Veldin level in 2002.
Meet Rivet: The Risk That Paid Off
Introducing a new protagonist is usually a death sentence for established franchises. Look at how people reacted to Raiden in Metal Gear Solid 2. But Rivet, the female Lombax from an alternate dimension, actually landed.
She wasn't just a "pink Ratchet." She had a prosthetic arm, a darker backstory involving the resistance against Emperor Nefarious, and a different temperament. Her presence expanded the lore without erasing what fans loved about the original duo. The chemistry between Rivet and Kit (the "alternate" Clank) mirrored the growth of the original pair, making the story feel fresh for a new audience while hitting the nostalgia buttons for the old guard.
Why the Movie and the 2016 Remake Were Divisive
We have to talk about the 2016 "re-imagining."
Technically, it was a remake of the first game, tied to the theatrical movie. Visually? Stunning. Gameplay? Top-tier, borrowing the refined mechanics from the Future saga. But the soul was... off.
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In the 2002 original, Ratchet was a bit of a cynical loner. In the 2016 version, he was a wide-eyed fanboy who wanted to be a Galactic Ranger. It lost that edge. The biting satire of corporate greed and "Gadgetron" dominance was sanded down to make it more family-friendly for the film tie-in. Critics like The Gaming Brit and others in the enthusiast community have pointed out that while it’s a great game, it’s a mediocre Ratchet and Clank story.
It lacked the "punk" energy of the PS2 era.
The Best Weapons You Probably Forgot About
If you ask a casual fan about weapons, they'll mention the Groovitron. Sure, making enemies dance is funny. But the deep cuts are where the real design genius lies.
- The Morph-o-Ray: In the first game, turning a giant tank into a harmless chicken was a revelation.
- The Suck Cannon: This weapon literally used smaller enemies as ammunition. You'd vacuum up a swarm of tiny piranha-birds and spit them back out as high-velocity projectiles. It was resource management disguised as chaos.
- The Plasma Coil: A Going Commando staple. It shot a ball of electricity that branched out to fry everything nearby.
- Mr. Zurkon: "Mr. Zurkon does not require payment. He should be paid in the screams of his enemies." This murderous little drone became the mascot of the series' darker, weirder humor.
The "Future" Saga: A Narrative Shift
People often skip over the PS3 era, which is a massive mistake. Tools of Destruction, A Crack in Time, and Into the Nexus (the "Future" series) did something the PS2 games never bothered with: they gave Ratchet a history.
We finally learned why he was the last Lombax. We met Alister Azimuth, a character who served as a tragic foil to Ratchet. A Crack in Time remains, in my humble opinion, the best-written entry in the entire franchise. It tackled themes of time travel, regret, and the responsibility of power.
It also had those incredible "Great Clock" puzzles for Clank. For once, Clank wasn't just a jetpack on Ratchet's back; he was a master of time, fixing the fabric of the universe while his partner was off blowing up space pirates.
Why We Still Care Two Decades Later
Video games are often disposable. Most shooters from 2002 are unplayable now. Most platformers from that era feel like clunky museum pieces.
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Ratchet and Clank survives because it never tried to be "realistic." By leaning into a stylized, comic-book aesthetic, the games age gracefully. Even the PS3 titles look better than some modern "photorealistic" games because the art direction is so strong.
There's also the sheer variety. One minute you're grinding on rails like you're playing Tony Hawk, the next you're in a dogfight in deep space, and ten minutes later you're solving a complex environmental puzzle. It’s the ultimate "palate cleanser" game.
Actionable Tips for New (and Returning) Players
If you're looking to dive into the series in 2026, don't just grab whatever is newest. There's a strategy to getting the most out of the Lombax and his buddy.
- Start with the PS3 "Future" Trilogy if you can: If you have access to PlayStation Plus Premium or an old console, A Crack in Time is the high-water mark for story.
- Don't ignore the side content: The arena challenges (like the Maktar Nebula or the Battleplex) are where you get the most bolts and the best upgrades.
- Level up your weapons early: The "v2" or "v5" versions of guns often gain entirely new properties. Don't just stick to one favorite; cycle through your arsenal to keep everything leveled.
- Check the "Cheats" menu: Insomniac has a long history of hiding "Big Head Mode" or "Mirrored World" behind Gold Bolts. It’s a fun throwback to the era of secret codes.
- Play Rift Apart on "Renegade Legend" difficulty: If you’re a veteran, the default difficulty is way too easy. Bumping it up forces you to actually use the various weapon types strategically rather than just spamming the Burst Pistol.
The series isn't just about explosions. It's about a lonely kid and a broken robot finding a family in a galaxy that's mostly trying to sell them something or kill them. Or both.
If you want to experience the best of what Sony’s first-party studios can do, you really can’t skip these two. Whether you're playing the 2002 original for the grit or Rift Apart for the spectacle, the core remains the same: big guns, big heart, and a whole lot of bolts.
Next Steps for Your Playthrough:
- Check your subscription: If you're on PS5, check the PS Plus Extra catalog; several titles are usually available for streaming or download.
- Hunt for Gold Bolts: Don't just rush the story. The Gold Bolts unlock the "Insomniac Museum" in several games, which gives you a behind-the-scenes look at how the developers built the levels.
- Upgrade your R.Y.N.O.: No matter which game you play, make it your mission to get the R.Y.N.O. It changes the entire feel of the endgame.