Most of all, “Rift Apart” feels incredibly familiar. Over the course of the game, players alternate playing Rivet and Ratchet, even if the alternate universe concept feels a little underdeveloped. Of course, there’s also an alternate version of Ratchet in the form of Rivet, a female Lombax, who is leading a resistance force against Nefarious. It turns out that the version of the good doctor over there has beat him to it and Emperor Nefarious is a far-more-dangerous version of the franchise’s big bad. After the opening sequence/tutorial, a rift opens into another dimension and the villain jumps off to do what he does and try and destroy it.

Taking place following 2013’s “Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus” and before the 2016 remake of “Ratchet & Clank” that coincided with the release of the film, “Rift Apart” centers again on a battle between the title characters and the notorious Doctor Nefarious. While it’s undeniably enjoyable and every “Ratchet” fan will want to play it, it also feels a little slight for the first next-gen iteration of characters as beloved as these ones, both in ambition and playtime. It’s a fun game that doesn’t rewrite any of the rules of the “R&C” franchise, which is both comforting and a little disappointing at the same time. COVID-19 hit the video game industry harder than any other, leaving massive holes in the 2021 release schedule, and Sony and Insomniac Games hope that “Rift Apart” can be the free-time answer for gamers around the world. The 16 th game in this series, “Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart” lands on the PS5 on Friday, June 11 th, and it’s one of the very few games this summer that feels like an event. Since then, the basic core of the “Ratchet & Clank” experience hasn’t really changed-a heroic Lombax named Ratchet and a clever robot named Clank have to save the universe over and over again, and they do so with a fantastic mix of weaponry in an exaggerated animated style. It’s a shame because this is series is rich with interesting characters, settings, and stories, one that has unfolded over a remarkable 16 games since the 2002 PS2 original. Film fans may vaguely remember the 2016 adaptation of the Sony franchise “ Ratchet & Clank,” which was met with a critical and commercial shrug.

New ratchet and clank character