The Ratchet and Clank series has delivered a lot of unique guns over the years. The series has reused quite a few guns with others being updated or swapped out for more effective versions. The sixteenth game in the series, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, is set to release in June of this year with its own arsenal of guns.
While the new game’s arsenal will undoubtedly bring its own unique devices, there are some key weapons from previous games that could play well in Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. Some favorites like Mr. Zurkon and the Agents of Doom are generally loved by fans, and it would be great to see them, among others, return.
The Tornado Launcher
The Tornado Launcher is a fun weapon that lets players get funky with a little bit of Ratchet and Clank's weather. Featured in Tools of Destruction, Quest for Booty, as well as the promotional game Before the Nexus, the Tornado gun fired a razor disk and tornado that picked up enemies, bolts, and debris in its path. The gun could be upgraded to the Tempest Launcher which also struck enemies in the tornado with lightning.
The Spitting Hydra
The Spitting Hydra was an electrical weapon with good crowd control capabilities. Appearing in Up Your Arsenal, the gun would lock onto multiple targets as players held the trigger down. Once the gun was fired electric currents would release and hit the enemies that had been locked onto. This gun could benefit from a little bit of a rework if featured in Rift Apart though.
Miniturret Launcher and Doppelbanger
Weapons like the Miniturret Glove from Going Commando and Doppelbanger from Full Frontal Assault would be fun to see in unison in the new game. While their simultaneous return seems unlikely, each one could work well with Rift Apart’s new Topiary Sprinkler weapon. As the Topiary Sprinkler grounds enemies and turns them into benign flora, the Mini Turret Launcher or the Doppelbanger could clean up the remains.
The Doppelbanger’s ability to aggro enemies as well as shoot back could wreak havoc on large groups. Those unfortunate to be stuck by the Topiary Sprinkler could quickly find themselves eliminated. Meanwhile, any mobs not turned into fresh plant matter may shift their attention to the new Robo-Ratchet decoy that now threatens them.
Vortex Grenade
The Vortex Grenade allowed players to throw personal black holes at their enemies. Featured in Into the Nexus, the grenade would pull enemies into it disabling their ability to move and keeping them airborne while Ratchet damaged them. With the dimensional nature of Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart’s story, it feels like a weapon that could fit well.
Rift Inducer 5000
The Rift Inducer 5000 from A Crack in Time feels like a natural choice to reappear in Rift Apart. The gun does share some naming mechanics with the new game and also has a feature that feels relevant which may have even been tossed in as an Easter egg of early game footage. The Rift Inducer 5000 tears open a portal to another dimension where Fred lives, who then uses his tentacle to pull enemies into their dimension eat as a light snack.
The RYNO
The RYNO should return to Rift Apart with an entirely new design. While each iteration of the RYNO has brought its own features, an entirely new RYNO would be a great addition to the game. Rift Apart’s story could deliver a unique version of the weapon from beyond the game's regular timeline that feels unique to the game.
With Rift Apart’s new unnamed female Lombax’s possible interdimensional nature, it seems likely there will be some guns from her reality available to the player. A RYNO unique to her could make it feel like a whole new weapon. It would be interesting to see how an interdimensional RYNO plays and what features it would have. The gun’s late-game status and overall effectiveness make it one of the most iconic weapons in the series next to Ratchet’s OmniWrench.
Rift Apart Weapons
Ratchet and Clank has always delivered a diverse inventory of weapons and Rift Apart will be able to take advantage of stronger hardware and almost two decades of preexisting material. While it would be great to see all previous weapons return fans will likely get to play with a well-thought-out arsenal either way. So far, four weapons have been revealed for the game with the Burst Pistol, Shatterbomb, Enforcer, and of course the Topiary Sprinkler. With just under two months until Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart's release, there is not a lot of time left until gamers find out what Ratchet’s packing this time around.
Ratchet an Clank: Rift Apart arrives exclusively on PS5 on June 11, 2021.