PS2 Ratchet and Clank Megathread!

[TamagotchiTamaHero24]

No idea what this hasn’t been a thing before!

As Sony’s one platforming series that has continued for more than a console generation without either falling off or dying, I think Ratchet is something special! I find certain games from other series more engaging, sure, but there’s something about Ratchet that keeps me coming back! From the weapons to the characters to the designs to the mechanics to the variety of ways to play! Ratchet is like if an adventure game got molded back into a platformer, but kept all the cool items.


And it’s amazing. Long live Ratchet!

Post automatically merged: Mar 19, 2025

Oh, and here’s some Ratchet plushies I own! Ratchet and Rivet are accompanied with Clank and Kit keychains! They’re perfect and I love them!

 

[Stare best girl]

I only played Ratchet 1 in 2022 which I liked so much, I will see if someday I will play Going Commando, Up Your Arsenal and Deadlocked

 

[TamagotchiTamaHero24]

I only played Ratchet 1 in 2022 which I liked so much, I will see if someday I will play Going Commando, Up Your Arsenal and Deadlocked

I recommend Deadlocked! It's very different but very fun and has a lot more of that biting satire that Ratchet 1 has, which is sadly not as present through the rest of the series. I had to come to accept that fact, but also it helped me appreciate the games that had it even more while allowing me enjoy the ones that didn't.

 

[Yousef]

View attachment 44585
No idea what this hasn’t been a thing before!

As Sony’s one platforming series that has continued for more than a console generation without either falling off or dying, I think Ratchet is something special! I find certain games from other series more engaging, sure, but there’s something about Ratchet that keeps me coming back! From the weapons to the characters to the designs to the mechanics to the variety of ways to play! Ratchet is like if an adventure game got molded back into a platformer, but kept all the cool items.


And it’s amazing. Long live Ratchet!

Post automatically merged: Mar 19, 2025

Oh, and here’s some Ratchet plushies I own! Ratchet and Rivet are accompanied with Clank and Kit keychains! They’re perfect and I love them!

R&C 1 is one of my favorite games of all time. It’s an incredibly special game to me and my life. I never played anything like this. It combined many aspects of gaming I love. It was really special, an extreme case of refinement and polish. Truly ahead of its time and pushed gaming forward in new and innovative ways by taking elements that already worked in games such as Spyro, Banjo and Mario 64 and mixing and matching them together in a way that truly reinvents the wheel.

The movements is so impeccably smooth and the weapon choices are immaculate. The fact that this is also not a simple shooter is great, there’s elements of thinking ahead and taking advantage of your surroundings and enemy patterns to exploit them and make sure you get the kill. The way the weapons work is nothing short of genius, having a purpose for practically any conceivable situation. Nothing in my arsenal went unused and made sure to even get the RHYNO for good measure.

Platforming is an excellent set of challenges that truly test your understanding of the game as there’s sometimes marginal room for error when faced against certain enemies. If anyone’s interested, my first ever written article on this site published last year was about R&C since it was such an impactful game to me.

It was also tweeted out at the main RGT Bluesky account, which was a great honor.

Ratchet & Clank: A Secret Love Letter to Super Mario 64

The 3D platformer genre had a fascinating evolution not just across the years, but also across competing systems. Especially in the 90s to late 2000s when the word “exclusive” had more weight to it. I would know, I was one of those jealous PlayStation owners who couldn’t get most Nintendo...

retrogametalk.com

 

[Yousef]

I only played Ratchet 1 in 2022 which I liked so much, I will see if someday I will play Going Commando, Up Your Arsenal and Deadlocked

Excellent series. Very worthy of the playtime.

View attachment 44585
Oh, and here’s some Ratchet plushies I own! Ratchet and Rivet are accompanied with Clank and Kit keychains! They’re perfect and I love them!

Great collection.

Also, I stickied the thread.

 

[Nebulon_Galaxy]

THIS THREAD IS SPONSORED BY AL'S ROBO SHACK! IT'S QUUUUUUUUARKTASTIC!

 

[CaptainVolk]

How do y'all feel about the games that came after the OG PS2 trilogy? Never got into them when I was younger as I didn't like Ratchet's redesign lol, nowadays I'm willing to give them a chance if I see them out in the wild, which hasn't happened sadly.

 

[TamagotchiTamaHero24]

How do y'all feel about the games that came after the OG PS2 trilogy? Never got into them when I was younger as I didn't like Ratchet's redesign lol, nowadays I'm willing to give them a chance if I see them out in the wild, which hasn't happened sadly.

I mess with them. They've been what I've been exploring actually!

Rift Apart is godly for gameplay and Rivet as a character is incredible. That's all I can say, so get on Steam or PS5 and lock in.

A Crack in Time has the good vibes of a game you'd play at your friend's house. Just a very comfortable game, like slipping into a nice pair of magnet boots!

I've been wanting to get a copy of In to the Nexus, as that one has a unique mechanic and has the mystique of being a PS3 exclusive that came out the year of the PS4, so it got overshadowed.



Don't play Size Matters. That game is painful. I WISH there was a good, portable Ratchet game, but it sadly doesn't exist. I wasted my time on that slop and regretted it, even if there IS some merit there. If you like it, I see why, but the gameplay loop was pain for me and the level design was boring, so that just killed it.

 

[CaptainVolk]

I mess with them. They've been what I've been exploring actually!

Rift Apart is godly for gameplay and Rivet as a character is incredible. That's all I can say, so get on Steam or PS5 and lock in.

A Crack in Time has the good vibes of a game you'd play at your friend's house. Just a very comfortable game, like slipping into a nice pair of magnet boots!

I've been wanting to get a copy of In to the Nexus, as that one has a unique mechanic and has the mystique of being a PS3 exclusive that came out the year of the PS4, so it got overshadowed.



Don't play Size Matters. That game is painful. I WISH there was a good, portable Ratchet game, but it sadly doesn't exist. I wasted my time on that slop and regretted it, even if there IS some merit there. If you like it, I see why, but the gameplay loop was pain for me and the level design was boring, so that just killed it.

That's funny you say that, I just threw Size Matters on my PSP just cus I was curious. I'll report back and let you know if I hate it or not lmao. The setting of Nexus is interesting, I've also been looking into that one. Maybe I'll hunt for some of the PS3 titles after work tomorrow.

 

[glokglakglak]

i kinda lost interest in ratchet and clank after deadlocked, although i DID play tools of destruction and crack in time thanks to a friend lending me their discs
it could have been due to whole bunch of reasons like ps3 games were no longer pirateable which was pretty much the only way i was able to play ratchet and clank to begin with

then they announced a movie based on the game, and then a game based on the movie based on the game and it was just a really stupid situation to think of at that point honestly
a part of me was happy that ratchet and clank was finally getting noticed, but at what cost? their designs? their personalities? 30fps and with motion blur?
it just felt like the new wave ratchet is far too detached from the ratchet i grew up with
kinda like ratchet for the zoomers

although i am looking to play rift apart eventually, it's just a bit too big (and too hd) for my pc right now

but once upon a time i was sooooooo into ratchet and clank i even drew them and added whole dialogues based on what they said in the games i mean i still am into ratchet, the old ones of course, but i'd be happy to know that the newer ones can give me the same kind of happiness the old ones did

 

[TamagotchiTamaHero24]

i kinda lost interest in ratchet and clank after deadlocked, although i DID play tools of destruction and crack in time thanks to a friend lending me their discs
it could have been due to whole bunch of reasons like ps3 games were no longer pirateable which was pretty much the only way i was able to play ratchet and clank to begin with

then they announced a movie based on the game, and then a game based on the movie based on the game and it was just a really stupid situation to think of at that point honestly
a part of me was happy that ratchet and clank was finally getting noticed, but at what cost? their designs? their personalities? 30fps and with motion blur?
it just felt like the new wave ratchet is far too detached from the ratchet i grew up with
kinda like ratchet for the zoomers

although i am looking to play rift apart eventually, it's just a bit too big (and too hd) for my pc right now

but once upon a time i was sooooooo into ratchet and clank i even drew them and added whole dialogues based on what they said in the games i mean i still am into ratchet, the old ones of course, but i'd be happy to know that the newer ones can give me the same kind of happiness the old ones did

I recommend to, when you can, give the third game a shot again and come back to me, because opinions are split on that game since it took more of a linear design approach to levels.

Post automatically merged: Mar 19, 2025

Can we get a Ryno chain going? I want to see every Ryno.

Post automatically merged: Mar 19, 2025

 

[hembruh]

Ratchet 3 Up Your Arsenal is maybe my favorite game of all time. It definitely is on the ps2. I love the whole series though. The first one and 3 are my favorites. I liked the Ps3 and PsP games well enough, but something wasn't quite the same after Deadlocked in my opinion.

They're still great though, I even think the co-op and tower defense ones were fun. I haven't played the Ps5 game but I wasn't really a fan of the remake/movie game. I was really excited for the movie but it felt sort of toned down compared to the games. The games are still child friendly but with a little edge and I felt like they ironed all of that out of the movie and the ps4 game by proxy felt that way too.

 

[TamagotchiTamaHero24]

So, question for us Ratchet 1 fans, because I always felt this way and I need to know that I’m not crazy:

I always preferred the Heli-pack to the Jet-pack that you get later in the game. I always preferred how it felt to long jump with it and high jump with it. It felt like I had more control and I could SWEAR that I went further with it. I have vivid memories of stopping just short of where I wanted to go with the Jet-pack and falling to my death. I need to know if anybody else felt the same.

 

[Skeleben]

So, question for us Ratchet 1 fans, because I always felt this way and I need to know that I’m not crazy:

I always preferred the Heli-pack to the Jet-pack that you get later in the game. I always preferred how it felt to long jump with it and high jump with it. It felt like I had more control and I could SWEAR that I went further with it. I have vivid memories of stopping just short of where I wanted to go with the Jet-pack and falling to my death. I need to know if anybody else felt the same.

No I agree, Heli-pack all the way. Has a more nicer floaty feel to it, which made platforming a joy. The animation and sound effects is just so satisfying. Jet-pack got me killed a lot from memory, but also I was like 7 and I think I remember trying to just jet-pack my way past every combat section.

 

[MemeAlert]

So, question for us Ratchet 1 fans, because I always felt this way and I need to know that I’m not crazy:

I always preferred the Heli-pack to the Jet-pack that you get later in the game. I always preferred how it felt to long jump with it and high jump with it. It felt like I had more control and I could SWEAR that I went further with it. I have vivid memories of stopping just short of where I wanted to go with the Jet-pack and falling to my death. I need to know if anybody else felt the same.View attachment 44834

The HeliPack has the better high jump, you can use it to get some platinum bolts faster. The JetPack is just kool. Ratchet Deadlocked is may favorite game in the series because I love the twin stick controls. When I was a teen I didn't like the first three games because they felt long especially when you were doing the puzzles that kinda ruin the pace for me. Notice that when playing Going Commando a week ago (even tho thats my favorite outta the three). I don't get people who thinks Up Your Arsenal is the best when its just a rehash of Going Commando with questionable level design (as in when in Koros where 2 of the collectables are right next to each other, you know a Ratchet game is bad when it has the same level design as Size Matters).

 

[nintara]

this was the first gaming franchise i really cared about after the sims and definitely the first one that i got obsessed with. i first got introduced to it as a small child being left in the daycare of the mall, where they had the ps3 (the newest playstation at the time) with a copy of acit. i remember being absolutely blown out of my socks by how beautiful the great clock and dr nefarious looked. it caused me to get the psp, with size matters, my first console.

 

[FTLOTG]

Deadlocked is becoming my favorite Ratchet PS2 game but I'm not sure if I'll be able to look past the reuse of levels. The first game is superb and the sequels pretty good.

 

[TamagotchiTamaHero24]

Deadlocked is becoming my favorite Ratchet PS2 game but I'm not sure if I'll be able to look past the reuse of levels. The first game is superb and the sequels pretty good.

Eh. I’m fine with level reuse if they justify it well. I look at it from the perspective of a dev, where the ability to reuse assets helps make the development easier. And, if they can justify it in the game’s own world, I’ll turn a blind eye.

Love me some Deadlocked. It’s one of those games that makes you realize how much Ratchet as a series benefits from having some bite to it. And it’s done much more maturely than game 1 (love ya’ Ratchet 1. No shade.)

 

[Iracunda]

Going from modern Ratchet and Clank, (ps4/ps5) to Deadlocked was like a slap in the face. I got so much nostalgia for a game I didn't get to play as a kid. It felt new, but like a classic R&C idk.

 

[BigNerdSam]

Just got my Retrotink, loaded up my Ratchet Deadlocked save from 2010 (which now says 2000 because the CMOS died) and we are so back.

No I will not play on any difficulty below the hardest. We die in two hits with max nanotech like men.

 

[Your_Homie_Gale]

I LOVE Ratchet and Clank on the PS2. I had all 3 games plus Deadlocked, and for about 2 years of my childhood it was all I played on the PS2. I especially loved that each sequel gave you bonus content for having a save file from the previous game, like new weapons or a discount. The humor was something that flew over my head as a kid, but when I replayed them as an adult I could not stop laughing. Up Your Arsenal and Deadlocked are tied for my favorite gameplay and mechanics, Going Commando has my favorite side characters and levels, and the original has my favorite moments plus writing. I sadly never got into the PS3 games because I missed out on them, plus I always had bad experiences with the PS3 (I've had 3 PS3s that experienced hardware failure). Kinda wish I finished Tools of Destruction as I was beginning to enjoy it.

I did also play and platinum the reboot for PS4. I thought it was fun gameplay wise, but man was I disappointed with the story. It felt like a watered down Ratchet and Clank even if I replayed it like 3 times. Don't regret going for the Platinum as I did enjoy my time.

 

[Antilocal123]