WMG / Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Nefarious is not the true villain

The trailer and gameplay footage paint Nefarious being the mastermind behind the game's plot. However, the franchise has been relying on him a lot in past years, he hijacked the film's plot, and even in the gameplay footage R&C discuss how he seems to be unusually competent. As such, marketing him as the obvious villain may just be a trick.

• Jossed - see below.

Alternatively, a Nefarious is a villain.

Last time we saw Nefarious, he was looking rather longingly at a photo taken of him with Ratchet, Clank, and Qwark. Not saying this is an obviously cemented Heel–Face Turn, but it could be one, and since alternate dimensions are in play, it could be true that the Nefarious who took over that one particular universe is a different Nefarious from the one we've known since 2004.

• Nefarious did say he wanted to use the power of the Great Clock to give other villains a do over, maybe one version of him won and decided to do just that.
  • That would've destroyed that specific universe. The Clock isn't a time machine. The fact that trying to use it to go back so far into the past would go horribly wrong was the reason why Ratchet and Alister ultimately came to blows at the end of A Crack in Time. Sure, Ratchet was able to travel back two years and give Nefarious a scar that he didn't have in the original timeline, and he and Clank went back a decade and changed the Battle of Gimlick Valley, but they used localized time rifts, and on a universal scale, those two things are so minor that any potential Butterfly Effect would basically have no damage, leaving a Close-Enough Timeline. Something as drastic as shifting the whole universe back to Nefarious's first defeat at the hands of the duo and undoing that, or, as Nefarious himself pondered doing during the boss fight, sending all biological lifeforms into a permanent Stone Age, would definitely cause that universe to collapse. The latter might even have caused the universe to be hit with a cosmic-level Ret-Gone due to how much of a paradox it would have caused.
  • Alternatively, Nefarious trying to use the Great Clock as a time machine is exactly what's causing the multiverse to fall apart now.
    • The Great Clock most likely only effects the dimension it's in. It's more likely because of the Dimensionator malfunctioning.
    • It is indeed the Dimensionator going haywire. Because Ratchet shot it.
• The Nefarious we'll end up fighting will have his organic body, much like in the 2016 version. Unlike the main universe, this version of Nefarious is an organic supremacist.
• The 2020 Gamescom Opening Night Live gameplay showcase showed off Ratchet and Clank confronting Nefarious, but the doctor notably didn't have the scar he received from Ratchet in A Crack in Time. What this means for the theory remains to be seen.
  • It is possible, however, that Nefarious could have repaired the damage sometime after the events of All 4 One.

Double alternatively, BOTH Nefariouses are the villains.

• Confirmed! The original Nefarious is the Starter Villain, while Emperor Nefarious takes control as the main villain at about the halfway point.

The female Lombax is an alternate Ratchet

While Lombaxes are a race of tinkerers, she shares a lot of design choices with Ratchet; she dresses up in what seems like a mechanic's uniform, both carry a comically oversized blunt-force-trauma inducing tool in the same hand and she appears to be alone. As such, she may be from an alternate universe where Kaden had a daughter who resembles her mother, instead of a son who resembles his father.

• Heavily supported by this article.
  • All but confirmed by this further article. "And I had to walk them through the idea that it is Ratchet and Clank. It's just a different Ratchet. "

The fate of the Lombaxes will be revealed

Given that we see a female Lombax, it's possible the Lombaxes had been fighting this alternate Nefarious and that's the reason why they haven't come back.

• Somewhat Jossed - we don't learn a lot about their fate, but we do learn a bit more about what they did.

The female Lombax has her own version of Clank.

Ratchet will stumble upon this counterpart shortly after getting separated from Clank, and they'll take his place until everyone inevitably meets up, then return to the female Lombax's back at that point, while Clank returns to Ratchet's. They could have blue optics that reflect their friend's blue eyes, like how Ratchet & Clank both have green eyes/optics, and a brass-and-copper color scheme not unlike Ratchet's fur color, contrasting how Clank's silver-and-gunmetal colors match the new girl's fur, as well as a sleek, modern design, contrasting Clank's boxy, retro design. It's also likely that they might have a female AI.

• Somewhat jossed. According to this article Rivet is an alternate Ratchet who never met a Clank or defeated Nefarious. In fact the whole concept for the game is "what if Ratchet never met Clank?" It's possible, though, that an alternate Clank may show up later and that Clank teams up with Rivet.
  • Aaaaaaand unjossed. Kit is Clank's alternate self. She has blue optics like Rivet, and a yellow-orange color scheme similar to Ratchet. Although she doesn't know Rivet prior to meeting her in the game, she does become her partner by the end of it.

Ratchet and the female Lombax will have completely different weapon sets.

This could even extend to the RYNOs they use, with Ratchet reusing, say, the RYNO V, and the new Lombax getting the RYNO VIII.

• Jossed. The April 2020 State of Play demo confirms that Ratchet and Rivet share the same arsenal.

When Ratchet inevitably meets this new Lombax, a gameplay mechanic will be based around using the Quick Select to switch between playing as Ratchet and the mystery Lombax, while an AI takes over for the inactive character.

• Co-Op mode could also be possible, but would definitaly be optional if it was implemented.
  • Jossed. Gameplay has it where Rachet and Rivet each has their own worlds which they play in.

The female Lombax is a trans girl.

A Crack in Time stated in the past that female Lombaxes lack tails while the one we see at the end of the trailer clearly has one—and it's even bigger and bushier than Ratchet's, no less. Assuming this isn't due to her being from another dimension, it's possible that she instead might be transgender.

• The only in-game revelation that female lombaxes lack tails was an argument between two news anchors that likely don't know much about Lombaxes, and it's legitimacy is shakey at best. Also, as detailed under the "Behind the Scenes" section of her wiki page, the confusion over Angela's lack of a tail got big enough that the devs regretted not giving her one. It's entirely possible they're just retconning/Jossing the whole "female Lombaxes lack tails" thing, and that female Lombaxes actually have bushier tails than the males.
  • Or alternatively, it'll be revealed that only some female Lombaxes have tails. Angela was one that didn't have a tail, and the new girl is one who does.
    • Or that not possessing a tail is something that can happen with both female and male Lombaxes.
  • Or the new girl is trans, but her having a tail isn't the clue-in, and neither Ratchet nor Clank will take it as such. Qwark probably would though.
  • It should still be worth noting that her modeler has actually commented on this theory while expressing his support for trans people, giving the original WMG slightly more credence.

The RYNO VIII will play Ode To Joy.

After all, the last few models of RYNO have been accompanied by badass orchestral music. It would make sense to keep the tradition.

One of the alternate universes that will be visited will be the Reimagined-Verse.

The player will have to team up with that verse's Ratchet and Clank, who will carry fully-upgraded weapons from the tie-in game (excluding the RYNO and the Sheepinator), as well as the rest of the Galactic Rangers during that segment.

• Jossed... perhaps? It is not stated where the alternative versions of two of the planets are, but they are neither Rachet's or Rivit's dimension.

The female Lombax will have a software-themed name.

This is contrast Ratchet & Clank's hardware-themed names. Specifically, her name could be related to technical terms, contrasting Ratchet being named for a type of tool. If she has her own version of Clank, then their name will likely be a software-related onomatopoeia, like how 'Clank' is a hardware-related onomatopoeia.

• Jossed: her name is Rivet, while Clank's counterpart is named Kit.

Possible returning weapons.

(It's likely that new weapons will gain new Secondary Fire abilities.)

Buzz Blades.

• Comfirmed

Razor Claws.

Lightning Ravanger or Arc Lasher.

Blitzers.

Alpha Disruptor.

CryoMines.

Mr. Zurkon.

• Jossed - instead, we get Mr. Fungai as the equivalent.

Spiral of Doom.

Tesla Spikes.

Cryoshot/OmegaTech Frost Cannon.

Dual Blasters (In the form of the Burst Pistol upgrading into the Dual Burst Pistols, like how the Omni-Blaster upgraded into the Dual Omni-Blasters).

Pyro-Blaster (Possibly sporting it's less exaggerated barrel shape from ToD due to the more serious tone).

Plasma Striker.

Pixelizer (Which will likely be a Grummelnet weapon in the main timeline, and have a thinner, longer blast compared to the Enforcer).

• Confirmed to be returning, and can be unlocked early as a Pre-Order Bonus.

Combuster (now serving as the magnum to the Burst Pistol's machine pistol).

Proton Drum (Also a Grummelnet weapon in the main timeline).

Agents of Doom (Could be justified as Gadgetron selling the patent to Grummelnet).

• Confirmed.

Warmonger.

• Confirmed

Negotiator.

Zoni Blaster (Ratchet and the new girl would turn 90 degrees to their right so that Clank could aim properly).

Thundersmack (The glove version in FFA).

Suck Cannon. Press to suck, squeeze to blow.

The Constructo-series, possibly with all mods available from the start, and more to gain (Unlikely, considering Ratchet is shown to already have weapons from each of those catagories in the form of the Burst Pistol, Shatter Bomb, and Enforcer, though it's possible the new Lombax could utilize them).

RYNO V, complete with the 1812 Overture (Exclusive to Ratchet, while the new girl gets the RYNO VIII).

The Rift Inducer likely won't return, as using a weapon based around tearing holes in reality sounds like it'd be a bad idea when the multiverse already appears to be collapsing in on itself, and Ratchet, despite his recklessness, would likely deem it to be as such.

Possible new weapons.

A bow-type weapon that hopefully averts No "Arc" in "Archery". Trick Arrows optional.

An Expy of a previous weapon that's themed around dimensional rifts.

• Does the new Rip Ya a New One count? Otherwise, this is Jossed.

A Groovitron Expy based on locking enemies between this dimension and the nearest parallel universe, which would fit the motif.

• Jossed

A plasma-based chainsaw. Bonus points if it serves as a Shout-Out to Doom.

A Laser Blade Expy of the Blades of Chaos.

A weapon borrowed from another franchise (or an Expy of one).

• Confirmed if you count the new RYNO occasionally dropping objects from other franchises thorugh rifts.

The plot of the game will be caused by the Dimensionator malfunctioning.

At the end of Into the Nexus, Clank was seen taking the Dimensionator. After some consideration, Ratchet uses it to try and find the lombaxes again, only for the device to malfunction and start breaking apart the multiverse.

• Alternatively, Nefarious steals the Dimensionator from Ratchet, and it malfunctions when he tries to use it.
  • Confirmed for both, sort of. While Nefarious did steal the Dimensionator, and couldn't use it properly causing small malfunctions, it only started causing major rifts in time and space because Ratchet shot it with his Burst Pistol.

The game will feature multiple playable characters.

As seen in the trailer, Ratchet and Clank get split up again, much like in the Future series. This time, however, they will not be the only playable characters. The new girl will also be playable, with her own unique weapons and abilities. And much like in A Crack in Time, the game itself will involve switching between Ratchet, Clank, and the new girl to advance the plot.

• The new girl being playable has been Confirmed. Time will tell on the rest.
  • The idea is kinda Jossed. But there are Clank slash Kit puzzle sections, as well as sections involving a new partner which Ratchet gets, an A.I. known as Glitch.

The game will also feature multiple villains.

In addition to Dr. Nefarious, there will be more villains who will end up fighting Ratchet, Clank, and the new girl, including:

• The Thugs-4-Less Leader
• Captain Slag and Rusty Pete
• Emperor Tachyon
• Ultimate Supreme Executive Chairman Drek
• Lord Vorselon
  • If Vorselon returns, Ratchet will groan about how he didn't stay dead.

Each of the above villains will lead armies consisting of enemies from previous entries in the series (i.e., the pirates for Captain Slag, the Cragmites for Tachyon, and the Blarg for Drek).

• Jossed.

The new Lombax hails from Ratchet & Clank's dimension.

She was among the ones who evacuated to another dimension - the one Clank most likely landed in.

• Or alternatively, assuming she might be younger than Ratchet, she was born in the dimension the Lombaxes evacuated to, but her parents are from the main dimension.
  • Jossed - she's from the dimension in which most of the game takes place in.

The new girl is Alister Azimuth's daughter.

She, like Azimuth, has white fur, so there is a possibility that she's related to the Lombax general. That said, while Azimuth was exiled for giving Tachyon the technology to build his empire, he made sure that the new girl would be safe from Tachyon's wrath by allowing her to be evacuated along with the rest of the Lombax race. While it won't be known when she initially crosses paths with Ratchet and Clank, it will eventually come to light that she's Azimuth's daughter, turning his efforts to rewrite history into an even bigger Tear Jerker when it's implied that she was part of the reason why he was doing it.

• Or she could be Ratchet's cousin that he never met, on either his Father's side or his Mother's.
• Alternatively, in her universe Azimuth managed to stop Tachyon from conquering the Polaris galaxy, but him and his immediate family were exiled for his role in Tachyon’s rise to power. However, the Azimuths never went to the Solana galaxy and without a lombax there to fight Dr. Nefarious he took over.
• If she is his daughter, Ratchet will became devestated over now seeing the full intentions of his actions and how Ratchet's self-claimed failure to save him, leaving the girl with a father she'll never meet.
  • Most likely jossed. As Rivet is an Alternate Self of Ratchet, it's far more likely that she's the daughter of her dimension's version of Kaden.

The Plumber will run into Ratchet and Clank instead of the other way around.

As in, being sent to where they currently are as a result of falling through one of the dimensional rifts, in contrast to how the duo usually comes across him while traveling. When he does, he'll comment on how he hasn't seen Ratchet and Clank in a long time as a nod to the gap between the release of Into the Nexus and this game.

• Jossed - but we do instead run into Gary, who is The Plumber's son. In fact, The Plumber doesn't show up in the main game.

Ratchet will replace his Omni-Wrench Millennium-12.

Specifically, with the Praetorian Omni-Wrench used by Alister Azimuth. Why he'd have to replace it could vary. The Millennium-12 could get destroyed, Trapped in Another World, or stolen (somehow), or maybe Ratchet will just decide that a little extra fire power is needed, and that the Comet-Strike isn't a good enough Emergency Projectile.

• If the latter case is true, then there are two ways Ratchet could acquire it:
  • Ratchet will return to his home dimension and make his way to the Intergalactic Museum of History to Break Out the Museum Piece. When taking up the wrench, Ratchet will do so in honor of Azimuth for preventing all of space-time from falling apart in A Crack in Time.
  • The wrench will be acquired in Ratchet's travels, perhaps being given to him by a member of the Lombax Praetorian Guard in exchange for him helping them.
    • ...Except the (canonical) comics confirm that Alister's Omni-Wrench is under Ratchet's ownership. All it would take is a trip to Kyzil Plateau (or Metropolis). He'd still likely take it up in honor of Azimuth, but it's not at the IMoH, and wouldn't require Ratchet to jump through any hoops to get.
• Once Ratchet gains the Praetorian Omni-Wrench, he might gain a "new gadget" that's really just him spinning it to deflect stuff, pressing square while aiming could have Ratchet fire a sphere of negative energy from it (like how pressing square while strafing has Ratchet perform the Comet-Strike), or the energy blast will just outright replace the Comet-Strike, and the Hyper-Strike might become a Shockwave Stomp.
  • As with the Hoverboots in A Crack in Time, this game will feature a tutorial section to help teach players how to use the Praetorian Omni-Wrench.
    • Jossed - it looks like there are no Wrench upgrades in the game.

Angela Cross will return, and we'll finally meet Max Apogee.

A Crack in Time implies that they left the dimension, and sense this game deals with dimension-travel, it stands to reason to assume they're returning/ finally being introduced. They likely aren't connected to the new girl, as she apparently hasn't heard of Ratchet.

• Max might end up getting called out for practically abandoning his daughter, likely by Ratchet or Clank or possibly even Talwyn if she appears.
  • Jossed. However, If you return to Zordoom, Rivet mentions escaping there in the past with "Angela". Coincidence? A Mythology Gag? Or a sequel hook for a new game?

The Hoverboots will return with the same functionality from A Crack in Time.

Back in A Crack in Time after Ratchet got the Hoverboots, they allowed him to glide as he was separated from Clank for the majority of that game. As it seems the two will be apart for a while in this game as well, I imagine the Hoverboots will return allowing Ratchet to glide once again, and we'll potentially see the return of the Hoverboot ramps and pads as well. For bonus points, they'll be Kaden's leather-based hoverboots, rather than the metallic ones used later on.

• Comfirmed!

Percival Tachyon and Artemis Zogg will reappear.

At the very end of the comic miniseries, Tachyon and Zogg are revealed to be alive and both stranded on an asteroid in an unknown dimension. With all of the interdimensional shenanigans going on I believe that they may both show up again even if it's just as a cameo (although Nefarious could potentially team up with him due to their mutual hatred of Ratchet and Clank). Plus, it would be a nice way to tie the comics back into the games.

Captain Qwark's personality will be more in-line with the Reimagined incarnation.

Ever since I'd say Up Your Arsenal, Qwark has been Flanderized to be a lot dumber and more reliant on Ratchet and Clank. While that version isn't necessarily bad as he's still always been an enjoyable character, Qwark's depiction in the reimagining where he was a lot smarter, competant, and even cunning in certain ways (which was a bit of a mix of his 2002 and current personalities) was well-received by many fans so I imagine Insomniac will rerail him a bit to be more like that even if he still isn't as smart as he was all the way back in the first game.

• Ratchet will express mild surprise at this shift in personality, even hanging a lampshade on it in dialogue.

Ratchet: Is it me, or does Qwark seem... smarter today?

Drek, if he appears, will be the Big Bad.

In the alternate universe, he'll still be alive and funding Nefarious. As catharsis to the people who felt the 2016 Re-imagining made him less of a threat, he will hijack the plot from Nefarious.

• Seems unlikely that he's returning as a major threat.
  • Jossed. He doesn't appear at all.

Drek, if he returns, will be a Composite Character of his original and Reimagined selves.

While he will have the voice and appearance of his Reimagined incarnation, his personality will be more in line with the 2002 game, being truly malicious and pragmatic, so much so that he teams up with the other villains featured in the game to make himself rich as he had intended in the original game.

Characters introduced in the Ratchet and Clank movie or re-imagining will appear in this game.

Elaris in particular is popular within the fan art community, and this game already features a lot of other call-backs. My guess is that in order to both preserve mainline continuity and the friendship they gained with her in the re-imagining, they'll have the duo run into her, already know her from some previous adventure with no further explanation, with them possibly even reminiscing about said adventure and talking about what good friends they all are.

As a result of all the dimension-hopping, Jak and Daxter and/or Sly Cooper will show up in some fashion.

Possibly just as a bunch of Easter eggs or even as the basis of an entire DLC campaign.

• Oh, they do appear thanks to the new Rip You a New One.

Guess on the voice actress for the female Lombax

• Erica Lindbeck.
• Ashly Burch.
• Laura Bailey.
  • All jossed. According to this tweet, it's Jennifer Hale.

Possible alternate versions of Qwark

• One where he's legitimately heroic and surprisingly competent.
• One where he never reformed.
  • Two possible versions for the above will include:
    • A version of Qwark still works under Chairman Drek as his Lieutenant
    • A version that still controls Megacorp, having equipped himself with all the weapons sold in Going Commando and an army of Protopets.
• One that resembles his original concept art◊.
• A Mirror Universe version of Qwark who's a mechanical mad scientist who's the Arch-Enemy of a more heroic, and much dumber, Nefarious.
  • All Jossed, as the alternative version of Qwark, Captain Quantum, is actually a pirate.

An evil version of Ratchet will be an antagonist

In his universe, he and Clank parted ways after their tiff in the first game, and after murdering Qwark, he usurped Drek and took over his empire.

• As an added bonus, this Ratchet will be voiced by Mikey Kelley.
• In the fight against him, he'll use all the weapons from the first Ratchet & Clank (excluding the Taunter Decoy Glove, and Morph-O-Ray), from hounding you with Agents of Doom, to launching Explosive Crates onto the battlefield with the Suck Cannon, to firing a barrage of rockets at you with the RYNO (with audible Oh, Crap! from the lombax you're playing as when he pulls it out).
• He'll bite the dust by being flung from an incredibly high place. Someone will comment that it would've been survivable if he had his version of Clank with him.
• Ratchet (the good one) will be horrified at what he might have become if Clank hadn't pulled him in the right direction.
  • Jossed, at least in the main game.

We'll see incarnations of characters that resemble their concept art

To go off of the Qwark thing above, we'll see alternate versions of the main characters that look closer to their early concept arts, such as:

• Lizard Ratchet◊
  • In addition, this design will also be an unlockable skin for the Prime Ratchet.
• Lizard-like Clank◊
  • Like with Lizard Ratchet, this will also be made into an unlockable skin.
• Qwark when he looked like◊ Blasto
• Nefarious with his cape

The Zoni Dimension will be visited at one point.

It feels like it would be a missed opportunity not to.

Ratchet will have a Back-to-Back Badasses moment with the new girl.

It would make perfect sense.

Ratchet and the new girl will get their RYNOs via Fetch Quests.

To get the RYNO V, Ratchet will have to return to his main dimension and visit the Intergalactic Museum of History, where the weapon is being kept. To get it, however, Ratchet will have to go on a fetch quest where he will have to collect items from different dimensions and bring them to the Museum's curator to replace the RYNO. Once all these items are collected, the curator will allow Ratchet to keep the RYNO V.

• Alternatively, the RYNO V was destroyed offscreen during the opening events of the game, causing its pieces to be scattered across the multiverse. Ratchet will need to find the parts in his travels and either put them back together himself at his garage, or bring them to the Smuggler to repair it.

Meanwhile, the new girl will get the RYNO VIII by collecting holo-plans scattered across the different dimensions and then bringing it to an NPC to have it built, just like previous entries.

• Partly Comfirmed, partly Jossed. The new RYNO is obtained by collecting Rebel Infobots throughout the worlds - collecting all of them unlocks the RYNO 8 for both Ratchet and Rivet.

Possible functions of the RYNO VIII.

Another V reskin, like the VII and the 2016!RYNO.

A Wave-Motion Gun.

An Expy of the BFG 9000, complete with the energy orb and tendrils that deal significant amounts of damage to enemies.

A black hole gun.

• All Jossed. It appears the RYNO 8 will be a weaponized Dimensionator, opening rifts to summon objects from other Playstation game worlds, resulting in massive explosions of dimensional energy.

The heroes will end up visiting Earth.

Now, which version of Earth would be a theory of it's own.

• Sly's version. Paris specifically.

• A futuristic Earth with a Tech Level more in-line with the rest of the series.

• A realistic Earth where Ratchet can visit Insomniac Games' studio, which serves as this game's version of the Insomniac Museum, and access the game's secrets, including concept art and unmade weapons, enemies, and challenges.

• Wumpa Island, leading to an argument between Nefarious and Cortex over whose nemesis is more troublesome.

• All of the above.
  • Sorry, but Earth is not visited in this game, so that's Jossed.

There will be a Take That! towards the 2016 movie

The duo will mention that during their breather between Into the Nexus and this game, a Holo-Film was made about their exploits. Ratchet will complain about how Qwark got all of the character development, Clank will complain about how he was just a plot device, and Nefarious will complain that they used his organic form instead of his robotic one. Then they all agree that the tie-in Holo-Game was at least decent.

Arena challenges will return.

Having become a staple of the franchise since Going Commando, it would come as no surprise to see them return. In this game, Ratchet, Clank, and the new girl will discover the arena in one of the many dimensions they visit. In this arena, the characters will have to fight enemies from across all the different universes, including some dangerous bosses, to gather bolts with which they can purchase new weapons and gadgets as well as gain experience to upgrade their weapons.

• Comfirmed - in fact, the arena is discovered early on in the game, and also serves as the place where Ratchet and Rivet meet for the first time.

There will be a Spider-Man skin set

There's a good possibility Marvel will agree to let Insomniac do it all things considered.

• Ratchet as Spider-Man I (Peter Parker).
• Clank as Spider-Man II (Miles Morales).
• The female Lombax as Spider-Gwen.
• Qwark as Venom.
• Dr. Nefarious as the Green Goblin.
  • Qwark and Nefarious having alt skins is unlikely, as it's clear they aren't going to be playable (unless as DLC, though that's just as unlikely), and the latter is almost definitely the Big Bad.

Ratchet will finally learn what his real name is.

Likely from one of the lombaxes that fled from Tachyon. He'll still go by Ratchet of course. Or maybe it will turn out that "Ratchet" was his real name all along, hence why Alister referred to him by that name.

The unknown city seen in the trailer is Haven City, but rather a version of it that was annexed by Megacorp.

And as per Rule of Funny someone like Pecker will be a spokesperson for it.

Nefarious will go to war with his alternate self over who gets to rule the multiverse

• That doesn't happen, although he does deal the final blow to the Emperor in a way, so...?

The new girl will turn out to be related to Ratchet.

Most likely as his cousin.

• Alternatively, she could be his daughter from the future as cliched as that sounds.
  • She would recognize Ratchet's name if that was the case. As such, Jossed.

The new girl's weapons will be more Cyberpunkish in design to contrast the Retro Futuristic look of Ratchet's.

They'd still follow all the other design cues though, like the side grip seen on most rifles and BFGs throughout the series, or bright colors.

• Jossed - Ratchet and Rivet share the same weapons.

Possible unlockable Skins.

The default outfits, instead of current armor.

Each other's outfits.

Ratchet's outfit from the first game, and a similar outfit that adds a t-shirt or tank-top (for obvious reasons) for the new girl.

Ratchet's convict duds and an orange prison jumpsuit, respectively.

The Ranger Protosuit, complete with helmet, and possibly the unlockable Palette Swaps.

Dan Johnson and a female Insomniac Employee, respectively.

Pirate getup, with the new girl's cybernetic arm being turned into a wooden Schizo Tech prosthetic.

Victorian-style outfits, complete with a top hat for Ratchet and a Steampunk makeover for Ratchet's gauntlet and the new girl's cybernetic arm.

Plate mail armor.

Swimsuits.

Formal attire.

Sly Cooper and Inspector Carmelita Fox's respective outfits (with additional grey pants for the former).

Jak and Keira's respective outfits (specifically the Jak II or Jak 3 versions), potentially with a Daxter costume for Clank.

Azimuth and Angela's respective outfits (assuming Angela herself doesn't show up).

The above-mentioned Spiderman skins.

One of the unlockable wrench and hammer reskins will be a weapon swap.

i.e., Ratchet uses the new girl's hammer, and the new girl uses Ratchet's Omni-Wrench.

This game will bring back Personal Delivery Assistants.

The female lombax will remain unnamed throughout the entire game.

• Jossed: In the April 26, 2021 trailer, we hear her introduce herself as Rivet.

The "Goons-4-Less" are a cheaper knock-off/off-shoot of Thugs-4-Less

• The Gamescom 2020 extended demo showed the enemies labeled as "Goons-4-Less" in their subtitles instead of "Thugs-4-Less." Because of this and the fact that they speak with Californian surfer-dude accents instead of the Russian accents the Polaris Thugs-4-Less had in Into the Nexus, I believe that these guys are in fact a cheaper (and therefore less competant and/or well-armed) knock-off/subsidiary of the actual Thugs-4-Less.
  • Alternatively, they're a version of Thugs-4-Less from an alternate universe.

There will be a Shout-Out to Bioshock Infinite.

It could be something like Clank bringing up constants and variables (a running theme in 'Infinite'), a cameo from the Lutece Twins (or an expy of them), or even the protagonists ending up in a version of Columbia. The massive racism running rampant in the city might not be touched upon, of course.

• Additionally, if Ratchet and/or Clank do end up in Columbia (or a copyright-friendly version of it) they'll make a passing remark about it seeming familiar (or outright recognize it if it isn't the Ersatz version) as a bonus Shout-Out to PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale.
  • This could also include one of them referencing Murder of Crows, which was an item in that game.
• They could even get Sky-Hooks in order to traverse the city.

Gleeber and Lunk and/or Planet X will appear in some capacity.

PlayStation Move Heroes' plot started off with the three sets of heroes (one of which being Ratchet and Clank) being pulled from their realities into another dimension so it would make sense and be fun if elements of the game appeared in some fashion, be it a minor cameo in the background of the rift jumps, a brief passthrough while jumping realities, the main villains Gleeber and Lunk actually interacting with the main protagonists, etc. Bonus points if Ratchet and/or Clank say they have no idea who the two are both as another addition to the multiple-realities theme to the game and as a subtle Take That! towards Move Heroes.

The Morph Gun from Jak and Daxter will be a part of Ratchet's arsenal

With the multiverse being in play the possibility of weapons from other dimensions being added to Ratchet's arsenal, with the weapon from Ratchet's old sister series Jak and Daxter being a very likely addition possibily as a reward for collecting things or beating the game 100%. It's unlikely that it would include all 12 forms from 3 or even all 4 forms from II, with this Troper guessing it'll be locked into either the Red Eco Scattergun or Yellow Eco Blaster forms.

• Considering the existence of the Constructo-Weapons from ACiT, most of the Morph Gun Mods (except for the Super Nova and maybe the Peace Maker, provided the Warmonger returns, as the former's role is already taken up by the RYNO series, and the latter...) being available is more likely than you think.
• Alternatively, it'll be in the new girl's arsenal.
• It's also possible they might both get one.

Vendra and Neftin Prog will return

The two have dealt with interdimensional travel already and even managed to build their own dimensionator back in Into the Nexus so it's reasonable to assume they'll be involved in the plot in some capacity, possibly as allies Ratchet recruits in order to help him find Clank and stop Nefarious.

The charging weapons will make use of the DualSense triggers.

As in, a half-press will start charging the weapon, while a full press will fire the weapon at whatever charge it was at, and releasing the half-press without a full press will cancel the charge without firing.

The movie and remake will be explained away as having been heavily modified by Qwark.

Pretty self-explanatory. Qwark was pretty much entirely responsible for narrating the game, and the movie can easily be explained away as having been based on the game, which happens to conveniently give Insomniac an easy way to completely kick both out of the continuity under the assertion that Qwark made more than a few tweaks during his narration.

• It's more likely the events of the movie and remake occurred in a separate dimension.

The start of the game will include a How We Got Here flashback.

Exactly right after Clank meets the female lombax, they'll explain away how Nefarious got his hands on the Dimensionator, upgraded it and unleashed havoc on Ratchet & Clank with it.

• Given newly released trailers and demos, it appears the explaination will be the start of the game anyway.
• Jossed - there's no flashback, as the start of the game has you playing as Rachet just before the doctor steals the Dimensionator from Clank.

At the end of the game, after the Final Boss, Ratchet and the female Lombax will become a new family.

Or, at the very least, an Official Couple. Either way, this will be the beginning of the rebirth of the Lombax race in the main universe.

• I can see two reasons why this wouldn't happen. Firstly, Ratchet's already been part of an Official Couple with Talwyn for years (in the comics it was part of why he chose to stay in Polaris) and hasn't moved on to another relationship since. Secondly, it's greatly implied via interviews and hints that the female Lombax is an outright Alternate Self to Ratchet. That doesn't sound very pleasant to me.

After Dr Nefarious is defeated, it will turn out he was a Villain but not the Final Villain, instead it will be revealed that the real main and final villain will be the Female Lombax.

I know that this seems unlikely, but if this were to really happen, it would be really awesome, first teasers keep trailing that Dr Nefarious is the Main Bad Guy, but some players might be expecting him to be the bad guy and final boss, because he often is in the Ratchet and Clank Games, but it would be a great way to surprise Gamers if they find out that they have been playing as a bad guy if the Female Lombax turns out to be the Final Villain and Boss of the Game. She might even have her own Versions of Clank, Omniwrench, Weapons, and even RYNO.

• Unlikely, as it would probably cause a significant amount of backlash if it turned out the new girl was Evil All Along.

If this game does well and we have more games exploring the Multiverse, Ratchet and Clank will end up in a Universe where the Lombaxes are not heroes but evil and Warmongers.

We don't know much about the Lombaxes, only that in the original series they sent the Cragmites to another dimension, now can you imagine if in another universe the Lombaxes used their technology to enslave and oppress other races, and they also don't spare Percival Tachyon in the alternate universe either, causing the Cragmites to go extinct. It would be interesting to see Ratchet have to fight his own people/species, hopefully Ratchet still knows that he is still him and that he is still good and he does the right thing.

The Nefarious of the alternate universe got bored and retired.

Dr. Nefarious says they're going to a dimension where he always wins, and the robot says "Emperor Nefarious, you have returned?" If his counterpart always won, where did he go? Did he conquer the universe, decide Victory Is Boring, and go meditate with the Fongoids?

• Jossed, he was out finishing up his universal conquest. Though he does briefly feel ennui afterwards until he decides to use the Dimensionator to conquer the rest of the multiverse.
• Though jossed its notable that this actually seems to be the exact direction that Emperor Nefarious was going. If not for the presence of Dr. Nefarious and the Dimensionator giving him the inspiration to conquer every possible reality the utter emptiness of achieving total victory probably would have lead to that exact outcome. He spent his whole life equating victory with happiness so having nothing left to achieve victory at left him feeling devoid of meaning. Right line of logic just missing a key detail that wasn't known until after release.

The events of this game (specifically, dealing with Emperor Nefarious) is what's gonna make Nefarious finally go through a Heel–Face Turn.

Nefarious was already showing signs of one at the end of All 4 One, but now it looks like he's bad to his evil ways. My assumption is that whatever events happen in the game, it's gonna make Nefarious go through a full Heel–Face Turn and possibly even have a Heroic Sacrifice (though that part is admittidly a long shot). More specifically, seeing how ruthless Emperor Nefarious is and potentially having Emp-Nef belittle and look down on Nefarious may make him realize that being evil isn't all it's cracked up to be and switch sides. At the very least, this Troper believes it's going to end up in an Enemy Mine situation with Ratchet, Clank, Rivet, Qwark, and Nefarious all teaming up to stop Emp-Nef once and for all.

• Maybe? Only time will tell if him dealing the final blow to his alternative counterpart means that he will start to have one for real...

The Dimensionator will be available as a purchasable superweapon in Challenge Mode.

It's already been made into a quasi-weapon thanks to Nefarious (or whoever took it from Clank between Into the Nexus and this game), so it would make sense that it could become something that the player could actually wield once the main story is over with. It could function the same way it does in the footage shown, creating holes in reality with the added effect of sucking in any enemies that are unfortunate enough to be nearby ala the Rift Inducer from Up Your Arsenal, but on a much grander scale.

As this is a new entry meant to cater to new fans and old fans alike it is unlikely it would outright replace the RYNO as the game's superweapon in the same way Deadlocked ommitted it in favor of the Harbinger, with it instead co-existing with the hypothetical RYNO VIII in the same vein as Going Commando having both the RYNO II and the Zodiac (which would fit in with all the nods towards GC in the game).

• As the troper who posted this, I will say this is potentially Jossed as the RYNO 8 kinda works in a somewhat similar way with it dropping in items from other dimensions.

Clank's missing arm will be important somehow

'Phantom' is Skidd Mc Marx from another dimension

His general inflections sound like Skidd, and having a version of the skater character (since skating is seen as a 'rebellious' sport) be part of the resistence makes sense. Plus, the State of Play demo from April 29th, 2021 purposely skips over Ratchet actually meeting the character. The voice is admittidly deeper, but since we only hear his voice over comms it's very likely that it's just a vocal modulator masking his voice so he doesn't get caught by Emperor Nefarious.

• Confirmed, as of the May 12th, 2021 previews.

The Lombaxes from both dimensions escaped to the same one

Now while it's not certain if the history of the Lombaxes from Rivet's dimension aligns with the ones from Ratchet's, such as Tachyon and Azimuth, etc. Maybe they all escaped to an alternate dimension overlapping one another. This would give Ratchet and Rivet a shared goal.

• If the Lombaxes made the Dimension Map it's probable they would have noticed their counterparts from another dimension evacuating to one specific dimension and fled to the same one so they could consolidate forces.
• Mags mentions in his last recording that they're trying to gather their race together from all the dimensions they're scattered across.

Rivet's hammer will double as a literal ratchet

If she is to deal with turning bolt cranks at, certain points then the hammer will have to serve this function. Because what do we use to fasten nuts and bolts besides wrenches? Ratchets of course. No pun intended.

Nefarious is going to either Capture and Replicate or Kill and Replace his counterpart

Probably by catching him off-guard, with Emperor Nefarious not expecting to see his exact double. And nobody will spot any difference.

• Inverted - in the end, it's Emperor Nefarious who 'captures' the doctor, and makes him work for them instead.

The Lombaxes of Rivet's dimension are snow-oriented rather than desert-oriented.

Hence Rivet's fluffier tail and artic-esque color scheme. This would also mean that her Fastoon is a Slippy-Slidey Ice World, rather than a Shifting Sand Land.

• We've seen a white-furred Lombax from Ratchet's dimension before, and who says Fastoon was a desert planet before Tachyon got to it?
  • Alistor's fur was white with a faint, sandy tint, with reddish-brown stripes, compared to Rivet's pure icy white fur and silvery-blue stripes (also, hyper-fluffy tail that wouldn't be too practical in the desert). Also, nothing says that Fastoon wasn't a desert planet either. In fact, Fastoon appears to have more than one sun at points, which is sci-fi shorthand for Desert Planet, so it's likely that that's it's natural climate. Said extra sun(s) could just not exist in Rivet's dimension.
• Also, this would mean Rivet grew up on Hoven rather than Veldin, which might have had the partial butterfly effect of Drek having built his bomb factory on the dust-ball planet instead of the ice-ball planet. That is, unless Rivet grew up on Sargasso.
• Rivet's ears are roughly the same size as Ratchet's, polar animals do not have large flaps of skin that lose heat quickly (compare the ear sizes of arctic◊ and fennec◊ foxes). It could just be that the sand in her ancestors' homeland was a different color, and her tail's poofy from years of Sargasso's humidity.

There will be a spin-off featuring Rivet & Kit.

It's kind of inevitable, really.

In addition to the above, the duo will have to upgrade their ship at one point.

Specifically after crashing on Fastoon, which is how they'll get Aphelion's Alternate Self, which might have a male AI, and might be named Perihelion (the point in orbit in which a planet is closest to it's sun, and the antonym of aphelion) or something along those lines. The ship might also have a light blue and gunmetal paint job in contrast with Aphelion's orange and rust brown palette.

The sequence of events in Rivet's dimension

The sheep's bio implies Emperor Nefarious worked for Chairman Drex like in the remake/film, so we'll start from that premise.

• Kit comes off the assembly line, but Nefarious changes his mind on recycling her after seeing her super mode.
• The Galaxy Rangers get wiped out trying to stop Drek, except Captain Quantum who either deserts like the coward he is or had already been lured away to a life of piracy. But their last stand mortally wounds Nefarious, forcing his roboticization.
• Nefarious sheepinates Drek, permanently.
• Nefariois uses the loss of the Galaxy Rangsrs and the power vacuum from Dreks absence to establish a foothold with his robot army.
• Nefarious begins an invasion in ernest of the Solana galaxy using overwhelming force to conquer the most likely worlds to rebel and to intimidate the rest.
• The Solana galaxy's major players surrender to or are captured and robotized by Nefarious.
• Emperor Nefarious takes the time to cement his power in the core of his Empire before beginning to expand to the less populous or important planets.
• Rivet after being exposed to the evil of Nefarious repressing people she knew like the Morta joins the resistance movement.
• The resistance begins working to subvert Dr. Nefarious but with his existing foothold they never make much progress losing members to direct attacks. The remaining members shift to a war of sabotage and targets of opportunity.
• Rivet loses her arm in her first encounter with Kit while on a mission to steal a royal starship from the Emperor so the resistance can travel unopposed.
• Tachyon hears rumors of a Lombax in Solana and raids it looking for Rivet, which offends Nefarious and leads to a war between the Nefarious and Tachyon Empires.
• Rivet hears rumors about the Dimensionator and goes looking for it, encountering the Kerchu's extremely friendly counterparts on Sargasso.
• Losing the war, Tachyon uses the Dimensionator to flee to the Cragmite dimension, taking it with him so neither Rivet nor Nefarious can use it.
• Quantum is unwilling to show his face in Solana but encourages the pirates when they start fighting Nefarious and raiding his planets. After Slag's counterpart gets destroyed, Pierre, who likes his sense of drama, helps Quantum become their new captain.
• Ratchet & Clank show up, and the rest is history.

If Dr. Nefarious makes a Heel–Face Turn, Emperor Nefarious will return to take his place

His defeat isn’t quite a definite death, and it’d be easy to come up with an explanation for how he survived. He also has every reason to stay in Ratchet & Clank’s universe, since not only would he be ruthlessly hunted down if he returned to his own but he probably has a massive vendetta against the two for giving him one of his first defeats. Besides, what would Ratchet and Clank be without a Nefarious to fight?

With Emperor Nefarious defeated, Emperor Tachyon will rise up

It is a possibility. While we never actually get to see another version of Tachyon, or even a mention of him, it's possible that he, or she, was waiting for the right moment to rise up and searches for Rivet. Thus, could lead to a spinoff being somewhat similar to Tools Of Destruction.