- Accidental Innuendo: At the very end, if you didn't take the whole "Ratchet changing his mind about not finding the lombaxes" thing under context.Ratchet: Well... How would you two [Rivet and Kit] feel about making a pit stop on the way?Rivet: Where are we headed?Ratchet: I think you know.
- Best Level Ever:
- Savali is a rather different level; the Hoverboots are first introduced here, and the level is arguably the biggest in the series so far. The parkour of the Mountain Trial and the many enemies that have to be fought to free the Monks before defending the Archives against a final attack all combine to make a memorable level unlike anything that came before it.
- Torren IV, home of the Vullards, becomes far more desolate in an alternate universe where the Guardian is replaced by a giant robot named the Fixer. The level introduces the Hurlshot and many parkour segments revolving around switching between wall-running and grinding, culminating in an attack from Pierre and his band of space pirates, before the final battle against the Fixer which takes the form of an extended grind rail segment.
- Captain Obvious Reveal: Captain Quantum being Qwark's interdimensional counterpart was built as a surprise reveal, but it wasn't that hard to figure out since both characters were self-titled Captains with their names starting with "Q."
- Catharsis Factor: After spending the entire game acting like an arrogant, tyrannical Jerkass who subjected an untold number of people to oppression and death, along with treating his much beloved counterpart like crap, watching Emperor Nefarious get dragged off by the kraken while pathetically begging for Dr. Nefarious to save him is nothing short of gratifying.
- Character Rerailment:
- After his last (mainline) appearance in All 4 One turned him into somewhat of a Butt-Monkey, Dr. Nefarious has once again become a legitimate threat having acquired the Dimensionator, amassed another robot army, and hired more muscle in the form of Goons-4-Less. However, he does get shafted somewhat by his dimensional counterpart until the very end when he's the one to deliver the killing blow, as well as an Ironic Echo. He's still as formidable as he was in Up Your Arsenal and A Crack in Time, however. As his fight against Rivet later in the game can attest.
- A very brief moment but the catalyst for reality beginning to collapse is Ratchet taking a shot at the Dimensionator in an attempt to stop Nefarious, showing his impulsive and somewhat-reckless side that had been missing in the last few games and after the 2016 re-imagining turned him into a Wide-Eyed Idealist.
- Following his underuse as a character in some 2010s games, most egregiously the 2016 re-imagining, Clank has returned to being more active in the plot, and beyond regaining his back-and-forth banter with Ratchet, is also more expressive and emotive in his speech, similarly to the characterization he had in the PS2 trilogy or the Future games. He's also considerably snarkier than he was in prior entries and even gets a Distaff Counterpart in Kit, who even has a giant form as Clank did in the PS2 games.
- Complete Monster: Emperor Nefarious hails from an alternate dimension where he successfully achieved his goals of conquering the galaxy. Ruling his dimension as a dictatorship by imprisoning anybody for the pettiest of reasons, while robotizing those who dare refuse to serve him, Nefarious also sends Warbots out to depopulate planets to make them easier to conquer. Returning after a conquest trip to find Dr. Nefarious having assumed command, Nefarious chooses to partner with him to wipe out the resistance, before attempting to destroy Rivet's home planet afterwards. Once Nefarious finds victory to be boring, he gets the idea to use his new Dimensionator to instead rule over every single dimension so that he will always win. Tricking Ratchet and friends into helping him locate the Dimensional Map by invading the planet Savali, Nefarious thanks his alternate counterpart for assisting him by setting out to conquer his dimension first against his partner's wishes. When he looks to be losing for the first time in his life, Nefarious tries to overclock the Dimensionator in an attempt to undo all of reality itself.
- Crosses the Line Twice:
- The encounter with "Snoojax"... which is in reality a dead Grunthor that the Pirates forgot to feed. It wouldn't be nearly as hilarious if it weren't for the reactions of the parties involved. Even if, well, it is a Grunthor.
- Speaking of which, the encounter with the Undead Grunthor. What is essentially a Zombie Dinosaur is one thing, but Clank of all people responding with a Precision F-Strike turns what would otherwise be borderline Nightmare Fuel into sheer hilarity!Clank: Holy *beep*--!
- Fanart at First Sight: Rivet, at the time unnamed, got fanart posted on Twitter just minutes after she was briefly onscreen when the game was announced during the Playstation 5 reveal video.
- Fanfic Fuel:
- There are various dimensions based on other PlayStation titles like Jak and Daxter and Sly Cooper with the RYNO 8 even dropping said characters (Sly is even ripped straight from the PlayStation 2 games!) into Ratchet's game. Can anyone say "Fanfic potential?"
- Its implied that the Lombaxes aren't just all in some random dimension, but are actually scattered across the Multiverse. Add on the fact that the multiverse includes both alternate versions of the Ratchet and Clank universe and various other PlayStation properties, one can't help but wonder...
- Fan Nickname:
- Before her name was revealed as Rivet, some fans called her "Mallet" thanks to her hammer-like weapon, while others called her "Rachette" due to her being seen as a Distaff Counterpart to Ratchet.
- Fans have taken to calling the game "Rivet & Clank" due to the large amount of focus being put on Rivet over Ratchet in the previews and developer interviews.
- Friendly Fandoms:
- Ratchet & Clank fans are friendly with Crash Bandicoot fans, due to both franchises getting new games around the same time, and both revolving around the multiverse. There has also been fan art of Crash and Coco meeting Ratchet and Clank, as well as Rivet.
- Naturally, due to the Easter Eggs and Shout Outs to them via the RYNO 8 and the Lorbs on Savali, Naughty Dog and Sucker Punch fans get along quite nicely with Ratchet & Clank fans; particularly those of Jak and Daxter, Sly Cooper, and Horizon Zero Dawn.
- Game-Breaker:
- In terms of normal weapons, there's the Topiary/Toxiary Sprinkler. It freezes all enemies in place (including Bosses) and coats them in fauna while doing some very good damage over time. The fact that it's one of the quickest weapons in the game to upgrade also helps, too. It is most certainly on the level of the Bouncer (which in itself also returns in this game) and the Rift Inducer in terms of its overall utility and stopping power, to say the least.
- The Cold Snap. While it takes a while to upgrade, it provides a huge damage bonus once fully upgraded. You can unlock the ability for frozen enemies to shatter into shards, damaging surrounding enemies. This results in a screen-clearing chain reaction of explosions from hitting only a single frozen enemy. It leaves behind a cloud that can even freeze the same boss multiple times and any new enemies that enter the area. Cycling between the Cold Snap and a powerful single-shot weapon such as the Warmonger or Headhunter can be kill bosses in a matter of seconds, making the weapon a key aspect of speedrunning. Its only downsides are low-ammo capacity and that it unlocks relatively late in the game, but taking the time to fully upgrade Cold Snap is absolutely worth the trouble.
- The Enforcer/Executor is also an extremely effective all-rounder of a weapon. Its unique trait of firing in two-round bursts (or four-round when fully upgraded) makes it very effective to use both against crowds and against Bosses. The fact that it remains consistently reliable well into the endgame as well as being one of the very first weapons available to purchase for a measly 1,250 bolts helps it quite nicely.
- Goddamned Bats:
- Amoeboids. If you didn't like them in the first game (or the reboot) or Up Your Arsenal, then you probably won't like them here, either.
- Nefarious Sluggers. They're not by any means difficult to take out on their own, but seeing as the harder difficulties like to send legions of these rustbuckets on your ass you'll find yourself overwhelmed pretty quickly if you're not on top of things with The Enforcer or the Negatron Collider.
- Hilarious in Hindsight:
- June 2020 gave us a reveal for a new game in a long-running platformer series starring an animal protagonist having to deal with their arch-enemy who is causing mayhem across multiple dimensions, all while returning to their original continuity. Are we talking about Rift Apart or Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time?
- Adding to this is that the unreleased Crash Bandicoot Evolution had too similar a premise with the original Ratchet & Clank (2002) (a villain trying to take pieces of other planets to construct a new one), hence why it was canceled and eventually re-tooled into Crash Twinsanity.
- The kicker of it all is that both dimensional predicaments were caused by the heroes (Ratchet causing the Dimensionator to backfire in Rift Apart, and the Bandicoots breaking the Time Twister to trap the scientists in another dimension, only for them to escape in It's About Time).
- If all that wasn't enough, both animal protagonists have to deal with a Dr. Nefarious as the major villain of the piece.
- And on top of that, both games feature two versions of their respective Nefariouses: One from the main dimension, and one hailing from the same dimension as the new playable female characters.
- Okay, one more: the portals in both use a "shattered glass" visual motif and colours their portals the same color: purple!
- June 2020 gave us a reveal for a new game in a long-running platformer series starring an animal protagonist having to deal with their arch-enemy who is causing mayhem across multiple dimensions, all while returning to their original continuity. Are we talking about Rift Apart or Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time?
- Ho Yay:
- Some fans have noted a similarity between Clank throwing a parade in order to gift Ratchet the rebuilt Dimensionator and a Wacky Marriage Proposal, and Ratchet spends half the game after they get separated worrying about Clank.
- Ratchet and Clank have a moment where they gaze fondly into each others eyes as "Happy Together" by The Turtles — a love song — plays in the background on the radio. And Ratchet turns it up!
- Rivet and Kit's relationship got off to a bit of a rocky start, what with the amputation, but they get a sense that they're supposed to be together and Kit ultimately comes back to help.
- Jerkass Woobie: Dr. Nefarious, surprisingly. While he's still, well, Nefarious, it can be kind of hard not to feel bad for him with the way that his Alternate Self treats him. Not helping matters is that he's riding solo for this adventure, since, in a rare showcase of Pet the Dog from him, not only did he pay the Goons-4-Less that he hired earlier very generously, but he also has Lawrence away on paternity leave. He even fawns over his newborn in the Creative Closing Credits, too.
- Memetic Mutation:
- The sheer amount of pornographic fan art of Rivet created immediately after the game's first trailer practically became a meme in and of itself.
- This scene
from the April 2021 gameplay trailer where Ratchet hits Nefarious in the face with his wrench has become very popular with fans due to its comedic timing (heightened by the fact that Ratchet's reaction to getting caught is to try and shush Nefarious) and for the scene as a whole being a Call-Back to a scene from A Crack in Time. - A lot of fans have compared Dr. and Emperor Nefarious to 1st and 2nd Dimension Doofenshmirtz from Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension, even imagining the two Nefariouses singing “A Brand New Best Friend”.
- Moral Event Horizon: Emperor Nefarious crosses it when he decides to overclock the Dimensionator to destroy all of reality just because he can't handle losing for the first time.
- Popular with Furries: Rivet attracted a large swath of furry fans almost as soon as she appeared in the reveal trailer. This tweet by Xavier Coelho-Kostolny, one of the game’s designers, confirms that this was the reaction he was hoping for, and he regularly retweets fanart of her as well.Xavier: Even though a lot's changed since I was on the project, I'm very happy I was able to contribute in some small way to the Furry Awakening that's going to happen when the new Ratchet & Clank drops.
- Preemptive Shipping: When the first trailer revealed the appearance of a female Lombax (later revealed to be named Rivet), people started shipping her with Ratchet.
- Scrappy Weapon:
- The Void Repulsor/Reactor. While its concept is interesting, the end result is a poor man's Holo-Shield Launcher with abysmal damage for a Shotgun-type weapon (especially compared to The Enforcer or the Pixelizer), yet burns through ammo absurdly quickly. On top of that, it only gains experience by shooting enemies, so using it to block enemy shots drains its ammo reserve without earning progress toward an upgrade. While the final upgrade's ability to catch shots and fire them back is a cool idea on paper, the returned shots are so weak that it's not worth the trouble to upgrade it that far.
- The Bombardier is meant to be an assist weapon meant to help chip away at enemy health. But unfortunately, there are many better options for support weapons in the game. When deployed, the Bombadier flies in a straight line while automatically targeting enemies on the ground with projectiles. Said projectiles have horrid damage capability, and are so slow to drop that they probably won't hit anything in the first place. And forget about using it against flying enemies, as the Bombadier flies too low to target them. Combine this with an ammo pool of only three shots, and it's enough to make you wonder why this weapon even exists when Mr. Fungi does the same thing more effectively.
- Shocking Moments:
- The PS5 reveal stream that announced this game had shown another Insomniac Games project earlier - Spider-Man: Miles Morales - so seeing a new Ratchet & Clank as well came as a surprise to some.
- The trailer confirmed the series would bring back the Lombax race in some form... by having Rivet, a female specimen, suddenly drop in behind Clank.
- The April 2021 State of Play revealed a new gameplay mechanic: The ability to equip (and therefore mix-and-match) individual pieces of armor. That alone came a surprise to many, but what really caught fans off guard was the fact that this is actually a returning feature... from Size Matters.note
- The RYNO 8 bringing in items from other dimensions? Makes sense, given the game's theme. Some of those items being from other PlayStation franchises? Fitting. One of those franchises being Sunset Overdrive, a game with a much higher age rating than Ratchet & Clank and that has never appeared on a PlayStation console? Nobody was expecting that, even with it being an Insomniac-made game that Sony now owns.
- On a similar note, did anyone expect Merryn's submarine from Song of the Deep — a game that almost instantly fell into obscurity that Insomniac themselves haven't even mentioned in years — to be amongst the items the weapon can drop? Now THAT is a deep cut!
- Tainted by the Preview: A number of fans have expressed disappointment that Dr. Nefarious is appearing as a major character yet again, especially since it's implied that he will be the main antagonist for the fourth time. While this has been somewhat mitigated by there being an alternate version of Nefarious involved in the plot, it hasn't stopped claims that the character has become overused in the franchise.
- They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character: Captain Qwark's presence in this game is quite minimal in comparison to prior appearances, only being relegated to a cameo in the beginning and towards the end when he interacts with his Alternate Self, Captain Quantum. Understandable since Jim Ward wasn't exactly in the best of health to reprise the role (and had officially retired before production began), with Ward being replaced by Scott Whyte in this game.
- Trans Audience Interpretation: Fans have speculated that Rivet may be transgender due to her having a tail despite Insomniac previously stating that female Lombaxes do not have tails.
- Visual Effects of Awesome:
- The trailers alone showcase what the new hardware of the PlayStation 5 is capable of producing. Ratchet's (and Rivet's) fur and Clank's shiny metal exterior are more detailed than ever and the environments are stunningly beautiful, detailed, and full of life, not to mention all the various effects employed in the midst of combat as well as when using rifts in the space-time continuum to seamlessly travel between completely different planets. It's to the point where it manages to far surpass the Ratchet & Clank movie in visuals which already qualified as an example of this trope.
- Then there's the fact that you can run it in Performance Mode with Raytracing enabled. The end result is one of the prettiest games in the entire console generation as well as a true testament to the PlayStation 5's capabilities.
- Win Back the Crowd: The decision to have Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo fame compose the soundtrack was met with nearly universal positivity by fans, especially those who felt Michael Bross' work on the last handful of installments (especially the 2016 re-imagining) strayed too far away from the catchier, electronic-filled sound the series had under its original composer David Bergeaud. The previews of several tracks that PlayStation provided only furthered this sentiment, mixing both orchestral and electric sounds akin to Bergeaud's work.
