PlayStation seems to be going all in on the PC market these days with titles like The Last of Us Part 1 and Marvel's Spider-man making a home for themselves on the platform, and those hits will soon be joined by Insomniac Games’ Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. The game originally served as a major launch title for the PS5, but now more gamers will be able to get their hands on it, which is pretty exciting even though it also seems like a strange choice.
Unlike The Last of Us Part 1 and Marvel's Spider-Man, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is the ninth installment in a long-running franchise. A series that has never been on PC before, and there seems to be no signs that more titles will launch on PC in the future. While there will likely be an audience for Ratchet's latest adventure, it will feel rather lonely on the PC without the rest of the series, and that could ultimately limit its mainstream appeal.
Rift Apart Cannot Be the Only Ratchet and Clank Game on PC
Ratchet and Clank has been a staple of the PlayStation for a long time and debuted as one of the best PlayStation 2 games. Players were whisked away to a colorful galaxy filled with charismatic characters, and the gameplay was not half bad either. The PS2 saw four mainline Ratchet and Clank games as well as two spin-off entries that expanded the series in unique ways. Each title felt better than the last, and players kept coming back for more exciting adventures. The success of these titles helped cement Ratchet and Clank as PlayStation mascots, and it felt like their adventures would never end.
The Ratchet and Clank series made the leap to the PlayStation 3 with a new story known as the Future Saga. This saga followed the titular duo as they went on even wild adventures that took advantage of the new hardware. The platform saw four additional mainline entries as well as two brand-new spin-offs. The series continued to go from hit to hit, even if it ran into a few bumps along the way. It would then go on a brief hiatus during the PS4 era with only a remake of the first title hitting the platform and would end up making its explosive return to the PS5 with Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart.
The Ratchet and Clank series has had almost 20 years’ worth of galactic adventures, and there are likely more on the horizon. While players can jump in at any point, these games definitely build on each other, and series veterans are able to pick out every single little detail. That is why it seems strange for PlayStation to add Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart on PC with it being the ninth mainline title. The PC market has never had a Ratchet and Clank game before, nor has PlayStation announced plans to change this in the near future. Instead, players will just have to jump into a 20-year-long story at the tail end of it.
If Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is a success on PC, then PlayStation should bring the other titles to the platform. While the 2016 remake seems like the likeliest candidate, Steam would be the ideal platform to launch every other game on, as it is the only way for PC players to fully appreciate the series in its entirety. They should be able to experience Ratchet's quest to find Lombaxes, Clank's mission to fix time itself, the constant bombastic adventures they go on, and everything that has brought them to Rift Apart. All of this should happen, and it should happen soon if PC is meant to be a new home for the series.
Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is available now on PS5 and will release on PC on July 26