Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction: The Review
Overview
Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction is a strong start to the Future saga and a solid jump into the HD era for the duo. The visuals still hold up surprisingly well, and the game leans hard into what makes the series great: chaotic weapons, smooth platforming, and that classic Ratchet & Clank charm. There’s a bit more focus on story (and lore) this time around, especially around Ratchet’s past, which adds some nice weight without losing the fun. The different planets can feel a little bland compared to the PS2 saga, but overall, it’s still a blast from start to finish.
Score: 8 out of 10
The Positives ✅
Tools of Destruction made an incredible first impression back in the day, and a lot of that comes down to how gorgeous it looked. For its time, this thing felt like a playable Pixar movie, everything from the vibrant worlds to the buttery smooth animations just popped. It was a big leap for the series, and it showed what Insomniac could do with stronger hardware.
Of course, this wouldn’t be a Ratchet & Clank game without their signature wacky weapon lineup. From the Groovitron (a series favourite) that makes enemies bust a move, to the Tornado Launcher that you can steer with motion controls, the arsenal stays fresh and fun. The actual gameplay is tight and responsive too: jumping, blasting, and swinging around with gadgets has never felt smoother. It's clear that Insomniac had perfected the formula on how to do good Ratchet & Clank gameplay.
The humor and charm are dialed in perfectly, with classic Ratchet-Clank banter and tons of weird, funny NPCs keeping things light. But this entry also takes a step into more personal storytelling, digging into Ratchet’s Lombax roots and hinting at something bigger beneath the surface. Was that the right move for the franchise? Yes and no. It was obvious Ratchet would need to grow up with their audience, and the Future saga tried to implement a multi-game story that would resolve some big mysteries of the franchise... but, that didn't happen. We still got a multi-game saga, but what we got was a very "weird" lineup of games that in the end, didn’t end up resolving ANY of their big mysteries. We can’t fault this game in particular for what happened in the PS3 games after, but we do have to mention that this game was the starting point for this "mess" that ended up plaguing the PS3 era.
The Negatives ⚠️
Tools of Destruction definitely brings the heat, but it’s not without a few rough edges. One of the biggest letdowns? No multiplayer. After Ratchet: Deadlocked gave us co-op and competitive modes, losing that entirely here feels like a step back, especially for players who liked blasting through waves of enemies with a friend.
The mission structure also gets a bit samey after a while. Sure, the worlds are a blast to explore, but the game leans a little too hard on the “shoot everything, move forward” formula. It’s fun, just not particularly varied, and it starts to blur together by the end.
Boss fights also needed more tweaking: they're visually great, no doubt, but some feel more like bullet sponges than memorable showdowns. You end up using every weapon in your arsenal just to watch their health bars slowly tick down. It’s not terrible, but it drags down some solid fights into tedious challenges.
Talking about bosses, we have to talk about our main villain: Tachyon. What should have been the most menacing villain in the entire franchise ends up as a comic, ridiculous, and bad villain. The backstory (how he alone nearly destroyed the Lombaxes) doesn’t match the inept goofball we see on screen — one who only succeeds because freaking Qwark stumbles upon the key and basically hands it to him. It’s ridiculous and a disappointment to the character.
The Experience 🎮
It took me around 20 hours to blast through Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction, and honestly, I had a blast exploring this game once again. The weapons continue to be a major winning point for the franchise and they know it, and the gameplay just felt as smooth and satisfying as I remembered. The missions get a bit samey here and there, but the humor and story more than made up for it. If you’re into the Ratchet & Clank franchise or just want a fun, action-packed adventure with some heart, this one’s definitely worth the trip down to this galaxy. This marked a new beginning for Ratchet and it technically succeeded in revitalizing the franchise.
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