Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart Review - 7 Ups & 1 Down

5. The Best Combat Model Insomniac Have Ever Made

As a developer exploring various ways to let you kick, punch and shoot your way through environments across the last few decades, Insomniac have become true veterans of digital entertainment.

Where Disruptor set them off down the FPS route, and Spider-Man added a more athletic, energetic spin on Rocksteady's Arkham formula, Ratchet & Clank has always attempted to walk the line between Spyro-style platforming, and all-out third-person carnage.

Thankfully - and 2016's soft-reboot of R&C was no slouch - Rift Apart sees Insomniac bolster Ratchet's time-tested abilities with some key changes that advance the feel of combat considerably.

Namely, we now have a dedicated dash button and a pair of rocket boots you can power up with repeated stabs of the right trigger. The latter lets you disengage from combat and whizz off to find a health pick up or some ammo, but the former actively changes how you play.

Ultimately, it makes movement so much faster, upping your confidence to zip in, deliver a few blows with the shotgun-like Enforcer, maybe a couple of wrench hits, then dash back out for ranged attacks.

Combined with the range of weapons on display, Rift Apart has a level of sheer playability that makes it Insomniac's finest combat model yet.