PlayStation abandoning Ratchet & Clank would be a huge disappointment

Sony and Insomniac Games have shared a slow 2024, but the same can be said for the entire industry's AAA studios that year. Even so, both have been busy preparing future releases behind the scenes, with Ghost of Yotei and Marvel's Wolverine both get fans excited about PlayStation 5's future. Insomniac helped the PS5 find its footing in its first year with the release of its well-received Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apartwith another Spider-Man partial payment will come later. The Marvel games take precedence Ratchet & Clank right now, but both are still strong contributions to the PlayStation lineup.

At least they both should be. Insomniac Games has become PlayStation's most popular licensed Marvel game studio, and while it's done a great job, that's all it feels like it's done. Currently, this feeling has more to do with the perception that Insomniac makes mostly Marvel titles than they actually overshadow the rest of Insomniac's output, but there is reason to worry that it could become the status quo. Ratchet & Clank used to be Insomniac's claim to fame and a cherished PlayStation franchise, and it would be tragic if that were no longer the case.

Family

The PS5 will soon become the ultimate Ratchet and Clank Machine

Soon, the PlayStation 5 will be the ultimate machine for anyone who wants to play through the Ratchet and Clank series.

Ratchet & Clank used to be Insomniac's Star PlayStation Franchise

Insomniac Games may have become a full Sony Interactive Entertainment studio in 2019, but the pair have shared a long and fruitful partnership for most of Insomniac's life. The Spyro the dragon the trilogy gave the PS1 one of its unofficial mascots in the late 90s and 2002s Ratchet & Clank repeated the feat for PS2. Over the next decade, Insomniac pumped out diligently Ratchet & Clank games, as well as Resistance trilogy, establishing its place as a valued Sony studio with a strong primary franchise. Experimenting with smaller projects and other publishers throughout the 2010s felt deserved after all of Insomniac's work.

Insomniac's relationship with R&C changed after Marvel's Spider-Man

The studio released a few more Ratchet & Clank titles during that time, but things changed when it was used to make it Marvel's Spider-Man for Sony. The 2018 launch shattered all expectations for quality and sales performance, likely prompting Sony's decision to finally acquire Insomniac the following year.

As with most AAA studios, Insomniac has spent the 2020s so far putting out fewer games than in the past, and is currently taking a long hiatus from Ratchet & Clank but has maintained its high quality standards while the focus is shared between two valuable IP addresses. The only problem is that it doesn't seem to be even between said IPs, and it could get worse going forward.

Marvel Games risks replacing Ratchet & Clank entirely

As evidenced by Insomniac's December 2023 leak, there's a lot of Marvel coming down the pipe. Including Marvel's Wolverinejust one of the six known and rumored upcoming Insomniac titles is Ratchet & Clankand it's not expected to be released until at least fiscal year 2029. It's the second furthest away game, just ahead of a claimed 2030 X-Men game, and there's no telling what new developments the leak itself, the changing financial climate for AAA games, and the cancellation of a multiplayer Spider-Man title beside Spider-Man 2s DLC means for any of Insomniac's ongoing plans.

Ratchet & Clank currently plays second fiddle to Marvel-licensed games with no spin-offs in sight. Should this continue, especially if Insomniac suffers the layoffs that are plaguing the industry, Ratchet & Clank risks being totally abandoned. As a consistently well-received Sony franchise important to the platform's history, it would be a shame to lose Ratchet & Clank Now. It has more adventures left in it and Rift Aparts new duo of Rivet and Kit can't be left behind in a single game. PlayStation and Insomniac need to make sure that, no matter how much time and effort their Marvel games require, Ratchet & Clank still gets its time in the spotlight.