Sony and Insomniac Games have shared slow 2024s, but the same could be said for the whole industry’s AAA studios that year. Despite that, both have been busy preparing future releases behind the scenes, withGhost of YoteiandMarvel’s Wolverineboth getting fans excited about the PlayStation 5’s future. Insomniac contributed to the PS5 finding its footing during its first year with the release of its well-receivedMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles MoralesandRatchet & Clank: Rift Apart, with anotherSpider-Maninstallment coming later. The Marvel games are taking precedence overRatchet & Clankright now, but both are still strong contributions to the PlayStation lineup.
At least, they both should be. Insomniac Games has become PlayStation’s go-to licensed Marvel game studio, and while it’s done a stellar job, that’s all it feels like it’s been doing. For the time being, this feeling has more to do with theperception of Insomniac making mostly Marvel titlesthan them actually eclipsing the rest of Insomniac’s output, but there’s reason to worry that it could become the status quo.Ratchet & Clankused to be Insomniac’s claim to fame and a treasured PlayStation franchise, and it would be tragic if that was no longer the case.
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. TheSpyro the Dragontrilogy gave the PS1 one of its unofficial mascots in the late 90’s, and2002’sRatchet & Clankrepeated the feat for the PS2. For the next decade, Insomniac diligently pumped outRatchet & Clankgames, as well as theResistancetrilogy, carving out its place as a valued Sony studio with a strong primary franchise. Experimenting with smaller projects and other publishers throughout the 2010s felt earned after all of Insomniac’s work.
Insomniac’s Relationship With R&C Changed After Marvel’s Spider-Man
The studio put out a few moreRatchet & Clanktitles during that time, but things changed when it was tapped to makeMarvel’s Spider-Manfor Sony. Its 2018 launch smashed all expectations of quality and sales performance, likely hastening 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 it used to and is currentlytaking a long break fromRatchet & Clankbut has maintained its high bar for quality while splitting its focus between two valuable IPs. The only problem is that there doesn’t seem to be even ground between said IPs, and that could get worse going forward.
Marvel Games Risk Replacing Ratchet & Clank Entirely
As seen in the December 2023 Insomniac leak, there’s a lot of Marvel coming down the pipe. IncludingMarvel’s Wolverine, only one of the six known and rumored upcoming Insomniac titles isRatchet & Clank, and it isn’t projected to release until at least fiscal year 2029. That’s the second-furthest game away, just beforean alleged 2030X-Mengame, and there’s no telling what new developments like the leak itself, the changing financial climate for AAA games, and the cancelation of a multiplayerSpider-Mantitle alongsideSpider-Man 2’s DLC mean for any of Insomniac’s ongoing plans.
Ratchet & Clankis currently playing second fiddle to Marvel-licensed games with no spin-offs in sight. Should this keep up, especially if Insomniac gets hit by the layoffs plaguing the industry,Ratchet & Clankrisks total abandonment. As a consistently well-received Sony franchise that’s important to the platform’s history, it would be a shame to loseRatchet & Clanknow. It has more adventures left in it andRift Apart’s new duo of Rivet and Kitcan’t be left behind in a single game. PlayStation and Insomniac need to verify that, no matter how much time and effort their Marvel games demand,Ratchet & Clankstill gets its time in the spotlight.
