First off, the movie the game is based on was a major disappointment. They completely altered Ratchet and Clank's individual characters and the dynamic between the two was turned really shallow, almost as if they were in some sort of professional relationship. No banter or conflict between the two whatsoever, and really no reason to be friends. It was really lame to see Ratchet turned from a self-important mechanic who lived on a backwater planet to a wannabe do-gooder who merely works at a mechanic shop and wants to be a Galatic Ranger and save the world. OG Ratchet had his own fish to fry, while Clank was trying to be his moral compass, and that's what made him fun. And in this game, Clank just seems so flat, basically a cardboard cutout of his original self, and feels like he himself AS A CHARACTER doesn't really care about the plot he's involved in.
The game, in terms of plot, was mostly the same way. Even the segues in and out of the actual movie scenes seemed jarring and janky. Too kid-friendly, comedy tries too hard, breaks the fourth wall more than Deadpool (moderation in that department is what made the originals good), and at some points just seems like it wants relevance points with the kiddies. I visibly cringed at a lot of the writing, which is straight up bad in a lot of parts. Also wasn't a fan of the narrative being told by Captain Qwark from prison. Additionally, they did my boy Drek dirty by turning him from the main villain who remains sinister but deals with incompetent henchmen into a dorky, annoying red herring villain who just ends up getting Sheepinated by Nefarious.
However, I do have to say that there were good parts to the writing. I thought the end of the Plumber scene where the dialogue is replicated line-for-line from the original was cute ("Geronimo!" "Did he just slide down that sewer pipe?"), and the fact that the Plumber says he'll see them in the next reboot (which is canon, because the Plumber has always been the main 4th-wall-breaking NPC). There were times when the old humor poked through the mess. Not everything was terrible.
The gameplay was where I found myself really enjoying it. I think it's obvious that experiencing levels from the first game with a huge graphical makeover was pretty dope. The game looks incredible! Only gripe there is the cap at 30fps and no way to turn off motion blur. The level design overall I thought was really good. Most planets had a main path for the plot progression, and then had a couple branching side-paths for additional plot or gold bolts/holo-cards. That was something that we didn't even get in UYA. We even got a Tabora/Grelbin-style level on Gaspar with the Brain Scientist, though the amount of bolts you get in exchange feels nowhere close as rewarding as trading all the crystals to The Mystic.
As far as the weapons go, the arsenal is slightly disappointing due to how small it is, and not bringing back more OG weapons, but the leveling and upgrading mechanic was really cool. I found myself using most of them in combination with each other during big battles. Only one that wasn't used was the Sheepinator (I never really used the morphing weapons). Another gripe with the weapons system is you never really feel like you're working for any of them. One of the fun parts of the OG trilogy was grinding bolts and completing the Mystic missions to save up for the more expensive weapons, and for the most part, it was worth it because each new weapon offered something better for the price. In this game, by the time a new weapon is available, you will easily have enough bolts for it (save for the RYNO, which requires you to find the holo-cards, and I don't really have too much of an issue with that), and some of the weapons you get late game don't even compare to the early-game weapons' usefulness.
Now for the overall combat. This was something I think they still did right. Sure, enemies aren't as varied as the OG, but they were still diverse enough to not feel bland (like UYA with its Tyhrranoids). The combat itself is chaotic and explosive, which has not changed much from past R&C. Just how I like it. Sometimes the flashy graphics made things a little hard to tell what was going on though. Enemy AI was smart enough for the battles not to be too easy. Strangely, some the boss battles felt slightly better designed than some of the OG boss battles, and their large health pools make it so even with a fully upgraded weapon the boss isn't a pushover (I'm looking at you, Protopet with the Heavy Bouncer). And honestly, the Nefarious fight at the end was super fun. Looking forward to Challenge Mode on Hard.
The soundtrack was one thing that really made me sad. There were no iconic themes. No breakbeat bops. No interesting leitmotifs. Just really generic placeholder orchestral space-opera music with a bunch of scales. It feels like it takes a back seat and is kind of a Star Wars wannabe attempt. It doesn't beg for me to go back and listen to it, and none of it sticks in my head the way the OG's soundtrack did.
Some other small things before I wrap up. Holo-cards were a neat addition. The fact that you can collect cool mementos from the series' past while at the same time using them to boost your stats is awesome.
Character designs were a little wonky, and some were completely changed. Disappointed that we escorted Grim's brother on Pokitaru and not the resort owner that we all know and love.
Kinda disappointed that we didn't get to see the Alien Queen in Nebula G34 recreated in the modern style, but the Snagglebeast placement to allude to Qwark's betrayal made sense, I guess.
Defeating Qwark was REALLY underwhelming, and his redemption arc was stupid.
Hoverboard races got a massive improvement.
TL;DR, Insomniac really dropped the ball on crafting an intersting plot, and they did a disservice to characters that their audience knew and loved. However, their competency in game design still shines through, because the level design, graphics, combat, and overall gameplay are all top notch. It's still a really fun game with a lot of issues. If it weren't for the gameplay, this review would've been a one-star review.
The game, in terms of plot, was mostly the same way. Even the segues in and out of the actual movie scenes seemed jarring and janky. Too kid-friendly, comedy tries too hard, breaks the fourth wall more than Deadpool (moderation in that department is what made the originals good), and at some points just seems like it wants relevance points with the kiddies. I visibly cringed at a lot of the writing, which is straight up bad in a lot of parts. Also wasn't a fan of the narrative being told by Captain Qwark from prison. Additionally, they did my boy Drek dirty by turning him from the main villain who remains sinister but deals with incompetent henchmen into a dorky, annoying red herring villain who just ends up getting Sheepinated by Nefarious.
However, I do have to say that there were good parts to the writing. I thought the end of the Plumber scene where the dialogue is replicated line-for-line from the original was cute ("Geronimo!" "Did he just slide down that sewer pipe?"), and the fact that the Plumber says he'll see them in the next reboot (which is canon, because the Plumber has always been the main 4th-wall-breaking NPC). There were times when the old humor poked through the mess. Not everything was terrible.
The gameplay was where I found myself really enjoying it. I think it's obvious that experiencing levels from the first game with a huge graphical makeover was pretty dope. The game looks incredible! Only gripe there is the cap at 30fps and no way to turn off motion blur. The level design overall I thought was really good. Most planets had a main path for the plot progression, and then had a couple branching side-paths for additional plot or gold bolts/holo-cards. That was something that we didn't even get in UYA. We even got a Tabora/Grelbin-style level on Gaspar with the Brain Scientist, though the amount of bolts you get in exchange feels nowhere close as rewarding as trading all the crystals to The Mystic.
As far as the weapons go, the arsenal is slightly disappointing due to how small it is, and not bringing back more OG weapons, but the leveling and upgrading mechanic was really cool. I found myself using most of them in combination with each other during big battles. Only one that wasn't used was the Sheepinator (I never really used the morphing weapons). Another gripe with the weapons system is you never really feel like you're working for any of them. One of the fun parts of the OG trilogy was grinding bolts and completing the Mystic missions to save up for the more expensive weapons, and for the most part, it was worth it because each new weapon offered something better for the price. In this game, by the time a new weapon is available, you will easily have enough bolts for it (save for the RYNO, which requires you to find the holo-cards, and I don't really have too much of an issue with that), and some of the weapons you get late game don't even compare to the early-game weapons' usefulness.
Now for the overall combat. This was something I think they still did right. Sure, enemies aren't as varied as the OG, but they were still diverse enough to not feel bland (like UYA with its Tyhrranoids). The combat itself is chaotic and explosive, which has not changed much from past R&C. Just how I like it. Sometimes the flashy graphics made things a little hard to tell what was going on though. Enemy AI was smart enough for the battles not to be too easy. Strangely, some the boss battles felt slightly better designed than some of the OG boss battles, and their large health pools make it so even with a fully upgraded weapon the boss isn't a pushover (I'm looking at you, Protopet with the Heavy Bouncer). And honestly, the Nefarious fight at the end was super fun. Looking forward to Challenge Mode on Hard.
The soundtrack was one thing that really made me sad. There were no iconic themes. No breakbeat bops. No interesting leitmotifs. Just really generic placeholder orchestral space-opera music with a bunch of scales. It feels like it takes a back seat and is kind of a Star Wars wannabe attempt. It doesn't beg for me to go back and listen to it, and none of it sticks in my head the way the OG's soundtrack did.
Some other small things before I wrap up. Holo-cards were a neat addition. The fact that you can collect cool mementos from the series' past while at the same time using them to boost your stats is awesome.
Character designs were a little wonky, and some were completely changed. Disappointed that we escorted Grim's brother on Pokitaru and not the resort owner that we all know and love.
Kinda disappointed that we didn't get to see the Alien Queen in Nebula G34 recreated in the modern style, but the Snagglebeast placement to allude to Qwark's betrayal made sense, I guess.
Defeating Qwark was REALLY underwhelming, and his redemption arc was stupid.
Hoverboard races got a massive improvement.
TL;DR, Insomniac really dropped the ball on crafting an intersting plot, and they did a disservice to characters that their audience knew and loved. However, their competency in game design still shines through, because the level design, graphics, combat, and overall gameplay are all top notch. It's still a really fun game with a lot of issues. If it weren't for the gameplay, this review would've been a one-star review.