Resistance may not be as well known as some of Insomniac’s other series, but it brought PlayStation another sci-fi shooter exclusive. The second entry, Resistance 2, continued the story of Nathan Hale and his slow descent into being overtaken by the Chimeran Virus. This sequel came packed with tons of guns in traditional Insomniac style, and plenty of epic set pieces.
Song of the Deep is very different from the usual explosive fare that we see with Insomniac Games. It’s a quiet, exploratory Metroidvania game that takes place entirely underwater. Marryn is a young girl who’s fisherman father gets lost at sea one day. Because of this, she builds a small submarine and sets off in search of him. Song of the Deep has some gameplay imperfections but its gorgeous artstyle, and mysterious world are enough to keep you exploring the depths.
There are so many great Ratchet and Clank games that it’s truly difficult to pick the best. The original PS2 trilogy of games still stand out as some of the best of the series however. Up Your Arsenal took all of the additions from Going Commando, including the upgrade sytem, and expanded them even further. The duo’s unique brand of humor really shone through by this point too, and Up Your Arsenal also introduced one of the series’ main villains, Dr. Nefarious.
Before the intergalactic heroes Ratchet and Clank came along, Insomniac was known for another PlayStation mascot, Spyro the Dragon. The spunky purple dragon returned for a second adventure even bigger than his first, with more powerful abilities and the ability to swim. Ripto’s Rage introduced quite a few characters that would stick around in the rest of the series. Spyro’s friend and sidekick Hunter the Cheetah, the greedy Moneybags who makes you pay for access to areas and of course Ripto himself, who’d appear as the antagonist in more than one subsequent game.
While Resistance 1 and 2 may have been Insomniac experimenting with a new series and formula, Resistance 3 shows them making that formula as good as it can be. The game splits off from the military focus, giving a much more of a survival-horror type of feel. Everything about Resistance 3 kicked things up a notch by being the darkest and most violent game of the series, keeping players on the edge of their seat the entire time.
Year of the Dragon is the last Spyro game Insomniac ever developed, and it’s easily the best in the series. This time around Spyro travels to the “Forgotten Worlds” in search of 150 dragon eggs that were stolen. The game had exactly what you’d expect out of Spyro, while adding on multiple new playable characters known as critters. These included a Yeti and a Penguin, and many had you playing minigames. Year of the Dragon was everything we could have wanted out of Insomniacs last hurrah for Spyro.
It’s easy to just associate Insomniac with the popular series they’ve created, but every once in a while they splinter off and create something wholly unique. Sunset Overdrive is just that, a quirky irreverant game with all the mayhem and explosions you could want. An energy drink has mutated the population of a city and it’s up to you to figure out why. Insomniac knows guns, and how to weave them into tight gameplay. Sunset Overdrive is crammed with ridiculous weapons, like a gun that shoots electrified records, or a bomb made with hairspray. If you want a over the top, comedic fourth wall breaking game with tons of action, look no farther than this Insomniac title.
Ratchet and Clank returned to video games this year with a bang, alongside a feature film as well. The new game, simply titled Ratchet and Clank, is technically a remake of the original, but it feels like so much more. Improvements from throughout the series, along with fan favorite weapons and new areas make this feel like an entirely fresh experience. Ratchet and Clank have never looked and played so well, making this one of the very best experiences available from Insomniac.
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10. Resistance 2
Resistance may not be as well known as some of Insomniac's other series, but it brought PlayStation another sci-fi shooter exclusive. The second entry, Resistance 2, continued the story of Nathan Hale and his slow descent into being overtaken by the Chimeran Virus. This sequel came packed with tons of guns in traditional Insomniac style, and plenty of epic set pieces.
9. Song of the Deep
Song of the Deep is very different from the usual explosive fare that we see with Insomniac Games. It's a quiet, exploratory Metroidvania game that takes place entirely underwater. Marryn is a young girl who's fisherman father gets lost at sea one day. Because of this, she builds a small submarine and sets off in search of him. Song of the Deep has some gameplay imperfections, but its gorgeous art style and mysterious world are enough to keep you exploring the depths.
8. Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
There are so many great Ratchet and Clank games that it's truly difficult to pick the best. The original PS2 trilogy of games still stand out as some of the best of the series. Up Your Arsenal took all of the additions from Going Commando, including the upgrade system, and expanded them even further. The duo's unique brand of humor really shone through by this point too, and Up Your Arsenal also introduced one of the series' main villains, Dr. Nefarious.
7. Spyro: Ripto's Rage
Before the intergalactic heroes Ratchet and Clank came along, Insomniac was known for another PlayStation mascot, Spyro the Dragon. The spunky purple dragon returned for a second adventure even bigger than his first, with more powerful abilities and the gift to swim. Ripto's Rage introduced quite a few characters that would stick around in the rest of the series. Spyro's friend and sidekick Hunter the Cheetah, the greedy Moneybags who makes you pay for access to areas and of course Ripto himself, who'd appear as the antagonist in more than one subsequent game.
6. Resistance 3
While Resistance 1 and 2 may have been Insomniac experimenting with a new series and formula, Resistance 3 shows them making that formula as good as it can be. The game splits off from the military focus, giving a much more of a survival-horror type of feel. Everything about Resistance 3 kicked things up a notch by being the darkest and most violent game of the series, keeping players on the edge of their seat the entire time.
5. Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time
Ratchet and Clank had a great run on the PlayStation 2, but the sci-fi series showed its stuff equally as well on the PlayStation 3. The traditional Ratchet formula returns with new puzzles and gameplay elements, like the ability to pilot your ship between two planets completing optional objectives along the way. This time around, things are all about messing with time, and Ratchet finding a way to reconnect with his lost race of the Lombax. For years we'd all thought about how Ratchet and Clank was essentially a Pixar movie in video game form, and the PS3 sub-series brought us even closer to that reality.
4. Spyro: Year of the Dragon
Year of the Dragon is the last Spyro game Insomniac ever developed, and it's easily the best in the series. This time around Spyro travels to the "Forgotten Worlds" in search of 150 dragon eggs that were stolen. The game had exactly what you'd expect out of Spyro, while adding on multiple new playable characters known as critters. These included a Yeti and a Penguin, and many had you playing minigames. Year of the Dragon was everything we could have wanted out of Insomniac's last hurrah for Spyro.
3. Sunset Overdrive
It's easy to just associate Insomniac with the popular series they've created, but every once in a while they splinter off and create something wholly unique. Sunset Overdrive is just that, a quirky irreverant game with all the mayhem and explosions you could want. An energy drink has mutated the population of a city and it's up to you to figure out why. Insomniac knows guns, and how to weave them into tight gameplay. Sunset Overdrive is crammed with ridiculous weapons, like a gun that shoots electrified records, or a bomb made with hairspray. If you want a over the top, comedic fourth wall breaking game with tons of action, look no farther than this Insomniac title.
2. Ratchet & Clank 2016
Ratchet and Clank returned to video games this year with a bang, alongside a feature film as well. The new game, simply titled Ratchet and Clank, is technically a remake of the original, but it feels like so much more. Improvements from throughout the series, along with fan favorite weapons and new areas make this feel like an entirely fresh experience. Ratchet and Clank have never looked and played so well, making this one of the very best experiences available from Insomniac.
1. Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando
It's something truly impressive when a game's sequel overshadows it in nearly every single way. Going Commando does just that by improving upon nearly everything that the first Ratchet and Clank set up. The game plays with the story from the first game, making Ratchet and Clank celebrities across the galaxy after beating Chairman Drek, and it has a big twist in store with its villain. Going Commando also introduced the upgrade system we still see in use (even in the newer games), where weapons have an XP bar that fills up as you use them. Insomniac introduced two charming characters with the first Ratchet and Clank, but they cemented the duo as two of PlayStation's primary mascots with Going Commando.
About the author
Hayes Madsen
A connoisseur of all things RPG related, and always looking for the artistic expression in gaming. His love of Gundam is only matched by his love of Pizza. Playing Games Since: 1991 Favorite Genres: RPGs, JRPGs, Strategy,