Weapon of the Week: Rift Inducer

The black holes created by this weapon somehow doesn't suck you up. Because reasons.

Franchise: Ratchet and Clank

Appearances: Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal, Ratchet and Clank: Before the Nexus

Type: Gun

Some people grew up with Mario or Sonic as their big gaming icons. I, however, am among the rank that grew up with Insomniac’s furry halfpint hero and his robotic sidekick. Ratchet and Clank is by far one of my favorite gaming franchises, and without him, I probably wouldn't be as into gaming as I am now. With a great sense of humour, creative worlds, and endearing characters, the series has very little not to like.

But what really makes this franchise something special is its gameplay. The games are filled with frantic firefights in which you level armies of baddies with a huge arsenal of crazy weapons. Each game brings several new, fun toys to blow stuff up with. From a whip of pure plasma to a grenade launcher that turns your foes into pigs, the sheer number of kickass weapons make R&C stand out from other games. Today’s weapon is one of my all time favorites.

Stars need to implode to create black holes? Nonsense! All you need is this thing!

The Rift Inducer is a Gadgetron weapon introduce in Up Your Arsenal, the third game in the series. When used, this gun will create a black hole that can suck in enemies. As the weapon levels up, the black holes fired can combine and form a bigger rift in space, and at its highest level, the holes can shock nearby enemies, weakening them to the point that they can be sucked in.

The concept of the Rift Inducer is genius in and of itself. A gun that can create miniature black holes is a crazy awesome idea, and the idea of basically erasing your foes from existence is just as. However, I love the Rift Inducer for being one of the most powerful weapons in the game. The black holes created can deal with packs of small enemies with ease, and when it gets the ability to combine two holes, you can pretty much suck anything barring bosses into oblivion.

The Rift Inducer is one of my favorite R&C weapons, and the lack of black hole weaponry in gaming today is a problem that needs to be fixed. Next time, I’ll look at a prime assassination tool. Until next time, see ya.