Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart: Which Difficulty Should You Choose?

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is finally here, and the game features several different difficulty levels ranging from very easy to punishingly difficult.  The difficulty selections not only affect how much health the enemies do, but also how much damage they do to you and how aggressive they are in combat. Enemies on lower difficulties will remain stationary and allow you to take cover, while enemies on the highest difficulty will relentlessly hunt you down during firefights. Here are all the difficulty levels in Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart.

Which Difficulty Should You Choose in Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart?

There are five difficulty levels in Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, and each of them is listed below.

• Rookie Explorer
• Rookie Recruiter
• Rebel Agent
• Resistance Leader
• Renegade Legend

Rebel Agent is the equivalent of normal difficulty, offering standard enemy aggressiveness, damage, and health. This is the recommended choice for most players. If you want an additional challenge, however, then Resistance Leader makes combat much more engaging by bumping up the difficulty a little bit. The enemies only have a slightly higher amount of health and damage than they do on normal difficulty, but they are way more aggressive. This is basically normal mode but with smarter enemies, which makes the game way more fun. If you’ve played Ratchet and Clank games before and want the ultimate challenge, then select Renegade Legend. This is the hardest difficulty in Rift Apart, and some sections of the game can get pretty frustrating on this mode.

On the opposite end of the spectrum are the two easy modes: Rookie Recruit and Rookie Explorer. Rookie Recruit is the equivalent of easy mode, making enemies really weak so you can focus on the story. Rookie Explorer is identical to Rookie Recruit, only Rookie Explorer prevents you from dying at all. Rookie Explorer is really there for accessibility reasons and casual players, but there’s no shame in choosing it if you just want to experience the story.

Does Difficulty Affect Trophies?

Difficulty does not affect trophies in Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. You can play on any mode you want and still earn the Platinum trophy. You can also change the difficulty at any time without any penalty. If you’re struggling to beat a boss or complete a Battleplex arena challenge, you can just drop the difficulty for a moment to get past that section and continue on with the game.

Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is available now on PlayStation 5. Check out our review of the game here.