Ratchet and Clank: Every RYNO in the series, ranked

The Ratchet and Clank series is known for the phenomenal amount of firepower you can handle. After all, big heroes need even bigger and pretty crazy weapons. From the Combustor to the Thundersmack, Negotiator, Pixelizer, and even the humble Sheepinator, your enemies will be nicely toasted.

While the Lombax's arsenal changes from game to game, there is one weapon that has remained unchanged since day one: the RYNO. It stands for "Rip You A New One." No prizes for guessing what this little number does. Typically, it is obtained late in the game or as a reward for a side quest, and it surpasses all other weapons in terms of its deadly impact. Here is a ranking of each RYNO variant.

8 RYNO VI - All 4 One

Unfortunately, the sixth incarnation of the RYNO ranks at the very bottom solely because of the game it appears in. While Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One provides a sufficiently entertaining couch co-op experience, it deviates significantly from Ratchet's usual adventures. This also applies to using the weapon. The top-down camera perspective and the peculiar isometric controls simply don't work particularly well for a third-person shooter.

It is very regrettable because the actual design of this RYNO, a Protosuit created by the story's companion, Dr. Frumpus Croid, is fantastic in its concept. While all the other RYNOs are handheld devices, this one is a gigantic mecha that you ride around, and there are definitely some spectacular effects when you perform a team action with your partner. Who would have thought that high-fives could be so destructive? Unfortunately, the low ammo count, the annoying unlocking requirement (collecting collectible creatures), and the bothersome original game are the reasons why it ends up at the very bottom.

7 RYNO II - Going Commando

Despite all the fantastic improvements that Ratchet 2: Going Commando offers compared to its predecessor, the RYNO II is not one of them. You will be offered the weapon very early in the game by a Gadgetron vendor on the abandoned planet of Barlow. However, it feels pointless because it is absolutely impossible to afford it, at least until a second playthrough - the bolt requirements for progression are so high, and the weapon is so expensive.

And once you finally bought it? It is massively overshadowed by many other weapons that you have picked up, upgraded (and gotten used to) in the meantime. Sure, it can obliterate entire screens of enemies in seconds. But which weapons in Going Commando can't do that? You'd better go for the Bouncer or the Zodiac in challenge mode. Sorry, Gadgetron. Megacorp has beaten you here.

6 RYNO IV - Tools of Destruction

Although Tools of Destruction is the fifth main game, the RYNO ranks at number four because Deadlocked does not have its own RYNO (after all, this game takes place in an illegal deathmatch without authorized weapons). The way you obtain the weapon is quite fun and allows Insomniac to tap into the collecting spirit of its Spyro days. Thirteen Holo-Plans are scattered throughout Polaris, and you must bring them all back to the Smuggler - a shady character oddly voiced by Wakko Warner.

Unfortunately, the RYNO IV falls victim to the same problems as its counterparts in Going Commando. The final plan is located in Azimuth's courtyard, right before the game's end boss. Unless you want to embark on a second playthrough, you'll only have about 15 minutes of joy with your shiny new RYNO before the credits roll. Additionally, by that point, you will have spent all your Raritanium upgrading your other weapons, so it's not even particularly effective against the aforementioned end boss. Alpha Disruptor one, RYNO zero.

5 RYNO - Ratchet and Clank

Ah, the original RYNO, the one that started it all. You'll buy this model from a shady character on the streets of Blackwater City for a cool 150,000 bolts. That may sound like a lot - and considering the stingy bolt distribution in Ratchet 1, it is on paper - but there are ways to earn money quickly. A few runs through Veldin will fill your pockets; or you can simply cheat and phase through the wall of the hoverboard track, where an infinite number of money boxes appear as much as you want.

You should make sure you're equipped with this bad boy as well, as the final boss Chairman Drek is one of the toughest fights in platform game history. With only eight maximum hit points (and that's only if you've spent even more money on health upgrades) and his gigantic life bar, you're in for a rough time without the RYNO. It's practically indispensable, and you should hope that you don't run out of ammunition.

4 RYNO VII - Into the Nexus

The seventh RYNO feels like Insomniac looked at the RYNO from Tools of Destruction, realized how silly it was to hide it at the end of the game, and simply did it again - this time, correctly. Into the Nexus is a relatively short adventure, but it really makes an effort to sweeten those precious hours for you with this beauty.

You will once again collect RYNO plans, this time for the beloved gag character of the series, the plumber. Once he is assembled, all you have to do is hold down the fire button to wreak serious havoc - accompanied, for inexplicable but wonderful reasons, by Mussorgsky's "Night on Bald Mountain." Take that, you fools, greetings from Fantasia.

3 RY3NO - Up Your Arsenal

That stands for 'Tear Up 3 New Ones' if you're curious. While this third version can only be obtained in the second playthrough of challenge mode, at least it doesn't dangle like a carrot in front of the player long before it's achievable. By the time you even notice it exists, you're already prepared to fork over the necessary money (3 million bolts) and sit back with its impressive firepower.

Everyone bows to the power of the RY3NO. Essentially, every non-boss creature on the screen is vaporized with a single shot, making some of the in-game achievements and trophies an absolute breeze. Even Dr. Nefarious himself suffers massive damage from it. Furthermore, his final form is called RYNOCIRATOR. How can you not approve of that?

2 RYNO V - A Crack in Time

The RYNO V greatly benefits from being featured in one of the best games in the series, A Crack in Time. Whether it's the stunning graphics, emotionally touching story, or top-notch puzzle design, it has it all to offer. And the weapons are not bad either. It's business as usual for this RYNO to collect holo-plans, but this time you do it in a fantastic open-world space hub. Why not turn on the radio in your spaceship while you search? Because that's something you can do.

Similar to Into the Nexus, this RYNO plays classic melodies when fired. This time, Tchaikovsky provides the soundtrack, and nothing surpasses the feeling of utterly crushing the end-game boss, Lord Vorselon, while the brass instruments roar. Do you think he ever imagined his music would be used in this way?

1 RYNO 8 - Rift Apart

The latest addition to the RYNO pantheon, RYNO 8, effortlessly takes the top spot. How? Well, by essentially being a nostalgia weapon. The central theme of Rift Apart is interdimensional travel, and RYNO 8 continues this concept by opening wormhole portals from which large objects fall out, crushing enemies. What's special about it? Most of them are items (or familiar faces) from other PlayStation IPs.

Have you ever dreamed of decimating a pirate army with Sly Cooper's van? Or damn, even with Sly Cooper himself? The RYNO 8 has you covered. Likewise, Jak and Daxter could make an appearance; a Thunderjaw from Horizon could pave its way; or Sully's plane from Uncharted could carry you to victory. Whatever shows up, it's a massive love letter to the consoles that made Ratchet and Clank household names - a tribute that has earned it the top spot.