Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault (known as Ratchet & Clank: Q-Force in Europe and Australia) is a 2012 spin-off in the Ratchet & Clank series, developed by Insomniac Games and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Initially released in November 2012 for the PlayStation 3 and later in May 2013 for the PlayStation Vita, the game blends the series' traditional action-adventure and platform-shooter mechanics with tower defense elements.
The game takes place after the events of All 4 One, and follows Ratchet, Clank, and Captain Qwark, who have re-formed the Q-Force. While patrolling the Polaris Galaxy, they discover it is under attack from a mysterious villain who is disabling Planetary Defense Centers around Polaris, leaving worlds vulnerable to attacks from the grungarian marauders. The three team up to protect the galaxy while attempting to stop the villain.
Full Frontal Assault is a third-person action-adventure game that blends shooting and platforming with tower defense mechanics. Both the campaign (playable solo or cooperatively) and the competitive multiplayer mode revolve around defending the player's base and attacking the opponent's base using purchased defenses and personal weaponry.
Gameplay[]
Overview[]
Standard Full Frontal Assault gameplay.
Full Frontal Assault is a third-person action game which combines shooting and platforming with tower defense gameplay. The campaign (story mode) can be played single-player or cooperatively, and allows the player to control Ratchet, Clank, or Qwark, who share a moveset based on Ratchet's from previous mainline titles. The competitive mode uses the same core gameplay but allows players to use cosmetic skins of various characters from the series.
The core gameplay revolves around exploring the map to collect bolts and weapons while defending the generators in the player's base. Bolts are used to purchase defenses such as turrets, mines, and barriers to protect the base from enemy waves. Players always start with only a melee weapon; additional upgradeable weapons are obtained from weapon pods in the campaign or nodes in competitive mode.
Campaign[]
Ratchet and several defenses against an enemy wave.
The campaign is the story mode of Full Frontal Assault. Players select levels from the Starship Phoenix II, which are unlocked sequentially. The primary objective in most campaign levels is to activate key nodes, which grant access to the local Planetary Defense Center. As more pods are opened, increasingly difficult enemy waves spawn, requiring the player to defend their base. After restoring power to a Center, the Q-Force must defend their base from a final, more powerful assault until the PDC is rebooted.
Completing certain objectives awards medals, which are required for promotions. Promotions unlock armor pieces (which grant hit points), passive perks, and permit additional pods to be deployed. Weapon experience carries over between planets; upgrades unlocked for a weapon will apply when that weapon is found again. Players can also unlock skill points and collect gold bolts.
Competitive[]
Blue team invading Red team's base during a competitive match.
The competitive mode divides players into two teams: Blue and Red. Matches progress through six rounds of three phases each: in Recon Phase teams capture nodes by defeating local defenders to unlock a weapon and gain steady bolt income; in Squad Phase teams purchase units to assault the opposing base; in Assault Phase the purchased units deploy and attack, while players may choose to participate in the assault or defend their own base.
After six rounds, the game enters the Full Frontal Assault Phase, where all previous phases are active simultaneously. A ranked mode is also available that allows matches to begin directly in this phase.
Synopsis[]
Setting[]
Full Frontal Assault is set in the Polaris Galaxy, several months after Captain Qwark failed to secure re-election as Galactic President. A mysterious villain has taken Planetary Defense Centers offline, allowing grungarian marauders to attack vulnerable worlds. Qwark reforms the Q-Forceâhimself, Ratchet, and Clankâto defend the galaxy.
Plot[]
Ratchet, Clank and Qwark on the Starship Phoenix II.
Three months after his electoral defeat, Captain Qwark reunites with Ratchet and Clank aboard the Starship Phoenix II. A masked "superâfan" transmits a message claiming to have deactivated the Planetary Defense Centers (PDCs) on Ebaro, Markazia, and Proteus VII and hired Grungarian marauders to attack them, threatening to disable all PDCs if the Polaris Defense Force intervenes. Unable to call for external help, Qwark reforms the Q-Force to counter the attacks.
Zurgo revealing his identity.
After restoring the defenses on Markazia, a hologram of the villain appears. Ratchet recognizes him as Stuart Zurgo, a former fan who felt betrayed by Qwark's scandals and cowardice. Zurgo expresses his resentment at the galaxy's repeated forgiveness of Qwark and vows revenge.
The team travels to Ebaro and Proteus VII, then returns to Markazia where they encounter the Plumber, stranded by a loose fusion coil. They discover the PDC "plumber" aboard the Phoenix II is an impostor. This diversion enabled Zurgo to steal Qwark's access key for the galactic weather control grid; he uses the key to create climatic chaos, frame Qwark, and hack the Phoenix II, interrupting the crew with a repetitive song until his mother calls.
Zurgo in his mech.
The Q-Force returns to Ebaro to restore the local weather by rebooting the PDC. The ship's AI, Barry, traces Zurgo's signal to a temple on Ebaro. There the Q-Force confronts Zurgo piloting a giant mech resembling Captain Qwark. They defeat him before he can destroy the temple; during the attempted arrest Zurgo falls into a pit and is later taken into custody with multiple injuries from the fall.
Development[]
Background[]
Full Frontal Assault was developed by Insomniac Games' North Carolina studio, and uses the same graphics engine as All 4 One.[1]
The game's foundation drew inspiration from larger, multiâobjective levels in previous titles, such as Krell Canyon from A Crack in Time and the Aridia and Tyhrranosis environments from Up Your Arsenal. The Siege Mode from Up Your Arsenal also influenced the design, with an emphasis on providing more defensive options than in earlier multiplayer modes.[2]
Storytelling[]
In the lead-up to the game's release, the villain's identity was kept secret. A blog post described him as "a new nemesis" with "a nasty surprise planned for Captain Qwark".[1] The debut trailer called him "a familiar face from Ratchet and Clank's past",[3] fueling fan speculation.
PlayStation Vita[]
The PlayStation Vita port was developed in collaboration with Tin Giant and was announced for January 2013 with crossâsave and competitive crossâplay support.[4] An update in February announced a delay to spring 2013; as an apology to fans, on the Vita release date the HD release of Deadlocked was offered as a free download to purchasers of the PlayStation 3 version of Full Frontal Assault.[5]
Downloadable content[]
The Miniboss Pack DLC.
Full Frontal Assault was the first entry in the series to receive downloadable content. At release, Insomniac announced additional maps and modes that were to be released for free in late 2012, while skins and customization would be paid content.[6]
The MiniâBoss Skin Pack was provided as free downloadable content for the PlayStation 3 version after the Vita release was delayed.[4] The first new multiplayer map, Metropolis, was announced on December 18, 2012, alongside a new patch.[7] The map for Molonoth Fields was announced May 13, 2013.[8]
Version updates[]
| Patch version | Release date | Changelog |
|---|---|---|
| 1.02 | December 20, 2012 | Gameplay changes: * Added two more levels to all weapons * Introduced base teleporting in Campaign mode * Adjusted enemy waves * Added visual indicators for hero upgrades * Lowered the price of most base defenses. Bug fixes: * Addressed various bugs and glitches. |
| 1.03 | Early January 2013 | Bug fixes: * Fixed an issue where player ratings would reset. |
| 1.04 | February 7, 2013 | New content: * Added the free Metropolis map. Gameplay changes: * Reduced Warmonger rockets to three * Made base turrets more robust * Increased Melee Perk damage * Made Thundersmack less resilient * Players now only carry two Doppelgangers at the start of a match and they take less damage * Heavy Barricades take more damage than Electro Barriers * Node 7 now has a Missile Minion guard * Node 1's grungarian soldiers were replaced with grungarian brawlers. Player experience: * Increased penalty for players who disconnect (unless surrendering) * Player rankings are now hidden in the lobby. |
| 1.05 | May 17, 2013 | New content: * Added the Molonoth Fields map and the new "Full Frontal Assault Mode" (a 2v2 mode with free defenses and no phases). Leaderboard improvements: * The leaderboard system was tweaked to better reflect player skill. |
Reception[]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 64/100 (based on 85 reviews)[9] |
| Publication | Score |
| Eurogamer | 6/10[10] |
| Game Informer | 7.5/10[11] |
| GameSpot | 7/10[12] |
| IGN | 6.4/10 (PS3)[13] 5.7 (Vita)[14] |
Full Frontal Assault received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[15] Positive reviewers praised the competitive multiplayer mode, tactical flexibility, and the game's arsenal, while negative reviews criticized balancing, repetitive gameplay, and departures from the series' traditional singleâplayer focus.[10][11][12][13]
Positive commentary noted the game's low price point and engaging multiplayer. Carolyn Petit of GameSpot praised the arsenal and tactical options, calling the multiplayer "exciting and unpredictable", but observed that players seeking a substantial singleâplayer campaign would be disappointed.[12] Matt Helgeson of Game Informer described it as "an interesting title hampered by some fundamental design flaws" and expressed hope that Insomniac would return to a full singleâplayer experience for future platforms.[11]
Critics were more negative about the game's execution. Scott Butterworth of IGN cited "poor balancing, repetitive gameplay, and a handful of design flaws" that produced a "middling" experience and termed the game an "engaging yet flawed experiment".[13] Dan Whitehead of Eurogamer argued the game lacked the heart of earlier entries and cautioned that, along with All 4 One, it suggested the series risked losing its identity.[10]
The PlayStation Vita port received additional criticism for removed content (including some missing skins and the absence of 2v2 matches) and weaker technical performance.[14]
Gallery[]
.jpg "Full Frontal Assault front cover (JP).jpg (120 KB)")
Citations[]
- â 1.0 1.1 Stevenson July 2012
- â IGN September 2012, 1:02
- â Insomniac Games August 2012
- â 4.0 4.1 Phillips 2012
- â Phillips 2013
- â Stevenson November 2012
- â Stevenson December 2012
- â Insomniac Games May 2013
- â Metacritic
- â 10.0 10.1 10.2 Whitehead 2012
- â 11.0 11.1 11.2 Helgeson 2012
- â 12.0 12.1 12.2 Petit 2012
- â 13.0 13.1 13.2 Butterworth 2012
- â 14.0 14.1 Butterworth 2012
- â Metacritic
References[]
- Insomniac Games (2012). Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault [Game]. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 3.
- Websites
- (n.d.) . "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault". From Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 8, 2025.
- Stevenson, James (2012, July 18). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Adds a Tower-Defense Twist". From PlayStation Blog. Archived from the original on August 7, 2025.
- Phillips, Greg (2012, November 19). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Coming to PS Vita in January". From PlayStation Blog. Archived from the original on August 7, 2025.
- Stevenson, James (2012, November 27). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Hits PS3 Today". From PlayStation Blog. Archived from the original on August 7, 2025.
- Petit, Carolyn (2012, November 27). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Review". From GameSpot. Archived from the original on August 12, 2024.
- Whitehead, Dan (2012, November 27). "Ratchet & Clank: QForce review". From Eurogamer. Archived from the original on August 12, 2024.
- Helgeson, Matt (2012, December 5). "Ratchet and Clank: Full Frontal Assault Review". From Game Informer. Archived from the original on August 12, 2024.
- Butterworth, Scott (2012, December 14). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Review". From IGN. Archived from the original on August 12, 2024.
- Stevenson, James (2012, December 18). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault â Patch, Free Map Coming Soon". From PlayStation Blog. Archived from the original on August 7, 2025.
- Phillips, Greg (2013, February 7). "Ratchet & Clank Update: Full Frontal Assault and Deadlocked". From PlayStation Blog. Archived from the original on August 7, 2025.
- Butterworth, Scott (2013, May 28). "Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Vita Review". From IGN. Archived from the original on August 12, 2024.
- Videos
- Insomniac Games [@PlayStation] (2012, August 15). Ratchet & ClankÂź: Full Frontal Assault Debut Trailer [Video]. YouTube.
- IGN Staff [@IGN] (2012, September 1). Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Developer Commentary - PAX 2012 [Video]. YouTube.
- Insomniac Games [@PlayStation] (2013, May 17). Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault Molonoth Fields Trailer [Video]. YouTube.