Neutral Special: Combuster
Like the Omniwrench, if there’s one weapon Ratchet’s BOUND to have in Smash it’s his Combuster! Simply press B and Ratchet will whip out and fire his most used firearm, hurling a ball of superheated plasma that pops once it hits an enemy or object, creating below-average hitstun. The damage is decent, but here’s some more details about it:
As you can see, characters like Fox, Villager and Ness can use this against you, so always be careful when facing them. Further, like 2/3rds of Ratchet’s moveset, this move runs on an Attack-Limit in the form of Self-Replenishing Ammo; meaning that after used CONSECUTIVELY past a certain point, you’ll be unable to use said move for a very brief time. Ratchet’s got some hard-hitting ranged weapons, and to prevent noobs from spamming them, this system was put in place. The only way around this is to constantly use other Attack inputs. NEVER rely on just a couple of guns to win; the more you switch up the faster your guns reload. There’ll always be an icon of how many shots you have left in your current gun. As long as there’s one bullet/dynamo/disc/whip in the chamber or whatever, you can use the move, and the gun doesn’t have to deplete to start refueling. It just has to be used once. The system’s MUCH more dynamic and less frustrating than Robin’s, but also more extensive.
So, with this move you shoot forward, but what sets this apart from other Special firearms is that Ratchet can actually strafe while using it! Simply press B to fire the gun, and hold it while moving the analogue stick to move in certain directions! With this Special, Ratchet’s able to run, jump and shoot all at the same time; he can either close the distance while pelting foes or widen the gap as he keeps foes at bay. He can even do this when he has no ammo for the gun. That’s strategic, but since you’re forcing the gun to fire when it has nothing to launch it’ll take longer to even reload. Keep that in mind, as well as the fact that Ratchet can only pull off 8 consecutive shots before running out, and the projectile’s tight reach. Observe:
Because he can move forward and back, the reach of the shots coupled with the Ammo capacity is limited, and spamming it will take more time for it to return to full capacity, as well as slow the rate in which it restocks. That however is present with all of Ratchet’s Ammo-Consuming attacks, and while the range is decent, you may find it to be lacking compared to Fox and Falco’s. Speaking of which...
I’ve made a diagram to compare and contrast the other Space Animals in Smash. Of these 3, Fox fires the fastest and is the most reliable for racking up damage; all that holds him back is the lack of hitstun, but a good Fox player couldn’t care less about that. In Smash 4 at least, he also has the most range of the 3 above. Falco’s rate of fire is the slowest, but he does have hitstun and a level of range that beats Ratchet’s, who unlike both of them is able to run and jump like he’s wielding a Super Scope. However, these 2 have the luxury of unlimited ammo and superior range, while Ratchet must contend with a tight reach and an ammo system that punishes him for spamming. Each have their strengths and weaknesses. Also, by button mashing, Ratchet can fire a little faster, going from 172 shots/minute to 190; not as fast as Fox’s but both better than Falco. The faster you use up those shots the faster you run out of ammo though.
This, combined with his Down Tilt, Forward Smash, and Neutral Air give Ratchet a nice amount of varied front facing projectiles, all with their own strengths, weaknesses and ammo caps. Ratchet needs to keep enemies back because he’s easy to combo and not exactly durable. He can stay alive longer than Clank but his ability to do so isn’t remarkable at all. I’m surprised and happy Ratchet doesn’t use this gun in PS All Stars tbh. It’s his signature gun and they instead opted for the Constructo Pistol, meaning I get to illustrate it for Smash as part of my “No gun overlap” rule. Yay!
Done digitally and traditionally. Ratchet is Sony’s, Smash is Nintendo’s.