Marvel's Spider Man 2 Video Game Review: Ultimate Game Of The Year
The game captures the essence of the character with epic set pieces, spectacular combat, and amazing web-swinging while also providing a compelling story that tests the protagonists both physically and mentally.
*****
Developer:- Insomniac Games
Publisher:- Sony Interactive Entertainment
Directors:- Bryan Intihar and Ryan Smith
Artists:- Jacinda Chew and Davison Carvalho
Platform:- PlayStation 5
Release:- October 20, 2023
Mode:- Single Player
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Game Mechanics
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is an action-adventure game that can be played in single-player mode from a third-person perspective. The game features Peter Parker and Miles Morales, who can be controlled by the player. The game's setting is an open version of New York City, where players can explore Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan. Mary Jane and Venom are also playable in specific missions and become individually playable as the story progresses.
Players can unlock new abilities and collect various Spider-Man suits as they progress through the game. Peter and Miles can be switched between freely during free-roam in the game's open world. Both characters have dedicated missions in the main story and side content, taking advantage of their unique traits.
The game's combat system has been improved, with both Spider-Men able to block physical attacks. During traversal, Peter and Miles' new suits come equipped with Web Wings, allowing them to glide across the city. Each Spider-Man's gadget wheel has been upgraded with additional equippable mods for their web-shooters, such as casting a Web Line across pillars for additional footing during stealth sequences and the Web Grabber, enabling multiple enemies to be pulled into an isolated spot for Stealth Takedowns.
Peter Parker is playable when bonded to the Venom symbiote, granting him tendrils to use in combat and unique web-based abilities. Spider-Men have individual skill trees with additional unlockable abilities as they accumulate skill points per their experience level. A third Skill Tree is dedicated to shared abilities between the two characters.
Characters In Spider-Man 2 Video Games
Following the events of Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020), Marvel's Spider Man 2 occurs 10 months later. As with previous games in the series, the game boasts diverse characters from the Spider-Man comics and other media. Peter Parker and Miles Morales, who both gained superhuman abilities after being bitten by genetically modified spiders, return as the superhero Spider-Man. Peter mentors Miles, who struggles to balance his personal life and responsibilities as the city's protector.
Allies of Spider-Man:-
Mary Jane Watson: Daily Bugle reporter and Peter's girlfriend.
Ganke Lee: Miles' classmate and tech guru.
Rio: City councilwoman and Miles' mother.
Aaron Davis: Miles' estranged uncle, previously operated as the Prowler.
Other Characters:-
Norman Osborn: Former city mayor and Oscorp CEO
Harry Osborn: Norman's Son and Peter and Mary Jane's best friend who suffers from a neurological disease inherited from his mother, Emily.
Yuri Watanabe: A disgraced former police captain and ally of Peter with the vigilante identity of "Wraith" following the events of The City That Never Sleeps.
- Jonah Jameson: Daily Bugle's chief editor and Mary Jane's boss.
Danika Hart: Host of the "Danikast" podcast.
Hailey Cooper: Deaf street artist
Aunt May: Peter's deceased aunt who is featured in a flashback sequence
Officer Jefferson Davis: Miles's late father who appears in an illusion.
Albert Moon: Rio's boyfriend.
Cindy Moon: Albert's Daughter (Cameo in end credit scene)
Spider-Men Villians:-
Venom- Extraterrestrial symbiote capable of bonding to human bodies and granting regenerative powers while negatively influencing their behavior
Sergei Kravinoff / Kraven the Hunter- Leader of a faction of mercenaries called the "Hunters" who seek to hunt super-powered beings like the Spider-Men
Cletus Kasady (Chad Doreck) AKA "The Flame": Head of a nihilistic cult who seeks to perform a demonic ritual to bring about "The Crimson Hour", which marks the coming of a red monster known in ancient folklore as "Carnage".
Returning and Other Villains:-
Martin Li / Mister Negative
Mac Gargan / Scorpion (Jason Spisak)
Lonnie Lincoln / Tombstone
Felicia Hardy / Black Cat.
Flint Marko / Sandman
Curt Connors / Lizard
Dmitri Smerdyakov / Chameleon
Quentin Beck / Mysterio
Otto Octavius / Doctor Octopus
Plot Synopsis (Spoiler Ahead)
The first day of Peter's job as a physics teacher starts with a bang when Sandman attacks, forcing him and one of his students, Miles, to take him down. Unfortunately, Peter is fired for leaving his class behind to fight the villain. He returns to his aunt's home in Queens, where he has been living since her passing, to see his girlfriend, Mary Jane. They are surprised to see their old friend Harry, who has miraculously recovered from a terminal illness. Harry offers Peter a job at his new startup, the Emily-May Foundation (EMF), which aims to improve the world. Meanwhile, Miles struggles to write his college application essay and deal with his mom's new romance.
While supervising a prisoner transfer, Peter and Miles cannot stop Kraven and his team from capturing Scorpion and Li. Peter later discovers Kraven's plan to hunt super-powered individuals for sport and has already killed several. Kraven attempts to capture Hardy, but Miles helps her escape to Paris. While Peter, Mary Jane, and Harry visit Coney Island, they witness Kraven's hunters attacking the park to capture Tombstone. Peter saves civilians caught in the crossfire with Harry's help, who reveals that he was cured by Curt Connors via an organic exosuit that enhances his body.
As Harry's powers develop, he assists Peter in rescuing Tombstone, and Mary Jane discovers that Kraven has kidnapped Connors. The trio tries to save Connors, but Kraven turns him back into the Lizard and escapes. Peter is mortally wounded by Kraven, but Harry's exosuit transfers itself to Peter's body, saving him. Peter confronts Kraven with his newly enhanced powers, and Kraven becomes interested in hunting Peter personally.
Peter and Harry create an antidote for Connors, and Peter locates him with Miles's help and ultimately defeats and cures him. Connors reveals to Peter that the exosuit is an alien called a symbiote and advises him to destroy it. However, Peter refuses and keeps it for himself despite learning that Harry's illness has returned, causing their friendship to be shattered. Meanwhile, Kraven captures Miles and forces him to fight Li. Although Miles is angry with Li for killing his father, he still helps him escape and directs him to Peter. Li tells Peter of Miles's location, and he rescues him and nearly kills Kraven, but Miles intervenes. Miles battles Peter, eventually convincing him to remove the symbiote.
Peter takes the symbiote to Oscorp to be destroyed, but Harry intercepts him and reclaims it, transforming it into a monstrous creature. Harry escapes, overpowers, and kills Kraven and is persuaded by the symbiote to "heal the world" by infecting everyone with symbiotes, starting with New York. Harry and the symbiote corrupt Mary Jane with another symbiote, transforming her into Scream, but Peter helps her break free. As Peter and Miles try to stop the symbiote invasion, Peter is debilitated by a trace amount of Venom's symbiote still in him. Miles and Li help tame it and turn it into the Anti-Venom symbiote, which can destroy other symbiotes.
Meanwhile, Venom recovers the meteorite that originally brought him to Earth, using it to enhance his powers and accelerate his invasion. Peter and Miles distract Venom while Mary Jane steals the meteorite and destroys it with the EMF's particle accelerator, destroying Venom's spawn. Peter destroys the Venom symbiote at Harry's insistence, rendering Harry comatose.
In the aftermath, Harry's father, Norman, blames Spider-Man for his son's condition and prepares the "G-serum". Mary Jane quits her job to start her podcast and moves in with Peter. Peter decides to take a break from being Spider-Man to focus on rebuilding the EMF, entrusting Miles with the responsibility of protecting the city as Spider-Man. In a mid-credits scene, Norman visits an imprisoned Octavius, demanding the Spider-Men's secret identities. Still, Octavius refuses, relishing in Norman's misery as he writes his "final chapter." In a post-credits scene, Miles finishes his essay and meets Rio's new boyfriend, Albert Moon, who introduces them to his daughter Cindy.
Spider Man 2 Receives Universal Acclaim
Spider-Man 2 receives a 90/100 on Metacritic and is highly praised by OpenCritic with 91% approval. Multiple publications gave it a perfect score of 10/10. Some of the ratings are mentioned below:-
IGN - 8/10
VideoGamer.com - 10/10
Shacknews - 10/10
Destructoid - 9/10
Game Informer - 9.5/10
GameSpot - 8/10
GamesRadar+, The Guardian, Video Games Chronicle, and VG247 gave the game a 5-star rating.
Our Review and Overall Experience
Previously, Insomniac has succeeded with previous games like Ratchet & Clank(2023) and Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020). Insomniacs have put their heart and soul into the game, ensuring its success. The game captures the essence of the character with epic set pieces, spectacular combat, and amazing web-swinging while also providing a compelling story that tests the protagonists both physically and mentally.
Loading times are minimal, with the game world loading within seconds. Adding web wings allows for gliding across the city, creating a new, exciting way to traverse. Traffic patterns in the sequel include more cars and pedestrians, creating a more lively and inhabited city. The remastered version of the game also features additional geometric detail, increased material variety, and improved lighting for a more coherent and visually pleasing cityscape.
The Performance mode targets 60 frames per second with a maximum resolution of 1440p, while the Quality mode offers a solid 30 frames per second or a solid 40 frames per second with Dynamic resolution scaling. The game has three VRR modes: Smooth, Uncapped, and Disabled. Uncapped performance mode allows the frame rate to exceed the target, averaging around 65 to 80 frames per second.
Ray-traced water reflections in Spider-Man 2 eliminate artifacts and make flying across water enjoyable. Secondary and reflections within reflections are now visible, making the world more realistic. VFX, such as explosions and particle clouds, are rendered using Ray Tracing, enhancing the game's reflective surfaces. Reflections are more accurate and of higher quality, with less smearing and fizzle.
The game uses ray tracing to create realistic 3D spaces within buildings. Other enhancements include increased density of details and pre-calculated large-scale animations. The game showcases Sublime surround sound experience with great use of audio. There are noticeable leaps in various aspects beyond visuals, adding an extra layer of realism to the presentation.
The storytelling in Spider-Man 2 is a huge highlight and the best among Insomniac's games. You can ignore the various side missions and focus on the main plot. The game's technology is impressive, and the package feels remarkably polished.
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Conclusion
Spider-Man 2 has swung its way into the hearts of gamers and critics. Insomniac Games has again displayed its game development mastery, delivering an exceptional experience. With impressive storytelling and technical aspects, Spider-Man 2 has solidified its position as one of the best superhero games. Fans can expect an incredible adventure that captures the essence of the beloved web-slinger. Get ready to swing through the streets of New York and embark on an unforgettable journey.
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