photo courtesy of Playstation
The Spider-Man 2 game–exclusive to PS5–took the world by storm when it came out one year ago. Everyone rushed to GameStop or BestBuy to buy it–as did I on October 20, 2023.
Does it deserve the acclaim it received? As an avid Spider-Man fan, I was super excited to try it and couldn’t wait until my birthday to play it. The game was a combination of both other PS4 games, Spider-Man and Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and molded both stories into a brand new one. The story took place after the events of the previous Spider-Man games, and brought new features to all Playstation players world wide. The story aspect of the game was well thought out, with intricate plot details and an enthralling story into two loved characters. It introduced Venom, who was a long awaited character to see in a Marvel game, as well as Kraven the Hunter–which unlocked new side quests for the player to partake in. The technological aspects of the game were also brand new, with new swinging physics, new suits, and new side quests for all players to love and enjoy.
In order to determine if the hype that the game received was deserved, first we must introduce the new features brought to the game. As mentioned before, the story-line was super interesting–but some of the scenes were too long and could feel boring for players who are only interested in combat or the main story. However, I think that the good scenes definitely outweighed the bad, and the hype the story aspect of the game received was deserved. The story dives super deep into what Peter Parker–aka Spiderman–does once his best friend Harry Osborne returns from a coma. Osborne is brought back after being in an almost dreamlike state by an alien symbiote his father harnessed for him. As Peter is super excited to reconnect with a long lost friend, things go awry. Peter initially uses the symbiote just to enhance his power, but he gradually develops an addiction to it. Peter leaves it up to Miles Morales to defeat the symbiote and return Peter–his mentor–to normal. The missions relating to this storyline were super creative and fun, building up suspense throughout the story.
One thing that could be viewed as negative was how the developers mainly focused on advancing Peter Parker’s character, while leaving his partner in the dust, but the other story aspects of the game made up for it. Many reviewers agree with me, as one said that the “next-gen visuals, extraordinary and non-repetitive level design, deep characterization at the disposal of the story,” and more only added the essence of the game (Metacritic). Overall, the story was well thought and deserving of its positive reviews.
Finally, the technological aspects of the game were also very much improved. The swinging physics through the vibrant city were super exciting, even when I was not on a mission. This leads to the player feeling as if they are actually the masked web-slinger they see on their screens. One new mechanic that had not been in the previous games was the ability to fly through the city with the use of new in-game technology. The fighting aspects were also revamped, with new combos being added and new finishers (used to take a criminal down in one hit with a stellar animation) for both characters. Miles’ electric powers were also reworked, appearing with blue lightning instead of the orange that was present in his own game. I thought it fit the color-scheme of the game very well. Some critics disagree with my thoughts on the open-world style of the New York City map, which allows the player to explore and find new buildings and complete interesting side quests by themselves, deeming it as unenjoyable. A critic from Forbes states, “the part that feels like it actually needed a radical rethinking is the open world of New York City, which has been made bigger but not better, with an exhausting checklist of mostly repetitious side activities” (Forbes). Although some of these activities can be seen as boring, they add to the entirety of the game and allow players to have something to do after they finish the main storyline.
Overall, I believe that the map was an essential addition to the game–as well as the sometimes tedious activities. The new Spider-Man game had a great storyline and innovative gameplay, combined with great new physics and technological advancements. Therefore, in my opinion and that of many other Spider-Man superfans, the game is definitely still worth the hype one year later.
