Spider-Man 2 Review- Far Greater Together
Spider-Man is a character who’s had countless comic books, movies and games chronicling his battles against the likes of Sandman, Green Goblin, Venom and more. While the comics and movies have been far more experimental with the IP and characters, the video game entries often play it far safer. Such is the case with Spider-Man 2. You won’t be surprised by many of the story beats or twists in this game, but that doesn’t take away from the experience. Yes, we know these characters to death. Yes, we know how the story will turn out and yes, if you played the first game, you’ll know how this will feel to play. Despite that, this is a spectacular package with improvements on the original in almost every way. Spider-Man 2 won’t surprise you, but it certainly will enthrall you with its gameplay, storytelling, and its updated rendition of New York.
Image by Insomniac Games
Presentation
Speaking of New York, its certainly had a face lift from the 2018 PS4 Spider-Man game, and even from Spider Man: Miles Morales from 2020. Crowd densities are larger and there are far more vehicles, as well as people, populating the city to make it feel alive as you swing above it. Regardless of whether you’re swinging around in daytime or nigh time, the city is stunning- which is benefitted by ray tracing being constantly on, regardless of the graphics mode you play the game on. Insomniac don’t even give you the ability to turn this off, which is a testament to how well the game runs on the PS5.
Regarding the graphics modes, there are three to choose from: fidelity, and two performance choices. Fidelity gives the expected 4K at 30fps, performance one gives 1440p at 60fps and performance 2 is a variable 40fps at 4K, which can go up or down. This choice lets you customise your experience but, even on performance mode, Spider-Man 2 looks fantastic, meaning the trade off of fidelity for frame rate is almost always worth it. The game suffered from no frame drops or graphics through my 20-hour playthrough, which is incredibly impressive considering the present landscape of broken launches. Insomniac’s streak of feature complete, nearly flawless launches continues with this game.
Image by Insomniac Games
Story
Spider-Man 2 is very much a continuation of the 2018 game and 2020’s Miles Morales. Facing off against classic villains Kraven the Hunter and Venom, this time, you control two Spidermen to even the odds. The story has the typical secret identity/real life struggles faced by both Peter and Miles as they both deal with issues in their personal lives, which bleed into being Spider-Man. Peter has problems keeping a job and dealing with a deteriorating relationship with Mary-Jane, while Miles finds it impossible to write a college application essay and keep up with schoolwork while still being Spider-Man. These struggles make both Spidermen relatable and compelling- both in and out of the suits.
The most interesting part of the story comes with the classic Venom narrative beat, which sees Peter become more and more corrupted by his own thoughts while wearing his iconic black symbiote suit. This sees him being driven away from his friends, like the newly introduced Harry Osbourne, his family and even Miles. Seeing how this Peter transforms into a more volatile, angry version of himself is, while overdone, still very interesting to watch. By keeping to two main villains, the game doesn’t feel overstretched like the Sinister Six filled original or too focused on one enemy like in Miles Morales. Instead, both the merciless Kraven and the terrifying Venom get their time in the spotlight- which is very much earned.
Image by Insomniac Games
Gameplay
Spider-Man on PS4 was praised for its addictive gameplay loop of web swinging, beating up enemies, and breaking up the action with various minigames. Thankfully, Spider-Man 2 improves on these aspects in almost every way. The traversal is now benefitted from the introduction of the web wings, which allow both Spidermen to glide around the skies in tandem with their webs to get across the map faster than ever. On top of this, players can also change different settings such as toggling fall damage or amending the web swing assist setting to make it feel more like the older Spider-Man games from the PS2 era. Essentially, Spider-Man 2 gives you the most options possible to customise how you like to play the character when swinging around New York.
Combat has had a face lift too. With new gadgets and moves exclusive to each Spider-Man, Miles and Peter feel unique while still allowing you to utilise from a pool of abilities that you can level up with the skill tree as you progress. With the PS5’s adaptive triggers and haptic feedback, each hit feels far more impactful and powerful- especially with the new lighting and Venom abilities. Spider gadgets are back, which work more organically with the press of a button while holding R1, which keeps you in the action for longer. Stealth is also given some new tools, such as the ability to create your own web lines and dual takedowns to beef up the experience.
The events of Spider-Man 2 also prioritise keeping you in the action. There are new crimes and activities such as shooting enemy threats as a robot bee and chasing drones with your web wings. While other side activities do return, completing these if much faster and more interesting than its predecessors, which could often feel repetitive with its side content. On top of playing as Miles and Peter, fans may be disappointed to find out that the Mary-Jane stealth missions return. Luckily, however, with the use of a stun-gun, these are much better than the original. One final section towards the end of the game is far better in utilising horror while not making you feel helpless in an impressive balance that I hope continues in future entries. Each aspect of the gameplay is still fun, and even the less fleshed out sections and minigames don’t distract for too long before you get back to the classic excellent Spider-Man combat and traversal.
Image by Insomniac Games
Conclusion
Spider-Man 2 may play it safe, but Insomniac certainly knew what they were doing. The combat and traversal may seem familiar, and the story becomes predictable, but the package is fantastic. That’s a testament to the studio’s ability to build off everything in the last two entries while sticking to what made people love it to begin with. With a better story, more fleshed-out combat and an expanded New York, Spider-Man 2 is very much ‘more’ Spider-Man, which is exactly what it needed to be.
If you go into this game expecting a radically different time from the original, you won’t find it. But Spider-Man 2 didn’t want or need to be completely different. It needed to be an improvement on the original while advancing its story and characters- which it does magnificently. The game’s tagline says it all: ‘Be Greater- Together’. By taking the best parts of its previous two games, Spider-Man 2 excels and manages to be one of the greatest superhero games ever- and if it proves one thing, it’s this: Insomniac understands Spider-Man.
