I love comic books. I love Marvel. I love Spider-Man.
I love video games. I love Insomniac Games. I love open-world games.
I love Marvel’s Spider Man for the PS4.
Seriously, my excitement for this game was through the roof, I love both the Ratchet & Clank and old Spyro games, so seeing them create a Spider-Man game, a character I’ve been passionate about since the Raimi films and the whole reason I got into comics as a whole is surreal. And Spider-Man really delivers.
Personally, due to my lack of nostalgia for these games (I do know that Neversoft’s Spider-Man and the Spider-Man 2 games are some unforgettable games for certain people), none of the Spider-Man games have been truly amazing for me. The closest that’s really come to me is "LEGO Marvel Superheroes", which hey, isn’t an offense, that game slaps, but that’s kind of embarrassing to say.
The web-slinging, the open-world, the story, though some games come close, never hit the mark correctly. But Insomniac hit it out of the park with this one. Marvel’s Spider-Man is probably one of my favorite PS4 games ever. The experience that it brings you is so immersive and the level of care and love put into it really shows.
Ok, the plot. This might be a bit controversial, ehhh...ok. "What? But you said this was one of your fa-” shut up okay. When this game gets it right, it really gets it right. But sometimes, it kind of drags on..and on..and on, and you get my point.
One of the things it really gets right is how Peter Parker acts. Peter Parker and Spider-Man both, are really, just good people. Which might sound boring, but they really get the ”friendly neighborhood” part correctly, he tries to help every person that he can, even if it doesn’t benefit him. All characters are really well done, MJ is likable and not just a damsel in distress all the time, Doc Ock is somebody who you can sympathize with but also come to despise, Aunt May is wholesome, Norman is a douche, Mr. Negative is fleshed out enough so we know what we really need to know, etc.
There is a really big issue with pace right after you fight Martin Li though, suddenly, he just becomes a side-villain after he’s defeated, and though you do fight him again, there’s no’s satisfying pay-off. I think that’s for general boss-fights as well, though they range from Fun - Mediocre, there’s a shortage of them at the start and middle, then at the end you just get a whiplash of them, and it feels dry. Aunt May’s death though..that really hit hard, and, yeah, I have to admit, I cried.
Gameplay-wise, oh boyyy, oh boy.
It really makes you FEEL like Spider-Man.
The web-swinging has a ton of personality, especially after you’re allowed to unlock air tricks, the responsiveness is so satisfying, and really, there’s no purpose of fast-travel in this game. Sometimes you just web-swing your way all-around the city, completely ignoring all your missions, because, this, is probably one of my favorite aspects of..this is maybe hyperbolized praise, but, really..of all time.
The combat is like a mash-up of Arkham, but a bit more energy to it, which is no disrespect, the Arkham games are super fun to play. But how you use energy, and the fucking sick combos and finishers you can do, it’s fluent and fluid, without being needless complicated.
But, what has to be single-handedly the biggest pet peeve I have with this game and keeping it from my all-time favorites. It’s the stealth. Countless people have said the same thing, and I certainly agree. It’s not that the stealth is unbearable, it’s just the amount of times you have to do it. When you have this really cool Spider-Man scene, the pace slows grindly at a considerable amount and wow, you like Miles and MJ doing stuff!
Now to be granted, the good ones, are really good. That terrorist attack scene with the Miles stealth was first, really impactful, but also led to a ton of tension. Another highlight would be the MJ mission where you get a perspective on how Spider-Man takes down bad guys from a normal perspective, and that was cool too. Though these aren’t bad, they just completely ruin the thrill and excitement.
There are also these weird puzzles, that are very unnecessary, but I don’t bother with them too much, since they aren’t really there too much.
Now, the graphics, these, are some good-ass looking cities and buildings. Keep in mind that yes, I am playing on a PS4 Pro (also yes the remaster but I don’t have a PS5) so they might look a considerable amount better, but they feel jut so alive, each of them has their own unique format and architecture, and what possibly has to be one of the best details, is the mini-dioramas in each building.
I think though Peter’s face is a bit off-setting at first, it definitely gets better as it goes along (hmm...reminds me of something else), and for the most part, the motion capture is spot-on. Also, bonus point for Stan Lee. RIP man.
The swinging animations though, they are so full of life, and the impact you feel when you jump off a high building and just start swinging again, is really satisfying. There are so many attention to details, one I can pinpoint is Peter mentioning how he has only three chest-hairs and when you get the "Undies" suit, you can actually see he only has three chest-hairs.
The unlockables, as well. These are filled with so many references for comic fans, movie fans, and game fans as well. The backpacks, the suits, though sometimes tedious to find, are jam packed with callbacks to Spider-Man media, and even just general Marvel media itself.
Though I admit, the warehouses are repetitive and somewhat boring, completing the game feels like a huge accomplishment and I love it. As far as the DLC go, I haven’t played any of it. From what I can tell, they’re fine, they don’t add anything too necessary though.
But if you’re into comic books in anyway shape or form, go for this game. I bet you’ll absolutely love it. Definitely goes up as one of the PS4’s defining games, and Insomniac created an entirely new Marvel universe that I love, and though I haven’t played Miles Morales yet, I have my hopes set pretty high. Also, can Insomniac make an Avengers game? Like, an actually good one free of any pay-to-win? Thanks.
PROS:
- Satisfying web slinging
- Fleshed out open world
- Cohesive narrative
- Understanding of characters
- Fun combat
- Amazing graphics
- Jam packed unlockables
- Attention to details
- Stan Lee
CONS:
- Boring stealth
- Sometimes dragged out story
- Unnecessary puzzles
- Repetitive unlockables
Played on PS4, Accumulative 54 Hours, Bought on September 25, 2018