I do not agree with the complaints about the latest SPIDER-MAN game from Insomniac. From “it’s too short” to “it just takes what the first one did and optimizes it” – instead, the story is more focused and is a huge improvement over the first. The game creators streamline the side quests through an in-game mobile app, making it an enjoyable 8-10 hours of gameplay, whereas in the first, I was stuck trying to find hidden gems and chasing birds.
Yes, there is a TON of combat. That combat kicks all kinds of a*s and is incredibly fun. Although this is a mechanism for pure enjoyment, it isn’t what kept me coming back.
SPIDER-MAN is an open love letter to a pre COVID New York City. Swinging above the rooftops and walking amongst Non-Playable Characters (NPC) was a dream so real I could almost smell the dirty city that warms my heart. My NYC love letter aside, this game takes the plot structure of SPIDER-MAN 2 with Toby Maguire and adapts it for a new generation. Miles is forced to choose between family and friends and the responsibility to keep the city safe. The consequences of that decision transcends video games to become a compelling narrative that had this gamer shedding a tear or two.
After a typical “post-credit” Marvel sequence, I cannot wait to go “into the spider-verse” for more fun with Miles Morales.
Gamers can web-sling over to their Playstation 4 or 5 to play it now.
