It was released on September 7, 2018 Marvel’s Spider-Man.
And forgetting it is impossible.
Even today it is considered one of the best superhero video games ever made.
Insomniac Games had given PlayStation 4 owners a title that had all the right ingredients: a satisfying combat system, an exciting plot, a bit of healthy humor and the possibility of swinging between buildings like the real Spider-Man.
We loved it. Everyone.
And this explains the 3.3 million copies sold in the first 3 days of its publication.
You don’t change the team that wins and so, on November 12, 2020, Spider-Man: Miles Morales arrives.
Its purpose was twofold: on the one hand to deepen the character of Miles, on the other to show the graphic potential of PlayStation 5.
However, we cannot consider it a true sequel, more a sort of spin-off that opens the doors to him, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2out October 20th exclusively for PS5.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 review
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 raddoppia.
All.
First of all, the number of neighborhood superheroes at our disposal.
In fact, the story teleports us once again to New York. Uin New York which, coincidentally, is double the size of the one present in the first chapter.
Don’t worry though, they are there to prevent crimes now both Peter Parker and Miles Moralescharacterized by different customs and powers but united by the same spirit: keeping citizens and the people they love safe.
They do so from the first minutes fighting against Sandman, a huge sand monster that is devastating the Big Apple, endangering hundreds of people.
An intense battle which actually serves to familiarize you with (or remember) the basic commands, both those useful for battles and those for moving between buildings. With a little surprise: now you can “fly”. Not literally, let’s be clear, it would be an unprecedented affront to the canon; you simply have a wingsuit that helps you glide from great heights by exploiting the right currents to cover large distances more quickly.
The real threat, however, is another.
The requirementsa ruthless hunter with an entire army of mercenaries under his command, is on the hunt.
The prey? All the “monsters” of New York. Aka all Spider-Man enemies.
The two Spider-Men will therefore have the thankless task of finding him and stopping him, paradoxically trying to save the lives of the same adversaries who until recently they had had to put behind bars.
But the surprises don’t end here: at some point Peter will acquire new powers, the ones we normally associate with Venom.
As? Well, we’ll let you discover that for yourself.
Skills, gadgets and costumes
There is one thing that, instead of doubling, triples.
We are talking about the skill tree.
In previous games we had one because we only had one protagonist. But now there are two, similar but different. That’s why Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 delivers three skill trees: the Peter Park one, the Miles Morales one and the shared one. There are in fact a series of skills, both combat and movement, which are part of the repertoire of both superheroes but then each of them develops different abilities. Miles, for example, continues to use electricity, Peter, as anticipated, will have powers typical of Venom.
Every time you level up, gaining experience in the field, you will unlock skill points necessary, in turn, to obtain new skills.
Then there are abilities that are not unlocked but are obtained or learned by progressing with the story. The “ali” they are the simplest example but not the only one. At some point, to name another, you will discover that you can to stretch a wire from one side of a room to the otherso as to move over the enemies without them realizing it, finding grips and hooks even where there are none.
The combat, however, apart from the new abilities, is very similar to what we have seen in the past, with crowds of enemies throwing themselves at you armed in different ways: some will use their fists, some will use the crowbar, some will shoot you from nearby and who will try to shoot you down with a rocket launcher. The trick, once again, is to dodge attacks and react with timing, even at the lowest difficulty levels. In fact, don’t think that “Friendly” means that you can distract yourself and still take home the victory. Indeed, moments of inattention will always be fatal.
On the field you can also take advantage of it a series of gadgets which come in handy when you are surrounded by opponents and are still recharging your powers.
Each of them can be upgraded with technological components that you will find scattered around New York and collect during missions, components that you also need to unlock the flood of costumes available to both of you.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 review: the city needs you
The main story will keep you busy for a few hours but, as per tradition, Insomniac Games’ New York is a living city that needs its superheroes.
This is why you will have an app that collects the citizens’ requests, from the need to put out a fire to a girl who needs to find her grandfather. There’s a bit of everything.
Then there are crimes that appear randomly as you move around the metropolis, there are scenes of daily New York life to photograph, Miles’ uncle’s technologies to recover and much more. In short, getting bored is impossible.
Not to mention that this system encourages you both to explore the large map and to continue playing once the main adventure has been completed.
The charm of the Big Apple
Insomniac Games had already accustomed us to very high level graphics with Miles Morales. Here he does it again. The most famous city in America is reproduced excellentlywith plays of light that amaze every time and different areas ranging from the port to parks, from industrial areas to the more classic neighborhoods.
It is a pleasure to look at, to photograph and to explore.
We also point out the possibility to choose between two modes: Performancewhich therefore favors the stability of the frame rate, and Loyalty, which instead aims for the best possible visual performance.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 review: conclusions
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 had the same effect on us as the first title and the Miles Morales spin-off: we started playing and with difficulty we stopped.
This is because the story is engaging, the characters have depth, the gameplay is fun and there is always that dose of humor that makes you smile when faced with Spider-Man’s irreverent jokes.
Of course, it’s not a revolution compared to the first chapter but it is nonetheless a must-have for PlayStation 5 owners.