Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Review: A Symbiotic Success

While I’ve been a Spider-Man fan my whole life, my first experience with Insomniac as a developer was in 2018 with the release of Marvel’s Spider-Man. It was, in many ways, a perfect Spider-Man game. I have to add that qualifier, because it wasn’t a perfect game. It left a little to be desired in small but meaningful ways. However, as a Spider-Man fan, those shortcomings were far outweighed by the fully realized Spider-Man power fantasy. Insomniac followed that up with Spider-Man: Miles Morales and refined their formula. While it was an improvement, it cemented the idea that a formula was possibly set in stone.

Weaving The Storied Web

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 sets out to tell the story of two Spider-Men. I was worried that doing so might feel like too much. After all, Spider-Man’s best stories make you care about the person beneath the mask. While big set pieces and action-packed combat are wonderful, they don’t mean anything without the emotional tentpoles of true character development. I’m happy to say that this story of two Spider-Men feels very balanced. More than that, it consistently feels like the story needs two Spider-Men. Both Miles and Peter are taxed in their personal and superhero lives. The appearance of Kraven and the symbiote complicate these lives to a breaking point.

The appearance of the symbiote is a complex story device to pull off, and Insomniac does it beautifully. The symbiote makes its first appearance with Harry Osborne. At the end of the first game, we saw Harry floating in a tank while the symbiote bonded with him. The symbiote seemingly cures (or at least masks) Harry’s debilitating illness that took the life of his mother. Through a series of events I won’t spoil, the symbiote abandons Harry for Peter. This is the point in the story where Insomniac really gets to show off their writing skills.

Peter Parker with the symbiote suit is something that has been handled well and handled poorly across comics, shows, and movies. I’m happy to say that Insomniac did a marvelous job walking the line of complexity the symbiote requires. Peter is slowly influenced by the symbiote, but never passes the point of redemption. He gets angry and self-centered in ways that make sense. The temptation to rely on the suit also stems from a place of relatability. The suit makes him a better Spider-Man. It makes him a better Peter. It makes him enough, which is something he struggles with while juggling the many aspects of living a double life. While audiences may not be superheroes, it’s easy to empathize with the idea that you can be stretched thin to the point of not being enough for those around you.

While Insomniac is telling a new story, the events of the first game are far from forgotten. Peter struggles with the loss of Aunt May and Miles wrestles with the loss of his father. Feelings of loss, frustration, and redemption are major themes in this story. Things are eating away at both Peter and Miles, and those things have to be resolved if either of them is going to find peace. More to the point, these things need to find resolution if they’re going to succeed in their efforts to save the city.

In the first game, Insomniac’s writers pulled off something special. They managed to tell the story of Otto Octavius and Aunt May, characters fans know very well, in a fresh way. They’ve managed to do it again with Kraven, Harry, and Venom. These are the characters we know, and yet Insomniac’s unique Spider-verse makes you care about them in fresh ways. This is one of Insomniac’s greatest strengths. While they use characters from Spider-Man’s longstanding canon, they don’t let things feel stale. They avoid retelling stories that have been told while staying true the major touchstones of the Spider-Man universe.

Traversal in Spider-Man 2 isn’t just the best it has ever been, it’s better than any traversal system I’ve ever played.

Controls And Combat And Web-Shooters, Oh My!

In many ways, you could say that Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is more Spider-Man. That’s true, but it isn’t just more Spider-Man. Insomniac didn’t just refine their formula, they reimagined the shortcomings of the first game and elevated them instead of abandoning them. They didn’t reinvent the wheel, but they did take it out of the Stone Age. Yes, there are MJ sections, but they’re vastly improved from the first game. Instead of feeling helpless in stealth missions, playing MJ feels like playing Ellie from The Last of Us Part II. It’s a perfect example of how Insomniac improves upon any and all weaknesses of the first two games.

While many open world games tout 50+ hours of play, some of these titles suffer from quest bloat. An open world experience can be refined instead of vast. While Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 only takes 30 hours to complete the platinum, the experience is far from anemic. Whether you’re looking for crimes, collectibles, or side content, the world is full of things to do. Better yet, every aspect of the game has some kind of narrative payoff. You won’t want to miss collectibles this time around, because Insomniac infused everything with a handcrafted story that expands upon the lore of their Spider-verse. Insomniac has also made certain that you don’t spend much of your time staring at a map screen by adding incredible visual cues for every open world event.

Insomniac has made combat a deeper experience that requires more from the player than the first game. The addition of a parry mechanic makes fights more tense. Instead of solely relying on the dodge button, players have to look out for attacks that cannot be dodged. Enemy density has also increased. This both makes fights feel even more heroic while simultaneously increasing the challenge for players who want to jump into every fight head on.

To say that, like the first one, Marvel’s Spider-Man is the perfect Spider-Man game is true. However, that statement is also a disservice. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is as close to a perfect game as I have ever played.

The mix of parrying, dodging, striking, webbing, and using special abilities means fights have a rhythm without succumbing to monotony. You won’t find yourself mindlessly hitting the dodge button to win every fight. If you try to, enemies will punish you for it. I’m happy to say that these added combat tools don’t bog down the fast-paced experience we’ve come to expect from the first game. Instead, they make for a more engaging experience that feels, debatably, even faster than the first game.

Speaking of special abilities and skills, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 does a great job of allowing the players to customize their experience. This time around, Peter and Miles have their individual skill trees in addition to a shared tree. While you can fill all of these abilities out by hitting max level, I had to pick and choose between abilities while finishing the main campaign. On that note, each Spider-Man has at least eight special abilities to choose from, but they can only use four at a time. This allows players to customize their loadout and invest skill points into their favorite abilities. In addition to special abilities, both Spider-Men have their own unique ultimate ability. All of these options make for a more bespoke experience than in the first game.

Boss fights were clearly a focus for Insomniac. Every fight is broken into distinct phases with varied settings and combat strategies. Through the power of the PS5, fights can break into a chase, change locations instantaneously, and do so without detriment to framerate or quality. Bosses feature their own unique move sets, and the constant variety of phases allows for the same villain to drastically change up their tactics. It’s a delight to play through these fights, and I often felt myself wishing I could go back and experience certain fights again. I guess that’s what replays are for.

We can’t talk about boss fights and set pieces without touching on Sandman. The beginning of this game is something special, and it’s hands-down the best video game opening I’ve ever played. Insomniac weaves in a tutorial without making you feel like you’re just getting your footing as Spider-Man. Instead, you’re immediately thrown into a boss fight against the kaiju-sized Sandman wreaking havoc on the city. As you swing and strike, you get thrown into buildings where you fight groups of enemies to learn the finer points of combat. Every step of the way, you feel powerful and capable. From the first second of this game, you are Spider-Man. While I thought they nailed this feeling in the first game, they truly took it to the next level in the sequel.

While it’s clear that Insomniac upped their game with bombastic set pieces and thrilling boss fights, they also put a lot of thought into smaller moments. Several missions slow down the action to focus on character development. They know when to ease off the gas and allow their characters to connect with one another. Stories need to breathe, and this is something Insomniac does very well. While these moments might come with gameplay that doesn’t carry the superhero feel, they stand on their own two feet by offering players a deep story that we’ve come to expect from PlayStation exclusives. These scenes are a welcome reprieve from the constant action.

Traversal in Spider-Man 2 isn’t just the best it has ever been, it’s better than any traversal system I’ve ever played. Fast travel feels completely unnecessary when you can swing and glide all over the city. The ability to incorporate the wing suit makes traversal absolutely thrilling. It’s incredible to pull back on your webs, launch from a building, glide into a wind tunnel, and come out the other side swinging through the city. You can get from one end to the city to the other in record time without making the city feel small. In fact, it has doubled in size. You simply feel faster. You feel powerful even when moving from place to place. It also adds another element to traversal, making it feel even more engaging and less routine.

With Great Power Comes Great Graphics

The PS5’s power is on full display in this game. The world looks incredible with ray tracing and dynamic lighting touching every inch of the setting. The ability to fast travel or switch between Spider-Men almost instantaneously is impressive. Chase scenes are a both smooth and awe-inspiring. The sheer speed at which you move through the world speaks to the incredible loading times of the PS5. This game truly feels like it could only run on the PS5 in the same way Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart felt like it demanded the power of the PS5. Insomniac has truly mastered the hardware of this generation, and the players are better off for it.

To say that, like the first one, Marvel’s Spider-Man is the perfect Spider-Man game is true. However, that statement is also a disservice. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is as close to a perfect game as I have ever played. In a year when even the best games have had to scratch and claw for their moment in the sun, Insomniac’s latest title is a standout experience. From the main story to side missions and collectibles, meaningful narrative rewards players at every turn. It’s the most fun I’ve ever had getting a platinum, because every aspect rewards you for engaging with it. I’ll be eagerly awaiting New Game Plus, but I likely won’t wait that long to replay it again. It’s completely different from my other favorite game of the year, but it edges out all of the competition by being a thoughtful thrill ride from start to finish.