Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is the follow up to the original PS4 game and its spin-off Spider-Man: Miles Morales. As with the previous games, I had an absolute blast swinging around Insomniac studio's rendition of New York City, now even easier to swing, zip and glide through. The visuals are beautiful, the combat is even more satisfying than before - especially the Venom power set which feels brutal and impactful in the best possible way - and the side-content is varied and exactly the right length. As before though, what truly knocked me away was the story - which continues to solidify Insomniac's adaptation of the character as one of the best ever made. In fact, were it not for the Spider-Verse movies, I'd be ready to declare it my favourite alongside Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2 (2004).
Yuri Lowenthal and Nadji Jeter's performances as the two Spidey's are warm, emotional, funny and modern in the best way possible. All three games are masterful at continually testing both Peter and Miles, placing them in impossible situations which pulls them between responsibility as a hero and their important relationships in their personal lives. While Spider-Man 2 is a little busier and more chaotic compared to the more streamlined story of the first, I found myself powering through the main story missions just to find out what was going to happen next. The action setpieces and boss battles in particular are a noticeable step up from the previous installments and were incredibly well realised, featuring a host of colourful rogues to battle against. The stakes feel impossibly high, but not necessarily from a generic 'the world is ending' POV (something that the MCU Spidey stories sometimes suffer with) but more so for the impact to Peter, Miles, MJ, Ganke, Rio and everyone else.
Having said that, the thing that I loved the most about this version of the character was how it emphasises that the thing that makes Spider-Man special is the way he looks out for the little guy. More so than any recent adaptation, this game really feels like it gets the phrase 'Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man'. There are missions where Miles, for example, helps his fellow Brookyn Visions classmates ask one another to prom, or find their sports mascot to boost morale. Or another where Miles/Peter (depending on who you choose to play as) simply sit on a park bench listening to an old man sadly reminisce about his fading memory.
And perhaps my favourite moment in a game filled with outstanding set pieces and bombastic combat, is a side-quest moment set to the song 'Seabirds' where Peter Parker joyfully swings alongside his friend Howard's birds, whose dying wish is to set them free for the last time. It's emotional and human and bttersweet but it's somehow the most heroic thing I've seen a superhero story do in years.
As ever, the photo mode is an absolute blast. Here's a few of my favourites I took throughout the game...
