Spider-Man is literally the definition of how to make a game based on a licensed IP. With so much fan service, so much action, such great story telling, Marvel’s Spider-Man is pretty much a Marvel cinematic experience, but playable.
Let’s start with what makes Marvel’s Spider-Man such a good Spider-Man game. Much like the older games, you play as Spider-Man in an open world environment as you help out citizens. Marvel’s Spider-Man expands upon what already made Spider-Man one of the best superhero video games, into an absolute juggernaut. The map is so huge, as it is all of Manhattan, with so many collectables and crimes to stop, to never keep you, Spider-Man, from being bored. Speaking of being Spider-Man, this game’s immersion is very good. Not once did I not feel like Spider-Man myself. With the game’s fluid combat and witty dialogue, it feels like something straight out of a Spider-Man movie. That’s what makes Marvel’s Spider-Man such a good game. Insomniac’s attention to detail, their polish, and the fan service webbed throughout the game (heh). With the ability to customize Spider-Man to your heart’s content, the very snappy combat, and that generic superhero music to boot – and that’s not a bad thing either – Spider-Man will keep that smile on your face throughout your playthrough.
But of course, this is the part of the review that goes over the bad of the game, and the bad isn’t all *that* bad. For starters, the story can be a bit predictable. If you recall back to E3 2018 when Sony was showcasing Marvel’s Spider-Man, some trailers and gameplay demos were a bit heavy on the story side, and going into this game after watching those trailers, some twists turn out to be quite obvious. Even if you go into the game with no prior knowledge, I can definitely see an average player correctly guess how the story unfolds.
Now remember how I said that there’s so much to do in Marvel’s Spider-Man’s world? Well it really is a treat to explore every inch of Manhattan, but much like other collectathons, too much of a good thing can be bad, and this applies to Marvel’s Spider-Man. Some collectables are distributed very well and don’t seem like a hassle to collect, like the backpacks and black cat spots. However, having each district have 20-25 crimes, which adds up to about 100-120 crimes in the whole game is a bit much. I love this game’s combat as much as the next person, but when enemies go down in about 4-5 punches in the post-game, stopping every crime in the game feels endless. Now that I think about it, maybe they were trying to replicate the feeling of being Spider-Man so accurately, that they even decided to fill the entire city with crimes to stop! Or they just wanted to pad the game out. Who knows!
Overlooking this game’s flaws, Marvel’s Spider-Man is still a phenomenal experience and was a joy to play. Exploring every inch of the map, swinging around with the game’s fluent controls, and overall being a game that is satisfying to play, it is a must play for every PlayStation 4 owner. If Insomniac keeps this up, I may have to say the same thing whenever Spider-Man: Miles Morales comes out!