Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is the sequel the first Spider-Man game, this time exclusively for the PlayStation 5. Thus, it tries to use all the features of the system and it is a good showcase of the hardware. It builds upon the original and its spin-off Miles Morales. This game will instantly feel familiar to everyone who has played any of the previous two games. You unlock abilities at a fast pace, so it doesn’t feel too repetitive in getting back to how powerful Spider-Man was at the end of the previous games. The game is set in New York, and it is an expanded city that you can explore with both Spider-Men. You can swap between them at almost any time and anywhere, although there are specific story and side missions for each of them.
Spider-Man can naturally swing through the buildings and the webslinging remains as tight and fun as ever. It is simple, as you just need to hold down the R2 trigger but there are some little bits like being able to dive, jump, build momentum and speed up that makes it more engaging. It is fun swinging around to the point of not even needing or wanting to use the fast travel system. That’s helped by fast travel needing to be unlocked by completing side missions in each area. The traversal is further improved by the new web wings ability that allows Spider-Man to glide at high speed. With the added bonuses of wind tunnels scattered around the city to boost your speed and keep you aloft even longer.
In terms of combat, it also builds upon the original system but that was always one of the more generic and weaker areas of the game. You build combos by punching enemies and you can keep the combo counter going up by not getting hit. Spider-Man can dodge and parry. His main melee is a punch, but he has plenty of gadgets to help him. The two Spider-Men has slightly different combat abilities, given that Miles has bio electric powers, so his special abilities tend to utilize those. On the other hand, Peter uses the extra metal legs on his back instead. Spider-Man can throw stuff in the environment at the enemies. Build enough focus meter and you can one-shot certain enemies. Enemy variety comes in the form of stronger tougher ones that appear where you are required to approach them in a slightly different way. However, combat in this game can tend to become dragged out with enemies that can take a lot of hits before going down.
In addition to the combat sections, there are some stealth sections where Spider-Man is in a room, and he must pick off the enemies one by one. He’s provided with plenty of tools such as knowing when an enemy is safe to be defeated and being able to walk on his own webs across the room. The latter makes it much easier compared to the first game. Although if you hated the Mary Jane stealth sections of the first game, be prepared for some more here. These are improved for sure… but still much less fun compared to the Spider-Man sections. Yes, it is good to break the monotony and provide some variety but when it is so much less fun to play, it’s probably better to include them in the first place.
Naturally, the graphics are phenomenal, and it is some of the very best at its time of release. The original games already looked great, but it is even nicer here. Maybe it is not a huge difference at first glance, but then you’ll notice all the small details that it has. There are a few modes to choose from such as a performance mode with higher framerate, or you can opt for higher visual fidelity instead at 30 FPS. You can combine the two along with some raytracing to target 40 FPS which scales nicely with a 120 hz TV, complete with variable refresh rate to reduce screen tearing. The game has a ton of accessibility and customization features to make the game exactly how you want to play it. You can make it easier or harder, tweak specific elements and parts of the UI, it’s quite handy and impressive.
The story starts off extremely slowly. It is too slow in fact and can be a boring slog. This is because you play this game to play as Spider-Man, rather than Peter and Miles. When you are forced to play their sections and slowly walk from one place to another for some story exposition, it is a slog. It takes around a third of the game before it picks up. Despite having two protagonists, their stories aren’t too intertwined, as Miles feels like he is more focused on his own small scale personal story, while Peter has more encounters with the brand-new threat of this game, Kraven the Hunter.
Kraven gets an introduction and is then regulated into the background for a short while as his mercenary team executes his plan. It is somewhat annoying that his team seemingly has unlimited numbers and resources. Anyway, he is shown to be a formidable foe, able to easily beat Spider-Man’s other villains. Then there is Harry, who makes a healthy return from his illness. Of course, this isn’t a coincidence as the game introduces the Symbiote, which means Venom will eventually make an appearance.
If you have watched any Spider-Man movies or read any of the comics, then you will be very familiar with the Symbiote / Venom backstory. The game tries to go for something different, however, it generally still follows most of the main beats so it can be predictable. You can tell right from the beginning what is going to happen. However, the developers managed to differentiate Spider-Man’s combat style when he has his Symbiote powers. Spider-Man plays more aggressively and is more powerful, so it can be a lot more fun as a result.
The game makes a ton of use of the DualSense controller, and at times, it is too much. There will be constant haptic feedback, from the gentle tapping of Spider-Man’s feet when he is sneaking, or a jolt when being hit hard by an enemy. The game goes for the adaptive triggers, as they will constantly change with how much pressure is required based on what’s happening onscreen. At times, these events feel gimmicky, while at other times, they enhance what’s happening on screen, adding to the tension of the story.
There are a lot of side activities everywhere you go. The variety gradually unlocks along with the story. These are mostly generic styled missions but at least they do not take that long to individually complete. Rewards for completing them are used to unlock the many numerous suits the game has to offer for each Spider-Man. While completing all types of missions will grant experience points, which are used to level up and the level is shared between the two protagonists. Each level up grants at least one skill point and these can be used to unlock abilities specific to one of the Spider-Men, or shared abilities between the two.
The pacing ramps up in the last third of the story and it then suddenly moves way too quickly. The story is filled with many highs and many lows. There will be things you’d have to do in missions that will feel like a chore. Then it might be followed with some fast-paced adrenaline filled boss fights that manages to convey the strength of being Spider-Man extremely well. Ultimately though, the story has a lot of flash and style but is missing just that small amount of substance to really cement its place.
The game takes around 15 to 20 hours to complete the main story itself. After the slow start, the way it wrapped up the various villains felt too quick. It’s like the Spider-Men finally confronts the villain for the first time or two before they are defeated. It was like a rush of battles and epic encounters, being over too quickly. After the main story, you can continue to finish off the side stuff. Some of the side missions have their own short storylines, so a bit of effort has been put into them.
Overall, Marvel’s Spider-Men 2 is an iteration, rather than a revamp, of the previous two games. It plays very similarly and effectively, but it polished off most of the rough edges to provide a smoother, nicer, and better experience. There are still rough edges, especially when it comes to early story pacing, as well as the gameplay. Having variety is good, but the things that you are forced to do in some missions are a chore and not very engaging. Kraven was a formidable foe in the beginning but as you’d expect, he is eventually overshadowed by Venom, where there are some genuine moments of dread and fear in his appearances.
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