After a three-year wait since the previous installment, the superhero game "Marvel's Spider-Man 2," developed by Insomniac Games, was finally released on the 20th. This sequel not only introduces the highly popular villain from the original comics, Venom, but also features significant advancements in gameplay and high-speed loading technology compared to its predecessor. We at Toy-People jumped into the game right at launch for a playtest and have quickly written up our impressions to share the charm of this new title with you. Now, join us for a look into "Marvel's Spider-Man 2"!
※The following will contain minor spoilers. Please read at your own discretion.
The story picks up several years after the DLC of the first game. It follows the arrival of a new villain, Kraven the Hunter, in New York. He begins kidnapping a host of super-criminals to serve as his prey, even capturing Dr. Connors, who is no longer The Lizard. The two Spider-Men, Peter and Miles, are run ragged trying to stop him. Coming to their aid is Peter's long-time, gravely ill best friend, Harry Osborn. He has cured himself with the power of the "Symbiote" suit and joins Peter's Spider-team to fight crime. But in an unexpected turn of events, the Symbiote suit transfers itself to Peter, causing the story to spiral out of control...
Although I was slightly disappointed that the story continued to use the old villain from the first game, Mister Negative, the narrative quality of this new installment is still excellent. The first half of the plot is tense and exciting, and Venom, who appears in the latter half, is far more imposing than in the old movies. Even Symbiote variants like Scream (whose design is similar, though I'm not certain if it's the same character) make an appearance. While I'm not sure where the original Eddie went, players who are fans of Venom will surely find this to be a very sincere effort.
Outside of combat, the most obvious change in "Marvel's Spider-Man 2" is, of course, its signature traversal system. To handle a map that is a full two times larger, the game introduces the "Web Wings" for gliding and adds numerous wind tunnels across the map as a new means of movement. You no longer need to slowly build up speed by diving from tall buildings; simply gliding into a wind tunnel path will propel you forward at high speed, which is much faster than the previous method of leisurely swinging. It's worth noting that even the fast travel speed has become incredibly fast, allowing you to fly directly to your selected location, making getting around much more practical. As a result, we used fast travel far more often than in the first game.
As for the combat, most of the controls follow the model of the first game, but not only has the cumbersome combat wheel been removed, but skills and gadgets now have their own dedicated UI, making the overall feel more intuitive. To add more variety to the combat, enemies can now perform two new types of attacks: "heavy attacks" and "crushing attacks." A new defensive maneuver, the "parry," has also been added. Here we demonstrate a battle with The Lizard, where you can clearly see the difference between these two attack types:
Even on normal difficulty, you can clearly feel that the enemy's attack rhythm and difficulty have been elevated, making it much more interesting than the "dodge-your-way-through-everything" gameplay of the first game.
Unfortunately, the functions of the highly versatile suits from the first game have been severely nerfed this time. Not only do they lack ultimate abilities, but they are now purely cosmetic skins. The original L3+R3 input has been repurposed for Peter's and Miles's surge abilities. While the new skills are not bad, the reduced combat variation makes collecting the suits feel less motivating.
Regarding other gameplay elements, while it still adopts a Ubisoft-style open-world model, the richness of the content far surpasses the first game. There are not only over a dozen types of side quests and mini-games, but their accompanying stories also make playing them more compelling. For example, I was quite fond of Mysterio's "Mysterium" missions. Although they are primarily combat challenges, they are not only simpler than in the first game but also feature a storyline for Mysterio. While the quality of the side stories still has a way to go to match top-tier open-world games, it's a massive improvement over the pigeon-catching of the first game. It can finally shake off the criticism that its side quests might as well not exist.
While it may not be as astonishing as the first game was at its debut, the performance of "Marvel's Spider-Man 2" is in no way unworthy of its multi-million-selling reputation. This installment not only significantly enhances the weaknesses of the first game, such as combat and side quests, but also shows considerable care in its signature web-swinging system and the pivotal Venom segments. It is, without a doubt, a contender for the best superhero game of the year. "Marvel's Spider-Man 2" was officially released on October 20th. If you're interested, don't hesitate to fire up your PS5 and dive into what is one of the best superhero games in recent years!
"Marvel's Spider-Man 2" Personal Review:
Easter Egg Content:★★★★★★
Gameplay Fluidity:★★★★★
Story Rating:★★★★★
System Improvements:★★★★