Since 1962, every Spider-Man cover has informed the reader
to “expect something extraordinary.” After 20 years of successful movies, we
have a new Spiderman game coming out aligned with the release of a summer blockbuster
movie. Insomniac Games and Marvel have collaborated to bring gamers
a new twist to the Spider-Man video gaming Franchise. Marvel stated that the best Spider-Man stories
are when Peter Parker and Spider-Man’s worlds collide.
Peter Park vs Spider-Man
I had a good look at the cut scenes from the demo, and I
must admit I was impressed by the details.
The tight framing of shots echo Peter Parker’s life. He lives in a small studio apartment in New
York, where we get to see what kind of Spider-Man we have. Spider-Man puts on his web-shooters which
mean we won’t have the Spider-Man from the early 2000’s trilogy that gave Spider-Man
web making powers. There are a few bills
and messages in the apartment which leads gamers to believe we will have choices
in Peter’s life vs choices in Spider-Man’s life the will have an impact on the
outcome of the game.
Familiar Villains
The next scene jumps the player into the story line of a hot
lead on the Kingpin. Peter hears a police
dispatch in his earpiece, then we are web-slinging across skyscrapers in New
York City and Manhattan. This game will
be open world, so there is no limit to where we can go and interactions in the
big apple. Developers noted that web
slinging will be more physics driven, and gamers will have to use momentum to swing
around the city.
After beating up, a few low-level thugs Spider-Man gets a few
clues that lead him closer to capturing the Kingpin. I really liked the combat during the fight
b/c it showed what gadgets, web-combos, hand to hand combat. After getting adjusted to the new controls,
we get back on the streets.
Open World and Cameos
Spider-Man mini-map in the lower left-hand corner of the
screen that shows the street layout and highlight side activities. There are a lot of possibilities and themes
to explore. Norman Osborne aka the Green
Goblin the city mayor, so we know that will have ramifications that will lead
to trouble for Peter Parker and Spider-Man.
Note for those of you who aren’t fans of the series, Green Goblin knows
Spider-Man is Peter Parker! It seems
like a lot will go in this game.
As gamers explore the city more of the Marvel universe is
unfolded. The Avenger’s tower, Black Panther’s
Wakanda Embassy, and Dr. Stranger’s Sanctum are available to explore in the
city which means that we may get cameos from other Marvel heroes.
The RPG and Crafting
The ability to be in an open world means that the story will
not be linear progressed, and gamers can approach resolutions to critical
events in different ways or times. There
was one side quest on the game that had you locate Peter Parker’s old backpack with
images of his first web shooters inside. Developers stated events like this will be
vital in fleshing out Spider-Man’s backstory with audio recordings as
well. As a reward for completing side
quest gamers will gain a performance score for completing objectives and
crafting components.
The crafting materials will be used in a number of
ways. Drawing from Peter Parker’s scientist
background, gamers can upgrade and create gadgets in the video game. Gadgets and crafting will add to the new
suit option portion of the game. Gamers
will have the ability to choose from dozens of suits, and the gadgets will serve
as add-ons to enhance the suits. Each
suit will serve a purpose and give gamers a different experience or way to complete
objectives.
Impressions
The game looks solid, and I admit that I will play it. Insomniac Games hinted it will do for Spider-Man
what Rocksteady did for Batman in terms of development and pushing the limits
of franchise to create a new experience.
Spider-Man release date is September 7, the game will be single player, and
Playstation 4 exclusive.
