https://www.thegamer.com Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is a follow-up to Insomniac Games' hit PlayStation title, and once again follows Peter Parker and Miles Morales as they deal with supervillain threats in New York City - including the fearsome Venom. Wed, 31 May 2023 19:15:16 GMT en-US hourly 60 Insomniac Games developed a thrilling superhero adventure in Marvel’s Spider-Man and the continuation in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, where we saw our favorite web-slingers take down a plethora of iconic villains. Now in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker and Miles Morales need to team up to avoid being captured by Kraven the Hunter.

]]> Wed, 31 May 2023 19:15:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-kraven-the-hunter-backstory-lore/ Between Star Wars Jedi and Spider-Man, ‘non-canon’ endings feel like an increasing rarity in the world of licensed games. We don’t get much choice in how stories unfold anymore, since so many developers are striving for a definitive cinematic experience. You don’t go to the theatre and take a vote to make Captain America side with Thanos. But games aren’t movies, and letting the player take control is a key part of how we experience them.

]]> Wed, 31 May 2023 15:00:20 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-web-of-shadows-symbiote-morality/ Sony showed off Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 last week and there was a lot to be excited about. The game has an expanded map, a story with interesting angles on Kraven, Lizard, and the Symbiote that I can’t wait to see play out, and cool new powers for Peter. But what has me the most stoked is the ability to swap between its two heroes.

]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 19:00:17 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/gta-5s-protagonist-swapping-system-lives-on-spider-man-2/ Last week’s PlayStation Showcase set off a wave of discourse, as everyone watched it quickly found out that nobody else on the internet agreed whether the show was good, bad, or a secret third thing. I’m pretty firmly in the last category, but not because there weren’t any games I wanted to play.

]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 18:00:18 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/playstation-showcase-less-exciting-aging/ When Tears of the Kingdom is blown up on a big screen, hills are stretched, models are fuzzy, and the environments lack the usual obsession with minor details we see in modern games. Most people don’t care because its art direction is stellar, the sandbox tools are like nothing we’ve seen before, and it runs incredibly well despite seamlessly juggling three distinct worlds. For some reason, gamers aren’t okay with prioritising gameplay over visual fidelity unless it’s on a Nintendo console, as Spider-Man 2’s new trailer was immediately met with controversy for not looking current-gen enough. I have no idea what that means other than gamers wanting a generational leap like PS1 to PS2, but when you’re at the top of the mountain, how much higher can you go?

]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 16:30:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-god-of-war-ragnarok-ratchet-and-clank-rift-apart-generational-sequels-unrealistic/ Everyone is excited for Spider-Man 2. Everyone apart from the losers lying about the water, at least. There’s been a lot of talk over how the Symbiote factors into the story, as well as into the gameplay, alongside speculation around Kraven, Lizard, Venom, and Wraith. One villain conspicuous by her absence though was Screwball, and some seem to see this as a cause for celebration. If she really is gone though, the game will always feel like it’s missing something.

]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 15:00:17 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/screwball-return-spider-man-2-villain/ Insomniac made the controversial decision to switch the actor used for Peter Parker's likeness in its Spider-Man games a few years ago. Not just for the sequel, but for the PS5 remaster of the original game. That issue has naturally reared its head again as Spider-Man 2's launch grows near, and some Spidey fans are claiming it's not Peter's new face that's the problem, it's his hair.

]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 12:31:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-fans-fix-new-face-adding-hair/ Although many of you were left disappointed by last week's PlayStation Showcase, there's no denying the presentation ended on a high note. Almost 15 minutes were dedicated to Spider-Man 2, finally unveiling the symbiote suit, but fans are still wondering whether it's alien or man-made.

]]> Tue, 30 May 2023 08:17:23 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/fans-debate-spider-man-2-symbiote-alien-man-made/ Oh look, it’s another season of Gaming Discourse! The topic this time? Asset reuse. According to people who have never given actual game development a more fully-formed thought than ‘if I won the lottery, I’d make the game of my dreams’, a developer reusing assets that they already have access to is pure laziness. The current victims of this discourse are the big open world titles du jour, Tears of the Kingdom and Spider-Man 2. These are small voices amplified by Twitter’s baffling algorithm, but it’s a debate that’s been bandied around the internet for years.

]]> Mon, 29 May 2023 18:00:17 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/asset-reuse-confidence-not-laziness/ It's not even been a week since we saw Insomniac Games' take on the symbiote suit for Spider-Man 2 and Spidey fans are already adding it into other games starring the webhead.

]]> Sun, 28 May 2023 19:39:36 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-mod-insomniac-games-symbiote-suit-added-web-of-shadows/ The voice of Peter Parker in Insomniac’s Spider-Man, Yuri Lowenthal, has revealed that his portrayal of the symbiote suit is based on “behaviours of addiction”.

]]> Sun, 28 May 2023 15:15:10 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-potrayal-of-symbiote-suit-based-on-addiction/ Over the years, triple-A development cycles have gotten painfully long. Rockstar launched three generation-defining Grand Theft Auto games in three years on the PlayStation 2, but if GTA 6 arrives in 2024, it will have been 11 years since the series' last game. Similarly, Naughty Dog's Jak & Daxter trilogy all hit the PS2 over the span of three years, while The Last of Us Part 2 was seven years in the making. Of the developers that were around at that time and still operating today, Insomniac is one of the few that can still pump games out at a steady rate.

]]> Sat, 27 May 2023 17:00:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/insomniac-triple-a-spider-man-ratchet-clank-rift-apart/ Peter and Miles are almost ready to grace us with a new adventure throughout New York City with Marvel's Spider-Man 2. We've finally received gameplay, showing us the new baddie, Kraven, along with the Lizard, some plot points the game will have, and new combat mechanics with the breathtaking Symbiote Suit.

]]> Sat, 27 May 2023 16:31:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/marvels-spider-man-2-things-we-want-from-the-game/ Spider-Man 2's gameplay reveal has taken the world by storm since it closed the PlayStation Showcase earlier this week, but nothing in life is perfect. If you were looking to find fault with the trailer, you will have found plenty. Kraven, despite a cool design that sticks to his comic origins, has an inescapably silly motivation. The decision to give Peter the symbiote suit, possibly at the cost of a true Venom character, could be seen as controversial or played out. The suits have new looks, which seem a little overdesigned. Peter's symbiote voice feels forced, although that may be the point. Some of Miles 'non-lethal' takedowns seem like false advertising. Those excited for the game will point out that these are minor criticisms, and they're right - but at least they're real criticisms. Complaints about the water are not, and they're extremely tiresome.

]]> Sat, 27 May 2023 15:31:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-water-puddlegate-miles-morales/ We just got a bunch of new trailers for upcoming games, and that can only mean one thing: everyone is a game developer now. This means we all have the knowledge we need to pick apart everything that was shown off, and unfortunately for Spider-Man 2, it seems that it's guilty of a grievous gaming sin - reusing elements of a previous game, rather than building every single feature from scratch. Which, according to experts online, is lazy game development.

]]> Sat, 27 May 2023 13:23:24 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-game-new-york-map-reused-lazy/ There have been many iconic interpretations of Spider-Man over the years, across various mediums. We've had three versions of Peter Parker in the movies, a whole bunch of video games, and countless comic book and animated versions. Insomniac's version of Pete is only the latest in a long line of Webcrawlers, and in Spider-Man 2, he will be wearing the fan-favourite Symbiote suit.

]]> Sat, 27 May 2023 07:29:13 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-symbiote-suit-shocker-90s-cartoon-meme/ I’m not ashamed to say I like Spider-Man 3. The final entry in Sam Raimi’s trilogy is a corny mess that turns Peter Parker into a two-dimensional edgelord with far too many villains and subplots, but I can’t get enough of it. A huge part of that is because of the cringe that comes with Peter’s dark angst. Bonding with the symbiote doesn’t make him ‘evil’ or push him toward anti-hero status, it makes him a fedora-tipping asshole who acts like he can take on the world. And he can, because he’s Spider-Man juiced up on alien goo.

]]> Fri, 26 May 2023 16:31:15 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-symbiote-suit-peter-parker-edgy/ I can't believe that we're doing this again, but gamers are being weirdos about Spider-Man 2's water, apparently not remembering how silly they looked after the first game's infamous "puddlegate incident".

]]> Fri, 26 May 2023 09:49:30 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-gamers-being-weird-about-water-again-puddlegate-graphics-complaint/ PlayStation fans had been waiting over 18 monhts for the platform to blow them away, and what they got was a mild breeze. While there were huge announcements like the Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater remake, Alan Wake 2, first gameplay footage for Assassin's Creed Mirage and Dragon's Dogma 2, and an impressive set piece from Marvel's Spider-Man 2, there was very little there to get you excited to be a PS5 owner.

]]> Fri, 26 May 2023 01:14:50 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/playstation-fans-arent-happy-disappointing-showcase/ Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 looks pretty cool. Insomniac Games finally broke cover during this week’s PlayStation Showcase to unveil an extensive gameplay presentation alongside a menacing introduction to Kraven the Hunter. As far as sequels go, it seems to incorporate everything we loved about the first game and Miles Morales into a more ambitiously grand superhero adventure filled with action, drama, and all of our favourite characters. Our hero also dons the Venom symbiote suit now, which means he is super-duper tough and grumpy.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 19:00:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-symbiote-suit-puddlegate-all-venom-insomniac/ Spider-Man 2 got an extended look at the PlayStation Showcase last night and it looks like what we, in the biz, call a ‘true sequel’. There’s been a lot of talk recently about what exactly a game needs to do to earn the 2 in the title, culminating in some players claiming that Tears of the Kingdom didn’t look like a real sequel in the run-up to its release because it reused assets from Breath of the Wild.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 18:00:17 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-true-sequel-totk-miles-morales/ There were a lot of reveals in Spider-Man 2's PlayStation Showcase trailer. Most notably, we saw Peter Parker don the symbiote suit, which brings with it new powers, but also new challenges. Presumably new responsibilities are in there somewhere too. Peter has all new attacks with this suit, but also seems to be affected emotionally, which would make sense given its parasitic nature. It has been confirmed that Venom will be in the game, voiced by Tony Todd, but it could yet be that Venom is Peter, rather than taking over Eddie Brock. We also saw Lizard, gameplay in the water, new web abilities, the confirmation of the likes of Black Cat returning, and our first look at Kraven the Hunter. But the most important reveal was for Wraith.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 16:31:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-wraith-biggest-reveal/ Players aren’t happy with today’s PlayStation Showcase, and while some degree of bitching is always to be expected, I am astounded at what gamers have to say. There are some valid criticisms of the stream – there weren’t enough first-party games, barely any PlayStation exclusives, and too few gameplay trailers. There were some noted absences too, like Factions 2. But many comments have said that this year’s showcase was particularly bad because there were too many games that nobody cared about, like indies and new IPs. Complaining about the games not being established or big enough is mind-boggling to me.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 16:15:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/weird-playstation-showcase-2023-indie-games/ PlayStation’s Showcase is getting mixed responses, and that alone is unheard of for a company so used to taking the world by storm and blowing its competition out of the water. As ever, your mileage may vary. Dragon’s Dogma 2, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, and Metal Gear Solid Delta/Triangle/Whatever were all warmly received, and we also saw a lot of Spider-Man 2. There was a decent amount of gameplay footage, but that meant little when we had a lack of games to begin with. PlayStation, what gives?

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 14:30:15 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/does-playstation-have-any-games-showcase-disappointment-upcoming/ Spider-Man 2's inclusion of Queens marks the first time that the New York borough has been in a Spider-Man game since Ultimate Spider-Man all the way back in 2005.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 13:53:24 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-queens-explorable-first-time-since-2005-ultimate-spider-man/ You might have been distracted by Peter Parker's new symbiote suit, but it turns out that both Miles Morales and Black Cat have brand-new costumes in Spider-Man 2.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 11:01:36 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-black-cat-miles-morales-new-costumes/ Whether you enjoyed Wednesday's PlayStation Showcase or not, what can't be argued is we were shown a lot of impressive stuff from Spider-Man 2. Many of you have been combing through its trailer and gameplay ever since, and some now believe we may have even been shown evidence that at some point during the game, players will have to battle against Peter Parker's Spidey as Miles Morales.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 10:28:42 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-fans-think-trailer-showed-peter-parker-boss-fight/ Marvel's Spider-Man fans aren't just eating good right now; they are literally feasting. With a nearly 12-minute gameplay trailer revealed at today's PlayStation State of Play event, a variety of new information and characters have been revealed to the audience.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 10:00:18 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/marvels-spider-man-2-every-confirmed-character/ Spider-Man and controversial costumes go hand-in-hand. A couple of years ago, the comics unveiled a blue, white, and orange suit to a resounding 'eh', while the MCU has long grappled with complaints about its suits, from the lack of texture of the base outfit to the gaudiness of the Iron Spider. Now, it's Insomniac's turn, as fans are torn over the new symbiote suit in Spider-Man 2.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 08:58:42 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-symbiote-suit-gamers-divided/ Finally, after so long, we have been blessed with more footage of the upcoming Marvel's Spider-Man 2, continuing the wonderfully crafted universe created by Insomniac Games. And we didn't simply get a glimpse of what will happen. We've got 12 and half minutes glimpse, with scenes, new characters, and gameplay to make us want the game even more than we already wanted.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 06:48:46 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/marvels-spider-man-2-gameplay-trailer-details/ Marvel's Spider-Man 2 ended up saving what would have been a pretty dull showcase PlayStation Showcase for many, giving us a first look at some gameplay as well as a few surprises along the way. One of the biggest was the reveal that Peter Parker is wearing the symbiote suit for this adventure, a sign that Venom might be more closely linked to the main story than we expected.

]]> Thu, 25 May 2023 03:35:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-venom-peter-parker/ Marvel's Spider-Man 2 has a bunch of bad guys, and the latest trailer at this year's PlayStation Showcase has given us a closer look at some newcomers. While the majority of it concentrated on Peter Parker's new symbiote suit, a fight with Kraven, and Miles Morales hunting down Lizard, there was a very brief moment in which we saw another iconic Spider-Man villain that Insomniac Games hasn't mentioned as of yet.

]]> Wed, 24 May 2023 21:32:13 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/marvels-spider-man-2-wraith/ Spider-Man 2 has finally shown off gameplay footage, revealing Wraith, showing Peter Parker's symbiote abilities, placeable web lines, the option to swap to Miles Morales, and the new wingsuit abilities. Ganke even has a Vulture drone to help Miles out in the field, meanwhile, Peter is busy with gooey tendrils and an edgy voice to match. Clearly, the alien suit is getting to him.

]]> Wed, 24 May 2023 21:04:10 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-playstation-showcase-2023/ Yesterday was a head spinner for Spider-Man fans. After being starved of information on the game for months and anticipation ratcheting up ahead of what is likely to be a bulky deep dive into its features in this week’s PlayStation Showcase, the game finally sprung a leak - Miles Morales actor Nadji Jeter ‘confirmed’ the game had co-op. It was an exciting time. A few hours later, Insomniac slapped some tape over it like a salesman on the shopping channels, and the leak was unsprung. Despite the initial excitement at hearing something - anything - from the game, in the cold light of day the truth is clear. It’s great news that Spider-Man 2 has no co-op.

]]> Tue, 23 May 2023 17:00:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/good-thing-spider-man-2-no-co-op/ Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was a good game, but it wasn’t great. I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I enjoyed its successor, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, which improved on the game’s existing formula while keeping the spirit of what people loved about it. On top of letting you keep all the skills you’d unlocked in Fallen Order, it gave you more traversal abilities, added a variety of different stances to spice up gameplay, and provided quality of life improvements like fast travel. It’s more fun overall, and expanded on a story and character that finally absorbed me after the first game failed to capture my attention.

]]> Tue, 23 May 2023 16:00:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-star-wars-jedi-survivor/ Update: 21:15 BST 22/05/2023 - Insomniac Games has clarified via it's official Twitter account that Marvel's Spider-Man 2 will not have co-op and is an "epic single-player adventure".

]]> Mon, 22 May 2023 17:56:32 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/miles-morales-nadji-jeter-spider-man-2-co-op/ In the realm of video games, few characters have captured the hearts of players like the iconic superhero Spider-Man. With the massive success of Spider-Man by developer Insomniac Games, fans are eagerly awaiting the release of its highly anticipated sequel, Spider-Man 2. As speculation runs wild, the Reddit community has been buzzing with discussion about what the next installment should include, but also avoid. The ongoing conversation has shed some light on the various pitfalls which the game should be sure to sidestep.

]]> Sun, 21 May 2023 19:04:08 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-fans-share-what-dont-want-sequel/ Sony has announced its annual PlayStation Showcase and I feel nothing. That’s partially my declining mental health talking, but it’s also quite sad that a platform that used to ignite such feelings of excitement within me can now barely manage a dejected hurrah. Since the PS5 launched almost three years ago, true exclusives remain in the single digits and what we can expect in the coming months are all sequels, remasters, and live service expansions of universes we’re already familiar with. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is going to be great, there’s little denying that, but deep down I know it’s an open world superhero game with all the bells and whistles that come with it. I’ll enjoy it, but to say I’m excited would be a lie.

]]> Sun, 21 May 2023 14:31:17 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/ps5-exclusives-playstation-showcase-spider-man-2-horizon-ghost-of-tsushima-2/ Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has been talked about a lot, and yet there’s still not a lot of information out there about it. In fact, if you have even a passing interest in it, you'll be thoroughly bored of that one picture by now. You know the one I mean. Miles on the left, Peter on the right, both staring directly at the camera in the evening light. We're all sick of it. However, I don't think this radio silence is much cause for concern. Tony Todd (kind of) confirmed it would be ready for September, Insomniac has a good track record, and it's sensible to let fellow PS5 exclusive Final Fantasy 16 get out of the way first, while also letting Starfield make the first move. I’m very confident we'll get a very good Spider-Man video game this year. I just hope its villains aren't so messy.

]]> Mon, 15 May 2023 19:00:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-villain-mistake-marvels-ps4-ps5-miles-morales/ Ever since Marvel's Spider-Man 2 was announced all the way back in 2021, we've had nothing but scraps to go off of for potential features and new abilities. In fact, we've had so little official news that Spider-Man fans are sick to the back teeth of seeing that one image of Peter Parker and Miles Morales stood on a street looking at the camera. We've taken to analyzing every single piece of Spider-Man media that's been released in the last two years for any potential clues about Marvel's Spider-Man 2, and that diligence may have actually paid off.

]]> Sat, 13 May 2023 12:00:16 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/marvels-spider-man-2-wing-suit/ I keep forgetting Spider-Man 2 is coming out this year because of how little of it we’ve seen. The only thing we’ve seen from the game so far is a reveal trailer during one of PlayStation’s Showcases back in 2021. That trailer revealed that the game will feature both Peter and Miles, as well as Venom and Kraven the Hunter, but those remain the only details we have about the sequel. There’s been no gameplay, no interviews, and not even a release date. For a massive PlayStation exclusive that’s ostensibly only a few months away, it’s surprising how little we know about this game.

]]> Mon, 08 May 2023 02:18:20 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/marvels-spider-man-2-prequel-comic-fcbd-mj-stealth-multiverse/ The recently-released Spider-Man 2 prequel comic contains some more hints that Peter is aiming to become a teacher, which lines up with optional dialogue from the first game and Miles Morales.

]]> Sun, 07 May 2023 14:34:21 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-prequel-comic-hints-peter-becoming-teacher/ Spider-Man fans seem to be at their breaking point after seeing the same image of Peter and Miles standing next to each other from the Spider-Man 2 reveal trailer.

]]> Sun, 07 May 2023 13:12:07 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-fans-sick-of-seeing-same-screenshot-image-peter-miles-trailer/ When the PS5 launched, it was impossible to get hold of. Scalpers had a field day using bots to skip online queues, and regular gamers were left out in the cold, without a spaceship to adorn their TV stand ahead of Christmas. Xboxes were slightly easier to find, but the PS5 was gold dust. It was the console, it was the Christmas present, and yet I couldn’t help but feel disappointed with mine.

]]> Sat, 06 May 2023 15:30:14 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/its-finally-time-to-buy-a-ps5/ Insomniac Games has asked fans who are wondering when we'll hear more about Spider-Man 2 to have a little bit more patience while it's "in the kitchen".

]]> Sat, 22 Apr 2023 08:40:37 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/insomniac-games-tells-spider-man-2-fans-to-have-more-patience/ Yuri Lowenthal, the actor behind Insomniac Games' Spider-Man, has confirmed that he's finished his voice work and motion capture for Spider-Man 2.

]]> Thu, 20 Apr 2023 10:50:12 GMT https://www.thegamer.com/spider-man-2-motion-capture-complete-yuri-lowenthal/