Spider-Man 2 Review – Double the Power, Greatest Responsibility

Spider-Man 2

Spider-Man 2 is a direct sequel where you save NYC alongside Peter and Miles; The Spider-Men. A threat like no other and mysteries await the Spider-Men. Slightly affected with bugs, the game is a solid GOTY contender.

Product Brand: Insomniac Games

Product Currency: INR

Product Price: 4,999

Product In-Stock: InStock

Editor's Rating:
4.5

Spider-Man 2 is the true definition of how a sequel should be done. There, we said it. If that is our opener for our Spider-Man 2 Review, you can determine what’s ahead. Insomniac Games’ latest Action-Adventure game, Spider-Man 2, has been out for some time and before we jotted down our words, we decided to explore everything it had to offer. Exclusively released for the PlayStation platform (as of now), here’s our after-platinumed review of Spider-Man 2.

A Threat Like No Other

Fans have gone wild over the final trailers of what the plot had for us. The game picked right where the post-credit of Spider-Man 1 had left us. Along with Venom, we soon discovered that Kraven was on a blood hunt, and the Spider-men were among the targets of his playing field. But, in the actual game, this changes completely. Kraven was never hunting the Spider-men. Instead, he is chasing down every villain New York has ever faced. What could be the reason for this blood lust? Why pick off the enemies? Is Kraven an ally? Or the most significant threat ever imagined?

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is where the plot opens up for Spider-Man 2. This time, featuring two protagonists at the same time, your favourites – are Peter Parker and Miles Morales. After the incidents of Spider-Man 1, Peter had to look for other sources to continue his life as an adult and under an insane mortgage left behind by Aunt May for the ventures of F.E.A.S.T. As for Miles, he is stuck between playing the life of a hero and a son who needs to write the perfect Essay to get into his dream college.

But, at the City That Never Sleeps, the threat is always lurking around the corner. The game opens up with Sandman running uncontrollably rampant around the city. The Spider-men arrive at the situation only to realize that Sandman has lost his mind. What could’ve been the possible reason? Who could trigger one of the strongest villains to lose his mind and wreck New York into a city of dust?

The mystery took no effort to solve; only the plot grew thicker. The Spider-men slowly discovered more villains were being hunted down and several of them kidnapped. But who would ask for a ransom with convicted criminals? Or is the intention of Kraven even deeper? Well, that ladies and gentlemen, is the true mystery left to be unfolded in Spider-Man 2.

Along with great mystery, a great miracle also brings back the most crucial character – Harry Osborn. Last seen in the post-credits of Spider-Man 1, Harry was seen being treated inside a tank. But in Spider-Man 2, he will be healed and better than before. His treatments initially remain a mystery to Peter and MJ. Still, it is revealed that he now possesses superhuman power with an alien exosuit and can almost be as powerful as Spider-Man. If you’re a fan enough, you already know what we’re discussing!

The Ultimate Web-Swinging Experience

I have been in love with the Web-Swinging of Spider-Man since Spider-Man 3 on the PlayStation 2. At that time, I believed that nothing could top this off until I played Marvel’s Spider-Man 1 on the PS4 and was utterly blown away by how real it felt as compared to the movie.
And once again, with the release of Spider-Man 2, it takes a giant leap in making the traversal experience the best the gaming industry could experience. There is no denying that I was sceptical about the swinging, and would it deliver something newer than the previous two games? But by taking on the best features from the earlier games, including Miles Morales’s Mid Air Jump and Dash, it adds brand new animations, Swinging Styles and the highly praised Web Gliders.

Along with the newly improved traversal, you can now perform a proper web launch. Utilizing the elastic strength of the web shooters, you can now charge and propel yourself into the air with a high velocity to cover distances in seconds. As you unlock the skill tree more, you can increase your web-swinging speed, glide speed and even Loop a perfect swing to give you an oscillation bonus.

While the game’s core is half swinging, the other half is the combat that pushes the game to the next level compared to its predecessors. In combat, you now get rid of the gadget wheel and have access to a more limited popular gadget deck that you can utilize together without switching. You’ll also be able to use the new abilities wheel, giving you distinct Power, Grab, and AOE attacks. You unlock different variants of the attacks as you progress in the Story, which is in line with the plot, and offer type-based attack perks. For instance, Mile’s Electric Venom powers instantly crystallize all sand-based enemies.

You’ll also be able to unleash an ultimate power, guaranteed to remove any obstacles. But the most quality combat feature this time is the newly introduced parry. No more backing down from the Heavy Dudes and their heavy hits. You can send back enemies after a successful parry and follow-up skull-cracking hits. (What do you mean Spider-Man doesn’t kill? He makes them permanently paralyzed).

Spider-man offers more than a polished, thrilling story with non-stop action and adventure. Having two different protagonists is a fun way to keep things fresh at every encounter. Stealth feels more accessible and more flexible with the option to create a web line on every wall. As for its side quests, it offers only one collectable mission, similar to Howard’s pegions: Mysterio’s Mysterium, FNSM Side Quests, Enemy Base Eradication and dynamic crime reports where your help is required. All of this together will guarantee you to spend 21+ Hours for a Platinum attempt.

Welcome to NYC!

Spider-Man 2 is the first time I have seen New York to be almost photorealistic in a video game, from swinging at remarkably high speeds while dragging along foliage and trails to flying across the river at sunset. I have been lost multiple times for hours, just absorbing the vibe of New York. Spider-Man 2 is one of my favourite and cherished games in terms of how it looks and feels. It brings me peak happiness each time I dawn a new costume and rescue the city.

The crime missions are endless and have multiple types and variants, so no matter when you drop in the city, you’ll always have a responsibility to protect the people. You can switch between the spiders on the go and even fast-travel to exactly your marker without any loading screens. The short travel animation is awe-inspiring, but indeed, if it were available for Switch Spider-men, it would’ve been much more helpful.

While there are many stories to discover in each part of the city, once you’re done with it, you will feel like a stranger, as there is nothing else to do. You do have a bicycle for a change! But only if there were more missions to get to know the city better instead of eliminating toxic compounds from chemicals.

And with that, let’s address MJ Missions. Long Story short, MJ missions are much better than the previous game’s missions. To keep it short, you don’t have to navigate through enemy-ridden places, so you can explore further and pray to get that no one sees you. Instead, you can now pick everyone off and put them to sleep. MJ Missions feel more like a Modern-day Assassin’s Creed Mission with TLOU graphics. Our take? We Love it.

While the game peaks at everything, it’s still ridden with game-breaking bugs at multiple spots. The only fix to many of these issues is by simply reloading the game from the last checkpoint. We know that Insomniac Games will fix it in the coming time, but at the end of the day, there’s no point in buying a physical disc only to download a 40GB patch simultaneously.

VERDICT

Spider-Man 2 is our prime GOTY contender. The thrilling storyline with mindblowing climax and plots, backed with completely action-packed combat with brand new abilities and fresh features, is more than we could’ve asked for. With a few bugs still needing fixing, this game is a must-play for every PlayStation owner.

I mean, you REALLY don’t want to miss out on flying across the map.