Spider-Man is one of PS4's most ambitious titles - adapting a beloved comic book character who had already had six films with three renowned actors, into the medium of gaming, while following in the footsteps of the Batman: Arkham series. So how did it do?
The story follows Peter Parker eight years into his career as Spider-Man - he has already fought many of his villains and grown into a confident and respected hero, in spite of his own personal problems that are a direct result of his exploits. However, as he puts away an infamous crime boss, new threats emerge that threaten New York City, and push his resolve to its limits.
What first comes to my mind, and one of the common praises of the game is the portrayal of Peter Parker - his appearance, characterisation and journey. He is gifted in his abilities and his intelligence, but can do nothing to balance his life in and out of the costume. He has to sacrifice fulfilling his life as Peter Parker in order for Spider-Man to persist. However, unlike the beloved Spider-Man 2 film, he has come to terms with this, but must go forward in facing the consequences of the decision wherever they may lead him. This is done incredibly well in the game, so if you're already a fan of the character, you don't have to worry as to whether or not this would do him justice.
The gameplay also reflects the character perfectly as well, particularly the web-swinging mechanic as you traverse your way across the city. It was good in fact that I rarely used fast travel, preferring the weighty feel of building momentum with dives down before swinging up, running across the sides of buildings and leaping off the ground. This alone could carry you through dozens of hours of content, let alone the combat, which allows you to use a variety of combos and web types. There is nothing negative I could say about this aspect of the game either.
Onto the story. Admittedly, I found the story a little slow to move forward in the first half of the game, using only one or two enemy types without much variety. This led me to do much more exploration of the huge open world of New York and it's side quests. Because of this, I think I made myself play in such a way that ultimately hindered the experience. I would recommend pushing further into the story before going into the side quests and enemy bases, as this would allow for much more variety, and would make the experience much more enjoyable as a whole. The game is undeniably good, but certain playstyles, like mine, may not give you the best the game has to offer.
What the game does right in the story is the use of characters both familiar and unfamiliar to general audiences, allowing for some twists and turns to be genuinely unexpected, while others tense and tragic, as the player knows the inevitability of how it will turn out. Nevertheless, there are pacing issues as I said before, when some patches in the game feel like very little is spaced over a long amount of time, and others when events occur suddenly and unexpectedly. The latter are when the game really kicks into gear, but I wish the overall experience was a bit more refined so that some of the less relevant missions were removed or combined, something that would keep my interest for much longer.
Another let-down is the use of stealth section whereby you play as other characters, and are relegated to slowly moving your way through an enemy base while avoiding detection. The game is about embodying Spider-Man, but these sections, with a few notable exceptions, felt cheap and generic.
Additionally, some of the side content is really unengaging - Harry Osbourne's research labs littering the rooftops in particular. Nothing interesting comes from them as you perform tasks that seem trivial in comparison to the scale of the story and the character you are playing. The only purpose I can see them serving is finding some way to reference another character in the Spider-Man mythos, but if this is the way they chose to pay homage, I would have preferred that he didn't feature at all, and his presence was saved for a sequel.
I know I've been very critical during this review, but that is because of the high standards that the game sets for itself, and so it can be disappointing when it lets itself down in places. However, that doesn't stop the game from being great, or worthy of the character. As a game, this is the closest you could ever hope to get to stepping into the shoes of Spider-Man, and is still a marvel to watch and play to this day, in spite of the controversy regarding the remaster and the new face of Peter Parker. I give this game a strong 8.5 out of 10
8.5/10
Spoiler Section
I thought that Martin Li, AKA Mr Negative was an inspired choice of villain for the game - his inclusion provides a new antagonist for those unfamiliar or with only general knowledge on the comic books, and a welcome presence for those that knew him already. His ability of twisting people to act on their darkest impulses is used incredibly effectively in the game, the moments that come immediately to mind being the bombing of Officer Jefferson and making the university professor kill himself after giving him what he wants. I wouldn't have thought that this game would go as far as it did to make Li such a terrifying villain and display the sheer evil that Peter would have to face, but I'm glad that it did, as it gave us a whole new look at what it takes for him to fight for the people of the city.
Other dark elements come in the desperation of Octavius, his deteriorating condition that would leave him totally paralysed being his motivation that pushes him to use the unstable technology he was developing, his use of Devil's Breath to infect the citizens, with a rising body count that Spider-Man could do nothing but watch until the final minutes of the game, and the relentless slaughtering of innocents on the part of Li's Demon Gang following the bombing. I really liked how serious the game took itself, not enough to make the character himself dark and gritty, but made the story well worth investing in, far more than the current Marvel films that have used the same tired and uninteresting formula for each of their new entries.
Each of the primary villains has an understandable motivation, even the ones who initially seem bland and one-note have their moments to prove that they were far more complicated, something that I deeply respect. Li hating Osbourne for causing his condition that led to the death of his parents, Octavius' health problems combined with his hate of Osbourne removing him from their company, and Osbourne doing whatever he could to save his son, no matter the cost on everyone and everything around him. They all link together into a single, coherent narrative, and Peter has some connection to all of them. If you were to take out the sections that felt like they were there for the point of demonstrating gameplay, then what you are left with is a really compelling story that isn't afraid of treating itself with dignity and respect.
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