Back when it first launched in 2018,Marvel’s Spider-Manreviewed very well across the board, with critics and fans alike adoring the game’s traversal mechanics, its own unique take on theBatman: Arkham-style of combat, and the game’s authenticity and passion for the source material. A few years later,Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moraleswas equally as praised, with many critics forgiving the game’s short runtime due to the welcome improvements it made to its predecessor’s already-excellent formula. But there was one issue that persisted throughboth InsomniacSpider-Mangames, and it’s an issue that can be easily fixed inMarvel’s Spider-Man 2.
One ofthe most anticipated games of the year,Marvel’s Spider-Man 2is extremely likely to make some big improvements over its predecessors. For a start, with the game being solely designed for the PS5, it’s guaranteed to be a more technically impressive title than its predecessors, and that’s probably just scratching the surface. But there’s one big gameplay aspect thatMarvel’s Spider-Man 2really needs to iterate on, and that’s Spidey’s web-swinging speed.
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Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Could Finally Give Players an Option to Swing Faster
The firstMarvel’s Spider-Manhad almost universally-acclaimed traversal mechanics. Though some fans preferred the more technical and skill-based approach of2004Spider-Man 2’s web-swinging, the general consensus was that 2018’sSpider-Mantruly captured the essence of being the Wall-Crawler himself. With just a press of the trigger, players could swing through a beautifully-realized New York City, and by combining just a few more button presses, they could zip, dash, flip, and squeeze through the city with ease and style, just like the Web-Head does in the comics, movies, and animated shows.
ThenMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moralescame out, and the web-swinging felt even better. A little younger and leaner,Miles' Spider-Manfelt a bit more agile and faster to control, and Insomniac’s slew of new swinging animations really helped to cement the game’s traversal mechanics as being some of the best in all of gaming. But despite the tweaks made in the sequel/spinoff, some fans still felt as though web-swinging wasn’t quite fast enough.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2has the perfect opportunity to make web-swinging feel all the more exhilarating by giving players the opportunity to increase their swing speed far past what the original games offered. But it would need to be handled carefully. One of the best aspects ofMarvel’s Spider-ManandMiles Moralesis their high level of accessibility, allowing players of every skill level to hop in and swing about with ease. It’s imperative thatMarvel’s Spider-Man 2doesn’t lose this, so the best approach to web-swinging speed is to slowly increase it as the game goes on, maybe tying it into its upgrade progression system.
Then, for the fans who still don’t think the game’s web-swinging is fast enough,Marvel’s Spider-Man 2should offer a suit that specifically increases the speed of web-swinging. While it’s all speculation at this point, it has been rumored thatSpider-Man 2’s extra costumes will have more of a gameplay purpose than providing just a suit mod, and if that is the case, then a suit that increases traversal speed makes complete sense, especially if it’s paired with a lore-accurate Spidey suit. For instance, the black Symbiote suit has been heavily rumored to appear in the game, withVenom making an appearance as one of the game’s primary villains, and its increased strength and agility in the source material would pave the way for a permanent increase to web-swinging speed inMarvel’s Spider-Man 2.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2launches in Fall 2023 for PlayStation 5.
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