Review — Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered

It’s a shame that I’ve spent so long NOT playing this game. Not only is this the most impressive superhero game I have ever played, with…

It’s a shame that I’ve spent so long NOT playing this game. Not only is this the most impressive superhero game I have ever played, with the execution of its gameplay mechanics and story, but it’s also one of the best open-world character fighting games I have ever played. The cherry on top of all of that is an incredible cast of voice actors, an out-of-this-world soundtrack, and graphics (plus animations) to make you drool. It is a complete package.

I’m going to praise the game pretty heavily, but you should just take away right off the bat that if you’re even remotely interested in this game, you should be playing it. I think only the smallest subset of players will be frustrated with the game.

Just to get my few gripes out of the way first. I think some mission types are a bit dry and “copy-paste” feeling. The structure of the majority of them plays great, but as you progress the story, you’ll get more of the same activity with a new coat of paint. I didn’t mind it.

Another thing is they give you, like an “Ultimate” suit ability, and let you unlock several to mess around with. There are also a lot of “suit mods” in the game that make minor changes to the game. These both, are cool concepts, but their execution feels pretty weak. I didn’t feel the need to change out my suit ability or suit mods for the entire duration of my playthrough. I didn’t start experimenting with anything I had unlocked until I was playing the post-game. I would have liked to feel more compelled to experiment with this system in some way, and I would have liked them to feel a little more meaningful.

But all in all, I think those gripes are pretty minor in the scope of things. I think the biggest factor to consider is if you’re feeling the “open-world fatigue” that’s starting to plague the gaming landscape. This is definitely an open-world game, with little things everywhere on a large sprawling map to do…

If you do groan at the prospect of another open world… I’d ask you to hold off on losing interest just yet. I had doubts about the open-world aspect coming off the coattails of Cyberpunk 2077, but zipping around an extraordinarily accurate New York City using a variety of web-slinging actions has never felt more exhilarating. Because there’s a handful of traversal options, you have a lot of freedom of expression in how you close the distance between you and where you need to go, and it’s a fun mini-game in itself, where you get to make active choices in how to go from point A to B in whatever way is most fun to you. In that sense, the open world serves a very real purpose and is not included just so the “Open World” buzzword can go on the box. It is a very enjoyable aspect of the game and one that Insomniac HAD to get right to make the perfect Spider-Man game.

And I think they have just about made the perfect Spider-Man game.

I want to reflect on that for just a moment. Spider-Man is one of the most beloved characters from Marvel, with TV shows, Movies, plenty of comics, games, and more showcasing his many adventures. To be able to make a piece of media that respects Spider-Man, the villains he faces, the common tropes found within his stories, the music, and more across all works he’s contained within… To a degree where I think it’s one of the best Spider-Man iterations period… Just wow. What an absolute undertaking. To get everything right must have taken a ridiculous amount of work from a large number of very talented and nerdy individuals.

Moving through New York, using gadgets, suit abilities, and mods, and having a large number of suit cosmetics to choose from ensure that your playthrough is unique to you, especially as you experiment with new unlocks along the way, and shot web. It is unabashedly fun upgrading Spider-Man’s arsenal and using it to the best of your abilities.

The story itself is remarkably good. I think one of the aspects that sets it apart is how it has a direct impact on the open world at large. New York will change as the Villain’s plans evolve. You will have to deal with a variety of circumstances directly because of what is happening in the narrative at any given time and it is very well done and makes New York feel alive.

I think narratively everything unfolds at a perfect pace as well. Doc Oc in particular, you meet him at the beginning of the game and slowly you see why Peter has bonded with him so well throughout the campaign. It makes his narrative so much richer with the added emotional context you’re able to gain through continued exposure to the character. Same with many of the characters and their arcs. A lot of games try this and fail to connect with me in this way. I think a lot of recent Spider-Man stories have even failed to deliver in this way. Insomniac however, did not miss, and made a rich story with a lot of heart that isn’t just a great Spider-Man story, but an incredible story in general.

The “DLC”, chapters one through three, are included in the Remaster, and I didn’t quite a vibe with them at first because of the lackluster story and “fresh coat of paint copy pasted campaign side mission” structure. But, by the end, I did come to appreciate them. This is more than anything because they give you activities to do that aren’t just a million crimes back to back or New Game Plus. The screwball challenges I think are also pretty good inclusions, especially the gadget combo events.

My last little note is that the music is beautiful. I briefly touched on it above, but it is incredible how they were able to pay homage to the original Spider-Man theme, plus the recent films, but also create something wholly its own thing. That’s amazing. And they made it to react to gameplay and traversal? Super impressive. The sound work in general is also really fun and good. I am impressed with the voice acting performances on display here, especially from Yuri (Spider-Man) who recorded a large number of his lines twice over so that Spider-Man would sound out of breath if he was in the middle of a strenuous activity. Attention to detail here (and everywhere throughout this game) is absolutely nuts and I am here for it.

All in all, this is an incredible package of a game. There is so much here that I feel is undeniably fun for just about any gamer from any demographic. The care that Insomniac had throwing this together… man. It’s unimaginable. Just about every detail is dialed into perfection. The combat is fun and snappy, the traversal is personal and zippy, the story is extremely well done, the animations are beyond impressive, and the audio is top-notch. All excellent reasons why I recommend this game. This is perhaps the most perfect a Spider-Man game can get, and pretty close to an overall perfect video game. I hope that you will take the chance to experience it for yourself and find out what it truly feels like to be Spider-Man.

Originally published 4 May 2023 at https://backloggd.com.