Marvel's Spider-Man (Insomniac Games series)
| Marvel's Spider-Man Video Game Series | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Insomniac Games |
| Original work | Marvel's Spider-Man (2018) |
| Years | 2018–present |
| Print publications | |
| Book(s) | Marvel Cinematic Universe books |
| Comics | Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-in comics |
| Games | |
| Video game(s) | Marvel's Spider-Man (2018) Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (2023) |
The Marvel's Spider-Man Video Game Series is a video game series centered on a series of superhero video games developed by Insomniac Games for the video game brand PlayStation. The video games are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, the major protagonists being Spider-Man (Peter Parker) and Spider-Man (Miles Morales).
The first video game in this series is Marvel's Spider-Man (2018) and the latest video game in this series is Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020), and this universe is named as Earth-1048.
Both the video games have been commercially successful and has generally received positive reviews.
Development
Spider-Man came about after Sony Interactive Entertainment's Vice President of Product Development Connie Booth visited Insomniac Games to speak with CEO Ted Price.[1] Insomniac had recently released its Xbox One-exclusive game Sunset Overdrive; without a formal agreement in place, discussions about the potential new project were held off the record.[2][3] Booth mooted the idea of Insomniac working on a game based on a Marvel Comics property. Price recalled having a "fairly neutral" response, as Insomniac had only developed original properties, but his developers were enthusiastic about the project.[1]
The project marked a change in Marvel's video games strategy; Jay Ong, Senior Vice President of Marvel Games, said Marvel had previously released software based on or tied to the release of films based on their properties, but this meant game developers did not have time to create impressive products. Publisher Activision had been responsible for Spider-Man games since 2000; Ong said this would no longer be the case and future Spider-Man games were in the hands of Sony and Insomniac.[4] Marvel did not want the game to be based on an existing movie or comic book story, and allowed Insomniac to choose a character with which to tell an original story; the team chose Spider-Man, saying they related to the dynamic between the heroic Spider-Man and his everyman alter-ego Peter Parker.[1]
Creative director Bryan Intihar said "I feel like he's the most relatable of the heroes. As much as I love Tony Stark, it's harder to identify with a billionaire. As much as I love Thor, it's hard to identify with a god. Peter makes mistakes, he has ups and downs in his career, his relationships, his family. I think we can all relate to that."[3] Price said, "He's so human, and he's so relatable. He's also the most popular Marvel character in the world, I think". Price also considered the technical benefits; Sunset Overdrive has a dynamic traversal system that could be built upon for Spider-Man.[1] Spider-Man became the first licensed property developed by Insomniac in its 22-year existence.[2]
While initially excited, team members found the project daunting because of Spider-Man's popularity and the wealth of existing stories and versions of the character. Art director Jacinda Chew saw opportunity in the character's extensive history, and consulted online references and Marvel staff with extensive knowledge of the character.[3]
Spider-Man uses Insomniac's proprietary engine that was previously used in Sunset Overdrive and modified to support 4K resolutions and HDR for their 2016 game Ratchet & Clank.[2] The game was announced in June 2016 at Sony's Electronic Entertainment Expo press conference.[5] After approximately four years in development, Spider-Man was finalized on July 30, 2018, when it was released to manufacturing.[6][7] Insomniac has refused to confirm a sequel to Spider-Man but Intihar said the developers wanted the audience debating what they might do. He said they wanted to keep players engaged, starting with the Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps downloadable content (DLC), whose story continues after the conclusion of the main game.[8][9]
Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales was developed by Insomniac Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.[10] Sony vice president Simon Rutter told The Telegraph that the game is "an expansion and an enhancement to the previous game". However, Insomniac later called the project a standalone game, stating that it is "the next adventure in the Marvel's Spider-Man universe". It is smaller in size and scope than Spider-Man, and has been compared to Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, a game which served as a standalone expansion that was smaller in size and scope than a mainline Uncharted title.
The game features "a new story, with new set-pieces, fresh villains, and unique quests".[11] For the PlayStation 5 version, the game takes advantage of the console's increased processing power, dedicated ray-tracing hardware, custom solid-state drive storage, Tempest Engine and DualSense controller to support features such as advanced haptic feedback, real-time ray tracing effects, 3D spatial audio and reduced loading times.[12][13][14] The PlayStation 5 version of Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales supports high dynamic range and an optional "performance mode" that allows the game to run at 4K resolution and 60 frames per second.[15][16][17]
On October 9, 2020, Insomniac Games announced via Twitter that the game had "gone gold", meaning that physical copies of the game were ready to be produced, with any further development being patched into the game through software updates.[18]
List of Video Games
As of 6 January 2022, there are two video games released in this series.
| Video Game | U.S. release date | Director(s) | Screenwriter(s) | Developer | Publishers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marvel's Spider-Man | September 7, 2018 (main game)
October 23, 2018 (The Heist) November 20, 2018 (Turf Wars) December 21, 2018 (Silver Lining) |
Ryan Smith[disambiguation needed], Brian Horton, Bryan Intihar and Marcus Smith | Jon Paquette, Benjamin Arfmann and Kelsey Beachum | Insomniac Games | Sony Interactive Entertainment |
| Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales | November 12, 2020 | Jon Paquette and Benjamin Arfmann | |||
| Marvel's Spider-Man 2 | 2023 (tentative) | N/A | |||
Synopsis
Marvel's Spider-Man
After Wilson Fisk is captured by Spider-Man, a masked gang known as the Inner Demons begin to seize Fisk's illegal assets. Mary Jane and Spider-Man learn that the Demons are looking for something called the Devil's Breath. With the help of Officer Jefferson Davis, Spider-Man foils a demon attack. Davis' heroism is lauded in the re-election program for Mayor Norman Osborn. The Demons stormed the event, killing Davis and several other attendees. Peter sees Martin Lee transforming into their leader, Mr. Negative, but faints before he can intervene. After the attack, Osborn hired Silver Sablinova and Sable International to remove the police. Peter befriends Davis' son Miles and persuades him to volunteer at the F.E.A.S.T.
Peter and Otto Octavius continue their research into advanced prostheses, but Osborn withdraws his funding in an attempt to force Octavius to work for Oscorp, his mega-corporation. While searching for Lee, Spider-Man learns that the Devil's Breath is a deadly, venomous bio-weapon inadvertently created by Oscorp while developing a cure for genetic diseases. Lee finds and steals the only specimen of the Devil's Breath and threatens to leave it unless Osborne surrenders to him. Lee is foiled by Mary Jane and Spider-Man and later imprisoned in a maximum-security prison called the Raft, while the Devil's Breath is safe.
Meanwhile, Octavius is obsessed with creating limbs that exceed the limits of the human body, creating four mechanical traps driven from his back and mentally controlled through a neural interface. He tells Peter that he suffers from a neuromuscular disease that will inevitably render him immobile, and that this enlarged limb will allow him to continue his work when his body fails. Peter warns Octavius that the interface may affect his mind and personality. Octavius continued to use it in secret, overcome with anger at Osborn. While investigating a breakout on the Raft, Spider-Man learns that some of his greatest enemies—Lee, Electro, Vulture, Rhino, and Scorpion—have fled. They subdue Spider-Man and present him to Octavius, now "Doctor Octopus," who warns the beaten Spider-Man not to interfere before retaking the Devil's Breath and releasing it in Times Square, causing a mass outbreak that infects numerous people, including Aunt May. New York descends into chaos while Octavius' team attacks the city. Osborn declares martial law and blames Spider-Man for the incident, branding him a fugitive. Spider-Man gradually takes back the city, defeating Electro, Vulture, Rhino, and Scorpion. Mary Jane infiltrates Osborn's penthouse and learns that Devil's Breath was developed to cure Osborn's terminally ill son Harry. As a child, Li was a test subject for the cure, gaining his abilities in an explosion of energy that also killed his parents and caused his hatred for Osborn. She also learns that an antidote for Devil's Breath exists and that Li has stolen it. Spider-Man tracks down and defeats Li, but Octavius arrives, brutalizes Spider-Man, and escapes with the antidote and Osborn. While Spider-Man recovers, Miles is bitten by an Oscorp genetically modified spider that Mary Jane unknowingly carried from Osborn's penthouse. Wounded, Peter builds himself an armored suit and confronts Octavius atop Oscorp Tower, rescuing Osborn. Octavius reveals that he knows Peter's secret identity and a battle ensues. Spider-Man retrieves the antidote and defeats Octavius, leaving him to be arrested. Peter is forced to choose between using the limited cure to save May from her imminent death or synthesize a vaccine for the infected masses; he chooses to save everyone. Before she dies, May reveals that she knows he is Spider-Man, and that she is proud of him. Three months later, New York has returned to normal and Peter and Mary Jane rekindle their relationship. Miles reveals to Peter that he has gained spider-like powers, prompting Peter to reveal his own. Osborn enters a secret laboratory where Harry is kept in stasis with a black, web-like substance. As Osborn places his hand on the tank, the substance reacts and copies him.
Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
After more than a year of training under Peter Parker, Miles Morales has mastered his spider-like abilities and established himself as the original Spider-Man's crime fighting partner, though he still struggles to adapt into his new role. While escorting a police convoy carrying prisoners to the rebuilt Raft, Miles accidentally frees Rhino, who wreaks havoc in Harlem. While Miles stops the other escapees, Peter struggles against Rhino, who eventually overpowers him. Miles intervenes and defeats Rhino with his new bio-electric ability, later dubbed "Venom Blast". Leaving Rhino in Roxxon's custody, Peter informs Miles that he will be assisting his girlfriend, Daily Bugle reporter Mary Jane Watson, with her assignment in Symkaria for a few weeks as her photographer, and entrusts him to look after the city in his absence.
While investigating a break-in at the Roxxon Plaza, Miles clashes with a group called the Underground, who have a vendetta against the company. Returning home to celebrate Christmas with his mother, Rio and close friend, Ganke Lee, Miles is surprised to learn that Rio also invited Phin Mason, with whom he has not spoken in over a year. The next day, Ganke creates a Spider-Man app so citizens can call Miles for help directly. Miles's uncle, Aaron Davis, is the first to use it and reveals his knowledge of his nephew's identity to Miles. Later, Miles attends one of Rio's campaign rallies, but witnesses the Underground attacking the Roxxon guards present and tries to stop the conflict before it escalates. He soon discovers that the Underground are seeking Roxxon's experimental power source, Nuform, and that Phin is their leader, the "Tinkerer". After further investigation, Miles learns that Phin wants to avenge the death of her brother Rick, who was poisoned while working on Nuform and killed by Simon Krieger after attempting to sabotage the project. With assistance from Aaron, whom he learns is the Prowler, Miles discovers Phin's plan to ruin Roxxon by destroying their plaza with Nuform to highlight its dangerous side-effects, which Krieger had been covering up.
After betraying Phin's trust in order to gather information on the Underground, Miles is eventually forced to reveal his identity to her, souring their friendship. Miles tries to reconcile with Phin, but Roxxon abducts them with the aid of an enhanced Rhino. Miles and Phin escape, but Miles learns that Aaron has also been spying on him for Roxxon and that Krieger modified the plaza's Nuform reactor to destroy Harlem if Phin's plan succeeds. Phin and Miles fight the enhanced Rhino, who taunts Phin about Rick's death. She almost kills him, but Miles intervenes and the two fight before Phin knocks Miles out and escapes. Ganke brings an injured Miles home, where Rio discovers her son's identity and continues to support him. Once he recovers, Miles tries to stop Phin. However, he is captured by Aaron, who takes him underground to prevent him from being killed like his father Jefferson Davis. Miles escapes and defeats his uncle, explaining that he cannot turn his back on people when they need him.
While the Underground and Roxxon fight on the streets and Phin executes her plan, Aaron, inspired by his nephew's words, helps Rio evacuate Harlem, giving Miles a chance to confront Phin and stop the Nuform reactor before it goes critical. Unable to reason with her, Miles fights Phin before attempting to absorb the Nuform's energy to negate the blast. However, there is too much energy and Miles is unable to contain it. To save the city, Phin sacrifices herself by flying him to a safe distance above the city so that he can release the energy before it kills him. Miles plummets to the ground and his identity is revealed to a small number of citizens he helped as Spider-Man, who promise to keep his secret. Four weeks later, Roxxon has been dealt numerous lawsuits and Krieger has been arrested following Aaron turning himself in and testifying against them. Peter returns from Symkaria and praises Miles for his growth and heroism before they head off to fight crime together.
In a mid-credits scene, Norman Osborn orders a reluctant Dr. Curt Connors to release his terminally ill son Harry from a stasis pod in spite of his unstable condition. In a post-credits scene, Miles leaves an award he won with Phin atop Trinity Church in her memory.
Characters
Peter Parker / Spider-Man
Peter Parker (voiced by Yuri Lowenthal) is a 23-year old research assistant at Octavius Industries, who attained spider-like powers after an electromagnetic spider bit him, inspiring him to become the masked superhero Spider-Man. Peter has a love relationship with Mary Jane Watson and he has a partner in his display of heroism, that is Miles Morales.
As of 2022, Lowenthal has voiced in both the video games - Marvel's Spider-Man (2018) [19] and Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020) [20] as a lead role. Lowenthal is set to return and voice the masked hero again in Spider-Man 2
References
- ^ a b c d Barnett 2018.
- ^ a b c Mathew 2017.
- ^ a b c Watts 2018.
- ^ Sinclair 2016.
- ^ O'Connor 2016.
- ^ Kuchera 2018.
- ^ Bankhurst 2018.
- ^ Whitbrook 2018.
- ^ Khan 2018.
- ^ Stevenson, James (September 16, 2020). "See the Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales new gameplay demo". PlayStation.Blog. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- ^ Horton, Brian (June 18, 2020). "Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales – An update from Insomniac Games". Playstation Blog. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- ^ Tolbert, Samuel (June 18, 2020). "Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales features ray-tracing on PS5, similar scope to Uncharted: The Lost Legacy". Android Central. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- ^ Wood, Chandler (August 20, 2020). "Developers Detail Unique Ways They Are Using the PS5 DualSense Controller's Adaptive Triggers and Haptic Feedback". Playstation Lifestyle. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Locke, Jennifer (July 2, 2020). "Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales for PS5 — Release date, gameplay, trailers, and everything you need to know". Android Central. Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ @insomniacgames (September 13, 2020). "#MilesMoralesPS5 is realized in 4K HDR on PS5. See reflections with ray-tracing, and improved lighting, shadow, and character detail. #SpiderManPS5" (Tweet). Archived from the original on September 21, 2020. Retrieved September 13, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (July 20, 2020). "Spider-Man: Miles Morales PS5 has optional 4K/60fps performance mode". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
- ^ Peters, Jay (December 9, 2020). "Spider-Man: Miles Morales runs at 60fps with ray tracing in new mode". The Verge. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
- ^ @insomniacgames (October 9, 2020). "We are pleased to announce that #MilesMoralesPS5 and #MilesMoralesPS4 have Gone Gold and will be sneaking into your hearts globally on November 12th! #BeGreater #BeYourself" (Tweet). Archived from the original on October 9, 2020. Retrieved October 9, 2020 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Spider-Man (Video Game 2018)". IMDb. Retrieved 2022-01-08.
- ^ "Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Video Game 2020)". IMDb. Retrieved 2022-01-08.