Marvel’s Spider-Man PS4 Review

By Dan D.

Marvel’s Spider-man is another entry in the list of strong exclusives that have come from Sony this generation and is easily one of the best games of 2018.

 

Gameplay

Taking place eight years after Peter Parker gains his powers, Insomniacs take on the wall crawler sees us taking control of a more seasoned Spider-man with most of his basic tricks usable from the word go. The story of the game is, for the most part, engaging and has Spider-man face-off with many fan favourite villains along the way.

The Version of New York City found in the game is a massive playground for players to explore and get to grips with the new web-swinging system which is on the surface simple but undeniably satisfying once mastered.

The combat and stealth encounters in the game seem to have been heavily influenced by Rocksteady’s Batman Arkham series so fans of those games will get to grips with Spider-man without much trouble. For those unfamiliar combat is usually about attacking enemies, watching for prompts to dodge incoming attacks and throwing the occasion gadget use into the mix to aid you.

The Spider-man game play is broken up at points by segments where the player takes control of other characters for mostly stealth oriented segments or science themed mini-games which provide a refreshing change of pace and help to keep things interesting.

The progression in the game is simple but rewarding, as Spider-man levels up he gains skill points which can be fed into one of three skill trees and can teach new techniques for combat or traversal or can provide passive Bonuses to Spider-man.

Spider-man’s gadgets can also be upgraded as the game progresses, when players complete certain activities or find collectibles they will receive tokens which can be saved up and used to construct upgrades or new gadgets.

Spider-man has a selection of suits that can be obtained throughout the game most offering unique powers that can be used to various effects like incapacitating enemies or providing strength bonuses. Once obtained these suits and powers can be mixed and matched to the player’s preferences.

There is a decent variety of side activities that players can engage in such as side missions, enemy bases, crimes that can be stopped and challenges to test your skills. Some of these activities can become tedious over time, particularly the crimes but otherwise provide a good amount of padding for the game.

Graphics

Marvel’s Spider-man is a gorgeous recreation of New York City and is full of little tweaks that give the impression of a wider Marvel universe within the game. There are locations and Easter eggs spread throughout the city that Marvel fans will instantly recognise such as Avengers Tower and the Wakandan Embassy.

Spider-man and his rogues’ gallery have never looked so good, with incredible amounts of detail in their suits and gear. Overall it is an undeniably pretty game and playing on PS4 pro I didn’t notice any performance issues even in the most demanding parts of the game.

Audio

The sound design for the game is also excellent, Spider-man’s quips during are varied enough that they are usually entertaining. Overall the voice work for the game is solid with the main cast all delivering lines believably.

 

Replay Potential

With three loads of DLC and a new game + mode that shipped post launch there is a decent amount for players to do once the main credits have rolled. In the main game itself players have a series of collectibles that can be obtained and any side activities such as the taskmaster challenges can be done.

The DLCs offer short bursts of story content that take no more than a couple hours to complete but they also come with new bases, crimes and challenges to complete. Unfortunately, the new challenges are overseen and incessantly commented on by one of the newer and frankly annoying additions to Spidey’s rogues’ gallery, Screwball, who forces you to complete challenges for views.

 

Summary

Overall Marvel’s Spider-man is a great game with an engaging story with some genuine and relatable moments. The traversal mechanics are endlessly satisfying, and combat is fun. There is a good variety of activities for players to complete but some of the side activities lack variety and can become tedious.

 

Score

90/100

 

+ Satisfying traversal mechanics

+ Engaging plot

– Tedious Side Activities

 

Have you played the latest installment of the spider man series and if so, do you agree with Dan in his review of the game? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!