Summary
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2's gameplay reveal has provided a lot of information about the game, including the diverse gameplay styles of Peter and Miles and the significance of the symbiote suit.
- The trailers have seemingly revealed important plot points, such as Harry's return and his potential connection to Venom. This transparency could be a deliberate choice to give fans a clear understanding of the game's direction.
- Although some surprises can enhance the storytelling experience, having too many hidden elements could potentially clutter the narrative. Revealing key details beforehand allows players to fully appreciate the written narratives while still leaving room for excitement and discovery.
Gaming nowadays is especially intriguing for fans of narrative-driven titles where pre-release marketing revolves around what is and isn’t shown from an IP. Many of PlayStation’s AAA franchises recently fall under this category, where gameplay is often taking a backseat to what story implications could be made in a teaser or trailer. Of course, gameplay is still massively impactful and can shed further details on events going on in a story, like how Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 revealed Peter would be wearing the symbiote suit and brandishing its tendrils in the sequel’s first gameplay reveal.
Indeed, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s gameplay reveal eclipsed that of the original by adding another couple of minutes worth of content, and in it Insomniac seems to have basically laid bare the entire gameplay loop of both Peter and Miles’ individual Spider-Men. It is now known that Peter and Miles will have diverse gameplay that is distinct from one another, and fans can presume that Peter will be wearing the symbiote suit for quite some time in the story. There’s obviously a lot Insomniac will not have shown yet, but if its gameplay and primary villains are all squared away for fans that could actually be a boon going forward.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Might Already Have All Its Cards on the Table
Looking at how Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 chose to reveal information has been an intriguing journey to say the least, but it does seem as if a lot has actually been shared. Kraven and Venom have both been the sequel’s highlights since Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s initial teaser announcement, and the subsequent, full reveal of Kraven in his own establishing cinematic emphasized that again.
Peter wearing the symbiote suit demonstrated that the symbiote will play a monumental role in gameplay, but since Venom was already revealed to be a villain it instantly became clear to fans that Peter won’t have the symbiote bonded to him for the entire game. Implications like these can be made about almost any of the details Insomniac has shared thus far, and each trailer has seemed to spill precisely what the sequel will revolve around: Harry coming back from his stasis and working with Peter to potentially research a cure for his disease, while Kraven arrives to hunt whoever he deems worthy.
It seems obvious, too, that Harry will become Venom based on what has been teased, and concept art for the sequel has already revealed what looks like the final battles for Kraven and Venom. Venom’s full reveal is particularly interesting because it could have likely been done in an effort to sell the collector’s edition without needing to obscure its statue like Marvel’s Spider-Man’s collector’s edition statue needed to.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Hiding Anything More Might Muddy It Too Much
Marvel’s Spider-Man hid a lot from its trailers, making it seem as though Mr. Negative would be the main antagonist. Mr. Negative was the primary villain for a while, but he is quickly eclipsed by Otto Octavius publicly becoming Doctor Octopus in the third act, which had unfortunately been leaked before the game was released.
Insomniac could be hiding an entire villain or storyline from fans for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, but perhaps it has unveiled this important information already in an attempt to avoid any significant spoilers and show fans exactly what they’re in for. It is true that games like The Last of Us Part 2 hiding a lot of what fans should expect from the story could be detrimental to what fans expect from it, but that shouldn’t thwart developers from keeping some details sacred until players experience them themselves.
Otherwise, if players have truly been shown who the main antagonists of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 are already and what moment-to-moment gameplay will look like throughout the sequel for each Spider-Man, that might be a boon. Too many more secrets or hidden storylines could muddy the sequel, which looks packed to the brim with content.
Having another villain thrown into the mix could be detrimental to the entire story, and hiding them for the sake of at least one villain being kept clandestine might not be as satisfying as having them revealed and fully fleshed out during the events of the narrative since that might mean they have been written into it well without the story trailer needing to omit a ton of what players will eventually see.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 launches on October 20, exclusively for PlayStation 5.