While Insomniac Games may be focused on Marvel's Wolverine right now, the studio is definitely charting out what Marvel's Spider-Man 3 will look like. Not only have leaks pointed to a very bright future for the Marvel's Spider-Man franchise, but the success of the second has also helped to guarantee a complete trilogy. And even though there are many directions Insomniac could take the story, Marvel's Spider-Man 3 may be facing an extremely steep uphill battle when it comes to its open-world.
Across three different games, Insomniac has delivered an expansive New York City for Spider-Man to swing through. That has made for a great experience, but there's only so much further the studio can take the iconic city. It also can't really take Spider-Man away from it either, as the web-swinger has always called it home. So, that has seemingly left Insomniac with a major decision to make about the design of the open world.
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Insomniac Games Can Only Take New York City So Far
Marvel's Spider-Man introduced players to a beautifully realized New York City that was a joy to swing through. Specifically, Insomniac gave players the island of Manhattan, complete with all the iconic landmarks they would expect. Additionally, it filled it with all sorts of classic Marvel buildings, including the Daily Bugle, the Sanctum Sanctorum, and even the Avengers Tower. Couple that with the thrilling gameplay, and it is easy to see why this game is one of the best superhero games to date.
For Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Insomniac simply tossed some snow onto the city and let players experience it during winter time. Then, Marvel's Spider-Man 2 took it to an entirely different level by also letting players explore Brooklyn and Queens. These additions nearly doubled the size of the first two games, which was fantastic to see. But, that has now left Marvel's Spider-Man 2 with only two more boroughs to explore: the Bronx and Staten Island. And while it might be cool to see those, it might also be time for something new after spending three games within the confines of the same city.
Spider-Man and New York City Are Too Connected to Leave it Behind
It would make sense to expand New York City for the next game, but it may not be different enough for players to enjoy. There were already some criticisms that the city was more of the same, so it may be time to shake things up. However, taking Spider-Man away from his city could also be a massive mistake if not handled carefully enough.
Spider-Man has always called New York City home, with almost every single film and game taking place within the confines of the city. Just like with Batman and Gotham City, Spider-Man and New York City have become inseparable over the years. The Marvel Cinematic Universe even tried changing things with Spider-Man: Far From Home, but while the film was reviewed well, the lack of Manhattan felt at odds with what fans had come to expect. Since then, no one has really tried to do the same thing again.
Although it is possible, taking Spider-Man away from New York City may be too risky for Insomniac to attempt. But at the same time, after three games explored this same city, players deserve some more variety. And as the franchise goes on further, the studio will likely run out of ways to expand the city enough to keep it interesting. This may put Insomniac at a bit of a crossroads; hopefully it finds a way to strike a balance between Spider-Man classics and refreshing content.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2
- Released
- October 20, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
Spider-Men Peter Parker and Miles Morales face the ultimate test of strength inside and outside the mask as they fight to save the city, each other and the ones they love, from the monstrous Venom and the dangerous new symbiote threat.
Explore an expansive Marvel’s New York with faster web-swinging and the all-new Web Wings, quickly switching between Peter and Miles to experience different stories, epic new abilities and high-tech gear.
Wield Peter’s symbiote abilities and Miles’ explosive bio-electric powers in battle against new and iconic Marvel Super Villains – including an original take on a symbiote-infused Venom, the ruthless Kraven the Hunter, the volatile Lizard, and more from the Marvel Rogues’ Gallery.
- ESRB
- T For Teen Due To Blood, Drug Reference, Mild Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Insomniac Games
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
- Franchise
- Spider-Man
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PC
- Genre(s)
- Open-World, Action-Adventure, Superhero
- How Long To Beat
- 17 hours
- Metascore
- 90
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
