I never thought I’d see the day when something would battle Arkham City for my favourite superhero game of all time but here we are. Spider-Man 2 is simply a phenomenal gaming experience and more than delivered on the hype.
Right from the get go, this game opens with the greatest intro of all time and really sets the tone for the rest of the game. Now this game does a lot of the same types of things (obviously) but improves on them in every single way. The biggest positive I can give in terms of gameplay is that the boss battles are no longer dodge a few attacks and then hit a QTE, it feels much more intuitive and more difficult which was a pleasant surprise. MJ stealth missions which were notorious for being awful are vastly improved with much more to do within them and even her own mini boss to fight.
Where this game really shines is how it handles the characters, particularly Kraven and Venom. We don’t get many Kraven adaptations, simply because he only really has one iconic story and to no surprise this game also focuses on that but takes a unique approach. His boss battle is also insane as is what follows shortly after. Then Venom arrives and the game is just moving like a freight train in this third act. The Venom design is one of the best and I love the bold choices they made with this character.
The side content is where most people have hang ups with this game, as it has been trimmed a fair bit. Some of this is good, like crimes being way less tedious and not being required for districts or the platinum trophy but if I had one complaint I do wish there was more to do outside of the main quest. There are some incredible side missions however like Grandpa Earl and Howard, both hitting like a ton of bricks. I think the DLC needs to be big, way bigger than the ones from the first game which were just okay in my opinion. I think Carnage and Chameleon are locks for DLC picks but I would also love them to go down the King in Black route with Knull. All in all this is one of the best games I’ve ever played and I can’t wait for the DLC and to replay it on Ultimate difficulty.
Right from the get go, this game opens with the greatest intro of all time and really sets the tone for the rest of the game. Now this game does a lot of the same types of things (obviously) but improves on them in every single way. The biggest positive I can give in terms of gameplay is that the boss battles are no longer dodge a few attacks and then hit a QTE, it feels much more intuitive and more difficult which was a pleasant surprise. MJ stealth missions which were notorious for being awful are vastly improved with much more to do within them and even her own mini boss to fight.
Where this game really shines is how it handles the characters, particularly Kraven and Venom. We don’t get many Kraven adaptations, simply because he only really has one iconic story and to no surprise this game also focuses on that but takes a unique approach. His boss battle is also insane as is what follows shortly after. Then Venom arrives and the game is just moving like a freight train in this third act. The Venom design is one of the best and I love the bold choices they made with this character.
The side content is where most people have hang ups with this game, as it has been trimmed a fair bit. Some of this is good, like crimes being way less tedious and not being required for districts or the platinum trophy but if I had one complaint I do wish there was more to do outside of the main quest. There are some incredible side missions however like Grandpa Earl and Howard, both hitting like a ton of bricks. I think the DLC needs to be big, way bigger than the ones from the first game which were just okay in my opinion. I think Carnage and Chameleon are locks for DLC picks but I would also love them to go down the King in Black route with Knull. All in all this is one of the best games I’ve ever played and I can’t wait for the DLC and to replay it on Ultimate difficulty.