Marvel's Spider-Man - PlayStation 4

Insomniac Games did a great job bringing Spider-Man to the gamers. From gamers to comic fans, especially for those Spidey fans out there. They won't be disappointed with the Spider-Man gameplay. An easy combat combo system complete with finishers that just brings those comic pages to gamers and comic fans alike. The tutorial built into the story's prologue will get players familiar with controls. Yes, gamers can even swing through the city freely pulling off acrobatics stunts along the way to missions. Players can unlock, spidey suits each with unique special abilities and mods to empower Spider-Man. A with combat skill point system that gives more abilities to Spider-Man. Players do NOT need to unlock the skills system just adds for more combat options. For those players that like to, unlike all the skills before heading out on the story. Check out this youtube link here: https://youtu.be/smkgcGQD3bQ to unlock all the skill points early and level up Spider-Man. Along with combat skill points, players can add special gadgets to Spider-Man's combat abilities. There is even an in-game only social media menu. Players if want to, can read all the comments the citizens have about Spider-Man good and bad. The game is not without flaws and one of the biggest ones is the controls. At times the control gets sluggish or nonresponsive. Switched out controllers several times and even purchased a new controller and the response is still the same. This is a pain during combat and while trying to complete the challenges presented. There the tedious parts of the story that players have to play as the supporting characters. There was only one of those that enjoyed playing. Then the combat with the villain bosses being scripted doesn't distract but just would've liked to have more combat. Upon completing the story gamers can still free roam around the city fouling crimes. Hang out with citizens around the city to riding the subway. There is also additional content being added to the game that will introduce more gameplay with release dates yet to be determined. There may be reasons that some players will compare this title to another older title, Batman Arkham Asylum games. But Spider-Man stands on it's on webbing here.

Almost everything is perfect. I wish that the range to web things for swinging was a bit longer, and there are few instances were I feel like I'm telling the game to do something, and the conditions for what it requires are met (and does so 95% of the time when told in similar circumstances), and it disagrees with me about that and so it feels like it's ignoring button inputs, which can be super frustrating. I feel like there could be some adjustment on the button layout to make things smoother. Those issues weren't so common that they really detract from everything else the game does well. It looks great, it feels great. The story is easy to get invested in, and I want to follow it into sequels. I would note that one of the things many people complain about are sections where you're not playing as Parker/SM, with a largely stealth-focus. I enjoyed them. I enjoyed the game taking time to show other peoples perspectives, stepping back from SM's powers, giving them time to develop and shine. The sections aren't perfect, they could definitely be improved, and I hope a sequel maintains them while fleshing them out. I don't feel the game can escape comparison to the Arkham "Quadrilogy" (though not in a bad way, as of yet). Of that series, Asylum had a narrower focus on location and story that made a stronger package than its successors. The follow-ups, while still mostly solid, diluted the experience when they expanded scope and focus, and it came with a loss of quality and over-use of mechanics/concepts. Spider-Man already matches Arkham City in scope, though it does manage to have a story of much higher quality and emotional resonance. My hope is a sequel that can expand the gameplay mechanics, while continuing to maintain the story-telling quality that I feel diminished as the Arkham series progressed.

Before Robert Downey, Jr. popularized Iron Man, the most well known of Marvel’s superheroes was Spider-Man. He stood apart from other heroes because, when he wasn’t fighting crime, he was a pretty ordinary kid with relatable problems. He’s flawed, and funny, and trying to have a normal life, despite having these awesome abilities. A Spider-Man game was released earlier this month, available only on PlayStation 4, and set when Peter Parker has been Spider-Man for eight years. His relationship with Mary Jane Watson is strained, and he’s struggling to pay the rent on his tiny Manhattan apartment while working as a research assistant - and, of course, taking out street thugs in his time off. Familiar villains, like Doctor Octopus and The Vulture appear, as well as a newer villain - Mr. Negative. You start off with a few signature abilities - being able to swing from building to building, sticking bad guys to walls, and a good ol’ one-two punch. The game gradually unlocks new abilities, letting you learn how to control Spider-Man without having to stick you in an hour-long tutorial before you get to start playing. This works out fantastically, especially since it’s rewarding just to swing through the surprisingly accurate recreation of Manhattan. When I first started playing, I just swung around for 30 minutes, admiring the city - and when I stopped, I hadn’t realized it, but I landed right next to the Guggenheim. There have been lots of Spider-Man video games, which have ranged from horrible to pretty good. I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the news that there was a new Spider-Man game in development, since I figured it would be a movie tie-in and just be an average beat-em-up game. And then, when the game was released, I saw a flood of people on social media raving about it, and I’ve never been so happy to be wrong.

As with most games in this vein, there is a lot of repetition in tasks, but the storyline helps open up the side-quests necessary to fully level out and equip Spider-Man. Enough new non-story material gets introduced gradually to help prevent the repetitive nature from being so obvious. You can complete some landmark or crime events while swinging to your next story location. The unlocking of suits provides for some extra powers with the nice feature being that once unlocked you can use a suit-specific power with any of the unlocked suits. There are three equipment slots that give added bonuses, but since you can only equip three at a time you have to be picky in which ones you use (and unlock) and they don't seem to add much to the game. Gadgets are required for some parts of the storyline and once unlocked certain ones have certain advantages for completing bonus goals. All in all the game comes across like a combination of the Batman Arkham games and Assassin's Creed. Cinematic story with plenty of open world opportunities to explore. Places where the game has a deficit come with some of the odd camera angles during combat and web-swing chases - you will be blocked from all vision of what is happening, likely multiple times, during a fight as the camera gets stuck behind a van, water tower, or some other obstruction. Likewise, playing as Miles or Mary Jane you don't get the benefit of Spidey-Sense or a side-screen warning when a bad guy is on the verge of spotting you. Some of the Miles/Mary Jane sequences really slow the game down. When you're done, make sure to let the credits roll for a while....

It is hard to make a video game. Insanely hard. It is a task so gargantuan as to terrify even seasoned developers. That makes it nothing short of a miracle when a game even makes it to market. Making a GOOD game takes the efforts of dozens, if not hundreds of people (with rare exception). Making a GREAT game might as well be one of the Trials of Hercules. And making a Superhero game worth anything at all is akin to balancing a thousand camels on the head of a pin. So when I say that Insomniac have done the impossible, have delivered on their promises, and produced a Great Superhero game, I want you to understand my full meaning. Spider-Man is a revelation, greater than the sum of its parts and yet made of so many wonderful small bits. The graphics are gorgeous, bordering on ridiculous. The action is fun and tight, easily controllable, and non-stop. While it is by no means flawless, the minor scuffs and scratches disappear when you take in the grand scope of the title. You may see some unfair comparisons to the Arkham series of games. While the combat appears that way at first, there is far more depth and strategy required in Spider-Man than in any of Batman's adventures. A wide variety of goons keep you on your toes from the beginning to the end. For me, the most important part of any game is story. Spider-Man does not disappoint, with a brand-new adventure for the friendly neighborhood web-slinger. I honestly cannot recommend this game enough.

Insomniac Games has made the best Spider-man game ever. The open world coupled with the easy to learn controls makes swinging through the Big Apple totally fun. This game doesn't just showcase Spiderman but also Peter Parker and his "normal" life. The cut-scenes are charming and well written, as well as the characters, and feel as if it could have been in a movie. It makes you feel a connection to all the characters. Even the characters that usually take backstage. There are opportunities to play as Mary Jane (MJ) and Miles Moranis for example. There are also nods to the movies and comics throughout the games showing just how much love the developer has for this franchise. There is even a Stan Lee cameo. AlsoThere is plenty to do. Especially if you are a "collector". Peter's backpacks are stashed all over the city that have interesting items to give a history to the character as well as occasionally providing upgrades to your suit. And that is just one type of item to collect. Thus making the game replayable even after the main story is completed. I am writing this review quickly and off the cuff so I hope it doesn't sound like disjointed rambling. Suffice to say, this game is a must have. Every game system needs a "killer app" to justify purchasing a system. PS4 has had a few exclusives that are good "killer app" candidates (Uncharted, Horizon Zero Dawn, etc) but this is by far the best "killer app" to justify owning a PS4. imho

Spider-Man for PS4 gets a LOT right: swinging, combat, story, Spidey's personality, etc. But there are a few nitpicks. For example, the Sinister Six team-up teased is really only about maybe 5% of the game - the majority of the story focuses on Mr. Negative, a relatively new character to Spider-Man's rogues gallery. That's not necessarily bad by itself, but it does feel like there was a lot of wasted potential. The story itself is also fairly predictable, even though it's held together with some really great performances. There is a lot of busywork tasks like collecting backpacks, landmark tokens, research tokens, pigeons (yes, really) that, while not BAD, never feels particularly interesting, either. I also found myself surprised at just how much aerial combat there was, particularly late game, when the combat system frankly doesn't support it very well. The last few fights are more annoying than challenging, particularly the final boss, who feels cheap and unwieldy. There are also occasional stealth segments where you play as someone other than Spider-Man and must sneak past armed enemies. These are usually pretty short and decently-constructed, but every time one popped up I wanted to rush through so I could get back to being Spider-Man already. Overall I definitely enjoyed my time with it, the photo mode is great, it looks and feels fantastic, I love the optional suits and just how satisfying it is to see them in motion, but it's definitely not without some flaws.

The story is wooden and doesn't have any consistent edge, but the gameplay mechanics, traversal system, and combat mechanics are amazing. Webslinging through the city is like a constant minigame unto itself - you can unlock aerial tricks that build combat meters and XP. Spidey is remarkably responsive to environments, launching off pipes, cornering buildings, and moving through changes in terrain on a vertical wall run with near-seamless fluidity. The combat system reminds me of the Batman: Arkham Freeflow system, but faster and more responsive. Spidey's web zip ability means you can move quickly between different groups of enemies in a combat area, while the game holds you accountable for actually doing that by spawning enemies with guns, grenades, and rocket launchers. Plenty of character customizations are available, both strategic and cosmetic. There could always be more suit options, but there are plenty of looks available for Spider-Man. The game even manages to incorporate some puzzles and minigames that relate to Peter Parker's work as a scientist. I typically stick to games with edgier stories and M ratings, but this game is worth your time. I mean, even the Week 1 glitches managed to be kind of endearing (I have not encountered any, but as of the time of this review, the game's software version is on at least 1.05, so I'm sure they've patched a lot). Superb game, and a LOT of fun