Spider-Man is one of the most popular superheroes of all time, and his video games have been just as successful. There have been dozens of Spider-Man games released, each with its own unique take on the web-slinging hero. Below, based on my opinion, I’ll tell you what rankings each Spider-Man game has, from worst to best, and why.
14 – Spider-Man (2000)
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is widely regarded as a compelling title for many reasons. Firstly, its gameplay mechanics were innovative for its time, the game offered a compelling blend of open-level exploration and great storytelling.
Characters like Venom and Scorpion provided challenging encounters and added depth to the story. While the graphics weren’t cutting-edge by today’s standards, they were impressive for the time, and it was good enough to get a sequel.
This game isn’t necessary the worst, it’s just really dated so it can’t beat the rest.
13 – Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro (2001)
Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro was a great sequel to Spider-Man. Spider-Man has to stop the electrically-powered villain Electro’s plans in this game.
While it looks a lot like the previous game, it takes a step forward. Players could actually touch the ground on many city streets. If you wanted to train, you used the X-Men’s danger room, which looks blocky but fun.
Related: Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales PC — Is it worth it?
12 – Spider-Man (2002)
This Spider-Man game was based on the movie featuring Toby Maguire, and seems more like a remake of the original Spider-Man than a huge step forward. Players could go through key moments in the film, with a lot more sneaking than there should be, and fight off the Green Golbin.
Similarly to the Spider-Man released two years ago, this Spider-Man cannot touch the city floor, so if he gets too low, it’s game over. The fighting is also really glitchy, and the sneaking is broken because it’s very difficult and there’s no good design to tell you where to go. This does stray from the movie’s play a bit, but it still feels like a movie-tie in and is an okay game overall.
11 – The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
This game had everything going against it. The main story campaign in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is only 10 hours long, the web swinging was still as boring as the previous game, and the gameplay was repetitive. You’re pretty much going from point A to point B, just fighting bad guys with just the movie’s plot to tell you why. Sure, there definitely were new gadgets and moves, but this only beats the original Spider-Man because it looks better. If the graphics were the same, it wouldn’t be much better.
10 – The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
The Amazing Spider-Man is a super divisive game because it’s not as good as the Toby Maguire games and takes a big step back from them. You no longer swing in the way made in Spider-Man 2, and your webs stick to clouds. That was a big hit to many fans, and it didn’t help that this game featured a Spider-Man that wasn’t Toby.
This game tried really hard to be good either way, with side missions, multiplayer, and many other things. However, it’s just a movie tie-in, following the same plot and not necessarily being any better than your average movie game.
9 – Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Spider-Man 3 was great whenever it seemed like Spider-Man 2, but not great mostly any other time. The combat changed from acrobatic and smooth to the hard hit and soft hit that we’re used to.
The small crimes were gone and replaced by gang territory side missions, and the black suit kind of fell short. You were a lot stronger with the new symbiote suit and it was hard to take off but it really only seemed like a cosmetic change most of the time. It’s honestly the worst of the good Spider-Man games.
Related: 5 Potential Spider-Man Villains I’d Love To See in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
8 – Spider-Man: Edge of Time (2011)
Spider-Man: Edge of Time was really well received and would have likely gotten some form of a sequel had it not been for the Amazing Spider-Man movies needing games. Spider-Man from two eras, Amazing Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2099, work together to prevent a dystopian future.
In Edge of Time, players get a complex and interconnected storyline that isn’t what you normally get when you’re a big superhero. Despite not being groundbreaking, the gameplay maintains Spider-Man’s web-swinging mechanics. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as good as Web of Shadows, so if you’re a studio and have to choose between a movie game and an okay game, you’ll go with the movie game.
7 – Spider-Man: Friend or Foe (2007)
During the movie tie-in days, this was a needed fresh breath to the series. It was a brand-new story where players teamed up with Marvel heroes and villains in a light-hearted, action-packed adventure.
The game’s story revolves around an alien threat, providing a straightforward and engaging narrative for players to follow. This was not a standout game, but it was a good way to bring players back into the world of Spider-Man outside of the movies.
6 – Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (2008)
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows, released in 2008, was the standout game that people needed to love Spider-Man games. The game features a storyline that involves Spider-Man dealing with a city overrun by symbiotes, and it is up to Spider-Man to stop them. The great part about this game was that you could use both the classic red and blue suit and the black symbiote suit. They played very differently, and if you spent too long making choices that only a symbiote Spider-Man would, you’d get a more sinister ending.
5 – Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions (2010)
Spider-Man games at the time were not getting much attention, so a lot of people missed out on Shattered Dimensions. The storyline revolves around a crisis involving mystical artifacts, leading to rifts in space-time and the collision of these diverse Spider-Man realities. Players encounter a wide range of iconic villains specific to each dimension and meet different Spider-Men.
This game stands out because it explores four different dimensions, each featuring a unique Spider-Man character. You can play as different versions of Spider-Man, each with their own abilities and gameplay dynamics, and it is done really well.
Related: Top 6 ways Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 looks to improve upon Marvel’s Spider-Man 1
4 – Ultimate Spider-Man (2005)
Ultimate Spider-Man, released in 2005, is highly regarded for its faithful adaptation of the Marvel Comics series. This game’s standout features include a captivating storyline and striking comic book art style that makes you feel like you’re in a Spider-Man comic book.
Ultimate Spider-Man keeps the same web-swinging but it really felt different to me. It felt a lot less controlled and a lot more wild, like I wasn’t really in control of how fast or smooth I went through the air. Players switch between playing as Spider-Man and Venom, each with their own distinct abilities and gameplay styles. Venom is as much of a menace in this game as he is in the comic, totally eating people.
3 – Spider-Man 2 (2004)
This is the Spider-Man game that laid the foundation for every other game on major consoles. In the open-world design, players could travel all over New York City and swing in what was the best webswinging at the time. It follows the movie’s plot closely, immersing players in Peter Parker’s dual life as a hero and a student.
The swinging was the selling point of this game, I loved it, it was the first time I felt like Spider-Man in a game and a lot of people feel the same way. The missions themselves are pretty interesting and fun to play through but the side activities really sell the idea that this is the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
Saving balloons, catching purse snatchers, and small crimes are also on Spider-Man’s radar.
2 – Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020)
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, built on everything Marvel’s Spider-Man did well but not by much. The only reason it’s not number one is because it did not feel like a full-fledged sequel. It did what the original did and fixed a few things, but that’s it. It looked better and had a new character, but it was really short and it felt like you were still playing the last game.
As such, it’s still amazing and one of the best Spider-Man games ever made, but it’s just not a big step forward. It’s a baby step forward.
1 – Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018)
This was a return to form for Spider-Man. For so long, many of the fans were saying that nothing could beat Spider-Man 2. Marvel’s Spider-Man feels like a spiritual successor, giving players webswinging that outdid what was once the best version of it. It followed the comics, it had a funny Spider-Man, and it felt great. It did everything right, and the story is amazing, just like Spider-Man.
Open-world New York City is back, and Peter is still trying to make his double life work in it. He struggles, has relationships, and has responsibilities, which makes him more believable as a character. It’s hard not to immerse yourself in Peter. As Stan Lee once said, it could be anybody under there, and I definitely felt my heart beating quickly at the high points and hurt at the low points. It’s a shame this is PlayStation only because it’s fantastic.
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