Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is obviously going to iterate and expand on the foundations laid down by its predecessors in many ways, but as any sequel should, it’s also looking like it’ll also be introducing some very interesting changes and improvements in everything from its combat and traversal mechanics to its open world and more. Exactly how significant these changes will be is something we’ll only learn for sure when we have the game in our own hands, but developer Insomniac Games has, of course, already released some pretty meaty details on that front as well. As such, here, we’re going to take a look at some of those details and go over some of the biggest changes Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is making to the series’ formula.
TWO PROTAGONISTS
Let’s start with the biggest and most obvious difference. Though Peter Parker and Miles Morales have both been the stars of one game apiece so far, in Spider-Man 2, they’re going to be sharing equal billing, with both characters being playable protagonists and sharing the spotlight. In scripted, story sequences, the game will decide which of the two you’ll be playing as at what point, though out in the open world, players will have the option to switch between the pair almost at any time- and thanks to the PS5’s SSD, switching will also be near-instantaneous.
LARGER MAP
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is, like its predecessors, going to be set in New York- though Insomniac isn’t using the same map for a third game running. Manhattan is obviously returning from the previous two games, but Spider-Man 2’s map is going to be roughly twice as large as the map in the first two games. That, of course, means that there will be plenty of new locations to discover and visit that weren’t present in the first two games. Speaking of which…
NEW AREAS
You’ll be catching plenty of familiar sights as you’re zipping through Manhattan in Spider-Man 2, but the map will also feature quite a few new sights to see. For starters, two entire boroughs have been added in with Queens and Brooklyn, and put together, they’re promising quite a meaty chunk of new real estate for you to swing through. Some of the many new locations and landmarks you can expect to find in the game are Coney Island, Aunt May’s old house in Queens, the Brooklyn Visions Academy (which is Miles’ school), Peter’s old school at Midtown High, and more.
SKILL TREES
With Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 having two playable protagonists, it will also be making changes to how its progression system works. At its core, it will obviously remain quite familiar, with players earning skill points by earning experience and leveling up, though the key change will come in there now being three separate skill trees. Peter and Miles will each have one of their own, while the two will also share a common skill tree.
SUITS
Suits were a big selling point in both Marvel’s Spider-Man and Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and that obviously won’t be changing in Spider-Man 2, though the sequel is kicking things up a notch in this area as well. For instance, there are going to be a whopping 65 suits available in the game (though ten of these will be locked to the Digital Deluxe Edition), compared to 47 in the first game and 20 in Miles Morales. Additionally, each suit in Spider-Man 2 will also have multiple variants with different visual styles. In total, the game has over 200 suit variants.
COMBAT CHANGES
Combat in the original Spider-Man was already really good to begin with, and Miles Morales made it even better (primarily through the addition of Miles’ bioelectricity). In Spider-Man 2, it looks like things will once again be kicked up a notch. The most noteworthy change that the sequel seems to be making is that four gadgets and four special abilities are always mapped to the shoulder buttons, and are running on cooldowns. That means you’ll be using gadgets and abilities in combat much more often, and with much greater immediacy, which should hopefully make encounters even more flashy and dynamic. Meanwhile, Spider-Man 2 also features a parry mechanic, which should make an interesting addition to the series’ core combat loop of attacking and dodging. And of course, Peter’s Symbiote abilities are also being thrown into the mix, which, presumably, will also change things up in some pretty interesting ways. On top of that, Miles will have his own new abilities as well.
NEW GADGETS
Gadgets have had a big part to play in both of Insomniac’s Spidey games so far (in true Insomniac fashion), and unsurprisingly, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is going to inject some new ideas in this area as well. It obviously remains to be seen what the full lineup of its new gadgets will look like, but a few have already been officially revealed by Insomniac. There’s the Web Line, for instance, which lets you cast a line anywhere above enemies and stealthily move around with greater freedom. The Upshot, meanwhile, is a drone that knocks enemies into the air by shooting them with webs, and promises to be particularly useful for those who enjoy aerial combat. Another new gadget that has been revealed is the Web Grabber, which, as its name suggests, grabs enemies and yanks them together to a single spot.
NEW VILLAINS
Insomniac’s two Spider-Man games so far have had excellent casts of villains, with the likes of Doctor Octopus and Mister Negative leading the Sinister Six in the first game, and the Tinkerer and the Prowler stealing the show in Miles Morales. As you’d expect, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will bring its own new roster to the table. So far, three main villains have been revealed for the game, with Venom, Kraven the Hunter, and Lizard, and all three of them are looking like formidable enemies for the Spider-Men. Presumably, there are going to be several others that we don’t yet know about, some of whom might even be tied to side quests, if the first two games are anything to go by.
TRAVERSAL SPEED
The traversal was far and away the highlight in both Spider-Man and Miles Morales, so expectations are naturally going to be high in the upcoming sequel as well, and Insomniac is promising a number of key improvements on this front. One that should be instantly noticeable is the speed at which you’ll be swinging through the city. With the PS5’s SSD being able to load the open world at a significantly faster pace, Insomniac has said the speed of webswinging in Spider-Man 2 is going to be noticeably faster than in the first two games.
WEB WINGS
On top of the core speed of movement being much faster in Spider-Man 2, it’s also introducing a key addition to the traversal with gliding mechanics. Both Spider-Men are going to be equipped with web wings, which you’ll be able to activate and deactivate at anytime while you’re swinging through New York. Throughout the city, you’ll also find wind tunnels that’ll rapidly increase your movement speed while you’re gliding.
OPTIONAL FALL DAMAGE
This is a pretty small addition in the grand scheme of things, but an interesting one nonetheless. Obviously, you don’t expect to be dealing with the potential threat of fall damage when you’re playing a Spider-Man game, and sure enough, fall damage wasn’t a thing in either of Insomniac’s two Spidey titles so far. By default, that’s still going to be the case in Spider-Man 2, but if you do want to add some thrill to the traversal, you’ll have the option to enable fall damage.
NEW DISTRICT PROGRESS SYSTEM
Like Marvel’s Spider-Man and Miles Morales, the open world map of Spider-Man 2 is going to be split up into multiple districts, and each district will have several different side activities that you’ll be able to tackle. The sequel will, however, throw an additional wrinkle on top in the form of the new district progress system, which, as its name suggests, will give you rewards as you continue completing activities in a district. Each district will have three different tiers of progress, and the reward for the second one in each will be unlocking fast travel in that district.
NEW SIDE ACTIVITIES
Both of Insomniac’s Spider-Man games so far have had a wealth of side content to offer, and Spider-Man 2 will also have plenty of that peppered throughout its open world. While we can expect some familiar side activities to return (like taking photographs), new kinds of side activities are also being introduced, like chasing down Talon Drones that can be found flying throughout the city, retrieving Spider-Bots, finding Hunters’ cloaked Blinds all across New York to learn more about Kraven, and more.
MORE STORY-DRIVEN OPTIONAL CONTENT
One thing that the two Spider-Man games so far have faced some criticism for is the formulaic nature of some of the optional content they populated their open worlds with, but it looks like Insomniac is attempting to make some upgrades in this area. According to the developer, the optional activities in side quests in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will take on a much more narrative-driven approach, while some side quests will even lead to showdowns with new villains.
OPEN WORLD STRUCTURE
How you’ll find and discover more side content in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is also going to be a bit different than what you might remember from the first two games, both of which took a pretty conventional open world approach in this area. For instance, when discovering side activities, you’ll be much more reliant on audio and visual cues in the world itself than on looking for an icon on the map- like spotting a Talon Drone flying around a building in the distance. Additionally, Peter and Miles both also have their suits equipped with AR lenses, which means you’ll be able to see overlays pointing you to points of interest around you in a much more diegetic way.
