Highlights
- Wilson Fisk’s presence has been significant for the Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise and a reprisal is deserved in Marvel’s Spider-Man 3.
- While Kingpin may not be the main antagonist, his role should be rewarded with closure and a potential rematch with the Spider-Men in a dedicated side quest.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 had Kraven come through and clean out a great deal of Spider-Man villains, but who of that bunch managed to flee or survive is equally as important as who was slain. Doctor Octopus remained safe and sound while locked up at the Raft, for instance, and Sandman only narrowly got away in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 thanks to the Spider-Men. But considering there’s now been three installments of the Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise and not many antagonists who’ve been hanging around since the beginning, a Kingpin reprisal is due in Marvel’s Spider-Man 3.
What a Last of Us-esque Roguelike for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Could Look Like
The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered’s roguelike mode is a terrific adaptation of the game’s mechanics and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 should be next in line.
Marvel’s Spider-Man’s Kingpin is Still an Excellent Tutorial Boss
Kingpin may not be the most interesting antagonist in Spider-Man’s rogues’ gallery, but the unassuming crime lord can pack a wallop and does so menacingly in Marvel’s Spider-Man. It would be inaccurate to say Peter Parker makes quick work of Wilson Fisk in the ascot-enthusiast’s skyscraper penthouse seeing as how he comes away from their scrap needing a new suit, and putting away someone as literally and figuratively large as Kingpin demonstrates how close Spider-Man is with the NYPD with wonderful world-building.
Putting Kingpin behind bars is evidently the catalyst for the whole story since Mr. Negative’s Inner Demons decide to move forward with their plans once Fisk is more or less out of the picture, too, and therefore his impact is certainly felt. Kingpin is then seen in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, pulling strings from within the Raft as he’s known to do with such an imposing influence both inside and outside of any prison.
Why Kingpin is Unlikely to Make a Big Splash in Marvel’s Spider-Man 3
Kingpin is guaranteed not to be the main antagonist of Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 with Doctor Octopus and Norman Osborn around, and he probably wouldn’t be the tutorial boss in a third game since he served that role in the original title. Instead, having him somewhere in the middle would illustrate a throughline for him between each installment and give him the perfect amount of importance and purpose as one of the only antagonists still lingering in the franchise.
To see Kingpin reformed would be unnecessary with Tombstone and Mr. Negative already being developed that way, and Kingpin has a score to settle with not one but two Spider-Men whenever he ends up resurfacing. That alone makes the potential for a rematch boss fight with him at the end of a side quest exciting, even if his role isn’t as vital to the story as it was in Marvel’s Spider-Man.
Kingpin Would Struggle to Belong in Marvel’s Spider-Man 3
On the other hand, it might be difficult to iterate on his original boss fight engagingly since Kingpin is essentially the prototype brute enemy players have taken down now countless times, and yet his place in the story should be rewarded with proper closure to his arc by giving him a poignant beat or something to hold over New York City. Having Fisk thugs return as an enemy type could also be underwhelming if they’re not armed with special weapons like Kraven’s hunter enemy faction in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
However, because Insomniac has gone ahead and begun redecorating Fisk Tower as the Baxter Building, the Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise may have seen as much of Kingpin as it’s ever going to. Fisk Towers indeed finished construction already from what was once the site Peter battles Inner Demons atop, but Fisk rising to power again after having been incarcerated is a plot device Insomniac would need to tread carefully. If New York hasn’t forgiven Osborn for creating Devil’s Breath, as evidenced by an on-the-nose Green Goblin mural in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, it surely hasn’t forgiven Fisk for money laundering and sabotaging businesses in Harlem.
To see Kingpin reformed would be unnecessary with Tombstone and Mr. Negative already being developed that way, and Kingpin has a score to settle with not one but two Spider-Men whenever he ends up resurfacing.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
The sequel to 2018’s Spider-Man and its Miles Morales spin-off, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is a PS5 console exclusive. Insomniac’s open-world game features Peter Parker and Miles Morales as dual protagonists, with the two heroes going up against the likes of Kraven, Venom, and Lizard.
- Released
- October 20, 2023
- Publisher(s)
- Sony Interactive Entertainment
- ESRB
- T For Teen Due To Blood, Drug Reference, Mild Language, Violence
- How Long To Beat
- 20 Hours
- Metascore
- 90
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
