When Marvel’s Spider-Man was released in 218, developer Insomniac Games nailed the sensation of being super-powered, with exceptional web-swinging and agile combat. However, it faltered in providing engaging content within its visually stunning yet empty open world.
Unfortunately, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, while great in terms of its story and presentation, repeated those lingering missteps. While offering more of the same, including more collectibles, more in-depth skill trees, and double the Spider-Men, you could argue that it wasn’t necessarily redefining the franchise at that point.
So while this can be seen as developer Insomniac Games “reheating their nachos”, they did try to shoehorn in a decent Venom subplot on top of the main Kraven’s Last Hunt storyline, which can certainly be fun at times, even if it was juggling a little much.
Unfortunately, this PC port ultimately failed at improving upon the core experience, as it is probably the worst possible way to jump on board at this point in time.
For a more in-depth review regarding the story, gameplay mechanics, and its newest features, you can check out our original review of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
A Lifeless City
The dual protagonist mechanic is certainly slick but ultimately superficial, as the two heroes play similarly, with minor combat differences as far as mechanics are concerned. Miles does, however, retain his electrical abilities, while both heroes can now fly and glide across the city with some fresh wings.
Even on higher presets and settings, the city itself ultimately still feels a little lifeless. While beautifully rendered, most NPCs generally lack personality and side activities evernaulaly feel a little pointless after a few runs and don’t offer anything of substance outside of the main storyline.
Tasks like testing electric bikes or assisting students with prom plans feel like filler from an outdated open-world design and, admittedly, feel a little recycled from the previous game. I mean, there are only so many times we can catch a speeding getaway car.
Make no mistake, we loved the game initially and feel as though its strongest moments are within the main story. It’s just that the lack of exciting feels a little more obvious a year later.
A Buggy Experience
The PC port ultimately adds to the frustration, with frequent crashes and performance issues that detract from the experience. The game’s impressive autosave feature mitigates the annoyance of crashes, but constant reloading disrupts immersion. The consistent crashes have still not improved after the array of patches the studio Nixxes have been pumping out consistently since its rocky launch.
It is hard to pin down exactly when it happens as it is so consistently rough. Every 25 minutes or so, as you progress through the story, it will start bugging out and then completely crash out, sending you back to your desktop.
It is one of the most frustrating experiences I have had with a PC game, and a strong advocate for consoles like the Playstation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro to exist, to be able to have games designed for them perform well.
Final Thoughts
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 succeeds in refining the core mechanics of swinging and combat, but it squanders that potential with a dull narrative and uninspired world design.
On the PS5 and PS5 Pro, it serves as a solid technical showcase, but on PC, its flaws are more obvious. It’s so much so that it admittedly becomes hard to know if it is an issue with the port itself or the initial game design.
This is a sequel that feels less like a leap forward and more like a step back for PC ports of PlayStation games.
THREE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
Highlights: Great follow-up from the previous title in terms of story and satisfying gameplay and traversal
Lowlights: Consistent crashes; Brings with it flaws from the previous game
Developer: Insomniac Games, Nixxes
Publisher: Playstation Studios
Platforms: Windows PC, PlayStation 5
Available: Now
Review conducted on PC with a release code provided by the publisher.
