After sinking 70 hours into the first Spider-Man game developed by the studio Insomniac Games, I was ecstatic to jump into the spinoff game based around the other notorious Spider-Man Miles Morales. Morales was actually given a good amount of screentime in the first game, but really only was important in a post credit scene, where he reveals to Peter that he got bit by a spider as well.
While Miles Morales is a much quicker playthrough in its main story, the gameplay, visuals and the pacing of the story are very enjoyable, and definitely up there with the original. The main story took me about eight hours to complete and while currently trying to get the Platinum Trophy, I am already pushing 20 hours.
In my review of the first Spider-Man game, I mentioned how the opening does a great job of helping the player get used to the controls. Morales excels in this once more, but also starts the game out with a bang. After a quick swing and meet-up with Peter Parker, the two Spider-Mans begin to fight Rhino and Morales frantically tries to steer him out of harm’s way after Rhino starts a rampage in a mall.
Instantly the visual performance and upgrades can be noticed. In this game, there are almost zero loading screens. If anything, it is just a short black fade transition when going from the main menu to the game itself.
Visually the game looks stunning, and while it is the same exact New York City map from the original game, this time the game is set in the holiday season, so the massive playground is covered in snow, all while having a sunset skyline for a good majority of the game. This is actually very refreshing. I was worried Morales wouldn’t have felt as special as the original due to the map being the exact same, but small changes like this can make a map feel brand new.
The story once more is very straightforward, and certainly intrigued me way more than I thought it would. Similarly to the first game, there is a sort of “gang war” featuring a corrupt business called Roxxon, and a terrorist faction known as “The Underground.” The Underground steals a bioweapon made by Roxxon that is capable of destroying an entire sector of New York City.
One of my only gripes with the first Spider-Man game was that the main villain was very easy to snoop out. And while in this game there are technically three villains, the one who does end up being the main villain actually did kind of shock me at first.
Simon Krieger is the owner of the Roxxon company, but from his cocky attitude and insane confidence, you can tell he’s up to something. Morales’ uncle Aaron as per usual is The Prowler, and while he does commit crimes, he’s more so a businessman. Prowler also gets a soft spot for Morales after quickly concluding that this new Spider-Man is Miles. I love what they did with Prowler in this game.
But the main villain, The Tinkerer, turns out to be Morales’ lifelong friend Phin. This was somewhat unexpected, but when she said she couldn’t tell Morales why she’d been gone for months, the mission before the big reveal, it became apparent to me.
Gameplay-wise, Morales is infinitely better than Peter Parker in the original game. Morales has his venom electricity which adds a whole new layer of combat and movement to the game. To make the gameplay even cooler, Morales is capable of going invisible. This can help you get out of troubling scenarios or help you go into missions even stealthier.
Morales also has different gadgets which also keep the game from feeling redundant. Other than that, this game keeps all the things people loved from the original and fixes things that needed fixing from the first game.
One last element I want to touch on is the side quests. These so far have been far more enjoyable in this game compared to the original. Rather than finding some pigeons for an old man, you go through a secret base of The Underground in the sewers to find a missing cat for a shop owner or raid a shipping container center to find products stolen from another small business. These new side quests feel immersive and fun, not so much a chore.
Overall, Miles Morales is a very great game, but I would say get the game when it’s on sale. I got my copy for $25. I would have felt scammed if I paid a full $60 for it. But with phenomenal gameplay, a good story, fun Platinum Trophy and stunning visuals, Miles Morales keeps that charm that the original Spider-Man game started with.
Final Rating: 8.3/10
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