A long time ago there was a really good Spider-Man game. It had dynamic, momentum-based web-swinging mechanics that were actually enjoyable to use, as well as the open-world setting of New York to play around with them in. The combat was entertaining (for its time), with involved combos and multiple methods to choose from in dispatching your enemies, and there was never a lack of anything to do - provided you didn't mind the occasional balloon retrieval effort. The game was called Spider-Man 2, and for a child in the early 2000s, there was no better way to spend your evening.
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While there have been a number of new Spider-Man games since then, none of them have really ever captured that same fantasy, that unique feeling of running, swinging, and fighting just like how the actual comic book hero would. Yesterday's reveal might've just rekindled that old magic, though. Check it out:
This newest installment in the long line of Spider-Man titles comes across as a mix between Arkham City and Unchartered. There's an unexpected stealth to the player's movements as he quietly stalks enemies from above before quickly eliminating them in one quick, silent movement.
That doesn't last long however, and the presentation soon devolves into a beat-em-up fest featuring some pretty cool looking maneuvers on Spider-Man's part. Every fight ends in a different way; some helplessly stuck behind a wall of web, others struck unconscious (yeah, right) by massive steel girders. The way in which the environment lends itself to the fight is certainly interesting in its dynamic nature, though one has to wonder how common such occurrences will be in the final product.
The big thing most of us were waiting came when Spider-Man left the construction site in pursuit of a fleeing helicopter through the city. It's hard to say for sure how scripted the sequence is; there's definitely nothing natural in the way the equipment-in-tow crashes through the city, destroying each piece of architecture in a different manner. The developers have yielded some promising information since their presentation, though.
With that promise in mind, it's hard not to feel excited over Insomniac's upcoming title. The game doesn't launch until 2018, so more gameplay will likely be released before then. Until then, you can follow Insomniac's Twitter account for more information related to Spider-Man, or visit the official website for access to community forums, developer blogs, and news about the studio's other titles.
