Note: This post is a companion piece to the review. It is full of spoilers for Spiderman 2 and some from The Last of Us 2 – it will not contain any media. If you have any concerns of being spoiled, leave this article now.

Okay, so if you’re here you’ve read part one of my review for Spider-Man 2, and you probably have questions. Or are just wondering exactly how stupid I am by giving this a lower score than what you expected. If you’re on the fence about this, keep in mind that I am a walking encyclopedia of Spider-Man knowledge, having read every spin-off, series, mini-series, back issue, and trade paperback I could from 1990 to the mid-2000s. While I have eased up on my comic purchases, I have still kept my finger on the pulse of everyone’s favorite wall-crawler, and even more so Venom, and at a minimum kept up on their major story arcs, especially those that Insomniac clearly took inspiration from for this game.

I almost feel like Insomniac marketed this in a shady way that was very much in line with what Naughty Dog did with The Last of Us 2. I was sold on a Venom story, which this is, but he’s such a small part of it, it feels like someone told Insomniac they had to include him and he was tacked on at the end of development akin to what happened with Sam Raimi in Spider-Man 3. Yes, he plays a large part in the narrative, but in all honesty, he and his symbiote kin deserved their own game. Full stop. You can’t market arguably the most popular of Spider-Man antagonists so heavily and give him a fraction of the screen time – this left me with a bad taste in my mouth, kind of like when I bought a game I thought was going to give me more of one of my favorite protagonists in gaming, only to bust his face in with a 9-iron. Or a sand wedge. I can’t remember and don’t want to relive that, but I kind of did here in its own way. I didn’t even mind that Venom wasn’t Eddie Brock, because in the other media he’s taken so many other characters as a host that it’s a nothing burger. If you don’t factor in all of Harry’s screentime, Venom is in this game just about as much as Joel was in TLOU2. 

So, in order for Venom to become Venom, we all know that the suit had to leave Parker and end up on someone else, which it felt overly safe for Insomniac to send it back to Harry. I think it would’ve made more sense for the character if it bounced around or even took control of some of the other villains featured, not only because that’s happened a few times in the comics, but it would’ve made for some more fun gameplay improvements, and we’ve already ripped the canon to shreds.

The next nonsensical choice was quietly turning Peter into Anti-Venom, one of Venom’s many spawns from the comics after he was rid of the original symbiote. This is obvious in the name of the skin, which turns all of his symbiotic powers white instead of black for the remainder of the game, but is just casually mentioned in a rushed way. This should have been someone else without a shred of doubt.

If MJ hadn’t been ruined enough in this game, turning her into Scream was yet another bs decision that irked me. Again, this all should’ve been saved for a stand-alone game where Venom/the symbiotes were the sole antagonists. I will hand it to them that the emotional exchange between MJ and Peter during this fight was some of the best writing in the game, but it was also just flat-out wrong and idiotic. Not to mention when they inevitably revisit the Scream when they make a return in a spin-off, DLC, or sequel, it probably won’t be here and historically, the symbiotes take on traits from their current and previous hosts.

Then we move on to Carnage, who doesn’t really appear in the game but is heavily alluded to in a side mission involving the flamer gang, who should be the mortal enemy of Venom and his alien cohorts due to their dislike of fire. Cletus Cassidy is supposed to be a prolific serial killer. A household name if you will. Here, he’s some asshole that Peter has never heard of and will likely be returning in the next entry, much to my disdain. If you’re going to do Carnage, it needs to be done right, which outside of Maximum Carnage from the 16-bit era has yet to happen in gaming. I really hope that Insomniac leaves this story alone, because it remains one of my favorite storylines they haven’t completely ruined in their games thus far, with Spider-Man: Reign being the other.

I found the complete lack of other heroes outside of a brief audio cameo by Wong to be somewhat confusing since there are a few city-wide events going on, such as the giant sandstorm caused by Sandman, as well as the massive symbiote invasion, and no one else joining the fray. There are hints that mention the other heroes being a thing, but at no point do The Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four, or even Daredevil show up to help, which looking back on these similar events in the comics, would at least be referenced.

Finally, we move into my most hated part of the story – the end. I am normally a pretty level-headed gamer and while I will scream, curse, and yell from time to time, I rarely want to throw my controller at the TV, but this was one of those times. Peter reveals to Miles that he is going to hang up his web shooters and leave New York in the less-than-capable hands of Miles. To me, Miles Morales is Miles Morales. He is not Spider-Man. This statement may upset you, but it’s the truth, and I know I am not alone in this sentiment. I am sure Peter will always play a part in this series if it continues, but to what end is dubious. I personally will not continue without him. I don’t have anything against Miles as a character, he’s just not the Spider-Man I signed up for – he’s aimed at a more diverse and modern audience, but if you think back, Spider-Man single-handedly carried the Marvel brand for years, and remains their most profitable property. If they decide to flip that switch, I don’t see it ending well for Insomniac, Marvel, or anyone else with their hand in the pot.

I am sure that I am missing some other non-sensical changes to the narrative and characters, but by the time the post-credit scenes rolled and I had the platinum trophy added to my account, I felt underwhelmed. This shouldn’t be the case when I was playing a game that followed some of my favorite comic book heroes (and anti-hero). As a game, this was a solid experience with some mild issues, but as a Spider-Man experience, it missed the mark by a mile.

Check out OpenCritic for a better idea of how our review stacks against others.