Review for Spider-Man. Game for PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 07/09/2018
It all started with a small bite. Stan Lee e Steve Ditko they chose to start everything from a simple spider, radioactive obviously, to give life to what would become one of the most famous and acclaimed superheroes ever: Spider-man, the beloved neighborhood webbing. Thanks to his pungent irony, his everyday dramas and amazing adventures, Peter Parker and his costumed alter-ego have made a splash with comics fans around the world., enough to make him a figure now recognized everywhere. The success of the Wallramp is not only to be found in its superhero aspect, but also in its human side: Spidey is the hero who comes closest to ordinary people.
With the passage of time the character has not been relegated to the world of comics alone but has literally invaded the media to then, obviously, incarnate himself in a video game. There have been numerous titles dedicated to Spider-Man that over the years have entertained and amused (more or less) his fans and more. The last one, upon which numerous and great expectations have been built, is it Spider-Man di Insomniac Games on which Sony has bet and bet a lot.
The texture of the canvas
The alarm goes off, the bills to pay loom and the police radio warns that the raid on Wilson Fisk's building has started. On the costume and go! Peter / Spidey rushes to Kingpin's mansion for the long-awaited moment: it's time to put the New York crime czar behind bars. Behind what practically is the tutorial, Insomniac hides one of the most important events of the entire plot. The capture of Wilson Fisk, in fact, will set in motion a series of events that will set the whole of New York on fire. Under a veneer of deceptive security of a modern and constantly evolving city led by an unprecedented mayor Norman Osborn, there are in fact threats that will put the city in a situation that to define precarious is a euphemism: the risks that the Big Apple will run are very real.
Inside the plot will take place many of the classic characters of the spider universe such as Aunt May and Mary Jane, together with the more modern ones such as Miles Morales, Yuri Watanabe and Martin Li, just to name a few. We did not understand why the names of some characters were reported in their Spanish version while others did not, such as the Vulture, which in the game is called Vulture. In any case, don't be frightened by the quantity of well-known faces: each character will be detailed and characterized as it should, without ever being left on the sidelines to make a mockery. Obviously some of them will play a main role within the plot, which will prove to be very captivating and totally in line with the style of the paper stories of the Spider.
The characters have been transposed with their main characterizations without distortions, but at the same time they have been renewed (with very interesting implications) and reinterpreted in a different key, following the lines of a totally new plot that (this is a gem) will probably come presented in part, in Spidergeddon: one of the next sagas of the print version of Spider-Man. Playing the Spider-Man of Insomniac Games will be like reading a long saga of the Spider in which Gage, the writer who collaborated on its creation, will give his vision of the character seasoning it with various twists that will amaze even the most seasoned fans. Once you select the "New Game" item you will be captured by the NY spider in all its facets, and by the hectic life of Peter Parker who will be divided between laboratory assistant (bye bye Daily Bugle) and masked executioner. Indeed, divide is perhaps the wrong word to describe the dualism between Peter and the Spider: the two worlds will in fact be practically merged together, with the scientist who will need the executioner and vice versa, making the plot even more in tune with the original character.
Not particularly exciting, however, the playable sections in the role of Mary Jane: the redhead, here as an assault reporter for the Bugle, will often find herself in unpleasant situations in which she will have to get away with only her cunning and some electronic bait . These small brackets, although with their own why, are not in the least comparable to those in the role of Spider-Man: except for a couple of occasions they are quite monotonous and not very evocative, in addition to the fact that the stealth component leaves a bit to to desire. When we go back to wearing the Spidey costume, however, we will only have to enjoy it: circling among the skyscrapers of Manhattan, recovering old backpacks, preventing robberies or thefts, stopping cars on the run, kicking super-criminals in the absence of the Avengers will only be some of the exciting and hilarious glimpses of the life of Tessiragnatele, all seasoned with the classic and inimitable humorous presence of Spidey.
In case you are wondering yes, you have read Avengers. The universe of Spider-Man, in fact, is not in its own right but is tied 100% to that of the original Marvel, without excluding any of the characters that are part of it. Among the many secondary activities that the game includes, among other things, there is the task of taking photos of the most relevant places and monuments in New York between Harlem and the financial district. We advise you to pay attention to us: there are some really interesting gems hidden there.
From great powers ...
As we mentioned earlier, Manhattan is littered with side jobs to complete. These will be unlocked by continuing with the main storyline of the game and will be quite diversified from each other. Let's face it: there will be some fairly similar missions but, as far as possible, Insomniac has managed to make sense of all of them, making them almost all unique in their kind. Here too, from the secondary mission to the collectible classic to be picked up, we will find a lot of references and easter eggs that will wink at many of the fans but which will still prove fun even for those of Spider-Man who are not a huge fan. One of the interesting aspects of the secondary tasks is that through them we will come into possession of tokens of various kinds. These will have to be spent to unlock costumes, create and upgrade gadgets and unlock additional power slots, providing a not indifferent level of customization of the play style. Together with the costumes we will also unlock the power associated with them which, once obtained, can be equipped indiscriminately by the suit we will wear. This will open up a beautiful panorama of variants that will adapt to every style of play, as well as to the various situations that we will have to face: often we will need to act in stealth mode, at other times instead it will be required to lead our hands or move among the skies of New York very quickly.
The “swinging” system deserves a particular mention. Without getting lost in unnecessary turns of words, circling the skies of Manhattan is something wonderful: once you become confident with the mechanics, circling among the skyscrapers or trees of Central Park will become one of your favorite pastimes. One of the things that most surprised us is that the style of movement will change according to the area of New York in which we find ourselves: when the grips of the skyscrapers are missing we will circle much lower, when we would be surrounded by large apartment buildings we will be able to take advantage of the momentum and let ourselves go in acrobatic evolutions or launch ourselves in a race on a wall; when instead we launch ourselves down from constructions such as the Avengers Tower or from the Oscorp skyscraper, we will be able to swoop down reaching exorbitant speeds and then throw the canvas and skim the asphalt. Diving into the mazes of concrete and trees in Manhattan has never been so fun, the only flaw of the system is that it suffers enough in tight spaces, in which more than once we found ourselves having to fiddle a bit with the joypad and the camera before being able to extricate ourselves properly. However, we reiterate that the system is so deep and studied that the skill tree has a branch dedicated solely and exclusively to mobility.
As for the skill tree, by the way, this will be divided into three areas: one dedicated to mobility, one to attack and the other to dexterity / defense. Here too, each of the areas can be developed more or less quickly than the others according to our gaming needs, adding further depth to our favorite style. To acquire these skills we will have to spend the points earned by leveling up.
The combat system, as we had already anticipated in our preview, draws a lot from the one inaugurated by Rocksteady with the Batman Arkham series, but not for this reason it is a mere photocopy. Insomniac has managed to renew it and drop it very well in the style of Spider-Man, in which obviously spider webs and spider-themed gadgets are the masters, never boring. There remains the slight problem of the absence of the possibility of fixing the target on an enemy: to attack our opponents we will have to make a skilful use of the camera that will prefer the enemy who will be in front of Spidey at the time of the attack. By playing on the agility of the Tessiragnatele it will be possible to create many different types of attacks and evasions, creating combos as spectacular as they are effective, enriched by the myriad of uses of the gadgets available. Some of these, however, are more suited for use in stealth mode rather than in the middle of the crowd: crawling around the walls or letting ourselves dangle from the ceiling or beams, we can trap opponents without arousing the slightest suspicion by placing traps, stunning them in silence and then hang them at the top, render them harmless by silently hurling ourselves at them and then come back up, above, to hide.
Spider-Man vs Puddle-Man
For days we have been talking about the mystery of the puddles shown in the E3 trailer in comparison to those shown in the final release of the game: it is likely that there has been a downgrade but there is no question about the graphic quality of the title. The large (but not huge) map of Manhattan, the skyline, the weather effects, the polygonal models: everything is defined and finished with a maniacal eye. The New York in which we will get lost is alive, colorful and pulsating, both day and night: we will be able to interact with passers-by (although not always), and listen to their discussions, as well as JJJ's ever-present monologues. The dubbing entirely in Spanish, as well as the interface, is excellent. Although the voices are not all the original ones of the animated series, it doesn't matter: the voice actors have done their job very well. The dialogues are treated as much as the localization of the subtitles and the environmental sound sector. Darting from window to window hearing passers-by, sirens whizzing, pigeons fluttering and Fisk's men swearing has never been so good.
Spider-Man is a must have for both webweaving worshipers and non-webweavers: the title made by Insomniac Games has everything it should have. The imperfections that afflict it or the puddle-gate matter little: the value of this title is not debated in the least. Even after the first 30 minutes of play, the commitment and care with which the Insomniac guys have dedicated themselves to the creation of one of the best-made products of the Spider-Man brand is vividly evident: from the models and characterization of the characters up to to the swinging system, passing through the main storyline and the combat system, everything was created with a master's air. We are facing one of the best titles of these years, as well as the best Spider-Man videogame ever: after all, what could one expect from “The Amazing Spider-Man”?
► Spider-Man is an Adventure-Action game developed by Insomniac Games and published by Sony for the PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 07/09/2018
