Summary
Insomniac has proven itself to be a technical wizard when it comes to achieving current-gen feats that few other developers truly have yet, and that’s without contemplating its sheer output of AAA experiences. So when more ofMarvel’s Spider-Man 2was surprisingly shown during Thursday’s State of Play, it wasn’t at all alarming that the sequel looks as terrific as it does. Graphically it is where current-gen quality should arguably be—what’s more impressive isMarvel’s Spider-Man 2’s near-instantaneous load times on the PS5and how Insomniac has taken advantage of that to create fluid traversal in a bigger open world.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2might not have needed to open up previously inaccessible parts of its New York City map to players, but doing so allows for all the new tricks both Spider-Man have in their navigational arsenal. This alone should be exciting since it means city-wide pursuits can be far more exciting and immersive, which is undeniably enticing seeing as how fun it was topursue the Rhino through city streets inMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. In a third game, Insomniac shouldn’t feel the need to make any stark changes to its environments, either, where starting from scratch would be nonsensical.
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The Open World in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is Nearly Doubled in Size
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s open worldwas recently given an informative showcase discussing what players can expect from it, and it’s mainly what fans might’ve expected. There’s a lot to do with new AR UI that pops up in the environment, building atop what players were accustomed to inMarvel’s Spider-ManandMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and it seems like the best of both worlds in that regard now that Miles and Ganke’s Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man app is being reprised from the latter.
It’s difficult to fully comprehend without players navigating it themselves, though Insomniac revealed how much more to the map there will be inMarvel’s Spider-Man 2with its size being “nearly doubled” that of the original game, and it’ll take understanding how saturated with content and activities these new areas are in order to determine how impactful they are in an exploratory sense.Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s web wing traversal and fast travel make that exploration look engaging and seamless already. It’s hard to predict what Insomniac could do to make the world that much more dynamic or substantial, but the easy answer lies in how much of New York City isn’t available to players yet.
New York City Branching Out Further Seems Natural for a Marvel’s Spider-Man 3
Thenew boroughs and landmarks inMarvel’s Spider-Man 2’s New York Cityare organic because they’re locations that the two Spider-Man protagonists are inhabiting this time around. Nine months after the events ofMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Peter is living in his late aunt’s home in Queens and Miles attends Brooklyn Visions Academy, for example, while Coney Island makes for a wonderful cherry on top as a fun hangout destination for Peter, Miles, Mary Jane, and Harry.
Even if there’s scarcely any reason at the moment for Peter and Miles’ stories to push the boundaries of New York City’s island districts further, there’s always the opportunity for Insomniac to simply say that an NPC or point of interest resides somewhere players haven’t been before. This would be the easiest way for Insomniac to expand its open world without having to abandon what it’s now built upon the foundations ofMarvel’s Spider-Manand how quick traversal through a map that large would be anyhow. It’s possible that locations outside New York City could be chosen as well, butaMarvel’s Spider-Man 3would probably need an incredible reason to strip players away from its engrossing concrete jungle.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2launches on October 20, exclusively for PS5.
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