Spider-Man is easily one of my favorite superheroes. He’s smart, witty, brave, and has next to zero luck outside of his life of being a crime fighter. He is the ultimate example of wish fulfillment for kids, who identify with Peter Parker on an instinctually nerdy level (because all children are nerds) while also get to escape into a world where they can beat a nerd with a fishbowl helmet within an inch of his life. His exploits are a classic example of escapism. And you know what else is a great medium for escapism? Video games. Who wouldn’t want to jump into the web-slinging boots of Spider-Man, free to rock around New York City and probably spin a web any size, catching thieves just like flies.
So coming out super soon, like September 7 kind of soon, Insomniac Games is busting out the first Spider-Man game in years. And to be honest, it looks pretty good. In fact, I’ve played a lot of Spider-Man games over my lifetime, and almost all of them had some sort of merit. So for me to say that this likes hands down, the most awesome one ever made, it clearly has left an impression on me. But obviously me gushing about it wouldn’t be enough to convince you lovely readers to get excited as well, so I’ve scoured the internet to compile a comprehensive list of all the “secret” content the game will have in store. Obviously, they will be a little less secret now that I’ve told you about them.
26 Doctor Octopus Was Leaked
There’s a lot of speculation on who the last revealed villain will be for this game. Most people assumed it would be the Green Goblin since Norman already features heavily in the game. Other’s thought it would be arguably Spider-Man’s greatest nemesis, Doctor Octopus.
A voice actor let slip that Doc Ock was coming.
Chris Jai Alex, who is the voice of Rhino, was talking about how you use different techniques to fight different bosses, which can be strange. He then went on the say “Doctor Octopus is really tall, Rhino is big…” Whoops.
25 Mary-Jane Is Playable
From what we’ve seen, Mary-Jane is up to her usual shenanigans, getting herself deep into trouble only Peter can bail herself out of. She also seems to be a stealth-based character, sneaking into places she shouldn’t be to uncover what is going wrong with New York.
It’s nice to see MJ take on a role larger than that of a damsel in distress, so I’m all for this inclusion. Also, it might be a nice way to keep the pace of the game fresh, having you occasionally play as a character who can’t swing from a thread.
24 Different Suits Have Different Powers
So, it isn’t a huge reveal that there will be multiple suits, since the DLC listed above clearly states that there will be. What is news is that these aren’t just skin changes that will have no effect on gameplay. Apparently, different suits will give you a huge new array of abilities.
See, this is how DLC is supposed to work. It shouldn’t just be a band-aid or a skin change to make things look slightly cooler, it should make the game feel different, it should extend the game, not pointlessly alter it.
23 Kingpin Is In Jail
Kingpin being locked away in the big house isn’t so much a secret, since the gameplay footage actually has you talking to him while he’s there. No, what people have been able to stitch together from newly released footage is that the very starting action of the game is him being caught by you.
This is a cool introductory chapter, since it starts you in the middle of the action, and also kind of makes the rest of the game your fault. With Kingpin out of the way, someone must fill the void his absence will leave.
22 You've Been Spider-Man For Eight Years
Too many times a video game will assume that we don’t know the tragic story of a character, despite it being so deep in our collective consciousness that we know more about fictional characters than our own family. So it was refreshing to hear that this new Spider-Man video game will be set eight years into Peter Parker’s career.
This means there won’t be levels where you need to figure out your powers, try to seduce Mary Jane or act baffled when someone named Scorpion shows up. You are set to hit the ground running, which makes for some seriously better gameplay.
21 Norman Osborne Is Mayor
Norman Osborn, better known as the Green Goblin to comic fans, has a history of keeping his lunacy a secret. So well kept is the secret that he has some serious success in his political campaigns, such as the unlikely time he became President. This can not be great news.
On top of being President, and I assume a billionaire, he also seems to be getting pretty chummy with Peter Parker in all the newest footage. We don’t know if Peter is aware of his alter ego at this point, so we don’t know how strained their relationship really is.
20 You'll See Familiar Names
It always bugs me when certain Marvel properties ignore the wider world. Things like Oscorp, The Baxter Building, Stark Industries and the Sanctum Sanctorum aren’t plastered all over everything in New York simply because the publisher couldn’t get the rights. Well, that won’t be a problem here, not anymore.
Bill Rosemann, the Executive Creative Director of the upcoming Spider-Man game, has said that Marvel has given Insomniac permission to use as many likenesses as they feel comfortable with, to really ensure you feel like you are in the authentic Marvel version of New York.
19 It's A Brand New Story
Many times, a comic book adaptation will borrow elements from a popular title. Batman: Arkham Asylum was loosely based on Arkham Asylum: A Serious House On Serious Earth, for example. Fans were eager to know which famous Spider-Man storyline this new game would be borrowing from.
Bryan Intihar, the Creative Director at Insomniac Games, said on his Twitter feed that this will be a completely original story, free from existing influence. This could be a bold choice, or a stupid one, depending on the strength of the writing team. I suppose only time will tell.
18 Silver Sable Is Hunting You
Silver Sable is a pretty tough cookie and a mercenary, so it is bad news for you that someone has hired her to hunt down Spider-Man. And I don’t mean the usual kind of hiring a mercenary, where some crime lord commissioned her work.
No, it seems someone working within the confines of the law has persuaded enough people that New York doesn’t need a vigilante. So Silver Sable has the full blessing of the government to bring you in, any way she deems necessary. Kind of an old trope, but it has been a long time since we’ve seen Spidey fighting cops.
17 You Can't Harm Civilians
I know some of you out there are already groaning about virtue signaling game developers hindering your ability to have full autonomy when controlling the web-slinger. If you are one of those people that want to use the powers of Spider-Man to attack civilians, I have news for you, you are probably Eddie Brock.
So yeah, it makes sense that to complete a video game as authentic as possible to the Spider-Man experience, you wouldn’t be allowed to just go around attacking random people. That isn’t something Peter is known for, and it probably just takes up more programming space.
16 You Can Interact With Civilians
Alright, so maybe not being able to pummel random people isn’t programming after all, since it seems that Insomniac has gone out of their way to make the people of New York as interactive as possible. If you aren’t rescuing them from rogue pumpkin bombs, you can stop and keep up a positive public image.
This means taking selfies with people.
But if you are one of those people who hate selfies (I do) you aren’t limited to that. You can give them a high five, some finger guns, maybe even just some simple fist bumping props. Kinda makes up for the lack up punching.
15 No Venom
We mentioned Eddie Brock earlier, so if you thought that name drop was indicative that Venom would show up somewhere in the game, you’d be sadly mistaken. Apparently, the story had no room for everyone’s favorite Symbiote, despite popularity being at an all-time high due to the upcoming movie.
Actually, you might want to take this news with a grain of salt. Remember a few years ago when Rocksteady Studios assured fans that the Arkham Knight was totally not Jason Todd? And remember when absolutely nobody was surprised that Rocksteady lied? What do you think the chances are that we are being lied to about Venom?
14 The New Symbol Is Important
Insomniac has taken a lot of flak from fans for making what seems to be an arbitrary change to the classic Spider-Man look. Usually, he has a black spider or his chest, but the new suit has a large white spider spreading out all across his torso.
In fact, the whole look is actually pretty reminiscent of the Symbiote Suit. And when asked about it, multiple people at Insomiac insisted the suit was important. So maybe, even if there is no Venom, there may be a Symbiote. Or maybe it’s all a red herring.
13 Not Part Of The MCU
It was surmised for a long time that this game was going to be a video game tie into the Spider-Man currently being portrayed by Tom Holland in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. For better or worse, Insomniac revealed that the events and characters in their newest game have no relation to their MCU counterparts.
I suppose this actually makes sense considering Spider-Man is, you know, currently ash in the MCU (sorry if that is a spoiler for a movie that’s been out for months.) So keeping you game open to some brand new adventures always seems like the right idea.
12 Starting Its Own Universe
There have been multiple hints coming out of Insomniac that this new game will kick off a sort of Marvel Interactive Universe, where all future Marvel games will be interwoven in some way. That seems to be a pretty bold undertaking and puts a tonne of pressure on this game.
If this game isn’t the video game wonder it is promising to be, it could destroy the “Universe” before it really begins. The same thing that happened to The Mummy remake, where the flagship property is so bad it ruins all interest in future projects.
11 Probably Ties Into The Avengers
It always bugs me when certain Marvel properties ignore the wider world. Things like Oscorp, The Baxter Building, and Stark Industries aren’t plastered all over everything in New York simply because the publisher couldn’t get the rights. Well, that won’t be a problem here, not anymore.
Bill Rosemann, the Executive Creative Director of the upcoming Spider-Man game, has said that Marvel has given Insomniac permission to use as many likenesses as they feel comfortable with, to really ensure you feel like you are in the authentic Marvel version of New York.
10 The Digital Deluxe Edition
Of course, since this game comes out in the age of pre-orders, there’s plenty bonuses being offered up to make you fully pay for a product you won’t be guaranteed is good. One of those first pre-order bundles is the Deluxe Digital Edition.
These are three DLC chapters, as well as new suits.
While that sounds great on the surface, keep in mind that both the suits and the chapters are being kept completely secret. This means they could be anything from Peter delivery pizza to a photo-shoot with Mary-Jane. My expectations are low.
9 The Collector's Edition
Pretty standard fair on the Collector’s Edition on this one. You get that custom steel case, which will totally mess up the flow of your shelf of other games. You get a PSN avatar, which, you know, let’s other people know you owned an expensive version of this game, which is cool.
My favorite is the statuette of Spider-Man perched on something. I’m not a terrible writer who doesn’t know when not to be vague, you literally have no idea what Spider-Man is perched on, it’s a secret. If that doesn’t open your wallets, I don’t know what will.
8 Full Blown Suit Crafting
According to a few sources, the suits you wear won’t be limited to a few unlockables and the stuff you get from pre-orders. No, the freedom to make your own customized Spider Suit is very much going to be a new feature.
I never would have thought that I wanted a Spider-Man game with a crafting bench, but now that I know that it can be done, I fault every video game before now for not having it. Be prepared to see a lot of goofy looking Spideys swinging around.
7 Limited Quick Time Events
Depending on who you ask, Quick Time Events (QTEs) are either bad design in video game nowadays or a fun way for a game to show off its cinematics while still involving the player. I personally don’t mind them, but too many of them can feel like the game is getting easy.
One of the trailers for Spider-Man featured lots of them, which upset fans. Bryan Intihar assured everyone that QTEs will not be overly used in the game, and that footage was simply chosen to show of the beauty of the game.