‘Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ Sparks With Heart And Style

“Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales,” the follow up to the developer, Insomniac Games’ 2018 title “Marvel’s Spider-Man,” is now launching on PC this November 18th. This game acts as more of a spin-off story set a few months after the conclusion of the last game. Taking control of a brand new character with his own story, powers and style that shines brightly throughout the entire game, Miles Morales is a smaller game compared to its predecessor and honestly benefits from that. Like the previous game, it is still set in Manhattan but now with a now snow-filled coat of paint and a bigger emphasis on Harlem.

The game revolves around this neighborhood, even implementing a gameplay feature called the “Friendly Neighborhood” app that keeps track of crimes, activities and side missions. The side missions are more focused on Harlem, as previously mentioned, small stories from the neighborhood for players to get to know and get more connected with the city. There’s the owner of a corner bodega, Teo, that asks for the player’s help rescuing his stolen cat that he names Spider-Man. A deaf street artist Hailee is investigating a criminal organization that wants to take over Harlem. These kinds of characters are the ones that make the player feel a lot closer to this one neighborhood compared to the 2018 title.

In the game, the street artist Hailee puts it best when she signs, “There’s been a Spider-Man protecting New York since I was a kid, but to have one here, who cares about me, my home… it means everything,” Miles then responds in sign language, “It’s my home too.” Miles Morales is a relatively new character in the world of comic book superheroes, an Afro-Latino Spider-Man from Brooklyn was a big shift from the familiar Peter Parker. Only recently being spotlighted in the 2018 film “Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse,” Miles brings so much heart to the table; having so many great moments of banter between all of the characters, messages of self-belief, positivity within community, and pure style.

While at its core, it’s pretty much the same as it’s predecessor game, the slight changes in not only gameplay or the world but in the animations and dialogue make this title stand strong on its own.The way Miles looks back at the camera as he dives off a building, his much looser movements while swinging around the city have a sense of swagger and style. Even his combat animations and new powers grant him his own unique feel and make him more distinct than Peter did in the original. Being set a few months after the original, all of these characteristics about Miles make sense since he’s still learning how to be Spider-Man and it’s a theme throughout the game, about him trying to separate himself from Peter Parker and becoming his own hero. He’s given the responsibility to protect New York while Peter goes off to vacation, and it’s up to Miles to try to uncover a conspiracy with a corrupt energy company and a high-tech gang of criminals that are going to war with each other.

It’s a shorter and simpler story that doesn’t break much ground but does serve as an excellent ride for the player to do the classic Spider-Man fighting and sneaking around now with newer abilities. Miles is now equipped with “Venom Strike” powers, electric-based powers that players can use in combat that are made to deal with larger groups of enemies, which are a great addition and adds more flair to the combat. Miles also has camouflage, allowing him to become completely invisible under a timer that makes stealth sections much faster and more forgiving. “Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales” serves as not only an incredible sequel to the 2018 original title but as an impressive launch title for the PlayStation 5.

It’s a game that shines so bright on its own and its much shorter length makes for a more enjoyable experience than the first game. Streaming many of its features and mechanics, the story adds up to an overall more condensed and better gaming experience. It’s one of the most positive experiences in video games this year so far, it’s a heartwarming game all throughout, it’s nearly impossible not to recommend. It’s the smaller details that can really make the game unique, the different and more stylish animations, the hip hop trap drums added to the theme of the game that intensifies as you swing through the city and the characters and friends players meet in Harlem that call Miles “our Spider-Man.”