Miles Morales: Spider-Man

Welcome web-heads! Today we are talking about “Miles Morales: Spider-Man.” Developed by Insomniac Games, “Miles Morales: Spider-Man” is a spinoff of the 2018 acclaimed game “Marvel’s Spider-Man.” Set in the same world as the 2018 title, “Miles Morales: Spider-Man” follows Miles Morales rather than Peter Parker. I know big shocker there, not like it is in the name or anything…

When Peter Parker leaves for a vacation in Europe, Miles Morales is left as the sole Spider-Man protecting New York City. New to the job, Miles Morales embarks on your typical journey of growth and self discovery. Working on building relationships with the community of NYC as well as learning to control his powers. While the story really is your standard heroes journey, it is actually quite engaging. I found myself as interested in the story elements and cinematics of the game as I was the gameplay and the open-world which really is quite impressive given how great the gameplay and world are. (More on this later) I am not going too in-depth on the story as it is relatively short in terms of modern games and I don’t want to give anything away.

So what’s the gameplay like? Well if you played “Marvel’s Spider-Man” than you already know what to expect from this one. The only really notable change in gameplay is the addition of a venom bar that allows Miles to use his unique electricity powers. Otherwise combat and movement are all the same as the predecessor. This isn’t a bad thing though. Swinging through NYC feel absolutely fantastic. The movement mechanics are easy to pickup but have enough options to make swinging feel like a creative skills. Whether you are trying to get around as fast as possible or want to play around and perform tricks like flips and spins, there is plenty of variations that will suit you. As for the combat, the fights are quick and skill based with ample enemy types to require frequent changes in the combat moves used. If you have ever played an Arkham game, you will be quite familiar with the combat style. You can easily snap between enemies in order to create fluid combos but you have to keep in mind the type of enemy you are attacking as each has their own strengths and weaknesses. Your spider sense will give you a warning when an enemy is attacking so that you may counter as necessary.

The introduction of Venom powers to combat unfortunately does not feel like it adds much gameplay wise compare to “Marvel’s Spider-Man.” Cloaking feels like a get out of jail free card that makes fights a little too easy. The remaining venom powers add some variety but the reduction of gadgets available essentially results in comparable attack variety as the previous game. End of the day though, the combat is great. Really the only way you can come up with negatives is by comparing to the previous game which in my opinion is one of the best games ever made…

The leveling and RPG elements of this game do admittedly feel like they were simply tacked on because every game needs a leveling system now a days. The means of gaining experience is nice and varied. You can level up however you like to play. Whether it be fighting criminals, performing tricks, finding collectibles, or progressing the story. This is something I really like about the system as people should be rewarded for playing in their own way, which far too many RPGs fail to do. Where the leveling system in “Miles Morales: Spider-Man” lacks is within the skill trees. The skill trees are small and most skills are locked behind a level requirement. This results in little variety when it come to progression as you typically will only have one or two skill options at any given level. More over you will certainly have all the skills unlocked by the time you complete the game even if you don’t spend much time exploring outside the main story.

“Miles Morales: Spider-Man” is a spectacular game! It may not be as content rich as some other AAA games but every aspect of the title is refined to perfection. Whether you are a fan of superheroes, video games, action, story, or even beautiful scenery, “Miles Morales: Spider-Man” is a must play. When it comes to ranking, it was a pretty easy decision. “Miles Morales: Spider-Man” is being placed into the current number 1 slot of my RPG list.

Platform: Sony Playstation 5. Time to Beat: 10 hours 49 minutes 25 seconds.

How to Play?

“Miles Morales: Spider-Man” can be purchased from the PlayStation store. Additionally it will be included in the PS plus extra and premium subscription tiers starting June 13th in North America.