Two years after taking its first shot with the heroic legacy back on PlayStation 4, Insomniac Games – now owned by Sony and officially labelled as one of its studios – is making its debut on the company’s latest hardware with a new Spider-Man adventure. And this time, Miles Morales is taking a shot in the suit.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales was first revealed back in June of this year, when Sony gave a look at some of the PS5 games that were coming our way this fall. He’s been a highly requested
addition to the series ever since he debuted in non-playable form in the original game. And considering the popularity of Sony’s own Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse film (which features
Miles front and center), it’s no shock to the system that he finally gets a chance to save the city. But Insomniac isn’t taking a breather with this one. It looks to be even more stunning than their original adventure, and there are a few surprises in store – including something for players that dive into the $70 Ultimate Edition.
Not Wasting Any Web-Slinging Time
Though the specific storyline for Miles Morales hasn’t been revealed just yet, the in-game events do take place a year after the original. The “new kid” decides to step into a Spidey suit of his own, with special abilities that stand out over Peter’s. And you can see some of these in action in the debut gameplay trailer below.
Going up against the Tinkerer and his cronies on a bridge, Miles showcases some of his abilities. These include some venom blast powers that make him quite electrified, as well as camouflage- based stealth, so he can get around without enemies seeing him. But don’t abuse the ability too much – it’s timer based, and you’ll have to wait for it to recharge before you get a chance to use it again. Save it for when it counts.
In addition, Miles can also utilize many abilities like Peter could in the first game. These include using Spidey Sense to avoid incoming attacks, using the web zip and items in the environment to get around, and also pummeling foes with awesome combos and finishers. There are also a fair share of quick-time events as well, but they’re sparingly used, so you don’t have to groan too often through them.
Insomniac looks to be infusing a little bit of the old with the new in Miles Morales, creating a definitive experience in the process. There’s probably more to it as well, such as being able to unlock new abilities and collecting items to earn new suits, possibly even one inspired by Spiderverse. We’ll have to see what the developer has in store.
The Best Looking Spidey Yet
For Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Insomniac is putting forth its best effort to showcase what the PlayStation 5 can do. As you can see in the gameplay trailer above, the lighting is absolutely excellent; and the city design is truly atmospheric, immersing you inside its comic strip universe. What’s more, the particle effects look to be outstanding, and the animations razor sharp. And the trailer doesn’t even do the final game justice, as it’ll be running at a beautiful 60 frames per second in 4K when all is said and done.
Not only that, but the 3D audio should play a part in drawing players in to a wonderful sounding experience. This includes a cinematic score similar to that of the first game, along with excellent dialogue and fun sound effects. Plus, you should be able to hear some foes coming from a mile away, utilizing that Spidey Sense in the best way possible.
And for those of you that aren’t ready to go the next level on PS5 just yet, not to worry. The game will also debut on PlayStation 4 at the same time this November, and Insomniac will put just as much polish into that version as they are with next-gen. That means more Miles for everyone, and a good web-slinging Christmas for all comic book fans. Huzzah!
A Little Bonus For All
Spider-Man: Miles Morales will run a reasonably priced $50 for the regular version, and that includes both the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 editions of the game. That way, you can have the best of both worlds, depending on where you play it. (No word if the game is cross-save compatible, but we wouldn’t be surprised if it was.)
But if you prefer to go the extra mile, there’s also an Ultimate Edition of the game that’ll be available for $69.99. For the additional $20, fans will be able to download a special edition of the original Spider-Man game, which includes better character assets, improved framerate and overall performance, faster load times and more. That’s a nice bump of nostalgia for those that want to revisit the original before jumping into the sequel. It’ll take advantage of the DualSense controller’s Haptic feedback as well, though that wasn’t highly detailed just yet. Alas, cross-save will not be compatible with the PS4 version, so you’ll have to start from scratch.
So no matter which way you go, Insomniac’s latest Spider-Man game should be a swinging good time for casual players and die-hard comic book fans alike. We’ll get a better look when it arrives on November 12 th for PlayStation 5 and PS4. We’ll see you on the streets!
