Spider-Man: Miles Morales Builds Beautifully On The Previous Game
One of my favorite games I played in awhile was Spider-Man for the PS4. I was surprised how Insomniac Games handled Marvel’s wallcrawler. The story was absolutely amazing, the combat system was spectacular, and swinging through New York City as Spider-Man was my favorite aspect of any Spidey game. So needless to say when I heard that a Miles Morales Spider-Man game was coming out I was very excited. Miles has been picking up more and more attention in recent years, with the movie Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and his huge push in recent comics as well. Now he is the star of his own game. Spider-Man: Miles Morales is an amazing follow up to the PS4 Spider-Man, that also manages to stand on its own.
One thing I appreciate about this game over the original is that this game gives you a sense of community. The Black and Hispanic representation in this game is strong. Miles’ neighborhood plays a strong part in this game. Being set in Harlem you really feel like you get a good New Yorker experience. I loved going around the neighborhood full of side characters, Easter egg locations, some Black Lives Matter graffiti, loaded with challenges and collectibles. The characters that are introduced to you during this story feel like actual characters. While the original game didn’t have bad characters, to me it felt like only a very small handful truly mattered. In this game the cast is strong and all play a good role in his story. Especially the villain which you can sympathize for but still have to bring to justice.
Off the bat, Spider-Man: Miles Morales manages to showcase the web-swinging action we have come to love and expect out of these games. One thing you’ll notice which I love is Miles’ web swinging is unique. Since he is still new, his swinging animations have a different look and flare from Peter’s. Even when Miles is perching on a rooftop or edge, he kinda struggles. Little things like that are appreciated and matter. Not to mention his combat options are amazing. While at first I was a bit bummed out that he didn’t have the same web tools Peter did, that was all changed once I got Venom Blast. Using his bio-electric powers, his combat options definitely are way more effective, especially when facing a big group of enemies. It even plays a big part into the overall gameplay with puzzles and traversal of the environment. Some of the combos I was able to pull off mixing together web-swinging and Venom Blast abilities were pretty awesome. Also Miles’ camouflage ability makes stealth in this game more enjoyable than in the previous title. But the game doesn’t make it easy for you, as over time the game will make enemies stronger to combat these abilities.
I also cannot stress how much I loved the music of this game. The Hip Hop instrumentals that kick in during Miles’ web swinging through the city, the remixes that’ll play in the opening menu, as well as several tracks that play throughout the story make the game have its own sound that I wouldn’t expect in other games. While this game was made for next-gen consoles, it still looks amazing on the PS4. And it goes to show you that there was some care put into this game. As the game is visually stunning. The snowy layout of Manhattan as well as the character models, lighting, and costumes all look spectacular and makes me curious about how they look running on a PS5.
While it is not a long game, my playthrough with all the side missions and collectables was around 9+ hours on the hardest difficulty. I don’t feel that brought down my enjoyment. Because I am such a Miles fan I could be biased, but that is not at all why I like this game so much. Spider-Man: Miles Morales is definitely a welcome addition to the Spider-Man Insomniac-verse. If you have a PS5 you’ll be doing a huge disservice to yourself by not getting this game.
I give Spider-Man: Miles Morales a 4.5 out of 5 overall, for a somewhat short but quality game for any Playstation or Spider-Man fan. I look forward to what’s in store for both Miles Morales and Peter Parker in the next Spider-Man title whenever that game comes out.
