We’re still months away from swinging through the New York streets in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, but I’m already thinking ahead to Spider-Man 3. In particular, I’ve become obsessed with the idea that the next Insomniac Spider-Man game should lean into the Spider-Verse concept.
We actually have a Spider-Man video game to thank for the Spider-Verse. A 2010 Activision game titled Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions essentially served as the origin point of the Spider-Verse as we know it today, going on to inspire multiple comic book runs and, eventually, the Sony animated films as well.
It’s time for the Spider-Man games to re-embrace this idea.
Spider-Man: No Way Home and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse have both revitalised the multiverse story with great success. The Insomniac team are also clearly fans of the Spider-Verse. The Into the Spider-Verse suit option in the games is a fan-favourite option amongst players and recently we even saw some cross-promotion between Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and Across the Spider-Verse via a sneaky easter egg.
It does feel like the Spider-Verse is a hit with audiences right now, so why wouldn’t the next Spider-Man take advantage of that?
Beyond the success on the film side of things, there are a couple of reasons I think this could be the right move for Sony’s gaming franchise.
You only have to look at Insomniac’s other recent PS5 release – Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart – to see that the foundation for a multiverse game is already there. In Rift Apart you often hop between dimensions, sometimes at will. Each of these universes is rendered beautifully and the transition is seamless thanks to the fast loading times on the PS5.
If Insomniac were to take these ideas from Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart and apply them to their next Spider-Man game, it could easily result in an excellent Spider-Verse game.
There’s also the question of how to continually grow the franchise. In Spider-Man 2 we know things will be expanding by allowing players to switch between two characters (Peter and Miles), new abilities will be on offer thanks to the symbiote suit, and the map of New York will be expanding to include Brooklyn and Queens. But from there, how can the next Spider-Man game evolve?
A Spider-Verse game could be the potential answer to all of those issues. Entering the multiverse would offer an endless number of Spider-people to, if not play as, at least interact with, each offering their own unique abilities and powers. (Please Insomniac, for the love of God, make Gwen Stacy a playable character).
The multiverse would also solve the location issue. Instead of swinging around New York, there would be endless options for alternate versions of the city or completely new worlds entirely.
Possibly the most exciting aspect is how a Spider-Verse story could impact gameplay. Imagine having the option to enter a 2D-platforming Spider-Man world, or playing a chunk of the game as Lego Spider-Man? Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 would have the potential to experiment with all kinds of gameplay styles whilst also paying tribute to decades of video game history.
Maybe it’s all the Across the Spider-Verse hype flooding my brain right now, but I truly believe the time is right for us to return to the Spider-Verse in gaming and that Insomniac is the right one to do it.
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