Top 5 Best Spider-Man Games

Exactly 20 years ago, Spider-Man rocked cinemas. Although the first film about Spider-Man was made back in 1969, we can agree that it was Raimi's classic with Tobey Maguire that marked the beginning of the film history of the most famous hero from the neighborhood.

Spidey's charm from comics has spilled over into a diverse range of popular culture products, so it's no wonder he hasn't bypassed the world of video games. Moreover, Spider-Man adventures players could experience on 15 different gaming platforms, the earliest of which dates back even to the 1982 Atari system.

As part of this anniversary, we bring you an overview of the five best games from the world of Spider-Man. The memory of playing these titles will surely, at least for a moment, put a nostalgic smile on your face. Everyone has their list of the best Spider-Man games, and this is ours:

5. Spider-Man (2000)

Using the PlayStation 1 engine version of legendary Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, Neversoft Studio has created an adventure in which Spider-Man must regain hero status and wash the stain off his name and find out who committed various crimes in his name in virtual New York.

Spidey has to stop many famous villains on his way to catharsis. Venom, Carnage, Scorpion, Mysterio - they all reunited just to ruin our tormented schoolboy Parker's day. It should be emphasized that exclusively for this title, a new villain was created. Namely, Carnage decided to occupy another Spider-Man's great enemy, Doctor Octopus, thus creating a terrifying opponent of Monster-Ock.

The gameplay was quite innovative at the time, and it seems that the developers understood how Spider-Man deals with its enemies. You could move around the linear missions using the classic swing on the net but also crawling on the walls and ceilings, which provided a sense of diversity. Spidey had to reach the end of the level in various tasks, and a game over would occur if the player failed to save civilians who often needed to be rescued from danger.

4. Ultimate Spider-Man (2005)

Ultimate Spider-Man comes to us from multiple development teams. Versions for the then-current consoles, Xbox and PlayStation 2 were developed by Treyarch, while the PC port was developed by Beenox. Although the Treyarch community remembers them much more for their work on Call of Duty games, there is no denying that they did a great job with Spider-Man as well.

Ultimate Spider-Man is set in the world of Spider-Man Ultimate comics. In addition to the plot, a special visual style has been replicated in a way that faithfully outlines the Ultimate graphic novels. Apart from its distinctive visual style, Ultimate Spider-Man has remained in the memory of many players as the only open-world game in which they could take control of Spidey's most feared villain, the evil symbiote Venom.

The gameplay with Venom and Spider-Man was quite different, and the characters had separate missions and a story that only merged into a whole at the end. Spider-Man was agile and agile and used his unavoidable net with which he could temporarily stun enemies. Peter also used the net as a takedown mechanic - once you sent the enemy to the ground, you had to quickly tie him to the net to prevent him from getting up.

Playing with Symbiote on the other hand was completely different. Venom did not have the speed and agility, but he made up for it with his immense strength. Venom moved by bouncing his feet a few tens of meters high, and he practically didn't even need a net, because he used his claws to make holes in the concrete on the facades of buildings. In the fight with Venom, we used fists and Symbiote's arms to quickly and efficiently resolve interference.

Just like in the graphic template, here with Venom, we were able to consume people. Admittedly, we wouldn’t kill them here, but Brock would simply suck their energy out, after which he would spit them out. We were able to consume not only smaller opposing units but also innocent civilians, which was a pretty brave move for a game aimed at a slightly younger audience.

3. Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions (2010)

The Beenox development studio is responsible for many virtual incidents and accidents in the world of Spider-Man. What sets their Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions apart from other Spider-Man games is the fact that players here for the first time had a chance to play with Spider-Man from different dimensions.

More precisely, Amazing Spider-Man, in the middle of a fight with Mystery, makes a mistake and accidentally breaks an ancient plate into 17 parts, which allegedly controls order and chaos. As is usually the case, the poison of the black mamba does its thing, and Amazing Spider-Man falls into a trap. 

Fortunately for him, the mysterious Madame Web comes to his aid and explains how the whole thing can be corrected if the pieces of tile are put together again. Unfortunately for the player, the pieces are scattered in four different dimensions, so our Spidey asked for help from heroes from opposite dimensions.

Amazing Spider-Man, Ultimate Spider-Man, Noir Spider-Man, and Spider-Man 2099 must come together to fix things together and correct this space-time mess. Each spider-man had his separate skills, missions, specific artistic design of the world and the environment, and of course, the bad guys who needed to be beaten.

For example, Noir Spider-Man is a 20th-century version of Spider-Man. Consistent with the period, Noir still lacks the advanced technology and fancy devices possessed by modern Parkers, so he uses acrobatics much more often to outwit the villains and thugs who ravage his beloved monochromatic New York during the Great Depression. 

Spider-Man 2099, on the other hand, is bursting with neon and bright colors. As a Spider-Man from the distant future, his arsenal abounds with many gadgets and devices that make it much easier for him to solve all the problems he encounters.

It is worth noting that Shattered Dimensions went very well with the audience and also served as the inspiration for the comic book series Spider-Verse, which became globally popular after the release of the eponymous animated film in 2018.

2. Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Spider-Man 2 was one of the best superhero movies of its time, and the same treatment did not bypass Treyarch's 2004 game. where Spider-Man 2 experienced its greatest success. In short, Treyarch laid a huge foundation with the fact that Spider-Man 2 was the first superhero game in the open world.

In addition to the open world, Treyarch has garnered much praise for manually simulating Manhattan. In addition to a faithful portrayal of the environment, the approach to the way spider-man moves have been revolutionary. For the first time, players had to target where and how to crack the net, which now no longer magically hung from the sky. 

Spider-Man 2 also had an improved combat system. Spidey had at its disposal more complex combat and an elaborate combo system. Parker's sixth sense also played a significant role here. With it, players were able to slow down time, to inadvertently evade enemy attacks that often included the use of firearms.

The action in the game on all versions is closely related to the action of the film of the same name. It is also worth mentioning how the actors from the film lend voices to their virtual doubles, which further contributed to the sense of authenticity of the title itself.

The story itself is divided into several chapters, and it should be noted that each of them, in addition to the inevitable main missions, had various tasks that we received from civilians in need. Citizens begged us to take them to hospitals, stop a speeding car full of scoundrels and losers, or save them from falling off a scaffolding.

Some tasks did not come from the citizens. The optional tasks were not varied, but some of them are truly iconic: Who among us didn’t want to help Peter deliver all the pizzas on time?

1. Marvel’s Spider-Man / Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2018/2020)

Although Spider-Man has spawned many good titles throughout its long history, fans have demanded a game that would be to the good-neighbor hero what Arkham Asylum was to the Batman. Many wishes were fulfilled in 2018 with the release of Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man, which today is reputed to be the best-selling superhero-themed title.

Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018)

Marvel’s Spider-Man contains everything a top Spider-Man title must-have. For a start, moving around the city is fantastic, and more importantly, it seems natural and liberating. Spider-Man is faster and more agile than ever in this sequel, and the movement is further enhanced by the possibility of improving your hero's acrobatics.

The fight in Marvel’s Spider-Man is easiest to describe as a more energetic and smoother version of the slapping from the aforementioned Arkham games. Spider-Man with its sixth sense signals the player when he must press the dodge key. When attacking, Spider-Man makes full use of all his arsenal to make it as easy as possible to win. In a hand-to-hand fight, Peter uses his agility and acrobatics to transform him into a combative Beyblade that flies across the screen. As it is often outnumbered, Spider-Man does not hesitate to use numerous mechanisms and devices to return the balance of power to its advantage. If you do not want to take part in a direct conflict, the game gives you a variety of sneaking and sneaking options, so you can deal with enemies in silence.

Each of these mechanics can be further upgraded through the game's progression system, so it's up to the player to decide how his spider will approach each task. With the choice of game mode, players have complete freedom regarding the appearance of their favorite hero. Namely, with the help of side missions and items that you collect around the world, players can dress their Spidey in one of as many as 28 available costumes. With additional content included, this figure climbs to an impressive 47 costumes.

The story in Marvel’s Spider-Man puts us at the peak of Parker’s career. The game does not follow the action from a particular comic strip but takes us through an alternate sequence of events in which we watch Otto Octavius become Doctor Octopus. Along with the popular Doc-Ock, we’re watching the creation of the popular infamous six. Still, the most important part of the game is the final part where we discover the new and upcoming Spidey, the young Miles Morales.

With beautiful graphics, an intriguing and emotional story, and a large open world with more content, Marvel’s Spider-Man is, in our opinion, the best title in the series and a game that every Spider-Man fan must play.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020)

Spider-Man: Miles Morales is easiest to describe as an improved and improved version of Spider-Man from 2018. The only thing that significantly distinguishes these two titles is longevity. While it will take you up to thirty hours to play Marvel’s Spider-Man, spending time with Morales will take less than 15 hours on average. Except for durability, Miles Morales is a top Spider-Man game that you will always want to return to.

Miles is a different Spider-Man than Peter, and playing through all his mechanics only reinforces the difference between the two spiders, leaving the player with the impression that Morales is just a pale copy of Parker. For example, Miles is insecure, primarily because he is not yet accustomed to his superpowers. The game signals this to you through beautiful animations in which we see Miles staggering or clinging to some objects while swinging through the city.

Furthermore, Miles has so-called Venom powers that are not available to Peter. Unfortunately for many fans, Venom Power does not refer to the famous Symbiote. Miles, using Venom's ability, can disarm opponents with various electric attacks, and when it thickens, it can become invisible.

Miles Morales has made a graphic shift from the 2018 title and represents a leap to the next-gen console, and it’s nice to mention that we were here to see for the first time how Spider-Man works in snowy conditions.

As for the bad guys, Morales remained short-sleeved. Among the more famous opponents, Rhino and Vulture have already been seen, and it is worth mentioning Prowler. The lack of sounding names can be justified to some extent by the fact that Morales is a kind of bridge between Marvel's Spider-Man and the sequel that should come out in 2023. Carnage could also appear.