San Diego Comic-Con has always been one of the most exciting times for Marvel fans. We had an amazing time in 2018 with the original Marvel’s Spider-Man, and we were thrilled to make a return trip to Hall H today to talk about Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. For those of you who couldn’t join us – here’s a recap of what happened!
We wanted to start the panel off with a bang, debuting our brand-new Story Trailer. Take a look!
The trailer sets up our story in the game while also giving you your first full look at the monstrous Venom in Marvel’s New York! Here’s Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Senior Narrative Director Jon Paquette to offer a deeper look:
“At the beginning of our story, our Spider-Men are at the top of their game,” said Paquette. “But both Peter Parker and Miles Morales are struggling with their personal lives. Miles is trying to find time to write his college entrance essay, but he keeps procrastinating and focusing on Spider-Work instead. Meanwhile, Peter is underwater on payments for Aunt May’s house, but he can’t sell, it means too much to him. And just like Miles, Peter tries (and fails) to find balance with so many responsibilities. MJ wants to help Pete with the mortgage, but her job is on the line now that J. Jonah Jameson is back at the Bugle and looking to clean house. Our heroes have arrived at a confluence of crossroads, with uncertain futures, and some tough decisions ahead.”
When Kraven’s hunters arrive in the city, it sets off a mystery of why they are there and who, and what, they are hunting. But as the Spider-Men and MJ dig deeper into Kraven’s motivations, the symbiote begins to threaten Marvel’s New York and everyone and everything they hold dear.
As many of you noticed in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s Gameplay Trailer from the PlayStation Showcase in May, Peter’s new Black Suit affected his personality and gives him new, powerful symbiote abilities. You see bits of that in this trailer as well, and you can see Peter’s symbiote powers tax his relationships with Miles, MJ and Harry.
(Spoilers for 2018’s Marvel’s Spider-Man ahead!) Given how much Miles Morales looks up to Peter for mentorship and guidance, this creates further problems. Beyond trying to figure out what’s next for his life, Miles continues to struggle with the death of his father at the hands of Martin Li, aka Mister Negative. As you saw from the trailer, you haven’t seen the last of Mister Negative.
We asked Senior Creative Director Bryan Intihar about some of the new abilities that players will get to use in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2:
“We’ve always thought of our Spider-Heroes as ‘acrobatic improvisors,’ and in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, we wanted to equip them with new ways to do so during combat,” said Intihar. “This includes Pete’s Spider-Arms and Symbiote powers, while Miles now brings two forms of bioelectric Venom to every fight. And when you start combining these abilities with all-new Spider-Gadgets like the Web Grabber, it can lead to some exciting combos.”
This trailer also provided some new looks at our expanded Marvel’s New York. Now, you’ll be able to swing across the East River and explore Brooklyn and Queens. Coney Island makes its debut as well in the trailer and we can’t wait for you to explore it! And one way you can explore is with the Web Wings! Let’s hear more from Senior Game Director Ryan Smith:
“We are really excited for people to try out the Web Wings,” says Smith. “For us it was a cool opportunity to bring something people have seen in comics and movies and integrate it in the game. Swinging is the core of our Spider-Man traversal, so we designed the Web Wings to work with swinging and complement it. That way you can weave back and forth between the two to build up speed and height. When you use the Web Wings with our wind tunnels, though, that’s one of the ways to go across the city super-fast and really push the speed of traversal, which was one of our goals. Thanks to the power and speed of the PS5, Web Wings, add another layer to our traversal system and change up how you look at getting around the different parts of the city.”
With the reveal of Venom we thought it only appropriate to bring out our Collector’s Edition Statue for the first time and show it to the crowd.
If you still haven’t pre-ordered yours, be sure to check with direct.playstation.com or, in countries that aren’t serviced by Direct, your local retailer!
We asked both Bryan and Jon about bringing such an iconic Marvel character like Venom to life in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
“Our philosophy has always been that we want to respect the history of the franchise and the Spider-Man DNA, but also not be afraid to mix things up,” said Intihar. “The same holds true for one of its iconic characters, Venom. While the look of the character and several of his powers/abilities should be familiar to fans, this will be a unique Venom story that we are excited for everyone to experience this October.”
“When we decided to craft a Venom story, we knew we’d be making a bit of a tone shift. The best symbiote stories serve as an allegory: We all have darkness inside of us– but what would happen if we let it take over? With the introduction of the symbiote into our franchise, our heroes are forced to battle darkness, in all its forms,” added Paquette. “We wanted to see them change, both inside and outside, and feel the effect it has on those around them. And when Venom takes control, they face the real danger that they could lose themselves, and their loved ones, forever.”
Venom was brought to life by the sensational actor Tony Todd. We’ve long admired Tony and were so grateful to work with him to play Venom. His voice work brings to life Insomniac’s new monstrous design for the character – and Senior Art Director Jacinda Chew explains more:
“Our Venom was inspired by the comics, but there have been so many interpretations that it was fun to pick and choose what fits the game,” said Chew. “He has a unique take on the white spider icon and has the anatomy of a human. He also has powerful tendril attacks that can take many forms. It was challenging to find the right balance between liquid and solid in Venom’s materials as going too watery makes him look weak and going too solid can quickly turn him into a tentacle monster. Venom must look both powerful and semi liquid at the same time.”
We had some other fun news to share from SDCC. We are thrilled to work with one of my favorite poster artists, Tomer Hanuka, along with Marvel Games and Mondo, to produce a brand-new Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 poster for San Diego Comic-Con. The poster depicts Venom battling our Spider-Men in Tomer’s signature art style. While the variant screen print’s sale (Edition of 215) is limited to Mondo’s Booth (Booth 5137) at the event, Mondo has a Timed Edition screen print on sale on their website! It’s available from now until Sunday, July 23rd at 9:59pm PDT and they will print one for everyone who places an order. There’s also a special Promo Edition lithograph that the developers and voice actors will be signing at the Marvel Booth (Booth #2329) on Thursday, July 20.
We also discussed another collaboration with Mondo to release a vinyl soundtrack of the game’s amazing score from composer John Paesano. Kris Anka graces the vinyl with his incredible art which is currently in development. Starting today you’ll be able to pre-order the vinyl from Mondo’s website.
Finally – we had one last big announcement to make and it’s one you’ve all been waiting for! If you missed it, check out the video below.
That’s right! Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will be featured on custom PlayStation 5 hardware. The PS5 Console – Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Limited Edition Bundle has a custom PS5 console cover design with the symbiote closing in on our White Spider icon. Additionally, a matching DualSense wireless controller is included which again shows the symbiote threat creeping across the entire controller! The bundle also includes a voucher for a digital copy of the game.
And you’ll be thrilled to know that for those who already own a PS5 console, you’ll also be able to purchase these Limited Edition items separately as individual products if you want. For those of you who have a PS5 console with a disc drive, you can purchase the PlayStation 5 Console Covers – Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Limited Edition. If you own a PS5 Digital Edition, you can purchase the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition Console Covers – Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Limited Edition. And finally, you will also be able to purchase the DualSense wireless controller – Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Limited Edition separately, as well.
We’re very excited to announce that the Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Limited Edition Bundle, PS5 console covers, PS5 Digital Edition covers, and DualSense wireless controller will release on September 1st. Pre-orders begin on July 28th
For players purchasing the full PS5 bundle, the included game voucher can be redeemed when Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 releases on October 20. Players who purchase the bundle, which has a voucher for the digital Standard Edition of the game, will also get the same pre-order incentive items available to those who pre-order Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, including an early unlock Arachknight Suit for Peter with 3 additional color variants, an early unlock Shadow Spider Suit for Miles with 3 additional color variants, an early unlock Web Grabber gadget, and 3 skill points.
For all the details on where and how to pre-order, as well as additional specifics around the Limited Edition designs, please check out the blog post here.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is now available for Pre-Order on PlayStation Store. We can’t wait for you to play the game on October 20, only on PS5. As always, for all the latest, be sure to follow Insomniac Games on Twitter and Instagram.
