Overview

After what was a stunning success with the release of the Spider-Man (2018) many would wonder what would come next. It was obvious that a sequel was inevitable, but what fans didn't expect was a fully dedicated spin-off that serves as a Midway point for the Insomniac series, focused around Miles Morales.

Insomniac the made lads did it. Spider-Man Miles Morales is an interesting title when it comes to discussing the releases for Insomniac's take on the Spider-Man universe. It provides a different perspective and type of story that can be told from the lens of a Spider-Man, and one that doesn't operate with the same abilities and storytelling that is mapped onto Peter Parker's Spider-Man.

It would release as great kick-off to showcase the visual fidelity of the PS5, but narratively serve as a stop off for Peter Parker's established Spider-Man, whilst simultaneously picking up and establishing the Spider-Man origin story of the high-school student who was bitten by a radioactive spider and is figuring out what it means to be a superhero.

The character Miles Morales has only grown in popularity over the recent years especially with the critically acclaimed Spiderverse films which explore the DNA of what makes a Spider-Man, Spider-Man. Miles Morales is an interesting character who retains much of the quirky characteristics like Peter, but is his own unique and different take on Spider-Man and here in his own game, it really does explore a known formula through a different lens, a different perspective, Miles's perspective.

Miles Morales was a perfect Midway point between the numbered sequel, and has only aged with grace with the newly released sequel. Let's dive into why Spider-Man Miles Morales is so awesome.

Story

The story for Miles Morales takes place after the events of Marvel's Spider-Man and sees Miles assisting Peter with dealing with crime, and assuming the role as a second Spider-Man. Miles is put into a position where he will be the primary Spider-Man as Peter is going away on vacation with MJ, meaning Miles will have to step up and protect the city. As I mentioned earlier, the part that the Spider-Man journey that Mile's finds himself in is the stage of discovering and understanding not only his powers, but the meaning and responsibility that comes along with being a Spider-Man.

Throughout the journey Miles is confronted with tough choices trying to manage and adapt to the role of balancing the lives and relationships of Miles and how the clash with the world of Spider-Man. In my previous video, I mentioned that Bryan Inithar spoke about what is the recipe for the best Spider-Man stories, and deduced from the Spidey fans that he spoke to, that the best stories are the ones that see a clash between the personal life of Peter Parker and Spider-Man, and here in Miles Morales they've taken this formula and doubled down on it.

To me, I feel that Miles Morales in many ways opts to tell a story which hits at the core of a Spider-Man story, which is the iconic "with great power comes great responsibility" quote which defines many of the choices that make Spider-Man. Throughout Miles is at a crossroads between saving the ones he loves, himself, or putting the greater good above it all and ultimately culminates in a story that feels impactful and does a great job at setting the stage for Miles as a character, and a counterpart to Peter's Spider-Man which is a topic of discussion for the next video.

Overall Miles Morales, is a bite-sized story that builds off many of the key events of Marvel's Spider-Man and sets the stage for Miles Morales in a way that makes his journey as a Spider-Man feel like one that we're along for the ride with and Spider-Man Miles Morales, whilst a midway point in terms of the broader story that is told, serves as a starting point for Miles, and what will eventuate in Spider-Man 2.

Gameplay

In terms of the gameplay side of things, Miles Morales was a launch title for the ps5 showing off the power of Sony's next generation of consoles. In terms new approaches to gameplay, Miles Morales did improve and build things from Spider-Man 2018, and even paved the way for a few of the features that would find there way into Spider-Man 2. However, Miles Morales feels more like a showcase of what was to come rather than being a fully fledged upgrade from the first game.

Whilst this may sound like a criticism, it really isn't and the improvements that are made to Miles Morales, whilst more bite sized do make this overall experience feel worthwhile. Whether it is the expansion into more side quests, the Venom abilities that Miles obtains that make his gameplay stand out from Peter's move set, alongside the inclusion of the Friendly Neighborhood App which helped track and manage new side missions that are available.

More importantly the inclusion of the new venom abilities that Miles obtains are great and offer a fresh set of abilities to get familiar with and new additions to the stealth segments of the game with abilities allowing miles to go invisible that keep these parts feeling fresh and distinguishable from its predecessor.

The combat itself is just as fun, weighty and engaging as it was in Spider-Man 2018, and here with the more combat focused Venom abilities on top of gadgets, Miles arsenal definitely feels like an adaptable kit that offers a reasonable expansion of abilities for the length the game is going for.

However one aspect of the experience that I felt weighed a little more heavily the second time around was the exploration and side activities and collectables a little repetitive and familiar to the previous game. I understand this is another touch point for understanding this game as a midway point between two games, and whilst Spider-Man 2 does see the return of many of the similar collectables I feel like the touch-ups to traversal and the difference in what you are doing does separate the sequel from it's predecessor more than Miles did. It isn't by any means a dealbreaker, but it was something that became more noticeable the second time around.

However, in Miles Morales I did like the inclusion of the Friendly Neighborhood app which allows you to select available side activities, something that would find its way even into the sequel. This especially on the second playthrough is one thing that I really noticed, is just how many little flourishes that Miles added carried over to the sequel again encapsulating this idea I was discussing regarding

But in many ways, Miles does feel like it offers similar side content that was present in Spider-Man 2018, except re-contextualized to fit with Miles's story.

The Midway Jump

When I refer to Miles Morales as a midway jump I want it to be clear that isn't a negative, but more a reflection as to what Insomnia c created in 2018, but also a blueprint as to where they would take the series not only with the powerful technology of next gen consoles, but also through the methods of story telling. The Midway jump provided a flipside to the Peter Parker story through Miles, and what would come in the next entry both from a narrative standpoint along with the adoption of improvements and features introduced in Spider-Man 2. Spider-Man Miles Morales is a bite sized refinement that whilst its story doesn't hit the same highs as 2018 and does wrap up a little quicker given the overall shorter runtime, still manages to introduce our second protagonist gracefully, and introduces some more minor flourishes to the web swinging such as being able to slip through silos and seamlessly continue swinging. However, if you found the swinging of Spider-Man 2018 to still be too slow for your liking than Miles doesn't address this but more build on what already worked in the previous game.

Conclusion

In closing Spider-Man Miles Morales is a good game, it doesn't try to innovate much on the gameplay but it does does do a good job introducing Miles Morales as a Spider-Man even if the story does feel like it can be on the shorter side at times.