I felt like it was a race against time as I played Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. I needed to finish the main story before having the story spoiled for me online. When I played Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, I found myself exploring downtown NYC and completing several side quests. I’d end up playing for hours without completing one of the story missions. I finally decided to get serious, and I ended up playing Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 for close to twelve hours straight, but I completed the story without being spoiled. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 was nothing short of amazing, and it’s easily the best game I played in 2023.

Spoilers Ahead – You Have Been Warned

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 takes place shortly after Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Peter was recently fired from his physics teaching position for abandoning the class to stop Sandman. Miles joins Peter, and quickly the two dispatch Sandman. From Sandman’s reasoning, it is alluded that Sandman was being stalked by someone, but it’s not revealed who. Meanwhile, Harry Osborne, Peter’s childhood friend, is revealed to be feeling better as he has an experimental exosuit put into his body that’s supposedly cured him. As Peter and Miles are overseeing a prison transfer, they meet Kraven and his followers, who abduct Martin Li and Scorpion. If that wasn’t bad enough, Harry’s exosuit (aka. Venom) transfers to Peter, which changes his entire demeanor. Peter and Miles team up to put an end to Kraven’s hunt, along with trapping Venom for good.

The story for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is so good. Peter struggles with his Spider-Man persona, especially when his relationship with Mary Jane is getting serious. Miles has his own battles, especially when it comes to Martin Li. Martin Li is directly responsible for the death of Miles’ father, and Miles ends up saving Martin Li in the game. While Miles doesn’t forgive him, he doesn’t let his anger get to him or let himself seek vengeance against Martin. Both Peter and Miles have their time to shine throughout the missions and side quests.

I can’t talk about the story of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 without addressing the villains. Kraven, in my opinion, was such a good idea to include in the game. Peter and Miles are powerful, but not because they are physically strong. I think Kraven keeps Peter and Miles on edge, as I think they know that Kraven is a formidable opponent. Kraven’s boss battle was intensely challenging, and I died a few times before I figured out how to get past him. I think the way the game handled Kraven’s story arc was awesome. Having Venom violently kill Kraven shifted the focus from Kraven to Venom as a formidable enemy. Speaking of Venom, being able to play as Venom was so cool. Venom being able to whack all of Kraven’s guards was satisfying. One of my favorite missions was when Venom (Harry Osborne regaining the suit) had to escape Oscorp after he injured Peter. Jumping from platform to platform, grabbing Oscorp guards, and unleashing havoc was so fun. The last mission that was a complete surprise to me was Mary Jane becoming Scream! I’m so glad that wasn’t spoiled for me. I read the Scream comics, and I wasn’t expecting to see Scream in the game.

Besides the story, there’s so much to do in NYC. In this game, there are more areas to explore, which I liked. The side quests include Sandman’s memories, helping Mysterio with his virtual reality simulations, along with Kraven and Venom’s hideouts. I’m at 89% right now, meaning I haven’t finished everything in the game, although, since I spent so much time on side quests earlier, I don’t have a whole lot to do. I am fully planning on unlocking every trophy in the game.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is everything I had hoped for and more. It’s the best game I played in 2023, and I can’t wait for Insomniac to make more Marvel games. I rate Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 5/5.