NOTE: There are major spoilers ahead for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
Insomniac Games has been pretty bold with the narrative choices it has made in its Spider-Man games so far, and the developer kept that going with Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. The sequel, which launched last month, ends with Peter Parker, the original Spider-Man, essentially retiring and his former mentor and now-crime fighting partner Miles Morales graduating to the role of New York’s only Spider-Man.
And as that ending suggests, Miles is going to be the “main” Spider-Man in the Insomniac series going forward, as confirmed by advanced writer Brittney Morris and narrative director Ben Arfmann in a recent interview with Gizmodo.
When asked if ending the game with Peter hanging up his mask and Miles becoming the main Spider-Man was something Insomniac had always planned, Morris said, “It always felt very natural, and I think we all collectively thought it would happen. To me, it shows a great deal of evolution from Miles; at the beginning of the game, we see him struggling to figure out what he wants to do with his life. By the end, we had Miles carrying the burden of saving the city, and also carrying Pete when Pete wasn’t strong enough to carry himself at various points.”
Arfmann added that it was decided “pretty early” in development that Miles would end up taking the reigns from Peter.
“The idea of a two Spider-Man story was always really essential to this game. I think pretty early on, we knew that we wanted to have that moment of handing the reins over,” he said. “And as we developed it, as we started to lay down more track leading up to that moment, it just felt more and more right.
“I think it was Jon [Paquette, narrative director] who wrote that scene in Aunt May’s garage, and it’s one of my favorite scenes. The way that Miles intuits exactly what Pete is thinking and stops him from stumbling through trying to hand over the mask. Miles going, “You know I got this, bro,” it’s such a great moment between the two of them. And it felt like such a natural conclusion; I’m not sure when specifically we decided to do that, but it always felt like the only way the game could end.”
That does, of course, raise plenty of questions about what the future holds for the Marvel’s Spider-Man series. It seems safe to assume that Peter Parker’s role in the story isn’t done yet, but exactly how prominent will he be in the inevitable Marvel’s Spider-Man 3, especially with Miles taking on a greater role? And does Miles’ growing important suggest that he could eventually take over entirely as the series’ sole protagonist?
Before we get to the next mainline entry in the series, it seems like Insomniac might have several other things planned for the near future, including something related to Daredevil, and possibly even a spinoff focused on Venom.
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