Somy Spider-Man fans are still a bit displeased that Insomniac Games didn’t stick with the face that protagonist Peter Parker had in the series’ first instalment. In 2020’s Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, the character was given completely new face, while his face was also retroactively changed in Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, which released at the same time, with the developer stating that the new facial model was a better match for actor Yuri Lowenthal, who plays the character, allowing for better facial capture.
And though some disgruntled criticisms regarding that change have persisted, Lowenthal himself seems to have gotten over it- and he suggests you do it, in case you haven’t. Speaking recently with ComicBook.com, when asked about Peter Parker’s changed face, the actor said that he never had any problem with it, since it allowed for better facial capture, and that he feels fans should “get over it”.
“The performance was the same for me,” Lowenthal said. “I got over it as soon as they said ‘Hey, we wanna make this change so that the facial animation is better.’ I said ‘I’m all in!’ I don’t care if he looks like a goblin, if my performance is better, than I’m in. I’m kind of tired of talking about it to be honest, because I think everything that needs to be said has been said. Some people will take longer to get over it, some people will never get over it. The one positive thing I take away from this experience is that people connected emotionally so hard and so deeply in the first game that they’re mad when they feel that person changes. I can only be so mad about that because it worked, not the change thing, but you connected with the character which is great. Now, get over it!”
Earlier this year, upon the showing of a new trailer for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, many assumed based on glimpses of the character that Mary Jane Watson’s face had been changed as well, though Insomniac has confirmed that it’s still the same face model and actress, just with a much greater level of fidelity.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is out on October 20 for PS5.