While Marvel’s Wolverine is Insomniac Games’ next big project, players are also eagerly anticipating Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 at some point in the future. That being said, the last Spider-Man game wasn’t as well received as the first, garnering many criticisms surrounding its writing, gameplay, and other factors. For the next wall crawling and web slinging adventure, perhaps the style of Wolverine’s journey could help fix player concerns.
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Despite player complaints, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is among Insomniac’s most critically acclaimed games, reaching a 90% on Metacritic alone. It’s undeniably that the larger open world, robust combat, and distinct playstyles of both Peter Parker and Miles Morales created a fun superhero game that surpasses many others. However, the only aspects that held that game back seem to be non-existent for Marvel’s Wolverine, suggesting an approach that could refine an already great experience.
Marvel’s Wolverine Seems To Show Off An Incredibly Grounded Hero For Its Combat
The biggest difference between Marvel’s Wolverine and Marvel’s Spider-Man seems to be how both games approach combat for its main character(s). At first glance, players might believe the only contrast is how violent Wolverine is compared to either New York wall crawler. As an M-rated game, Marvel’s Wolverine does have a chance to ramp up the blood and gore for the six-clawed mutant, with gameplay already showing Wolverine shearing off limbs like butter and quickly dispatching foes permanently instead of webbing them up or knocking them out.
Based on his mutant powers, Wolverine’s style of fighting was always going to be vastly different from either Spider-Man. Yet, the grounded combat Logan uses to take down his enemies isn’t too different from the first Marvel’s Spider-Man. In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, both Peter and Miles had unique gadgets and powers at their disposal, whether from Miles’ special electricity abilities or Peter’s use of symbiote-powered skills.
The original Insomiac Spider-Man game only had limited uses of Peter Parker’s web gadgets, many of which were not gained until specific moments in the game’s story. In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, technology and super-powered skills were more abundant, and far easier to get by completing side content. As a result, it was much easier to get overpowered in that game, with explosive combat replacing the grounded feel of fighting that seems to be the focus of Marvel’s Wolverine.
Gadgets And Symbiote Powers In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Had Its Pros & Cons
As you unlocked more abilities in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, your combat became less about countering enemy attacks and using grounded combos to defeat them. Instead, you would wait for your strongest abilities to recharge, then activate them for explosive ways to break through groups of enemies. The strongest skills would not only turn the tide of battle, but also deal enough damage to take out some foes in one hit before you ever struck them with any simple punch or kick.
This, combined with the other spider-themed gadgets you got on top of these abilities, made the grounded combat of the first Marvel’s Spider-Man secondary in most encounters. While it flowed well went put together and lent well to the larger groups of enemies you fought in the game, it was a far different direction than the first game. In both Marvel’s Spider-Man and the Miles Morales spin-off, any powers beyond what you normally had were somewhat limited, either tied to a single super move or something that took longer to recover.
There were likely many reasons for the combat changes in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, including the new nature of bosses in the sequel. Boss characters like Mr. Negative, Kraven the Hunter, and eventually Venom were far stronger than the first game’s Sinister Six, requiring stronger abilities to face them in some instances. Regardless, these changes diminished the player’s need to rely on their own ingenuity in combat, from using parts of environments where they fought enemies to smartly applying limited resources to win fights.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 Should Be A Return To Form For Both Peter Parker & Miles Morales
Although some players might argue that the abilities in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 were an improvement to the previous game, its grounded combat might have more long-lasting enjoyment for a potential follow-up. Much like how Marvel’s Wolverine superhero elements are set in close quarters brawls to match Logan’s ferocious fighting style, Spider-Man can work better as a fluid acrobatic with incredible reflexes. The overuse of special powers and gadgets against small fry opponents takes away some of that feeling that made the first game so interesting.
The lessons from Marvel’s Wolverine doesn’t have to be strictly related to the combat too. The dialogue in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 often feels sanitized or “safe” at times, something that likely won’t be the case with Marvel’s Wolverine with Logan’s brash nature. Grittier or darker aspects to Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 might make its story more enticing to some players, provided that it doesn’t lose the charm that made its characters and setting so endearing in the first place.
Overall, the positive reception to Marvel’s Wolverine is largely due to how different it feels from the Spider-Man games. By returning to what made Insomniac’s first superhero adaptation great, and understanding why the X-Men character’s journey is so compelling to its audience, developers can turn Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 into possibly the best title in the series.
How do you think Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 should compare to Marvel’s Wolverine? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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