Insomniac Game’s upcoming Spider-Man has me excited for a myriad of reasons, particularly the age of its titular webslinger. From a gameplay perspective, this is a nice departure from past entries because, as availed by the nine-minute trailer dropped at E3, this Spider-Man is a confident well adjusted crimefighter. The combat showcased a precision and fluidity in the player's movements, the likes of which we haven’t really seen hitherto. Creative Director Bryan Intihar likened the team’s take on Spidey to an athlete in the prime of his career. More importantly than what an older Spider-Man means for the mechanics of the game is its bearing on the story Insomniac is telling, which reportedly was a priority for the developers.
When it comes to that essential element of any worthwhile Spider-Man story – the manner in which Peter Parker and Spider-man’s worlds “collide” – we will see a refreshing angle that will not be familiar to audiences that aren’t familiar with the comics. Peter Parker will have to balance marital duties as opposed to school dances or college papers. However, this transition to adulthood was not always handled tactfully in the comics. In fact, the One More Day story arc only exist to expunge all the things that linked Spider-Man too closely to adulthood, as readers complained Peter and Mary Jane’s marriage made the character less compelling.
It’s true that initially, Spider-Man’s primary contrivance was his age. Adolescent crime fighters were typically relegated to the role of sidekick so that the kind of problems that would inevitably arise from a kid balancing kid stuff with vigilantism was ultimately glossed over. But as the story progressed, the thing that made the character so unique and relatable was the burden of what ostensibly seemed like a gift. Peter constantly faced a psychological balancing act in his everyday life.
The essence of Peter Parker remains intact, as long as that element is present, whether he is trying to find stability at school while getting shoved into lockers or trying to provide for his family and make rent. Jacinda Chew, who is the art director of Insomniac’s Spider-Man, recently spoke to the team’s devotion to grounding their Spider-Man in a human story. He’s a 23-year-old man with adult obligations and relationships tempered against this fantastical alter ego. Insomniac aims to hone in on that duality. A Spider-Man that has been in the game for eight years will also be demonstrated through his rogue’s gallery. According to lead writer, Jon Paquette, even though he’s more experienced, the criminals of New York are familiar with how he operates, making the challenges “bigger than he’s ever faced before.”
Spider-Man has been present in the world of gaming for over 20 years now, and I’m really excited to learn that Insomniac is taking a deliberate step to separate their Webhead from the countless incarnations we’ve seen thus far. The developers are clearly passionate about the icon and are just as well taking measures to ensure the world they establish feels consistent with the characters’ long and revered history.
There is no official release date for Insomniac's Spider-Man, but we can expect it sometime in 2018.
