Marvel's Spider-Man 2 for PS5: Everything you need to know

Insomniac surprised everybody when it announced it was developing a Spider-Man game several years ago. The series has had a tumultuous video game past. Up until Insomniac released its version in 2018, most superhero video games were panned, the major exception being the Batman Arkham franchise. Marvel's Spider-Man bucked that trend. Insomniac crafted a thrilling tale with a ton of heart, humor, and excellent gameplay. It looks to follow it up with Marvel's Spider-Man 2 in 2023.

During Sony's PlayStation Showcase 2021, Insomniac not only unveiled its upcoming Marvel's Wolverine game but also confirmed that Spider-Man 2 is in the works, starring Peter Parker and Miles Morales, the latter of which received his own spin-off game that immediately became one of the best PS5 games.

Spider-Man 2 looks to up the ante by adding Venom to the mix, but will he ultimately be a friend or foe? We'll need to wait to find out. Until then, here's everything we know about Spider-Man 2 for PS5.

What is Marvel's Spider-Man 2?

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is the next main entry in the Spider-Man series developed by Insomniac. Peter Parker is older in this iteration at 23 years old, fresh out of college and already a seasoned Spider-Man hero. Acting as an assistant to Dr. Otto Octavius, he eventually comes into contact with the Sinister Six and saves New York from a deadly virus. Fast forward to Spider-Man 2: Peter has teamed up with Miles Morales as they both pull double duty as Spider-Man.

As Insomniac puts it, the studio "not only want to tell a great Super Hero story, but also deliver a compelling human story, one full of heart and humor that dives deep into the people behind the mask."

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: The story so far

This section contains spoilers.

As mentioned earlier, Insomniac's Spider-Man game began when Peter was 23 years old. The city eventually falls under threat from the Sinister Six (Mister Negative, Electro, Vulture, Rhino, Scorpion, and Doc Ock), who manage to hold off Spider-Man for long enough that Doc Ock can release a deadly virus across New York City. While Peter finally manages to defeat him, he cannot prevent his Aunt May from succumbing to the virus. The end of the game hinted towards the Green Goblin's involvement in future installments.

Spider-Man: Miles Morales was a spin-off that starred the titular character saving his home of Harlem when Peter is away in a foreign country doing work for the Daily Bugle. Miles finds out that the "sustainable" energy source used by the Roxxon Corporation isn't so sustainable, and it actually has enough power to destroy the entire city. Insomniac's version of the Tinkerer, who is an old friend of Miles from their childhood, ends up sacrificing herself so that Miles can unleash the power he absorbed a safe distance away from people.

Where exactly Spider-Man 2 begins is unclear, but it will take place after the events of both games. From the trailer we've seen so far, Venom will also play a big role.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Gameplay

Like its predecessor, Spider-Man 2 should be a third-person open-world game with fluid combat and traversal. Peter and Miles have access to a slew of different abilities (Miles has electricity powers, for example, while Peter doesn't) and gadgets that can help them take down their enemies in a fight. If you've seen any gameplay from Spider-Man or Spider-Man: Miles Morales, you can expect it to look nearly identical in Spider-Man 2, albeit probably prettier and with some new mechanics thrown in for good measure.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: List of suits

One of the things that made Spider-Man and Spider-Man: Miles Morales so great were the suits. Over the decades, Peter has amassed a gallery of iconic suits, from the comics to movies and cartoons. Miles Morales has fewer since his character debuted more recently, but he still has a respectable number. Spider-Man 2 will likely have dozens of costumes for these characters to wear, including some new ones that Insomniac might create on its own.

For now, we know that both Peter and Miles will have access to their standard suits. Peter's Iron Spider suit is also shown off in the game's reveal trailer.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Is it in the same universe as Insomniac's Wolverine game?

It's unclear whether Insomniac's Spider-Man and Wolverine games take place in the same universe. Insomniac head of franchise strategy & studio relations Ryan Schneider seemed to imply so in a blog post, but it has not been explicitly confirmed.

While Schneider said that Wolverine is a standalone game, he also said, "Being able to build a new, original universe with Spider-Man and now Wolverine is such an honor for so many of us at Insomniac Games." The singular use of universe implying that they're one and the same.

This could potentially lead the way to some exciting cameos or even cross-over games. Spider-Man has teamed up with the X-Men plenty of times over the decades in Marvel comics. Peter's even fought and defeated them before in Secret Wars (which was interestingly the first time Peter wore the black symbiote suit before it bonded with Eddie Brock and became Venom). Whatever the future holds, Insomniac is surely up for the challenge.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Is it co-op?

Insomniac describes Spider-Man 2 as a "single-player adventure," but we wouldn't rule out co-op play just yet. With both Peter and Miles available as playable characters, having a friend drop into your game and get in on the action would be perfect. We don't know whether this will be the case, however. The developer hasn't even detailed exactly how both playable characters will work, whether you can only play as one or the other in specific missions or if you can freely change between the two whenever you'd like.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Is Venom a playable character?

We don't know what role Venom will play within the game, but he appears to be a prominent character (voiced by the Candyman himself, Tony Todd). Though originally portrayed as a villain, Venom's become an anti-hero over the years, which we can see more of in the Tom Hardy movies. It's anyone's guess whether he'll be friend or foe in Spider-Man. We could even see him start as an adversary and eventually team up with Peter and Miles. Of course, Insomniac can also go the tried-and-true route of making him the big bad.

I wouldn't expect him as a playable character in the game, but stranger things have happened, and Insomniac always seems to surprise us time and time again.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Is it PS5 exclusive?

Spider-Man is being developed exclusively for the PlayStation 5. It does not appear to have a cross-gen release with the PS4, like many of Sony's games have in recent months. And while Sony has been bringing more of its games to PC, there was no mention of a PC release in its announcement. It's possible it could come to PC at a later date than when it launches on PS5, but for now, it's only confirmed for PlayStation's newest machine.

Marvel's Spider-Man 2: Release date

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is expected to release for PS5 in 2023, well before Insomniac's Wolverine game. It's always important to remember that this release window is subject to change, though, especially given the state of the games industry since the pandemic began. Games have frequently been delayed by weeks, months, or even indefinitely. This may or may not happen to Spider-Man 2. For now, we can look forward to 2023.