Spider-Man games have been around a lot longer than some fans might realize. The very first Spidey game came out all the way back in 1982 for the Atari 2600, and while it looks exceptionally rough nowadays, it still has the core features fans can expect of a Spider-Man game, from wall-crawling to web-swinging. These features have remained consistent throughoutSpidey’s history in the video game landscape, but over the years, a handful of other iconic features have crawled their way into the series. The Symbiote suit is certainly one of those, making yet another appearance inMarvel’s Spider-Man 2.
Debuting all the way back in May 1984 inAmazing Spider-Man#252, the Symbiote suit became an overnight staple of the hero, going on to appear throughout the various different interpretations of the character over the years, from the 90sSpider-Mananimated show toSpectacular Spider-MantoSam Raimi’sSpider-Man 3. But the Symbiote suit’s appearances don’t stop at movies and TV. The Symbiote suit has also appeared frequently in gaming, with its best appearances affecting the gameplay in some way.
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How Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s Symbiote Suit Gameplay Compares to Past Spider-Man Games
The very first appearance of the Symbiote suit in gaming can be traced all the way back to 2000’sSpider-Manon the PlayStation 1 and other contemporary consoles. Though Venom appears in the game, the Symbiote suit doesn’t actually play a role inSpider-Man’s story. Instead, it’s an alternate costume only unlockable via cheats.Spider-Man’s Symbiote suitdoesn’t change the core gameplay loop too much, but it does give Spidey unlimited webbing.
Over the next few years, the Symbiote suit would crop up a few more times in gaming, but only as a cosmetic item. The most noticeable examples of this are 2005’sUltimate Spider-Man, andMarvelUltimate Alliance. But the next major gameplay-altering appearance of the Symbiote suit came in 2007’sSpider-Man 3. A direct movie tie-in with Sam Raimi’s maligned third installment,Spider-Man 3spotlights the Symbiote suit in both story and gameplay, seemingly in a similar way to howMarvel’s Spider-Man 2is handling it.
Generally speaking, most versions ofSpider-Man 3grant players a simple speed and damage boost when they don the Symbiote suit. In the flagship console versions ofSpider-Man 3, players are given the Symbiote suit a few missions in and then wear it until a certain point in the story, but in other versions of the game players can freely swap between the classic suit and the Symbiote suit with the press of a button. It’s currently unclear which routeMarvel’s Spider-Man 2’s own Symbiote suit will go down.
But by far the most iconic appearance of the Symbiote suit in a Spider-Man game comes in2008’sSpider-Man: Web of Shadows. Players unlock the Symbiote suit pretty early on inWeb of Shadows, and from the get-go, they can swap between the classic and Symbiote suit at will, with each having completely distinct move sets, abilities, and animations. While the classic red and blue suit is faster and more agile, the Symbiote suit is much stronger, resulting in completely different movement and attack animations.
Web of Shadowsalso features two unique skill trees for each suit, with Symbiote upgrades improving Spidey’s strength, and giving him more tendril-based, area-of-effect powers. 2010’sSpider-Man: Shattered Dimensionsalso features a version of the Symbiote suit, and much likeWeb of Shadows, the player gets to use a number of AoE tendril abilities. From the gameplay footage fans have seen so far, it seems as thoughMarvel’s Spider-Man 2is following a similar strategy with its own Symbiote suit, giving players separate skill trees for Symbiote and non-Symbiote powers alongside some brutal Symbiote tendril attacks.Marvel’s Spider-Man 2isn’t copyingWeb of ShadowsorShattered Dimensionsbeat for beat though, as its own Symbiote suit has already been shown to have a number of unique abilities not seen in a Spidey game before, such as using the Symbiote to block and parry an oncoming attack.
Spider-Man 2launches on October 20, exclusively for PlayStation 5.
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