Spider-Man: Web Of Shadows (2008)
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows
Platform: XBox 360/PS2/PS3/PSP/Wii/DS/PC
Developed by: Amaze Entertainment (PSP/PS2) Griptonite Games (DS) Treyarch Shaba Games (Wii/PS3/Xbox 360/PC)
Published by: Activision
Genre: Action, Brawler
Players: Single player
Released: 24th October 2008
Reviewed: Ken Mooney
Banana Rating: Three-Out-Of-Five Bananas
Just as comic-book based movies have proven uber-popular (though not always good or successful) over the past decade or so, so too have video-games based on the characters and worlds of comics, with Marvel and DC comics in particular leasing out their characters for both original games and marketing tie-ins. Some are successful with fans, critics and general sales alike (generally the original games); some, not so much.
Spider-Man: Web of Shadows falls somewhere squarely between the two: while not a direct sequel to the Spider-Man movies and their tie-in games, there’s enough similarities to make this an unofficial Spider-Man 4, while enough content to make the game relevant and help it stand on its own.
The game picks up in the middle of the story, with Spider-Man desperately searching for love interest Mary-Jane, and the first two-thirds of the game flash back and build to this point. Initially, Spider-Man helps fellow hero Luke Cage with some rival gangs, giving the player a chance to learn the ropes (or the webs.) From there, Spider-Man gets involved with other heroes from the Marvel comics universe, facing off against the Kingpin’s criminal forces before the people of Manhattan come under the influence of an alien force, most recognisable as the symbiotic black goo that forms Spider-Man’s black costume (and that of the villainous Venom.)
The storyline itself is a Marvel fanboy’s dream, with the dialogue and story written by current Marvel writer Brian Reed: for fans of the characters, there’s a lot of nice touches, with turns of phrase or attitudes lifted straight from the comics (even the storyline itself echoes with a recent Venom Bomb arc from Marvel’s Mighty Avengers title.) Yet if you haven’t played a Spider-Man game before (or read the comics) don’t expect to feel alienated, as there’s enough optional dialogue and cut-scenes to introduce characters and explain what they do/why they’re there (without being boring.) The story itself admittedly takes its time getting started, with the infected New Yorkers only really surfacing towards what feels like the middle of the game, and while the tutorial levels make a lot more sense than other games (especially as gameplay progresses), they still feel like tutorials.
Gameplay itself, is both fun, and yet frustratingly easy: playing on the XBox 360, the standard ABXY buttons allow you to jump, melee attack and then two special web-based attacks, all of which can be strung together in various different combos (that can be levelled up as the game progresses.) Yet you still can’t help but feel cheated with a one-button attack system, no matter how pretty or cool the combos look, and once you’ve found a combo that works, it’s pretty much a case of repeating this for all the bad guys, and the boss-fights too. Web-swinging is fun, and Spider-Man is as athletic and nimble as the films showed him, but loses something by replacing the two-handed swinging from other games with one button, again, making things a little bit too simple. While changing from red costume to black gives access to all new moves, there are no huge differences between the two, and with the 360 controls (clicking on the left analogue stick to switch) can be frustrating when you accidentally push just a little too hard.
Graphically, Spider-Man: Web of Shadows is beautifully rendered in parts, and yet incomplete in others: the symbiotes look slimy, and the fighting engine is great, with very little load time or screens, and some of the in-game screens featuring a ruined Manhattan look especially cool (and eerie) but you can’t help but notice the two-dimensional textures of both water and smoke in particular which really don’t live up to the standards expected from current-gen consoles, and character models feel cheap and disproportionate.
All that said, this is one of the better comic-book based games in recent years, and if you played (and liked) the games attached to the Spider-Man movies, this is the next step, but you will get the feeling that you’re playing a slightly better version of the same game than something wholly original. Still, not a bad complaint when the originals were pretty good games themselves.
Verdict:
Fans of the comics/earlier games will love Web of Shadows, but that’s also the game’s failing, giving little new in the way of gameplay and not quite taking the jump needed or expected. That said, it’s a lot of fun, looks good (for the most part) and is a lot safer than trying to swing from buildings yourself.
Originally published on FrankTheMonkey.com