The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (PS4) Review

With The Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie out, another video game comes along with it. The first The Amazing Spider-Man game was generally well received as it had a unique storyline that served as an epilogue to the main film. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 video game takes a different approach as it has a unique storyline of its own that has little sprinkles from the actual movie. Does the video game hold up well or is it just a tangled mess?

The first thing I have to get off my chest is how outdated the graphics look like in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. I was playing the PS4 version which should be the best looking version of them all. Most other PS4 versions from other games look the best, and one would think this would be no different. Sadly, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on PS4 looks pretty much exactly as the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions. Even Grand Theft Auto V on PS3 and Xbox 360 looks superior to this game on the PS4. If you want to buy the game, you can stick to the current version as there’s no need to play this game on a “next-gen” console. You are not missing out on anything.

With that being said, I do like the fact that the video game doesn’t just follow the events from the movie bit-by-bit. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 actually has a storyline of its own which can be interesting to follow since the game features many villains that aren’t in the movies. Some of the characters here include Kingpin, Black Cat, Kraven the Hunter, Shocker and even Carnage. Electro and Green Goblin are also here too.

One thing I liked about this game is that it gave a resolution to the story arc that the movies forgot about. In the first The Amazing Spider-Man movie, Uncle Ben’s killer was still at large. I assumed the second movie would follow-up with this, but Uncle’s Ben’s killer was not even talked about. In the game however, let’s just say there is an ending to this story which leads to an even bigger threat. The game also tells us that Gwen Stacey made Peter Parker’s new costume. In the movie, he just wears the new Spider-Man costume not telling us how or why he changed it.

Speaking of costumes, there are a number of different outfits in Peter’s wardrobe. Some costumes can be unlocked in the game, while others are featured as DLC. The costumes that Spidey can wear include this original costume from the first movie, the Alien Costume one plus many more for you to find out. If you’re a huge Spider-Man fan, you’ll love changing into the different costumes that represent the many eras the characters has been through.

In terms of gameplay, one of the biggest changes gamers will notice is the web slinging. The first game had poor web slinging physics as Spider-Man would attach his webs onto the sky. Not to mention Spider-Man floated too much and it didn’t feel fast paced. In this game however, webs attach themselves to building this time and feels much faster. The left trigger controls his left hand while the right trigger controls his right hand. It’s a major improvement over past games, but still doesn’t match the perfect web slinging physics from the 2004 Spider-Man 2 game.

Sadly, the fighting mechanics in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 appear to have been simplified compared to the previous game. The previous game had a unique system that was similar to the fighting style from the Batman Arkham games. You could pick out enemies from afar and counter while attacking multiple enemies at the same time. In this game however, you don’t get that variety as all I seem to be pressing is the punch button all the time. Spider-Man can counter too when his spider-sense tingles, but it’s not as satisfying anymore. The combat just feels cheap and not as innovative as it was in the previous game which is a shame.