Highlights
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2 promises a bigger open-world and two playable characters, enhancing the formula of its predecessor.
- Insomniac's willingness to play with Spider-Man conventions might result in unexpected twists, potentially making Venom and Kraven red herrings.
- The identity of Venom is a major secret in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, with theories ranging from Harry Osborn to Peter Parker himself, suggesting the game has more surprises in store.
As it stands, Insomniac's Spider-Man series is currently one of the greatest superhero video game franchises ever made, and that statement will probably only get truer with the release of Marvel's Spider-Man 2. A game that's set to improve upon its predecessor's formula in just about every way, Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is offering a bigger, more expansive open-world, two distinct playable characters, and a story that's set to take some of the most iconic Spider-Man comic arcs, and give them a fresh new spin.
One of the greatest elements of the original Marvel's Spider-Man was its simultaneous respect for the source material, but willingness to play around with usual Spider-Man conventions. Insomniac knows that the vast majority of fans have seen these classic stories and characters time and time again, and it knows that repeating them verbatim won't be enough to keep long-time fans invested. But it's Insomniac's penchant for twists that could end up making Venom and Kraven's appearance in Marvel's Spider-Man 2 one big red herring.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2's Kraven and Venom Could Be Hiding a Twist
Since the very first announcement trailer, Kraven and Venom have been at the very center of Marvel's Spider-Man 2's marketing. Every trailer, every poster, and every piece of concept art revealed so far for the game has either Venom or Kraven the Hunter or both plastered all over it. This makes complete sense on Insomniac's part, with Kraven the Hunter being a big fan-favorite character in the comics that hasn't really been given his time to shine properly in contemporary Spider-Man media, and Venom being the most iconic, and most popular villain in Spidey's rogue's gallery.
From what Insomniac has revealed so far, it seems as though Marvel's Spider-Man 2's versions of Kraven and Venom are going to keep pretty close to their well-established portrayals in the comics. Kraven seems to play a major role in Spider-Man 2's story, taking his hunt to New York City, where he seems to be trying to capture all of Spider-Man's foes, and the two Wall-Crawlers themselves. Venom also seems to be playing a pretty traditional role in the story, acting as a big ball of chaos that the two Spider-Men need to stop at all costs.
But if the first game is anything to go by, there might be more than meets the eye to both Kraven and Venom in Marvel's Spider-Man 2. In 2018's Spider-Man, Insomniac kept its universe largely the same as the standard 616 continuity but tweaked a few little elements to keep fans on their toes. One of the biggest reveals in Marvel's Spider-Man was that Doc Ock was in the game, which Insomniac kept well under wraps before release. Insomniac has set a precedent for big villain reveals now, and Marvel's Spider-Man 2 could be hiding more than one.
The big secret surrounding Marvel's Spider-Man 2 right now is the identity of Venom. Insomniac has confirmed that Eddie Brock isn't the one in the Symbiote suit, which has sparked no shortage of theories among fans, ranging from Harry Osborn, to Kraven, to even Peter Parker himself. But while Insomniac is building this up to be the game's biggest reveal, it might end up being a red herring all along, with Marvel's Spider-Man 2 having some kind of other, even bigger reveal in store. It's certainly likely that Spider-Man 2 will have plenty of little twists and turns throughout its story, but a big reveal, or even a big character death might not be out of the realm of possibility, with Insomniac using Venom's identity to hide it away.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 releases on October 20, exclusively for PS5.
