One of, if not the most anticipated game of the year, Marvel's Spider-Man 2 swings onto PS5 in Fall 2023. Coming three years after Spider-Man: Miles Morales and five years after the first game, fans are expecting Marvel's Spider-Man 2 to be a big step-up for the series, with plenty of new mechanics, fresh characters, and a more expansive open-world to swing through. While nothing has been officially confirmed so far, some fans are sure that they'll get to experience a whole host of new Spidey suits, and it'd be great if those suits actually affected gameplay.
Both the first Marvel's Spider-Man and Spider-Man: Miles Morales had pretty in-depth skill trees and gadget upgrade paths, giving players plenty of reasons to grind through each game's side content. However, there's always room for improvement, and Marvel's Spider-Man 2 has the perfect opportunity to bring even more complex mechanics to the table. Gameplay-changing suits would be the cherry on the cake.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 Should Have Gameplay-Changing Suits
The first Marvel's Spider-Man initially launched with a total of 28 Spidey suits. Including those in the DLC and those that came with the PS5 remastered version, there are currently 47 suits in Marvel's Spider-Man. While these suits are all direct references to the comics and movies, they don't serve too much purpose when it comes to gameplay, though suit abilities felt like a first step toward costumes that impact the actual game.
Unlocking a new suit in Spider-Man unlocks a new suit ability. These range from gaining the ability to become temporarily invincible to launching four additional arms out of the suit's back. These suit abilities did affect Spider-Man's gameplay a little, with players being encouraged to unlock new suits in order to unlock a new ability that could potentially be very beneficial to the player. It was also a neat touch that players could swap these abilities between suits, allowing players to look however they'd like while still retaining their favorite ability. However, this could lead to some jarring combinations, such as Peter Parker's "Undies" suit suddenly growing Iron Spider's mechanical arms.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 should take inspiration from its predecessor's approach to suits, but should double down on how each one affects gameplay. In the sequel, it would be great to see Spidey suits that completely change the gameplay experience. Each suit should give the player not only one special ability, but a whole set of unique statistics and move sets, each one directly taking from the comics and movies that have inspired it. For example, the iconic Spidey stealth suit could actually improve the player's stealth abilities, while something like the 2099 suit could use web wings to glide. High-tech suits like the Spider Armor suit could allow players to carry additional gadgets and have increased strength, and suits like the High-Velocity suit could increase Spidey's speed.
This gameplay-changing suit mechanic should be introduced and epitomized during the main campaign by the Symbiote suit, which has long been rumored to appear in the sequel. With Venom appearing in the game, it seems like a safe bet to assume that players will get to wear the Symbiote suit at somepoint, and it should act as the introduction of new Spidey suits granting the player gameplay benefits. For instance, the Symbiote suit should, naturally, increase Spidey's strength and dexterity, but wearing it should affect the player in some subtle ways to mirror Peter Parker's probable journey, such as reducing the length of the Focus bar or limiting what gadgets the player can use.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is set to release Fall 2023 for PS5.
