Fans of the original Spider-Man game for PS1 might be hit with a wave of nostalgia after seeing a new picture comparing Black Cat and Spider-Man from the 2000 video game to their counterparts in 2018’s open-world Spider-Man from Insomniac Games. While players wait to get their hands on the PC version of Spider-Man: Miles Morales, releasing in November, this image provides a great look back at Spider-Man’s long history in gaming.
Released in 2000 by developer Neversoft using the same engine as its hit Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater game, Spider-Man tasked players with taking control of the arachnid-themed superhero as he explored a variety of levels set throughout New York. Featuring appearances from classic comic book allies like Spider-Man’s sometimes love interest Black Cat, along with fan-favorite villains like Venom and Doctor Octopus, the game was generally well-received by fans and critics and went on to spawn three sequels. Though not as fondly remembered by many fans as 2004’s Spider-Man 2, developed by Treyarch and featuring a web-swinging mechanic still praised to this day, Spider-Man on PlayStation showed that the character was more than capable of making the jump from side-scrolling titles into full 3D.
In a picture posted to r/gaming, Reddit user SnuglyTalc shows a comparison between Spider-Man and Black Cat as they were portrayed in the original PlayStation’s Spider-Man game and their appearance in 2018’s Spider-Man on PS4. The difference in graphical quality between the two titles is immediately apparent in the picture, with the blocky and polygonal models in the original game paling in comparison to their sleek and life-like appearance on the PS4. In between posts noting the astonishing improvement in graphics in the 18 years between the two games’ release dates, some gamers in the comments shared fond memories of playing demos of the game that were included in cereal boxes at the time.
The radical improvement in video game graphics between the two titles serves as a perfect example of how in-game graphics have improved as the medium has matured, and many of the posters responding to the comparison image couldn’t help but speculate about what another 18 years in graphical advances could bring to the Spider-Man games of tomorrow. The upcoming Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 for PS5 already shows a drastic improvement in graphical fidelity compared to its 2018 predecessor, almost mirroring the web-slinger’s big screen counterpart in some screenshots, making it intriguing to imagine what another two decades of graphical improvements could lead to.
Spider-Man has been a fixture in video games for decades at this point, appearing in everything from side-scrolling brawlers to being referenced in Fortnite, and this image shows how the character’s depiction continues to adapt and evolve to meet the gaming trends of the era. And for some fans of the wise-cracking, smart-aleck superhero, it might just spark the desire to dust off that old PlayStation and revisit one his first 3D adventures.
Marvel's Spider-Man is available now for PC, PS4, and PS5.
