The recent ransomware attack on Insomniac Games didn't pull any punches on the developer, as it divulged several upcoming titles Insomniac has yet to even announce to the gaming community, including a project seemingly titled "Venom: Lethal Protector." The list of titles is already fueling discussion around the future of the acclaimed Marvel's Spider-Man series, as well as the upcoming Wolverine game set in the same universe. This all seems to suggest brand-new playable superheroes being introduced to the Marvel's Spider-Man franchise, including a famous anti-hero from the Spider-Man comics.

Venom: Lethal Protector is set for a 2025 release, according to the leak, bringing a host of implications to the table. The game is said to feature multiple "Spider-heroes" that players can swap between during gameplay, and, according to the game's supposed title, that includes Venom as well. However, this likely won't be the Venom players encountered in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, because the upcoming game's title possibly points to a different version of the alien symbiote originally introduced in a 1993 six-issue limited comic book series.

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Eddie Brock Is an Anti-Hero in the Venom: Lethal Protector Comic Book Series

Venom and Spider-Man Team Up in the Venom: Lethal Protector Comic Book Series

The title of the limited comic book series makes Venom's role in it clear: the symbiote somehow ends up filling the role of "protector" and fights evil on behalf of good. That is, in fact, exactly what transpires. In the comics, Venom and Spider-Man agree to peacefully coexist, so long as Venom refrains from criminal activities. Venom then relocates to San Francisco where he encounters Orwell Taylor, a man seeking revenge for his child's death at the hands of Venom, and his army of trained mercenaries known as The Jury. The Jury then attacks and nearly kills Venom, until the Life Foundation intervenes and rescues him.

After witnessing some misleading media coverage of Venom, Spider-Man travels to San Francisco to stop him, only to discover that the Life Foundation managed to extract "seeds" from Venom and used them to create five new symbiotic offspring — Scream, Riot, Phage, Lasher, and Agony. When the head of the Life Foundation, Carlton Drake, realizes Spider-Man is in pursuit of Venom, he forces the symbiote to break its bond with its host, Eddie Brock, putting the man on the brink of death in the process. Fortunately, Eddie is able to bond with the symbiote once more to become Venom and fight alongside Spider-Man against the other symbiotes, with their fight eventually leading them to a battle against a violent mercenary named Roland Treece.

Eddie Brock May Play a Pivotal Role in Insomniac's Venom: Lethal Protector

While Harry Osborn became Venom in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, it's entirely probable that Eddie Brock could play a significant role in Venom: Lethal Protector, simply due to Venom's true identity in the limited comic book series of the same name. The six-issue comic run was the first time Eddie Brock played the main character of a series, and judging by the supposed title of the upcoming video game, Venom will most likely be its main character as well. Whether Eddie is the one who ends up in that role remains to be seen, but it would be a great opportunity for the developer to introduce a new character that fans of the comics know primarily as an anti-hero.

The cybersecurity attack on Insomniac Games is undoubtedly a tragic event for the developer, but it has nonetheless led to heightened speculation surrounding its upcoming releases, especially Venom: Lethal Protector. Conversation centered around the leak is unlikely to die down anytime soon. At the very least, fans of the hugely successful Marvel's Spider-Man franchise may finally get to see Eddie Brock join the roster of superheroes as a playable character, both in and out of his symbiote suit.