Miles Morales may just be finding his footing as a superhero, but his first solo game proves developer. Insomniac has comfortably hit its stride with this series. Marvel'S spider-man Miles Morales is a worthy starring debut for Miles telling as engaging a story is in the original game while simultaneously improving upon pretty much every gripe I had with it. This may be a smaller package overall, but every facet of it feels more essential and while it's available on PlayStation 4, it's best experienced as a gorgeous introduction to the promise of the PlayStation 5
All of the improved frame rates, lighting and particle effects enhance the city Just enough to make this former new yorker achingly miss the city. I once called home hello, tiny spiders actor, Naji Jitter returns to the title role and gives Miles sincerity, heart, and excitement that stand tall next to the other. Depictions of him out there, including into The spider-verse spider-man Miles Morales, follows in the smart storytelling footsteps of the original game by ensuring the events of life underneath the mask come head to head with the webhead's trials and tribulations and while you're free to explore the full New York map from spider-man to take
In its fantastic new Christmas time, look and near instant loading times, much of the story is rooted in Harlem. We get to know Miles apartment as well as the neighboring blocks around him and with militaristic tech, conglomerate, Roxanne, building a new plaza HQ in Harlem. This welcoming home neighborhood becomes the center of an engaging struggle as it fights to maintain its identity in the face of corporate takeover.
Miles Morales Is a story worthy of its namesake in an exploration of the responsibility that comes with being a hero and the ways of the hero's personal relationships can complicate those noble ambitions more than anything Miles just wants to do right by Peter his family, his friends, and his new home. I won't spoil where any of the story takes Miles in his supporting cast, but it's a stirring and gripping side tale that left me with goosebumps in its final moments, the anticipation of where the series goes next is a thrill in and of itself slipping back into The swinging and fighting mechanics of Miles Morales was as comfortable as it was exhilarating Miles, controls largely the same as peter when it comes to the basics.
But beyond those fundamentals and some shared unlockable skills, insomniac has done a flat out fantastic job of adding depth to Miles's movement and fighting skills to allow him to stand out as his own character watching Miles's animations as he swings through the city is a treat. Speaking of mind, giving me a hand up here. Yeah, I got you with combat Miles, has a few new tricks that make up the fun. On the one hand, there's his bioelectricity attacks, mixing them in not only saved me in the midst of some packed battles, but they also added so much stylish flair and variety. To how I approached brawls playing on ps5, I love how they bring about one of the more fun uses of the dual sense controller. Like the way the crinkle of electricity is simulated with haptic feedback and venom infused takedown animations are beautiful... seriously!!!
Add in Miles cloaking ability and suddenly any combat scenario can be transformed, even temporarily, into a stealth section. Also, I'm psyched that insomniac actually addressed one of my larger gripes with the first game by making the various powers Miles can unlock with his new awesome. Lineup of suits or for his visor, more meaningful and interesting. I found myself switching them up quite often, depending on the situation. Not every power-up has gotten the same love in my playthrough, but I kept wanting to test them out and try them in new scenarios. Another big improvement is that side missions and environmental objectives are actually consistently fun and rewarding. I loved marvel spider-man, but the way it was padded out with required crime battle, quotas, and Ubisoft, like radio towers, made the hunt for upgrade tokens and to 100
It'S somewhat monotonous, however. The few bright spots among those missions seem to have served as the blueprint for Miles's side missions. There are still some crimes to stop sure, but they're not as much of a focus. Instead, neighborly missions are impressively varied again because Miles Morales is a smaller package. Overall, there's not a ton of these, but I'll happily take this more selective set of one-off missions, rather than repeating the same task 30 times, especially alongside the plentiful collectibles
The way they offer some backstory for Miles is a nice touch and they often include some light, but entertaining environmental puzzles. I wanted to tell you my favorite food truck will be at the rally tonight if you're planning on getting a ps5 anytime soon. I highly recommend waiting to play Miles morales until you do. The added benefits of native 4k resolution and ray trace lights and reflections provide such a stunning take on this already beautiful cityscape that it seems like insomniac, is just showing off sunlight. Cutting through the misty clouds and snow was unexpectedly breathtaking at the height of a swing in the early moments of my first playthrough and the wow moments only continued from there. Switching over to the 60 frames per second performance mode, however, offers beautifully smooth web swinging and combat without missing out on too much of the world.
Release date: November 12, 2020
Platforms: Playstation 4 & Playstation 5
Developer: Insomniac Games
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment