Through stunning graphics and a touching storyline, Spider-Man Remastered forces you into every web sling, punch, and hilarious cutscene with the type of grace, passion, and detail that leaves little to be desired. Aside from a few patches at least.
For a game just under four years old, Sony’s Spider-Man Remastered manages to improve on its already game of the year status by bringing the experience to PC and making the graphics some of the best in the business.
The 20-hour main story brings you through a multitude of recognizable villains and allies as you swing your way through New York. Whereas the additional side quests, puzzles, collectibles, and DLCs help to break up the tale and allow you to truly feel like the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man everyone knows and loves.
However, the impressive graphics and open-world nature of the game don’t come without their costs when considering the hardware requirements and occasional performance issues.
Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered: Key Details
- Developer: Insomniac Games, Nixxes Software
- Price: $59.99 USD / £49.99 GBP / $94.95 AUD
- Release Date: August 12, 2022
- Platforms: PC
Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered trailer
Clean up your own mess
The first main battle of the game comes quickly and throws you right into the center of the many different controls and combos Spider-Man has to bring.
Although most of the tutorial is explored through smaller thugs, your skills are quickly put to the test when you fight Marvel villain, Wilson Fisk (AKA Kingpin). This battle is tough but after dying a few times I really felt like I had the hang of most of the controls and truly felt like a superhero as I swung around the room while trying to avoid Fisk’s impressive throws.
However, you only get to feel like a superhero for a short time after realizing the consequences of taking a man like Fisk off the streets. In typical Spider-Man fashion, all the help he puts into New York is typically met with more problems than it solves. In this case that comes in the form of Masked ‘Demons’ who begin to fill the power vacuum left by Fisk’s incarceration.
Throughout the game, you discover more about this rising force and move to defeat them with a little help along the way from some beloved allies.
However, Spider-Man Remastered is more than just hunting down a rising force. It’s a game filled with nostalgia in the forms of recognizable suits, fan-favorite villains, and allies I always dreamed of meeting.
The classic Spidey experience
No superhero game is complete without some fantastic battles and a great score. Spider-Man Remastered has it all with an extra slice of the classic comedy we all love to see from our friendly neighborhood hero.
The quick quips delivered by Parker will either cause you to laugh out loud or at the very least roll your eyes, which are both signs that he’s pulled off a good joke in general. That combined with the comments he makes during tough battles truly makes you feel like you’re enveloped in the superhero’s unforgettable personality.
Then there’s the frankly empowering soundtrack that fires up every time you swing through the city which just makes the entire experience exhilarating and freeing.
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A customizable experience
The game is easily customizable and you’re often free to do what you want when you want. If you wish to complete a thrilling side quest where you just get to be the classic friendly neighborhood Spider-Man then feel free, if you want to collect backpacks to your heart’s content or sightsee, there’s absolutely nothing stopping you.
However, the more you play the more you get to customize Spidey to your own liking and unlock new collectibles to find. The skill tree granted by leveling up and the unique additions to some already nostalgic suits make you feel like a one-of-a-kind spider who is optimized for your particular way of fighting and stealth.
Living up to visual promises
One of the biggest elements adapted in Spider-Man Remastered was the graphics. It was one of the main selling points for PC players, as well as the remodel granted to protagonist Peter Parker.
Peter’s new look blended seamlessly into the story and feels like a true upgrade. The design is slightly more realistic and the graphics that embody his face, hair, clothes, and movement all feel natural and easy to enjoy.
When it comes to the visuals in general, Spider-Man Remastered doesn’t disappoint. The ability to change the graphics easily and see the impact it has on the experience made it incredibly useful to find the perfect medium between what the game is capable of and what your computer is capable of.
All that enables you to set the game up to your own standards and watch as the game seamlessly meets them, forcing you to stop every so often to admire the view and the beautiful sun flares that occur as you swing to your next objective.
A graphical struggle
I can’t help but question how demanding this game is on most PCs. With a higher mid-range computer, I could happily play the game on high graphics settings with only a few stutters and not much pressure on the computer as a whole. But even then, when loading the game I was often met with the information that my graphics card wasn’t good enough. Don’t let that notification hinder you because it’s particularly forgiving, especially with the adjustment of graphics.
That being said, if, as many have, you got this game to experience the impressive Ray-Tracing and extreme graphics that were advertised, you’ll need a powerful PC to back it up. 10 series graphics cards will hold out but are arguably not enough to experience this game to its full capacity. This is fine for many rocking powerful setups but hinders the majority of gamers, which is undeniably frustrating when you’re forced to play the game with lower graphics than it had on the PS4.
That combined with a few noticeable stutters and some rather entertaining breaks do make it clear that a few patches are definitely required.
The Verdict – 8.5/10
Spider-Man Remastered perfectly blends open-world action and stealth mechanics with complex fighting controls to create a superhero experience that will stick with you. A few patches and bug fixes and this game will be truly spectacular.
Reviewed on PC