Insomniac's New York, still the best traversal in any superhero game. Image: Insomniac Games / Sony
Marvel's Spider-Man is an open-world action game from Insomniac Games, released on 7 September 2018 for PS4, remastered for PS5 in 2020 and ported to PC on 12 August 2022. Its web-swinging is the best traversal system in any superhero game, and its Peter Parker story is unusually well written. It remains the entry point to Insomniac's Spider-Man series.
Marvel's Spider-Man at a glance
| Developer | Insomniac Games |
| Released | 7 September 2018 · Remastered 2020 · PC 12 August 2022 |
| Platforms | PC, PS4, PS5 |
| DLC | The City That Never Sleeps (three chapters) |
| Length | ~18 hours main story · 30–35 hours for full completion |
Which version should you buy?
Marvel's Spider-Man Remastered. It is the PS5 and PC version, and it bundles all three City That Never Sleeps DLC chapters — roughly six additional hours featuring Black Cat, Hammerhead and the Maggia families.
The original PS4 release sells the DLC separately. On PC and PS5 there is only the Remastered edition, so the decision is simple there.
Note that Remastered changed Peter Parker's face model to match the actor's likeness. Long-time PS4 players noticed; newcomers will not.
Why is the web-swinging so well regarded?
Because it is built on physics rather than animation.
Webs attach to actual buildings. Your momentum depends on swing arc, release timing and how close you cut a corner. Point-launch, wall-run, zip-to-point and dive all chain together, and the skill ceiling is high enough that experienced players move through Manhattan at genuinely thrilling speed.
Crucially, it is fun to do badly and even better to do well. Most players stop fast-travelling within an hour because swinging is more enjoyable than skipping the journey — which is the highest compliment an open-world traversal system can earn.
What is the combat like?
Free-flowing and closest in structure to the Batman: Arkham games, but faster and more vertical.
You dodge on a spider-sense prompt rather than counter, and you are expected to stay airborne, using web-yanks, environmental objects and gadgets to control crowds. Eight gadgets unlock over the campaign — web bombs, trip mines, impact webs — and combining them is where the depth sits.
Suit powers add another layer, and because suits and powers are decoupled you can wear whichever costume you like without a mechanical penalty.
Stealth sections as Mary Jane and Miles Morales break the pace. They are the most criticised part of the game — slow and low-stakes — though they are short and infrequent.
Combat rewards staying airborne and chaining gadgets.
Is the story good?
Better than it needed to be, and the main reason the game endures.
This is an experienced Peter Parker — eight years into being Spider-Man, competent as a hero and struggling everywhere else. He is behind on rent, his research career is stalling, and his relationship with Mary Jane has already ended once.
The central relationship is with Otto Octavius, and the game takes its time with it. Even players who know exactly where it is going tend to find the execution effective.
The supporting cast is handled with the same care. Mary Jane is an investigative journalist with her own agenda rather than a rescue objective, and Miles Morales is set up properly for his own game.
What are the weaknesses?
Open-world filler. Backpacks, pigeons, research stations, radio towers. The map has the usual icon spread, and clearing it is repetitive.
Repeated crime events. Random street crimes cycle through a small set of scenarios and start repeating within a few hours.
The MJ and Miles stealth missions. Slow and unwelcome, though short.
These are structural complaints about a 2018 open-world game. The core loop is strong enough that most players tolerate them cheerfully.
Is the PC version good?
Yes. Nixxes handled the port and it is solid: uncapped frame rate, ultrawide support, ray-traced reflections, and DLSS, FSR and XeSS upscaling.
Tuning advice: ray-traced reflections are the single most expensive setting — they look excellent on glass skyscrapers but cost heavily. Turn them to Low or off before touching anything else, then enable upscaling on Quality. Traffic and crowd density are the next-heaviest. The game is CPU-sensitive during fast swinging, since it streams the city aggressively, so a weaker CPU shows up as stutter while moving rather than in combat.
What order should you play the series in?
- Marvel's Spider-Man (2018) — this game
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020) — a standalone follow-up, roughly 8 hours
- Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (2023) — the direct sequel
They are chronological and the later games assume you know the earlier ones. Starting here is correct.
Where can you buy it?
- PC — Steam and the Epic Games Store
- PlayStation — PlayStation Store (PS4 original, PS5 Remastered)
Buying advice
Buy Remastered — all three DLC chapters are included, so there is nothing left to purchase afterwards. Sony's PC ports discount steadily, and the game frequently appears in PlayStation seasonal sales. It is also often bundled with Miles Morales, which is usually the cheapest route into both.
A note on cracked builds: they are illegal, a known malware vector, and frozen at whichever version was cracked — missing Nixxes' subsequent stability and performance patches, which materially improved the PC release. IGGG Guides does not link to pirated software.
Marvel's Spider-Man FAQ
How long is Marvel's Spider-Man?
About 18 hours for the main story, 30–35 hours to complete everything including the DLC chapters.
Is the DLC included?
In the Remastered edition on PS5 and PC, yes — all three City That Never Sleeps chapters. On the original PS4 version they are sold separately.
Do I need to know Marvel comics?
No. It is an original continuity with no film or comic prerequisites.
Can you free-roam after finishing the story?
Yes. The city stays open for remaining collectibles, crimes and challenges.
Is it connected to Miles Morales and Spider-Man 2?
Yes, directly. Play them in release order.
Does it run on low-end PCs?
Reasonably, with ray tracing disabled and upscaling enabled. Fast traversal is the hardest test because of city streaming.
The verdict
Marvel's Spider-Man gets the two things right that matter most: moving through New York feels superb, and Peter Parker is written as a person rather than a costume. The Otto Octavius arc is genuinely well handled, and the combat stays satisfying across the whole campaign.
The open-world checklist is dated and the MJ stealth sections are a misstep. Neither undermines what is still the best superhero game ever made.
Best for: anyone who wants the best traversal in gaming and a well-told origin-adjacent story.
Skip if: collectible-heavy open worlds actively put you off.
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Last updated: 6 September 2026