Some new information about Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is featured in a video that recaps the trailer released last week. Brian Horton, creative director at Insomniac Games, revealed the video.
The new game is decidedly different from the last one, with new set pieces, powers, and animations unique to Morales. It will also continue the story of Peter Parker.
Horton said Miles’ origin story was something they had to tell in a stand-alone game, and that the new game reflects something more modern and diverse than the usual Spider-Man fare. The game won’t be as large as the last one though — Horton said it’s closer in scope to Uncharted: The Lost Legacy.
“Marvel’s New York is covered in snow, and just before Christmas break, a war between an energy corporation and a high-tech criminal army has broken out,” Horton said, adding that the game takes place about a year after the first one. “Miles’ new home in Harlem is at the heart of the battle.”
In the recap, James Ham, senior animator, talks about how important it was to accurately portray Miles through his fighting style.
“We wanted to make sure that his traversal was unique, his combat was unique,” Ham said. “And we also wanted to make sure that Miles is his own Spider-Man.”
Miles’ Spider-Man has new powers like bioelectricity and invisibility. But he isn’t as confident as Peter Parker, even though he’s trained with him. The animators demonstrated his trepidation in his swinging animations by making him flail.
In terms of specs, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales will “show off near-instant loading, ray-tracing, 3D audi,o and the DualSense controller,” Horton said. “We’ve upgraded our characters with 4D scans and improved skin shading for more realistic-looking characters and spline-based hair that moves far more naturally. Many of the city’s assets were also updated to take advantage of the new console.”
Horton added that many fans were wondering what happened to Peter Parker. Peter is “OK,” he said, and there’s a lot more of his story to tell. Ham added that while Morales’ race is an important aspect of his character, it’s just another piece of the Spider-Man story as a whole.
“I feel like Miles is very important because representation does matter,” he said. “And it’s not just about him being a black superhero — it’s about him being a superhero that happens to be black.”
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is set for a holiday 2020 release on the upcoming PlayStation 5.
