Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales - This Game Was For The Culture!!!
Before I start my review of the highly anticipated PlayStation 4/5’s premiere of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, I must acknowledge the foreshadowing that Insomniac Games said during the coronavirus pandemic. They warned us that this was not a ‘long’ game and that it was also a ‘stand-alone’; yet, as these words came back to haunt me in my completion of the game, my reservations about the game were somewhat mixed.
Is it a hit?….MOST DEFINITELY!!!
Did it garner the attention of most game players.....ABSOLUTELY!!!
Did it portray diversity as we saw the comeuppance of an awesome Black Superhero?
HELL YES!!
but I HAVE some RESERVATIONS….
Miles Morales, voiced and portrayed by Nadji Jeter
Spider-Man: Miles Morales, the stand alone, new release on God’s greatest gaming console, the PlayStation, takes place right where the first Spider-Man left off. After defeating Doc Ock and the Sinister Six, we see Peter P. hanging out in Miles’ room and as he and Miles go through the realizations that they are both SPIDER-MEN (by sharing the same wall crawling abilities), Pete trains the young “padawan”, through moves prep, suit prep and the “sharing” of the “wisdomic oath” of being Spider-Man: “to protect, not just oneself, but to protect those around you, those who you love” (or something like that). With Pete traveling overseas, Miles Morales embarks on the journey of a lifetime as he becomes one of the world’s greatest superheroes. Yet, as phenomenal as this game is, Miles’ journey is short-lived and as he is bombarded by filler missions, sentimental objects and old stories of family reunions on audio cassette, the amount of time it takes to do the “fillers” is almost greater than the story arc Insomniac provided for our first time hero.
Storyline
As rising tensions between the local community and the “new neighbors”, Roxxon turn Miles Morales: Spider-Man into a 7 -10 hour battle; the battle is expressed on two fronts:
The first front involves the CEO of Roxxon, Simon Kriegar, voiced by Troy Baker (The Last of US I and II, Batman: The Enemy Within, Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End). As he decides to build a “clean energy company” in one of the most famous cities in America: Harlem, USA, the battle to shut him down is being led by Miles’ Mother: Rio Morales, voiced by the wonderful, Jacqueline Pinol, in the community.
The secondary battle involves the 2nd antagonist, The Tinkerer, headed by Miles’ friend Phin and voiced by the lovely, Jasmin Savoy Brown ( The Leftovers, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, and Gray’s Anatomy). She’s determined to shut down Krieger by any means.
Involved in the skirmish, but not really, is Miles’ uncle, Aaron Davis aka the Prowler, voiced by Ike Amadi. His battle to stop the Tinkerer and Spider-Man is met by his dueling conscious of either being a good guy or a mercenary for hire.
As I fought everyone (never Simon, but his troops), I was amazed that Sony created these video game characters using their voice and likenesses as opposed to creating “brand new” imagery for them. A win for the culture? Yes; GOAT status? It’s getting there.
Playability
Spider-Man: Miles Morales PS5 Freeroam Swinging Gameplay In The Best Suits. From TwoSixNine
Miles Morales, as wonderful as he is, is not without his faults during gameplay. As he swings through the streets of Harlem, USA, his web-swinging and acrobatics demonstrate that he’s getting accustomed to the role that his mentor, the web slinger, has become a pro in. As he swings through the city, he fumbles on the flips at times and falls clumsily when certain moves aren’t performed to perfection. I recall times when Spider-Man fell in the original game and somehow, he always seemed to land on his feet, but with Miles, he swings gracelessly in the beginning of the game, portraying at times, the awkwardness of a novice acrobat; but as he attempts to find his own path in a world overshadowed by his mentor, his pilgrimage becomes one of self-discovery as he becomes the hero he was meant to be. As Miles swings through NYC, you can really see his personality in the movements. The way he swings really brings out the game’s slogan, "Be Yourself".
Just like Peter Parker, Miles Morales can do everything a spider can, but he can also do so much more! Footage by Gamestop
As I started to use the moves provided to ensure Miles’ victory as Spider-Man, Insomniac increased Spider-Man’s toolkit by providing Invisibility, Bio-Shock techniques and an array of altered, yet similar moves from the previous title. As these new Bio-shock techniques make the gameplay more interesting, choosing between the shock punch, the jump shock ground punch, or the famed ‘cloak of invisibility’, I started to think that Miles Morales is closer to being more of a mutant than just an accident with a genetically altered spider. Why the additional extra powers? Is it to make him more relatable in a world of “ultimate” powered super-beings? I simply don’t know. But I definitely like it.
Mission Play
“Spider-Verse” Costume
Michael Bendis and Sara Pinchelli created an awesome character, yet Sony’s attempts to keep me engaged with him became limited as I focused more on the game’s core mission, rather than the additional adventures of shutting down Roxxon’s reactors, collecting time capsules, understanding the dissonance between the Prowler and Miles’ Dad, Prowler’s beat making with said dad, fighting crimes with escaped prisoners, fighting the “Underground” (unless main mission necessary), or the elimination of Roxxon’s troops. Now while the side missions were a staple of the original game, I didn’t feel the need to play them here. If I did, I only played them so I could level up and grab the “Spider-Verse costume” to be honest. For some, the side missions offer a great opportunity to dive into the game’s additional escapades, but I was on full Spider-Verse mode and honestly, I enjoyed swinging around the city, with the game’s ending being my only focus. I felt it was better than the fillers.
Music
Official music video for "I'm Ready", featuring gameplay from Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. From Marvel
At the heart of this game was the phenomenal soundtrack, which was excellently orchestrated, by John Paesano, one of America’s “go to” for composing television and video games (Daredevil, Maze Runner, and Detroit to name a few). He provided us with an arsenal of beats that made me more emotional than I wanted to be, especially toward the end of the game. Sony didn’t waste any time to create a masterful soundtrack to the Spider-Man of 2020. Their dedication to the music, I believe, was one of the driving forces that kept me going through the main mission. I wanted to see what the next track was going to be so, as I swung through the skies, the authentic sounds, the motivational anthem of Jaden Smith and Kid Cudi on the song, On My Own or his solo, I’m Ready, was all that was needed to keep me moving forward to see what the game had in store for Miles as I tried to perform the most dynamic of “customized” midair flips.
Footwear
MARVEL'S SPIDER-MAN: MILES MORALES SUPERSTAR SHOES: $90
Not usually a topic in games, but I had to acknowledge the change in footwear. In the beginning, as Miles initially swung through the streets in his well famous hoodie – short Spider-Man Mask Combo, he trades the famous Air Jordan 1’s for the adidas’ Original Superstar silhouette which are now the Marvel Spider-Man Superstar Shoes. A redo of the 1970s adidas’ hardwood classic. These amazing, yet stylized foot pieces I could do without in the game. I prefer the Jordan’s since I wouldn’t be able to buy them in real life. Price wise, the adidas, as nice as they are, aren’t comparable to the J’s. It felt like Nike wanted Sony to pay more for the shoe’s design in the game and Sony said F---YOU!!! Maybe.
Miles Morales: Win For The Culture!!!
Miles Morales: Spider-Man
Spider-Man: Miles Morales, a young man of both Black and Boricua decent, whose knowledge and use of science and technology is far superior than most, is one of the most modern characters to date and demonstrates a sign of video game progression in the gaming ecosystem. Gifted with “the speed and strength of a 2000s version of a genetically modified spider”, Miles’ portrayal of the famed arachnid creates a new lane for readers and gamers as Black and Brown children can finally see Spider-Man in their likeness and image and possibly create a love of science and mathematics, all while living up to the motto of, “Being Yourself”. Here’s Hoping.
Personally, the magic of being Miles Morales was all I cared about as I wanted to play a video game that didn’t have the stereotypical Black “Boxer Character” fighter or the oversized “Big Black Bodyguard like character” that seem to encompass half the game’s screen. As powerful as these characters are, they usually have a limited-somewhat-decent backstory and/or have grotesque, undesirable, moves that makes the character unplayable, at times. As decent as these characters are, looking forward, I’m hoping for more Black video game characters similar to Miles Morales that could start the next generation of new Black characters in gaming.
Reflection
As the Tinkerer and Miles were fighting in the Roxxon Building in the final fight, the words expressed by Kriegar sent chills down my spine as he mentioned that the residents of Harlem were “expendable” and that the insurance money can create a new “Roxxon City”. Gentrification was in full force in this game and as Simon Kriegar was the true story’s antagonist, there was no way I could web his mouth, punch him or hang him upside down from the Roxxon Building and that was, very disappointing. Additionally, what also affected me was Phin (the Tinkerer), and how this company used her and her family’s scientific knowledge to exploit the community at large as they created the toxic substance “Nuform” in Harlem. In a way, these experiences drove me to finish the game, just so I can see if Kriegar catches an “L” from Spider-Man in some way. No Luck on that one.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales exposes the themes of gentrification by using capitalism as its medium, to discuss clean energy and racial inequality between the powerful and the lessor. Interwoven throughout the gameplay, one has to listen closely to the dialogue as some parts are more veiled than others when discussing these themes. One prime example is the absence of the police in the game. In the previous game, every time Spider-Man fought the baddies, cops were a plenty. As for our Harlem based protagonist, we get, “let me go so I don’t get a lecture from the cops”. As Miles shows a slight disdain to the police in the community, they never show “the law” in any of the gameplay. Intentional? I’m not sure, but it leads one to wonder why were they omitted. What we get is “let the cops handle this” after Miles beats down the bad guys from the community. Is this to say that Harlem and the surrounding community is absent of law enforcement or did Sony not want to include them on his journey? Whether they wanted to or not, the lack of the police compared to the previous Spider-Man game left me wondering why they simply didn’t exist here.
Although the Tinkerer was, in my opinion the hardest character in the game, I felt uncomfortable fighting what felt like my sister from another mother. I’ve never fought that hard to beat a character, except when I played The Last of Us II and it took me a few “emotional” days to get the nerve to beat Abby. This last fight, however, finally felt like I had the opportunity to experience Miles’ true abilities as Spider-Man and as short as this fight was, I learned that Sony has a long way to go to make him a GOAT in his own regard.
Final Verdict: Buy the Game, For the Experience
Sony’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales fell short, due to its length of gameplay, but that’s it. Easily a game worthy of becoming a GOAT in the gaming atmosphere, this rapid gameplay timeline frustrated me. Although Miles Morales is an iconic character who is stemming with lots of potential for the next generation of comic book readers and gamers, I can’t conclude if this is a complete game at all. Honestly, I place this game between a 2/3 hour demo and/or a beta version of the game that should really come out at a later date.
This game was also naked with the absence of Marvel greats. Its only cameo was “the Rhino” of all people. A thug at best, Sony’s attempt to make him seem powerful in the Spider-Man line up was limited to say the least. Come on Sony, be better. At least place some high ranking Heroes and Villains in the game. An Avenger cameo (as the Avengers building is in there) from any of them would have been nice. I’ll even take Doctor Strange to say, “good job Spider-Man” as he walks through a mirror in a grocery store.
Overall, the gameplay, graphics and storyline is great as it brings about the nostalgia of the original Spider-Man game, but creates a new path for gamers as Miles adopts his own persona and abilities of what a new Spider-Man can do. As the gameplay allows you to walk in Miles’ shoes and reflect on the memories from watching the Spider-Verse movie, by wearing the famous costume; it allows gamers to create new experiences as they fight crime donning the legendary costume (either animated or in real life).
Although the game was short, it did leave me wondering is that all SONY could imagine for Miles or are we in for something more from the new native of Harlem, USA?
I sure hope so….
