TGWTG User Blogs

10.18.08

Yo,

 

 

Name:Spider-Man: Web of Shadows

Genre:Action-Adventure

Developer:Treyach/Shaba Games (PS3, 360, PC, Wii)
Amaze Entertainment (PSP, PS2)
Kriptonite Games (DS)

Publisher:Activision

Rating:T for Teen

Release Date:October 21st, 2008

Platforms:Playstation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Wii, Playstation 2, Playstation Portable, DS




Fans of the comic will be hard pressed to correlate this one with any of Marvel's timelines for the webslinger. The story takes place after Venom comes to the deadly realization that he can clone himself, in all his symbiotic glory, and thus begins a mass invasion of symbiotic lifeforms in Manhattan. Normal citizens are infected with the alien lifeform and transform into zombie-like creatures out for Spidey's spandex-wearing ass. S.H.I.E.L.D., the Marvel universe's international police force, puts New York under quarantine, and sends in multiple cross-over heroes into the fray to aid Spider-Man. Making matters worse is, at some point, all of them too succumb to viral symbiote, forcing Peter Parker into some presumably awesome boss battles against demonic versions of Wolverine and the Black Cat.

The emotional draw of the tale comes from Parker trying to combat the alien menace without falling into darkness himself. He regains his black spider-suit at the beginning of the events, and everytime he is forced to use it he is drawn further into the same dreaded state as the rest of the NY populace. The plot is usual Marvel fare, fantastically outrageous narrative arch with a central morality ploy, in this case the fight against evil leading to the confrontation of the evil in one's self.




These are the same peeps that doled out Spider-Man 2 and Ultimate Spider-Man, both games with amazing free-roaming capabilities for their generation. We can hope that they continue their streak with Web of Shadows, and by the looks we've gotten from trailers, we can at least expect some open-ending web-slinging. Treyach has confirmed that the player will have the choice on which villains to fight throughout the storyline, hopefully making the game have a chose-your-own-adventure feel as opposed to a half-of-the-storyline feel. The supposed multiple endings should help with that.




Nitpickers will be happy to know that Spider-Man can finally swim when he over-anticipates a jump and lands in the Hudson, instead of automatic death or a cutscene of him climbing out onto land. Most of the updates on Treyach's resume isn't all aesthetic though, players will have the ability to shift between both the Red/Blue and the Black Spidey-suit at will, each having their own combat style and combo mechanics. Spider-Man's black suit often leads to darker moral decisions being easier for the player to do, in addition to giving the player the ability to call in villains from the Spider-Man universe as help in combat as opposed to Marvel heroes. When serving up a steaming plate of pain in the Symbiote Spidey-Suit, expect a more grounded, destructive combat; while the traditional Spidey-attire is a much faster and agile beast. Agility will come into play dramatically when aerial combat is involved, the game's much toted original take on fights in the sky being one of the title's biggest drawing points.

As opposed to relying on webslinging momentum to kick/punch your opponent to death, players can change multiple attacks together, sending Spidey flipping about his enemies, using each moment of contact as a leaping off point, without ever needing to shoot a web. The result is, according to the developers, a sense of feeling like the actual super-hero while playing. If it's pulled off, Action games could see a definitive change in the way fighting is approached in general.




The majority of this article, as well as the game's press, has been towards the main versions of this game, the one developed by Treyach itself for the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, PC, and Wii versions. The Playstation and PSP version takes off half a dimension and shifts from an action-adventure free-roaming to a side-scroller with a bit of action-adventure mechanics thrown in. The DS version will be strictly 2-D, another side-scrolling adventure, this time focusing on brawler and platforming. According to the publisher, we can expect the same basic story from all versions of the game, but other details haven't been released as to all the differences between versions.

The main version of the game will have Black Cat and Wolverine exclusively, while the DS claims both the Green Goblin and X-Men's Nightcrawler to themselves. All versions feature the Black Widow, Electro, Kingpin, Luke Cage, Mary Jane Watson, Moon Knight, Rhino, Venom, and Vulture as NPC encounters.


Wikipedia Page

Official Webpage


- In an interview with Metromix New York, Chris Scholz, Studio Head of Shaba Games confirmed that the game exist[s] somewhere in-between the comic book world and the movie world, but doesn’t follow either storyline.

- John Carpenter's film, They Live was said to be a huge inspiration in the game's creation.

- Mike Vaughn, the voice of Spider-Man, has done work for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

- Tricia Heifer, the voice of the Black Cat, is famous for her role in Battlestar Galactica


This section will updated with reviews and other prevalent information when it becomes available.

This game is more than just a buy for Marvel fans, it's combat should draw all gamers in for its interesting take on aerial controls. If the story is as strong as it seems, it could also lead to more of the Marvel universe getting stand-alone titles with their morality-lined tales. Anyone that's a fan of kicking ass in spandex has no excuse not to have this game. That, and you can just pretend the symbiotes are zombies.