Kilometers Morales for the Europeans
Spider-Man: Miles Morales (or in our region: Kilometer Morales) has the daunting task of living up to its predecessor. Has developer Insomniac Games done the impossible again?
It is clear that the PlayStation 5 is currently lacking solid exclusives. Outside Astro’s Playroom in Demon’s Souls there is no other game that is only playable on Sony’s latest console. The new releases Sackboy: A Big Adventure in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales are also playable on the PlayStation 4. Still, it is a good idea to postpone the last two titles until you have a PlayStation 5. The playing experience is – partly due to the DualSense controller and phenomenal graphics performance – taken to an absurdly high level.
Confusing disclosure
Of disclosure from Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales could count on quite a bit of confusion. Namely, it was thought to be Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 would go. A Sony employee who said on Twitter that it is an extension of the previous game added some more fuel to the confusing fire. The truth seemed to lie somewhere in the middle, because the game can be put in the same row as Uncharted: The Lost Legacy. This is because this is a standalone game, which in terms of size is more the size of a (far-reaching) expansion. You will have the story behind in about 7 hours. Moreover, it is also a game that you absolutely want to play in one go, so stretch it out for a weekend!
After that, however, the adventure is not over, because it is not a punishment to meander through the streets a little longer in snowy New York. With all side missions (similar to the one from Marvel’s Spider-Man you can easily fill 17 hours (in total). You can use the new Friendly Neighborhood in-game application for this. The idea is that the residents of New York are making emergency calls here so that Spider-Man can come to the rescue. And yes, the well-known mission in which you save a cat can also be found via that application.
Pete on vacation
Developer Insomniac has confirmed in the past that this is an adventure about Miles Morales, but that doesn’t mean Pete won’t be on the scene at all. The game starts a year after the end of Marvel’s Spider-Man. Miles Morales (who was bitten by the iconic spider species at the end of the first game) has trained under the wing of veteran spider man Peter Parker. In the beginning of the game you also have a lot of contact with Peter Parker, (although he did get a new face here), but soon he leaves on a working holiday with Mary Jane Watson and you only receive a phone call from time to time. your colleague.
Then you follow how Miles Morales grows from an insecure boy (who is still what is seen as ‘the trainee’ of Spider-Man), to an equal Spider-Man who can be placed at least at the same height as Peter Parker.
Trusted experience
After the end of Marvel’s Spider-Man, everyone was left with the feeling: “more, please!” Spider-Man: Miles Morales taps from exactly the same vessel that made its predecessor so successful and that does not have to be negative at all. The story is appealing and you are only too happy to swing from one mission to another, until you see the end screen (much too soon). In the game, it’s up to you to keep New York free from criminal activity, mainly through the gang war between energy company Roxxon Energy Corporation and a resistance group called The Underground (with villain The Tinkerer in the lead).
It’s an easily digestible story, but that’s exactly what you want from such a Marvel game. The flawless coherence between story, lying around in New York, fights and the many side missions is all right again. Especially during the Christmas period you will enjoy this charismatic (yet clichéd) depiction of New York. We may not be able to travel, but games allow us to soak up the atmosphere in other worlds. Thanks, games <3
The gameplay also immediately feels very familiar, and there is not much new. Miles Morales does come with his own unique skills. It soon becomes clear that Miles has a unique power with which he can absorb energy. He can then process that energy in combat moves, such as “Venom Blast” and even cloaking where you become temporarily invisible. These are very powerful moves that are not only much needed to complete the more challenging parts, but also look very impressive graphically. In addition to powerful attacks, you also have a Crysis-like cloaking functionality that makes you temporarily invisible. Handy if you want to use a more stealth-oriented playing style, but personally I have never used it voluntarily.
Again you can also unlock a lot of costumes, each with their own unique abilities. Personally, I’ve only changed costumes twice in the entire game, so it’s definitely not a necessity. It is therefore more of a nice piece of fan service.
The PS5 experience
Despite Spider-Man: Miles Morales is perfectly playable on PlayStation 4, you would do well to wait until you have a PS5. Initially, as a PS5 gamer at Miles Morales you had to choose between “Fidelity” (4K 30fps) or “Performance” (lower resolution and no ray tracing, but 60fps). However, a month after its release, the game received a patch adding the “Performance RT” mode. This supports no less than 60fps with ray tracing. As you may know, ray tracing provides more realistic lighting, so that reflections (in mirrors, puddles, etc.) are faithfully reproduced. In the photo mode of the game you can even see reflections in glasses, that’s how far it goes.
If you already have the luxury of owning a PS5 or getting a PS5 soon, it is absolutely worth putting your playthrough on hold until you can get started with the new console. The frame rate on PS5 is a world of difference (regardless of the visual mode you choose) and graphically the beautiful city also looks a lot more detailed and lively on PS5 than on PS4. In a game world full of mirror glass, ray tracing is a phenomenal extra. Then there are the loading times. Where the game loads super fast on PS5, that cannot be said of the PS4.
Finally, the DualSense of course also adds a lot to the involvement in the game. Your Venom attacks feel so much more impressive with the DualSense in your hands. The only oddity here is that you keep hearing a mechanical noise in the controller while swinging. It is the same sound that you regularly hear when you press the PlayStation button on the controller to return to the main screen. This seems to be something specific to the new controller, but it always stood out when swinging.
Verdict
Before you get started with Spider-Man: Miles Morales it is important to adjust your expectations properly. As long as you know that this game is largely a copy of the previous game, but with a different protagonist and your own (shorter) story, then you will not be disappointed and enjoy it to the fullest. After about 7 hours you will already be presented with the credits, but you can extend your stay in snowy New York by many more hours by completing the entertaining side missions. Especially on PS5, the game is an absolute gem in terms of smoothness and graphics performance.
The only downside is that the suggested retail price of 59.99 euros is very high for a game that is largely an extension of the first game. So waiting for a price drop would certainly be a good move. Hopefully you can already play the game on your PlayStation 5 by then.
Now we have to wait for the full-fledged successor in the form of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, where hopefully both Peter Parker and Miles Morales will be playable.
| Pro | With |
| Easily digestible superhero story that you can finish in one go | A little short for a full-priced game |
| Visually looks beautiful | Not very distinct from Marvel’s Spider-Man |
| Keeps tight gameplay and adds some refreshing extras |
Review disclosure
| How we got the product | We got a code for the game from the publisher and got a PS5 on loan to test the game. |
| Involvement | The review was published without the approval of the news agency, developer or publisher. No other party has influenced the content of this piece. |
| Affiliate | This article may contain affiliate links. Gamerverse receives a commission when a product is purchased via the link. |
| Compensation from manufacturer | We were not reimbursed for this review. |
Will you soon be swinging in the snowy streets of New York? Let us know in the comments!
In this article
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Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Developer:
Insomniac Games
Publisher:
Sony Interactive Entertainment
Platforms:
PlayStation 5
Release Date:
Buy this game:
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