Spider-Man: Miles Morales Review

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In the summer of 2011, Peter Parker sacrificed himself to save those he loved. In his stead came another Spider-Man. Said Spider-Man’s debut issue, Ultimate Comics Fallout #4, ends with him demasking and wondering aloud if his costume is in poor taste. Could he live up to Peter’s standard? Was he worthy of the gifts he had been given?

While the comic book version of Miles Morales long ago answered those questions with a resounding ‘yes’, they have continued to be the focus of the character as he moves into other media. This was even more true in Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, his Oscar-winning introduction to the population at large. That film sees Miles wrestle with the legacies of six spider people. It too concludes Miles is worthy. In fact, anyone can be worthy if they do what is right.

When Miles appeared in Marvel’s Spider-Man just a month prior to Spider-Verse’s release, he felt underdeveloped. Relegated to a D-plot culminating in a post-credits scene and a few phone calls in the DLC campaign, Miles was hardly a factor. He featured in several playable sequences that showed his natural heroicism, but they do little narratively for that game and many players—although not this one—did not enjoy them.

Fast forward to summer 2020 and the announcement of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Anybody that cared about Miles or the 2018 game was excited. It quickly came out that the game would be a shorter game, about half the length of its 20ish-hour predecessor. While this information angered some, I am here to tell you Miles Morales is a better game than its precursor largely because it is shorter.

Spoilers for Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales follow. You have been warned.

This abbreviated length creates a focus and efficiency that Marvel’s Spider-Man, for all its storytelling triumphs, could not achieve. Every character here is well drawn, with distinct personalities and understandable motivations. This is a game about families, both familial and found, the burden of responsibility, and the meaning of heroism.

As with Into The Spider-Verse, Miles’ relationships form the emotional core of this game. The opening 20 minutes or so are about his relationship with his mentor Peter. The highlight here has the Spider-Men getting dinner after stopping Rhino’s breakout attempt. Miles is down on himself after accidentally setting Alexi free in the first place, but Peter is quick to show that he trusts Miles. You see, he spends the entire game on vacation, leaving Miles as New York’s only Spider-Man because he knows Miles can handle anything thrown at him.

Trust in others remains at the heart of this story. Miles’ trust in those around him to help get him out of any situation, Harlem’s trust in Miles, and he uneasy trust between Miles and his uncle Aaron. The last being is the only argument for why this game should have been longer. Just an hour or two, not too much. Aaron is estranged from Miles’ family, so they do not have much of a connection at this point in time. Due to the brief nature of the game, there is not much time between Miles running into his uncle, finding out he’s Prowler, and the inevitable betrayal. This causes the boss fight near the climax of the game to lose some of its punch and robs Aaron’s subsequent face turn of its power.

Fortunately, the game’s primary antagonist is good enough to make up for faults with any other villain (Like say, Simon Krieger’s plot being resolved in a side quest). The Tinkerer is a retread of Doctor Octopus from the first game on the surface. A longtime friend of Spider-Man who wants to see justice served and a rich asshole to get his comeuppance, Phin Mason distinguishes herself by being right…kinda. Do not commit acts of domestic terrorism. Holding mega corporations accountable for actively killing every employee that so much as looks at their revolutionary technology is good though.

Of course, Phin would be nothing without Jasmin Savoy Brown’s phenomenal performance. Her righteous anger mixed with grief and regret, especially as Phin begins to realize she made a mistake that will wipe Harlem off the map, forces players to empathize with and understand the character.

Every performance in Miles Morales is top notch but Brown and Nadji Jeter (the regular voice of Miles since 2017) are a level beyond that. This is doubly true when they share scenes. The pair have an easy rapport that makes their lifelong friendship believable. The way they speak to each other, players know exactly what kind of friendship they have. The teasing and playfulness and the way in which they geek out in wonder is breathtaking.

It is a shame the game ends with Phin doing the heroic sacrifice thing. Stories would be much more interesting if characters had to actually live with the consequences of their actions, especially in ongoing stories. It is a fitting end to her story though. Phin simply wanted to save lives and she ultimately did, even if she put them at risk to begin with.

The philosophy of efficiency also translates to gameplay. Miles Morales takes the base of gameplay of Spider-Man streamlines it to create more fluid and distinct systems. The animations and the way they flow into each has been greater improved, making both general movement and combat feel significantly better than before.

Beyond linear improvements, Miles Morales removes most of Peter’s gadgets from the equation and adds his unique venom and invisibility powers. Invisibility functions more as an additional tool during stealth sequences but can get Miles out of a pinch in open combat. The venom powers, on the other hand, are combat oriented, though some do help traverse Manhattan. Venom attacks act as much more natural extension of Miles’ move set than gadgets (4 of which Miles has access to). A punch with a little extra oomph or a multi-enemy launcher to take combat to the air, where Miles recovers his venom powers quicker. Every mechanic is working in harmony to make the game feel as good and fun as possible.

While the game takes inspiration from Into The Spider-Verse in many ways—Miles can wear that costume, complete with the juttering that made the film so distinctive—nowhere is it clearer than the music. That film defined Miles sonically in way John Paesano, a good but not great composer, likely would not have been able to. Because that template exists, Paesano is able to fuse it with the orchestral stylings of his work on Spider-Man and create something unique and fitting for Miles. Plus, there are several needle drop moments that are perfectly executed. More Jaden in video games please.

Marvel’s Spider-Man was rightly hailed as one of the best Spider-Man, and superhero, video games. While it certainly had issues, it had more heart and a better understanding of its characters than any Spider-Man movie has in some time. Web slinging had never felt better and the combat was a fluid, fast paced (and actually good) version of the Batman Arkham system. All that remains true in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. All of it is, however, better in the ways a sequel from one of the best studios in the business should be. It is a true masterpiece, and everyone should experience it as soon as they can.