Insomniac On Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s Play Length: “It’s Worth It”

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has a base campaign that lasts for somewhere around 15-17 hours—the same as the play length of the first Marvel’s Spider-Man. While this may feel suiting to some, many others have taken to social media to complain about this runtime, saying that for a game worth $69.99, a higher runtime was expected.

Taking into these concerns, the Creative Director at Insomniac Games, Bryan Inthiar, has spoken up in an interview with BBC about Spider-Man 2’s game length vs price debate, saying that he’s confident about the title’s worth, no matter the amount of hours required to beat it. By the looks of it, it’s certainly quality over quantity as far as Insomniac’s focus is concerned. 

I feel confident in saying that it’s worth it. For us, it really comes down to the experience we want to deliver with the quality we want to hit. Obviously, there’s a certain level of, ‘hey, someone’s going to spend this much money on a game’, so we want to give them the experience that’s worth it. Our job is to make sure that you feel no matter how long it is, it’s worth that money, it’s worth that investment.”

Having completed the first Marvel’s Spider-Man and being neck-deep into the sequel, I can confirm that Insomniac’s storytelling is like no other, and these Spider-Man games — the Miles Morales expansion included — are the culmination of the studio’s expertise. Therefore, I have no choice but to agree with Bryan on that, and it’s not just me, but other major publications across the spectrum too that have held the quality of Spider-Man 2’s gameplay and story combined in high regard. 

Back in September, Insomniac’s Senior Game Director Ryan Smith spoke with VG247 and expanded on Spider-Man 2’s play length, iterating, “[the game] is in the same ball-park as the first game in terms of overall play time.” He then went on to explain how the studio emphasizes making each played mission as memorable as possible, and not make Spider-Man 2 an 80-100 hours adventure that would eventually bore one out. 

Interesting Content to Read Up On: 

• Players Say Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s Physical Copies Aren’t Installing
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s 3D Advertising Goes Live As Game Nears Its Release
• Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s Symbiote Gameplay Should Take Cues From Web Of Shadows

In other news, if you do happen to sail past the mainline story campaign of the game in no time, there’s New Game+ and the ability to replay missions coming sometime later in the year, so do sit tight for that. And make sure that you go through all Spider-Man 2 trophies on your PS5 to make the best of the title before then. 

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 came out on October 20, 2023, for the PlayStation 5 exclusively with no cross-gen support for the PS4. In eXputer’s review, Usama rated the title 4/5 for all that it brings the table, but deducting 1 point for its lackluster enemy variety and hum-drum stealth sections. As for the rest, the game’s another incredible PlayStation exclusive, that’s for sure.