Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered (PC) Review – Steadfast Effort With A Few Quirks

Like most of us, I did not expect to see Insomniac Game’s web-swinging action game ever branch out over to PC, ever. And yet here we are, on the launch day of Marvel’s Spider-Man for the PC on Steam, thanks to the valiant efforts of Nixxes Software porting this title.

So what’s under the hood of this Spider-Man Remaster? A bit of good and iffy, here and there.

Presentation

So performance on my PC using the formidable Nvidia GTX 1060, a pretty acceptable budget card in 2022, is good in the early assessment. For this review, we’ll be focusing on the Nixxes’ lower-end recommendations for those who have a weaker-end rig but still want to experience being Spider-Man.

And its graphics do look incredible even on this level of graphics fidelity. The animation during combat and even traversing New York looks solid within its 30 or 60fps depending on your preferred settings. Its general smoothness of framerate is commendable given that the last Insomniac release on PC was the underrated Sunset Overdrive and that has its own quirks as well. 

This shows itself during the first boot of the game where the game’s launcher pop-ups after installation and although it feels very 2010s, it’s a good way to tweak the graphics first before launching the game and reduce or increase the graphics from the in-game menus. Though it will be there during each start-up as well, which might be annoying for some.

It does include the bells and whistles that you might expect for a modern release, like support for Nvidia’s DLSS and AMD FSR 2.0, but one worrying quirk with the pre-release version for this review is gameplay stuttering even on the lowest setting when swinging around the city. 

A big headache-inducing problem even on the lower setups, and although this has been patched at the time of writing and frame rates are now stabilized for the likes of my machine or even Steam Decks according to reports, I’ll boil it down to the in-house engine needing a bit more optimization before (or even after) the release.

But, its sound design is still top-notch, with every swing, punch, and city ambiance bringing this virtual Manhattan to life quite well as you traverse across the skyscrapers. And not to mention its voice acting and motion captures are still unmatched thanks to Insomniac’s amazing cast. A plus point for its presentation and how every cutscene or battle is well choreographed in both music timing and acting. 

Gameplay

The gameplay side is mostly the same as its PlayStation counterparts, with the trigger buttons are your web-swinging controls, face buttons make combat combos, and so on. One neat feature of it all is that since this version of the game is based on the PS5 version, then the Dualsense capability is there should you have that controller to play on PC.

Its feeling isn’t as noticeable as in the PS5 version (at least for me) but the triggers loosening during web-swinging is almost similar to its console counterpart and it does deserve some compliments. And one neat little feature is that if you switch between the Xbox controller and the DualSense, it will swap out the input between those two and that’s pretty cool.

At its core, the gameplay loop is still the enjoyable romp that many on the PlayStation side loved to play during its initial release back in 2018, with the caveat that its systems are feeling a bit dated with the many different collectibles scattering all around the map, Towers to disable, strongholds to take down, QTEs,  making it quite a product of its time as well. 

And stuff like the MJ sneaking missions that slow the pacing down is still quite a slog to get through even after 5 years since its initial release. But other than that, it is a formidable sandbox that you get to play as the friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and that’s all that matters really.

Content

Marvel’s Spider-Man is quite of an amazing time sink of a game, with the main campaign clocking in at around the 17-hour mark and I reckon the completionist players would enjoy taking on the challenge of unlocking all the suits, upgrades, and taking down towers (which I can agree, is actually quite fun) to unlock parts of the map.

And this package also comes with DLCs that are short but enjoyable nonetheless. So in general, a substantial web-crawler experience.

Personal Enjoyment 

It does give me the joy to be swung across the Manhattan skyline as Spidey once again. It’s sort of relaxing to be gliding around town as you listen to the police scanner that picked up a robbery, or a stolen car close to you, and having to drop in to defeat these two-bit thugs is actually quite fun, even after a few years since I’ve last played it on the PS4.

Without that framerate issue, I’d say this is the perfect way to play this game besides owning the main console itself. I will dock some points over its price tag because this game feels rather overpriced in my view. It should be a 178 MYR- ish release but I digress, it should be a must-buy if it’s on sale like how Sony’s current releases would go in terms of prices.

If you can, go and get this game, you won’t be disappointed. 

Verdict 

Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered on PC is another slam-dunk for Sony and Nixxes, but it isn’t a third-pointer due to its many issues that perhaps might come up during this review (and perhaps even during launch). But you can’t fault Insomniac for creating one of the best Comic Book Action Game on the market so far. And I can’t wait to see how The Last of Us Part 1 would do here when it launches as well.

Played on PC, Review copy provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment Singapore (SIES).

Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered

Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered on PC is another slam-dunk for Sony and Nixxes, but many bugs drops it down a notch from being great.

• Presentation 8

• Gameplay 8.5

• Content 8

• Personal Enjoyment 8.5