With great power comes great responsibility - the burden of making a Spidey video game

At the 2018 E3 in Los Angeles, Insomniac Games revealed a never-before-seen 7-minute slice of gameplay footage showing a scene from the PlayStation exclusive.

"With great power comes great responsibility."

With the weight of expectation on game studio Insomniac Games ahead of their much-heralded launch of their new Spider-Man game, it's understandable why their community manager James Stevenson utters this infamous line from the comics and films during our chat.

The day after we meet for the interview, James will be thrown off Auckland's Sky Tower to celebrate the end of the press tour which has seen him visit seven countries in 20 days. It seems a fitting way to farewell the global grind, given the titular web-slinger spends much of his time vicariously vaulting from building-to-building, crawling and flying through the New York skyline while dispatching as many quips as he does baddies.

Early signs show that yes, he does whatever a Spider-Man can.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Early signs show that yes, he does whatever a Spider-Man can.

"I don't even know how to gauge it, this is the biggest thing we've ever worked on; it could well be the biggest game Insomniac's worked on, so it's kind of hard to focus. It just seems gigantic," he admits as release date nears, clearly the reality sinking in of what being part of such a big property conjures up to those behind beloved PlayStation icons, Ratchet and Clank and Spyro The Dragon.

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Despite rave reviews of the preview at this year's E3 (the annual LA based Electronic Gaming Expo, designed to hype and market up-and-coming titles) and last year's early sneaks, there's still much unknown about the Spider-Man game.

During a hands-on preview with tight security and spoiler warnings, one thing's clear - the game's dynamics work well. From the moment it begins after a cinematic blockbuster start in keeping with the Marvel big screen tradition (strict embargoes stop the revelation of too many plot points), it's clear you are Spider-Man as much as you are Peter Parker.

Insomniac Games' community manager James Stevenson at the end of a seven country, 20 day whirlwind publicity tour which wrapped up in Auckland.
PLAYSTATION
Insomniac Games' community manager James Stevenson at the end of a seven country, 20 day whirlwind publicity tour which wrapped up in Auckland.

Beginning in Peter Parker's bedroom, it's much the familiar tale of any 20-something making their own way in the world.

There are bills for unpaid rent scattered around, dumped haphazardly among the schematics for Spidey's gadgets; a money jar for a holiday fund is empty, while another for a new computer is dizzyingly full of dollar bills and coins. Post-It reminders of work deadlines decorate the walls. It's clear Insomniac Games want their take on the 50-plus year old comic book to be as much about the collision of the personal as the superhero.

It's a work that's been in hand for three-and-a-half years. Some of that in secret, with developers beavering away in their Californian offices out of the glare of the fan spotlight.

Laura Bailey voices MJ Watson in the Spider-Man game, with developers saying a female voice was paramount to the execution.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Laura Bailey voices MJ Watson in the Spider-Man game, with developers saying a female voice was paramount to the execution.

"Marvel wanted to work with one of the big studios and specifically mentioned us. Sony said 'Hey are you guys interested in working with Marvel?' and we said 'Of course, but what character do they want us to do?' And they were like, 'Oh no, they want you to pick. You guys can have all the choice of which one you want.' It was like 'Oh wow. So huh, ok, that's an overwhelming decision,'" Stevenson recalls, laughing with the kind of childish glee someone has when they're given the keys to the candy store.

Spider-Man was the easy choice ("the one that matched up very well with Insomniac and made most sense with the DNA of the games we've made, the types of games we make, the kinds of stories we tell, the character we felt closest to") and work began in earnest, with the teams looking at all manner of games and mechanics past and present as inspiration and to see what worked, and what fell flat.

Athletically bounding through the air was part of the key to getting Spider-Man right.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Athletically bounding through the air was part of the key to getting Spider-Man right.

Key to it all, as with any game where you are the superhero, is ensuring that you feel like Spider-Man the moment it all begins. And based on the few hours offered for playing, the dynamics just feel right in this newest iteration.

There's something joyous about you zipping and quipping through the Manhattan skylines, the familiar red and blue figure contorting and flying in the air with ease. The mechanics feel familiar to those who've played older Spider-Man games, and the likes of Sunset Overdrive, yet offer a slightly new take on what's to be expected. The game is populated with side-missions, allowing these flights of fancy to help you even encounter some familiar Marvel landmarks such as Stark Tower and the Wakandan embassy in the sprawling open world.

Based on the carefully curated preview, Spidey's world is big (although one should always be wary of previews as they fail to offer the full experience and are all about building hype for the eventual release) but Stevenson's cautious to point out it's not big for big's sake.

Insomniac Games were given permission to put their stamp on Spider-Man's iconic suit - and did so with the white spider motif.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Insomniac Games were given permission to put their stamp on Spider-Man's iconic suit - and did so with the white spider motif.

"We wanted it to feel dense and populated, we wanted the city to feel like it was people on the streets. The other thing we knew was we wanted to have activities which have story ties; it shouldn't ever be a straight up challenge, there's always a story for whatever you're doing," he explains, tying into Marvel Studios' modus operandi that story is on a par with spectacle.

But equally, being part of Marvel's world, taking on a globally beloved character and the internet age we live in, has meant each carefully orchestrated marketing release for Spider-Man has seen fans rabidly poring over every single frame presented and speculating on story choice.

Stevenson concedes once the reveal of their game hit the world, it's been a necessary evil. 

Leaping over villains, tying them up in webs - this Spider-Man feels fluid and like you are the web-slinger
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Leaping over villains, tying them up in webs - this Spider-Man feels fluid and like you are the web-slinger

"I think there's a lot of responsibility on fans, to guard themselves if they decide to, as much as there's a responsibility on us to not show too much in some ways. I don't know, people debate spoiler culture and if it's needed, it's a relatively new thing. I will say in this, we've been trying to to surprise people and to shake things up in a way that's rewarding." 

Not too much is known about the actual story of Marvel's Spider-Man with developers promising to shake up the characters you know well.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Not too much is known about the actual story of Marvel's Spider-Man with developers promising to shake up the characters you know well.

One thing Insomniac Games was determined to do was to make sure that there was a female playable character in the game. Much like the upcoming Last Of Us Part II will focus around female protagonist Ellie, Stevenson says their decision to make MJ Watson part of it all was a creative no-brainer.

"It gives you an interesting perspective on playing a non-powered character in a superhero world and lets you see the superhero from a different side eventually. (Actress) Laura Bailey's really awesome, the writing for her is terrific, and I'm really happy with people just raving about her and how much they loved her. She's a great force to the story."

Spider-Man will face many threats - and even the Sinister Six.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
Spider-Man will face many threats - and even the Sinister Six.

But, he's painfully aware female portrayal in the video game industry is something that needs to keep evolving, after years of neglect. "If you're focussed on one type of character, you're only going to get one type of story and so many of the great stories are because of interesting character choices. So having more bold character choices for games will only take us into more interesting places."

Stevenson won't be drawn on whether there'll be a sequel to this game ("we're just focussing on that extra DLC right now," he adds coyly) but says the studio's been stunned by the high level of pre-orders, insisting it's all "very flattering people would put their money and faith in us already."

But it's the collision of the personal as well as the superhero that Insomniac Games is hoping will hook many into Spider-Man when it exclusively debuts on PlayStation on September 7.
PLAYSTATION / MARVEL STUDIOS
But it's the collision of the personal as well as the superhero that Insomniac Games is hoping will hook many into Spider-Man when it exclusively debuts on PlayStation on September 7.

One thing's for sure though - you'll still have to wait until September 7 for the secrets of the game to be given up. 

It may be the last day of interviews after a gruelling 20 day global tour, but Stevenson's still savvy enough to bat a final off-the-cuff request to reveal just one hitherto hidden spoiler. Laughing heartily, with eyes fiercely burning, he swots away the question like Spider-Man casually tossing out a web to take down a bad guy.

"This is Marvel, man, we don't hand that stuff out, what are you talking about!" 

Marvel's Spider-Man releases on PlayStation 4 on September 7.

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