Movie Bound
Note: The following contains major spoilers for both the Spider-Man 2 movie (and the game, for that matter). If that sort of thing bugs you (Bugs! Get it?) don’t go cryin’ to me. You’ve been warned!
I finished Spider-Man® 2 the very day I saw the (amazing) Sam Raimi film, and was amazed all over again. In the Spider-Man game, Treyarch and Activision have managed to create a sort of alternate-universe version of the movie, featuring a plot that sticks more closely to the film’s story than the last Spider-Man Xbox® game ever did, while still including scads of authentic Spider-Man characters from the comics—including the va-va-vivacious Black Cat, the somewhat quilted Shocker (who escapes from prison after getting locked up in the last game, a nice touch), and even Rhino, whose voice is provided by John “Bender from Futurama” DiMaggio. Scenes that are obviously pulled straight from an earlier version of the movie’s script play out just slightly different than they do on celluloid, which is no doubt because of the fact that Treyarch was working from the script and not the finished product so that they could get the game out on time. Here, then, is a look at the major differences between the game and the film, and the ways they fit together.
Black Cat keepsSpider-Man busy.
Sufferin’ Spider-Man
One of the biggest differences between game and film is the fact that in the movie, Spider-Man actually begins to lose his spider-powers (it’s psychosomatic and due to depression). That wouldn’t work for a game that’s all about the web-slinging, of course. No self-respecting gamer wants to walk around a college campus or bring groceries to Aunt May when he could be swinging from the rooftops on a webline. Treyarch’s solution? Spider-Man keeps his powers, but is led on a series of rooftop chases by the voluptuous thief known as Black Cat. She spends half the time teasing, and half the time convincing Spider-Man that he should try to live as a superhero all the time (the exact opposite of what happens in the movie). It’s convoluted, but it works. And did I mention that Black Cat’s fine?
Mysterio has a monumental ego.
Menace!
True believers know all about Mysterio—in the comics, he’s a Hollywood special-effects maestro who (naturally) turns to crime because his ego won’t let him not rob banks and fight Spider-Man. In the movie, he’s nowhere to be found, but in the game he symbolizes something that would have otherwise been difficult to translate to the console: the New York City public’s increasing skepticism about Spider-Man, which is only enhanced by J. Jonah Jameson’s constant attacks in the Daily Bugle. Reading the paper isn’t exactly exciting gamer fare, right? So we get Quentin Beck, aka Mysterio, who challenges the very existence of Spider-Man’s powers in his Beck persona, and stages an “alien” takeover of the Statue of Liberty as the transformed Mysterio.
Rhino wants to bend Spider-Man into a pretzel.
Who’s Your Pal?
Another example of the way Spider-Man gets treated by the Marvel version of the New York tabloids is the early fight with Rhino in the game. Fighting Rhino is tricky, because he’ll just grab your web line and swing you around with it. You have to close on him and strike him from behind, using spider reflexes if you have some built up. Once Rhino is webbed up to a lamppost and left safely for the police to deal with, Spider-Man feels it’s another job well-done … but JJJ, naturally, accuses the two of being in cahoots. In the movie, this same accusation is made against Spider-Man and Doc Ock.
Just because, another shot of Black Cat.
The Doctor is In … sane
Doc Ock’s experiment is just a wee bit different in the game, both visually and in operation. The way Spider-Man fights him is also a little tweaked. In the film, Ock’s experiment is sort of like a super-magnet, dragging anything metal into its voracious nuclear center—and the not-so-good Doctor’s tentacles are far too powerful to be tied up in Spider-Man’s webbing. In the game, webbing up Doc’s tentacles are the only way to land a punch on the guy. (Press the B button to dodge the tentacle when your spider-sense flashes, and then quickly press the Y button to glue the end of the thing to the floor—this is much, much easier if you use spider-reflexes.) Once you win, you’ll be treated to a slightly different version of the movie ending (minus a wicked-cool scene with young Harry Osborne) that still satisfies.
Spider-Man 2—the movie and the game—rock, hard. Which you hopefully already knew; otherwise, I just spoiled some stuff. What are you waiting for, true believer? Get swinging!
By Ben Barker
