When making a list of the best games of 2018, there’s no doubt that Spider-Man from Insomniac Games would rank right up there at the top selection, if not the top title. Insomniac truly nailed the feeling of being Spidey in both his hero form and his Peter Parker form. And the web-slinging across New York felt fun and effortless. But, just because fans are praising it now doesn’t mean they were praising it before it came out.
In an interview with Gameindustry.biz, Creative Director Bryan Intihar noted that pressure from hardcore Spider-man fans was pretty loud in the weeks leading up to launch:
“Some people didn’t like the story at certain points,” said Intihar. “People freaking out about puddles three weeks before the game ships. Those are just normal bumps in the road. “When you work on something as high profile with such a well-known character, there’s always the question of, ‘Is it really going to live up to the hype? Is it going to live up to expectations?’ And there’s that fear that ‘oh my God, maybe it’s not going to be as good.’ If we release a minute of footage, you’re going to have our hardest core fans dissecting literally every single frame. Which is great because they’re so stoked and talking about it, getting the word out and building buzz. But they’re also looking for problems. And I get it, I would maybe be the same way.”
He went on:
There’s the negative side of people focusing on things they want to see, problems or issues. At the same time, sometimes they bring light to things we can improve, and that was a good example. I worry sometimes when things start to pick up and that becomes the story, rather than the cool new thing, when the criticism dominates the story.”
Thankfully, the criticism was fought off, and the game was a resounding success in every way that mattered. The game sold many millions and was a Game of the Year nominee/winner in many ceremonies.
