Three ways Venom's arc could've been improved in Marvel's Spider-Man 2

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is responsible for elevating Insomniac's Marvel franchise to a whole new level. It featured the introduction of fan-favorite traversal mechanics such as the web-wings, jaw-dropping set-pieces, and relentless characters such as Kraven The Hunter. The game shines in multiple aspects, and as such it was nominated for Best Game of the Year at the Game Awards and BAFTA Game Awards in 2023. Besides, it won the Action Game of the Year D.I.C.E. award, which was no easy feat.

However, even if the game has multiple strengths to its name, fans (mostly) agree that there's one area where it feels... underwhelming. Unfortunately, what was marketed as one of the game's biggest selling points ended up being a simple side dish. Venom - one of Spidey's greatest villains - was an underutilized character and his arc was arguably rushed. That's not to say his presence was a disaster by any means, but it definitely could've been better. So it's time to break down what Insomniac should've done for fans to fall in love with their version of the Lethal Protector.

1. Venom's arc should've had more time to develop

Venom's overall goal to "heal the world" involved a full-on alien invasion in New York City. But while Spider-Man: Web of Shadows spent an entire game building up this same idea, Marvel's Spider-Man 2 attempted to develop it in just one act. Understandably, the latter fell a little bit short in comparison, and that's a sign of a bigger problem.

Both Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 and its sequel featured two main antagonists each. One of these enemies is the main focus of the story throughout the first two acts of the game until act three comes in and a new villain takes the spotlight. So why did that formula work for Doctor Octopus - the final boss of the first title - while it didn't for Venom? Well, it's because the former only released a virus and broke into a prison to form the Sinister Six. Harry Osborn, on the other hand, spread the symbiote throughout the entire city causing a full-on alien invasion, and planned to do the same with the entire world.

Those are two very different missions in terms of scope. The bigger the goal, the more time it should take to develop. However, that wasn't the case here. Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 and Marvel's Spider-Man 2 both take around 24 hours to beat when doing side missions. However, the latter has more characters, a bigger story, and two different protagonists. By all means, it should've been longer than its predecessor.

It wouldn't be surprising in the slightest if Insomniac did intend for Venom to have more screen time and missions in the game but couldn't do so due to time constraints. After all, we've seen how they also toyed with some gameplay ideas that ended up being scrapped for this same reason. Perhaps if the game was allowed a little more time in the oven, then Venom wouldn't have invaded just the city but also our hearts.

2. More Venom missions

Few moments in Marvel's Spider-Man 2 compare to when the camera slowly pans behind Venom's back and the prompt "Square to attack" appears on screen. Discovering you could play as the lethal protector was one of the biggest surprises in the game (if not the only one aside from Mary Jane transforming into Scream). Wreaking havoc through Oscorp and taking down many henchmen in the process was incredibly exhilarating, and it left us wanting more.

However, Insomniac Games created completely new gameplay mechanics specific to Venom and used them only in a fifteen-minute mission. Was that really it? Well, Rumors suggest the Lethal Protector is going to have its own spin-off game in the future where some of these gameplay mechanics will surely come in handy. But if that doesn't turn out to be the case, then... yes. One mission is all we had.

But what if we could've also played through the segment where Venom steals the meteorite from Oscorp? Besides, going back to the point of developing Venom's arc for a longer time, it would've been nice to play through some of those hypothetical segments as well. Or what about going the extra mile and letting us free-roam as the Lethal Protector? After all, that's what Ultimate Spider-Man did almost twenty years ago, and it was beyond amazing.

Chances are we've yet to see the last of Venom in Insomniac's franchise. But a few more playable missions as the popular Spider-Man villain wouldn't have hurt in the slightest.

3. Every detail about Venom shouldn't have been spoiled beforehand

Unfortunately, everything related to Venom was spoiled in the very first game of Insomniac's franchise. We knew that Venom would be the villain in the second game due to Marvel's Spider-Man's post-credits scene. We also knew Harry would be the one bonding with the symbiote thanks to that same sequence. To make matters worse, Insomniac confirmed Eddie Brock wouldn't appear in the sequel months before its release. We even knew the black suit's main purpose was to cure Harry of a hereditary disease. That means every single detail regarding Venom was handled to use on a silver platter way before Marvel's Spider-Man 2 hit stores.

Imagine for a second that Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 didn't tell us from the get-go that Emily Osborn was dead. Instead, the game could've suggested she was just sick and Norman Osborn was trying to perfect the Devil's Breath's formula to save her. After that, they could've said Harry was on a trip in Europe (like it happened in the game) and not spoiled that's just a cover. It wouldn't have been until the sequel was released that we find out the truth; Emily has been dead for a long time now, and the person at risk of losing his life is Harry. The trip to Europe never happened and instead, it was just a facade for Norman to experiment with his son and the symbiote.

For any of this to work, Insomniac shouldn't have revealed the presence of Venom in any promotional material as well. They could've simply said Marvel's Spider-Man 2 was the story of both Spider-Men going toe-to-toe with the greatest hunter of all time (which it was). But it isn't until players pick up the controller for themselves that they slowly figure out that every event in the game will lead to Venom's creation.

Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4 kept Doctor Octopus' appearance a secret, and fans lost their minds when they saw him in the game. So just imagine how much more impactful the sequel could've been if we didn't know every single detail about Venom's arc in the game before we even played it. The element of surprise plays a big factor when experiencing any story across any medium, and it would've surely benefited Marvel's Spider-Man 2 as well.