In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, developers Insomniac Games revealed a new official image of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 starring Venom, which you can see here, and also revealed new plot details related to this nemesis.
Creative director Brian Intihar revealed that Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 wanted to offer a completely different story and themes than the previous game, and therefore the choice could only fall on the appearance of Venom and the symbiote in the life of Peter Parker and Miles Morales.
“We wanted to try something very different and I don’t think Doctor Octopus could be any more different than Venom,” explains Intihar. That’s what attracted us.”
Narrative director Jon Paquette also clarified that Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s main plot theme is “taken by the dark” and how the symbiote will change the lives of not only Peter Parker, but those around him.
“One of the great things about Spider-Man as a character is that he always has to make sacrifices,” Puckett said. “The symbiont provides a lot of material, so to speak, from this point of view.”
This story is about what happens when darkness takes over. The symbiote doesn’t just affect Peter. It’s the family and friends around the host who have to see what happens to the person they love. You can get a lot of drama out of this.
Senior production designer Jacinda Chu, in turn, said that some plot details had a direct impact on Venom’s design, such as the spider symbol on his chest.
One of the issues we ran into during production was this: How much does Venom talk? I remember at the very beginning we did the concepts of Venom and asked: “Does he have lips? Does he laugh? Does he smile? Does he frown?” It’s a fine line between making this creature scary and intimidating, but at the same time, I think, easily recognizable.
“For us, Venom is a host plus a symbiont,” adds Intihar, “You can’t have Venom without being related to both of them.” Tony Todd personifies this connection. I think, apart from everything else, casting Tony allowed us to feel more confident in the visual design of the character.”
As a reminder, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will be available exclusively for PS5 from October 20, 2023. More information about the game could be revealed as early as tomorrow as a San Diego Comic-Con panel dedicated entirely to the game is scheduled.
