The Chrysler Building, meanwhile, does appear in plenty of other Marvel material, including the MCU movies and the previous gaming title Marvel’s Spider-Man, which has recently been remastered for the PS5. In fact, Marvel’s Spider-Man directly included the building within the gameplay itself, providing players with a side-mission that required them to take a picture of the building, among several other New York City landmarks. 

Going to the spot where the Chrysler Building usually sits in your copy of Spider-Man: Miles Morales will instead take you to the location of a nondescript, boxy building that is most definitely not the skyscraper that is found in real-world New York. 

What some may not know here is that buildings can indeed be subject to copyright, with the Chrysler Building being one of them. Building owners have pursued legal action in the past when it comes to copying a building’s design, and it can be imagined that these legal issues could spread to video games trying to replicate the cityscape. The building is indeed protected under copyright, meaning putting it in a game isn’t as simple as just making the model and sticking it on the map. This means that the building’s owners, for whatever reason, decided that they didn’t want the building to show up in Spider-Man: Miles Morales. 

“When creating our representation of the city we wanted to include as many landmarks as we could to add to the sense of immersion,” said James Stevenson, Insomniac’s community director, in a statement to Game Informer (opens in new tab). “Sometimes negotiations to use those locations didn’t work out, which was the case with the Chrysler Building in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.“

It looks like, for legal reasons, we won’t be seeing the Chrysler building in the game anytime soon. Those looking for a more accurate depiction of the city will have to turn to other titles.

Get in on all the action with Spider-Man: Miles Morales today with our guide on where to buy a PS5. 

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The tweet below, from GamesIndustry.biz (opens in new tab) editor Chris Dring, reveals that PS5 games accounted for almost 19% of games sold in the UK last week, despite the PS5 not having actually launched. That’s a pretty astounding figure, and a clear indicator that a vast number of PS5 consoles have been pre-ordered in the UK ahead of launch later this week.

PS5 games accounted for almost 19% of all games sold in the UK last week… despite the console not being available yetNovember 15, 2020

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That’s a lot of PS5 games that are sat around, completely useless until Thursday this week, when the PS5 launches in the UK. In fact, a lot of us here at GamesRadar have received PS5 games early, and one of us even tried inserting the PS5 disc into their PS4 console, just to see what would happen (it wasn’t exciting, the console merely couldn’t read the disc).

I haven’t even opened the two PS5 games that are sat on my shelf right now. They’re Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Demon’s Souls, and I plan on them acting as very expensive paperweights until the console arrives on Thursday. That, and I want that fresh game smell when the PS5 gets here.

Taking a brief look on Twitter, it would appear plenty of consumers are a bit frustrated with their games. For all intents and purposes, these £70 games are effectively useless until the actual hardware arrives.

my uk ass just sitting here looking at my ps5 games for the next six days like pic.twitter.com/8c529WvLvNNovember 13, 2020

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It’s bizarre that in the UK, PS5 games and peripherals are available, but the console in which to use them won’t be available until next week. How does this even happen?! #MilesMoralesPS5 pic.twitter.com/mE6YOoUGpJNovember 13, 2020

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My PS5 games arrived from shopto.Now to wait next week for the console pic.twitter.com/9dlQ1deEe4November 12, 2020

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Memeing through the pain is always sound advice. There’s just a few days to go now until the PS5 launches in the UK on November 12, and here’s hoping there aren’t any delays en masse like we saw across the Atlantic last week with outlets like Walmart Canada.

For a look at all the latest deals and bundles incorporating Sony’s next-gen console, head over to our guide on where to buy a PS5 for more.

The post Despite 19% of box game sales in the UK being on PS5, people dont know what to do with their expensive paperweights appeared first on Game News.

That’s according to Insomniac technology director Mike Fitzgerald, who sat down with IGN (opens in new tab) ahead of the release of Spider-Man: Miles Morales. From everything we’ve seen, the follow-up to 2018’s Spider-Man looks marvelous, but according to Fitzgerald, it’s only a small sampling of the PS5’s true potential.

“It feels like we’re just scratching the surface of what you can do with hardware like [the PS5],” said Fitzgerald. “That we sort of can take a game model like Spider-Man and make everything really fast. Even the Ratchet and Clank game we’re working on is leaning into that, a lot.”

What Fitzgerald is saying isn’t controversial. PS4 games look considerably better today than they did back in 2013 when the console was released, due to developers becoming more familiar with the tools at their disposal. The same can be said for PS3, as well as the Xbox and Nintendo family of consoles. However, it is exciting to hear from a developer with firsthand experience working on PS5 about what could be possible later on. The dev says studios will have “years and years of scraping more and more performance” from the hardware and producing results that get “crazier and crazier.”

Getting your hands on next-gen hardware can be tricky with such limited supply, so check out our guide on how to buy a PS5 and you’ll have Sony’s next-gen machine taking up all the room on your TV stand in no time.

The post Studios are just “scratching the surface” of PS5 capabilities, says Spider-Man: Miles Morales dev appeared first on Game News.

Great things

It is good though, let me make that clear, as well as a great demonstration of what the PS5 can do. Even before the action starts, the intro – with Miles on a subway – introduces the new DualSense haptics with a ‘holy shit that actually feels like a train!’ moment. Throughout the game the pad physically pops and crackles with Miles’ electrical Venom abilities, and recreates many recognizable sensations through some sort of vibrational voodoo. The load times, or lack of, are also amazing. Whether you fast travel across the map, or leave an interior to go outside, it’s instantaneous, with the only noticeable delay being the second or two it takes to start from the PS5 menu. It also looks incredible, recreating a snowy New York at a near photorealistic level. There are moments in the latter half of the game, when gentle flurries set in and distant buildings fade into the weather, where the only thing that gives it away as a game is the little guy swinging past in an onesie.  

That little guy, Miles, is a great character too: he’s naive but keen, desperate to live up to his title but plagued with self-doubt and questions. He’s already got his abilities but he’s still learning the ropes, while feeling his way both as a young adult and a new superhero. The recent death of his father is just as life-changing as his new Spider-life and there’s a great ‘story so far’ recap at the start that reframes the original 2018 game entirely from Miles’ perspective – the focus obviously heavily on his loss, with Pete’s story as a sidebar that leads into how he became a new Spider-Man. 

Superhuman being

Throughout, the focus is on the human part of ‘superhuman’. The original game did a good job of using Peter’s relationships to add some heart and emotional weight when the story needed it. Here it is all about a kid dealing with his life, of which superheroing is just a part. The opening places a firm emphasis on community and family, making his responsibilities, relationships and hopes outside of Spider-Man clear – the latter just one more thing he has to deal with. It does a great job of conveying the pressures of youth: that inexperienced overload from experiencing everything for the first time and feeling like it has to all be dealt now or it’s a disaster. Being young can be a lot to take in at the best of times and this somehow channels that in a believable way, even if it is about a kid from Brooklyn who can stick to walls. Full credit to actor Nadji Jeter here, who provided the voice, face and mocap, who’s excellent as Miles, creating a character full of enthusiasm and charm as he navigates his hopes and fears for the future. 

Miles’ life as a superhero plays out in a similar way to Peter Parker’s, with a city to protect and crimes to fight. Again, like the last game, there’s just an exhilarating freedom to being let loose with those powers. Diving from a skyscraper to swing at the last possible minute as street sounds rush up to meet you never gets old. Even here Miles’ character comes through, with lovely animations as he occasionally flails through the air or overbalances as he lands, showing how new he still is to everything. 

Combat is the only mechanic that’s really overhauled, with Miles’ new Venom powers letting him unleash splashy area-of-effect ground pounds, or distance covering crackling dashes that can launch enemies into the air. There’s a rhythm that builds around charging and unleashing the ability to maximum effect. It’s also tactical, with opponents using equipment that can only be disabled or destroyed by Venom attacks. The new ability to turn invisible is fun as well, but feels under-explored in a game with an already heavy stealth emphasis. You spend much of your time unseen as it is, hopping between high spots searching out takedowns, so the idea of stealth camo never really feels meaningfully utilized as a mechanic.

Fighting chance

As enjoyable and satisfying as the combat is, it also underlines how short the game is. The skill tree is light and lacks any real game-changing upgrades while there are only four gadgets. They’re all fun and functional but never capture the improvisational magic of things like the last game’s trip mines or web bombs. The brevity of the story also means it sometimes feels like you’re unlocking things faster than your ability to master the combinations and options. Even chasing street crimes and side challenges I don’t think I really got a complete feel for some abilities and interplays until almost the end, as there isn’t enough to practice with unless you rerun repeatable objectives. 

There aren’t really any side mission threads either. There’s one main storyline, some enemy bases to clear out, things to collect, repeating street crimes and slightly structured one-off events like knocking ice off a crane to stop it falling or finding a stolen car. There are a few side missions but they’re mostly single hits unlocked by story progress – not because they’re related to what’s happening but more to space things out and make them last until the end. 

The main story does at least make what time it has count and it’s impressive just how much it packs a full-size game feel into a barely double-digit run time. There are some good set pieces and even better narrative moments. One of my early concerns was that everything was moving too fast for you to really care much for the characters, but it pulls it off. When the game wants you to really feel something, it hits all the right buttons and I was genuinely affected by the ending on more than one level. There’s also a moment that is very clearly trying to be PlayStation’s version of the ‘Leap of faith’ from Into the Spider-Verse. It’s not quite as good, but nails that ‘hell yeah! surge of excitement of when the music and the mood comes together perfectly. It also ends its crescendo with you seamlessly in control, soaring above the city still buzzing from the build-up.

Overall it’s been a weird one to review. I really enjoyed it, but the brevity feels like something to warn you about given that this is presented as a launch title. Even if you were expecting a small ‘full’ game, this is smaller. It plays like great DLC, because it is great and also clearly DLC, rather than a stand-alone expansion. Things like Left Behind and Lost Legacy worked because they were linear and gave the developer precise control over the pace and punch of a single story lasting a few hours. Here you’ve got a great story but one that takes place in a huge open world with little else overly meaningful to fill it. The story, characters, and action are all enjoyable, but if you unboxed your shiny new PS5 on Friday night and settled in to play this over the weekend, you’d likely reach the ‘hoovering up collectibles because it’s all that’s left’ stage before Monday came around.

The Verdict

4

4 out of 5

Spider-Man: Miles Morales

A brilliant but all too brief sample of Miles Morales’ superhero life.

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Breaking down combat details in the video from Game Informer below is Spider-Man: Miles Morales game director Christian Cameron. The director says that the introduction of the new venom abilities really changes up combat, putting a greater emphasis on area-of-effect attacks.

This is mainly because you’re often going to faced with a crowd of enemies in Miles Morales. Venom attacks are meant to be firstly used on a group of enemies, before Miles swings in to chain other attacks together for some deadly finisher moves.

There’s also a bunch of new gadgets for Miles to play around with. Again, these devices are meant to be used in tandem with Miles’ combat abilities, so you’re chaining together regular attacks with devices like mines to take down multiple enemies.

Cameron also briefly discusses suit mods in Miles Morales. There’s two types of suit modifications: one for your visor, for example you’ll be able to see when enemies can view your stealth attack targets, and there’s mods for your suit to enhance things like your venom attacks.

In all, there’s some pretty significant changes to combat for Miles Morales. There’s under a month now until the standalone expansion to the 2018 game launches on November 12, for both the PS4 and PS5.

For a complete list of all the additional games you’ll be able to play on Sony’s next-gen console on day one, check out our PS5 launch games guide.

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Spider-Man: Miles Morales is setting the stage for the hero hailing from Earth-1610 to come of age. In an interview with Game Informer, Brian Horton, Creative Director at Insomniac Games, broke down the process of creating the game’s world and Miles’s role in it. 

Much of Miles’s journey is slated to involve taking up the mantle of being New York’s only Spider-Man, passed on by his mentor, Peter Parker. “We really see this as a coming of age story,” said Horton, “and he’s going to grow as a character.” Horton then details a pivotal scene in the game where Miles comes to the aid of Peter, landing a critical punch on supervillain Rhino while filled with bioelectricity.  

Horton also gave his perspective on the game’s crafting of the rich culture and life of Manhattan’s iconic Harlem neighborhood. “I would like to say […] that Harlem is probably one of the most important characters in our game, because […] it’s what Miles is fighting for,” he said. “Harlem and the people he loves is the heart and soul of this game.” Horton also detailed the team’s research trips to Harlem to get a full scope of the area, stating that everything from the local murals to the people on the streets shaped the game’s vision. 

Ultimately, Spider-Man: Miles Morales is about Miles coming into his own as a web-slinger and learning what it takes to be New York City’s hero. “He feels the weight of responsibility on his shoulders,” added Horton. “He understands what it means.” 

Players will get in on the action and take on Miles’s journey firsthand on November 12, 2020, when Spider-Man: Miles Morales drops.

If you are planning on picking up a new PS5 to play Spider-Man: Miles Morales, check out our guide to upcoming PS5 games to see what else you’ll be able to play. 

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The trailer starts with Miles sneaking into his apartment, late for a visit to his mom’s rally and perpetually busting his buddy Ganke’s chops. Then it picks up fast, with a glowing-purple supervillain staging a heist on a truck full of mysterious materials – then we get to see Miles doing some stylish moves to take down a bunch of thugs before the whole bridge comes crashing down.

Sony also revealed that Spider-Man: Miles Morales is coming to PS4 as well as PS5, and it will have a “next-gen upgrade path” so you can play the upgraded version for free if you get a new console later. That said, if you buy the Ultimate Edition on PS5, you’ll also get a download code for Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered for free – that includes the base game and all its DLC.

Earlier this week, Insomniac Games showed off a quick snippet of Spider-Man: Miles Morales that highlighted how HDR and ray-tracing help bring an already beautiful rendering of New York City into even more gorgeous detail (opens in new tab).

Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a new story set in the same fictional Marvel universe as Spider-Man PS4. It’s much bigger than a DLC expansion but it isn’t quite a sequel – think a standalone game (opens in new tab) somewhere along the lines of Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (opens in new tab)‘s relationship to Uncharted 4 (opens in new tab).

The new game was first unveiled at the PS5 Future of Gaming event back in June, and we hadn’t seen too much more of it since then aside from some new screenshots in August (opens in new tab). Alongside the screenshots we learned that Spider-Man: Miles Morales takes place one year after the events of the original game, and that it opens with Miles’ home neighborhood of Harlem caught in a battle between a criminal syndicate and, um, an ‘energy corporation’.

Find even more titles to look forward to with our guide to upcoming PS5 games (opens in new tab). The console is really shaping up nicely and we’ll be there day one after locking down our PS5 pre-order tomorrow morning.

• USA PS5 retailers: Amazon (opens in new tab) | Best Buy (opens in new tab) | Walmart (opens in new tab)
• UK PS5 retailers: Amazon (opens in new tab) | Currys (opens in new tab) | Argos (opens in new tab)

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