Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales akin to Uncharted: The Lost Legacy in terms of scope, set one year after the first game

Following the announcement of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales for PlayStation 5 last week, Insomniac Games creative director Brian Horton has shared more information in a PlayStation Blog post.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a standalone game that lets players experience the rise of Miles Morales as he discovers the new powers that set him apart from his mentor, Peter Parker. It is set one year after the events of Marvel’s Spider-Man, just before Christmas break. A war between an energy corporation and a high-tech criminal army has broken out, and Miles’ new home in Harlem is at the heart of the battle.

“You’ll experience a full story arc with Miles, one that’s more akin to a game like Uncharted: The Lost Legacy in terms of overall scope,” Horton said. “Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is an important, heartfelt, emotional and essential experience to expanding the Marvel’s Spider-Man universe. And we hope it will be for you as well.”

In terms of PlayStation 5 features, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales will utilize “near-instant loading, ray-tracing, 3D audio, and the DualSense controller.” Characters have been upgraded with “4D scans and improved skin shading for more realistic looking characters and spline-based hair that moves far more naturally,” and “many of the city’s assets have also been updated to take advantage of the new console.”

As for Marvel’s Spider-Man protagonist Peter Parker, Insomniac Games teased that while “we still have much of Peter’s story left to tell,” Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is all about Miles—as its name implies.

Here is the full text from Brian Horton:

Hi! I’m Brian Horton, Creative Director at Insomniac Games. Last week, we were so thrilled to introduce you to the beginning of your Marvel’s Spider-Man journey on PlayStation 5—Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. This standalone game lets players experience the rise of Miles Morales as he discovers new powers that set him apart from his mentor, Peter Parker.

The reaction we received last week was nothing short of incredible. But we wanted to take a little bit of extra time to talk about the game and the trailer you saw and point out some things you might’ve missed. Take a look above.

At Insomniac Games, we’ve loved the character of Miles Morales for a long time. It started years ago, when Bryan Intihar (creative director, Marvel’s Spider-Man), suggested that we should have Miles Morales be a part of the same universe as Peter Parker. We sneakily introduced him at the end of our E3 2017 demo, surprising the audience when they thought the PlayStation Briefing was over.

As we continued with the Marvel’s Spider-Man universe, we knew that Miles’s origin story as a Spider-Man was something that needed its own game. Miles’s multicultural background reflects a more modern, diverse world and we wanted to give players a new story, with new set-pieces, fresh villains, and unique quests across Marvel’s New York City. This had to be a can’t-miss next adventure in the Marvel’s Spider-Man universe.

Let’s set the scene for the game a little more. It’s now wintertime, about a year after the events of the first game. Marvel’s New York is covered in snow, and just before Christmas break, a war between an energy corporation and a high-tech criminal army has broken out. Miles’s new home in Harlem is at the heart of the battle.

We know a lot of you want to know how big this game is. Our team at Insomniac has been working incredibly hard to bring you a fantastic Miles Morales adventure since we concluded development on Marvel’s Spider-Man. You’ll experience a full story arc with Miles, one that’s more akin to a game like Uncharted: The Lost Legacy in terms of overall scope. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is an important, heartfelt, emotional and essential experience to expanding the Marvel’s Spider-Man universe. And we hope it will be for you as well.

We are also excited for the game to demonstrate the power of PlayStation 5 this holiday. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales will show off near-instant loading, ray-tracing, 3D audio, and the DualSense controller. We’ve upgraded our characters with 4D scans and improved skin shading for more realistic looking characters and spline-based hair that moves far more naturally. Many of the city’s assets have also been updated to take advantage of the new console. As you experience Miles’s story, you’ll see, hear, and feel things in a whole new way, all thanks to PS5.

It’s been amazing to be creative director on Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, working with such an incredible team. I joined Insomniac near the end of Marvel’s Spider-Man, and being able to collaborate with our team and Marvel to create a new story and experience all around Miles Morales has been a career highlight. It’s been great to also work with Bryan Intihar, who directed the first game, as he continues to imagine big things for the Marvel’s Spider-Man universe.

Oh and one last thing: Many of you fans have wondered if Peter Parker is OK. Don’t worry, we still have much of Peter’s story left to tell. But this game is all about Miles, a critical part of our Spider-Man universe, and you won’t want to miss what happens.

Thank you so much for the incredible reaction to our game last week, and for all of the kind words on social media. We’re so looking forward to getting to spend more time with you in the coming months to reveal more of the game we’ve all been working on.

We can’t wait to see you swinging through a wintery Marvel’s New York City this holiday.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is due out for PlayStation 5 this holiday.

Watch a new developer diary below (transcript follows).

Brian Horton, Creative Director: “Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a standalone game, and it’s the next essential adventure in the Spider-Man universe.

“Insomniac has loved this character for a long time. We introduced him in Marvel’s Spider-Man and we knew we needed to tell a standalone story of Miles Morales becoming a hero.”

James Ham, Senior Animator, Hero Character: “I feel like it was important for us to work on Miles’ game because he is such an important character right now, especially with his influence in the first game.”

Horton: “We wanted to make sure that when you played the game, you felt like you were playing a brand new Spider-Man.”

Ham: “We wanted to make sure that his traversal was unique, his combat was unique, and we also wanted to make sure that Miles is his own Spider-Man.”

Horton: “Miles has these incredible, explosive new powers like bio-electricity and invisibility.”

Ham: “He isn’t as confident, but he’s learning from Peter, he’s trained with Peter. He doesn’t move the same way, so when he’s swinging, he’s a little bit more flaily.”

Horton: “The PS5 allows us to have a fully seamless experience from beginning to end. We take full advantage of the DualSense controller and the haptic feedback. And with ray-traced reflections, the city comes to life.

“Every single person on this team is a true believer in Miles Morales and the journey he’s going on to become a hero. It goes with our studio vision: to make a positive and lasting impact in peoples’ lives. And we believe this game has the opportunity to do that.”

Ham: “I feel like Miles is very important because representation does matter. And it’s not just about him being a black superhero. It’s about being a superhero that happens to be black. So watching the fan reactions was amazing. And seeing everyone’s face process the moment where you see his hands and you’re like ‘what game is this?’ And the moment you’re like, ‘Oh! That’s Spider-Man!… Wait, oh, it’s Miles!’ And you see their faces light up—that inspires up, and it’s such a great feeling to know that everyone seems to be behind this project and love this character.”

Horton: “Well the trailer you’ve seen is just the tip of the iceberg. We have a lot more to share in the coming months. And from all of us at Insomniac Games, please take care, and we’ll talk to you soon.”