While many of us are preparing for the release of Spider-Man 2 on 20th October, there still may be a few of you yet to play the original - or its spin-off.

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If you're one of these people, firstly you should consider yourself lucky. The story so far is breathtaking and a joy to play through. We'd love to experience it for the first time again.

Secondly, you might be wondering where to start with it. The Insomniac Games series doesn't have many entries, but still, you'll want to start at the beginning.

Listen to our One More Life podcast - the new episode is about Spider-Man 2!

We'll list the series in order down below, and then take a look at where Insomniac Games's Spider-Man has made other appearances.

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He has his own (officially canon) comics and novels that you won't want to miss if you want to experience his whole story. And you might be surprised at where else he's popped up.

We'll also have a look at every Spider-Man video game. After all, there are a few oldies worth revisiting too!

Insomniac’s Spider-Man games in order

There are only three entries in the current series, so we'll list them below in order.

  • Spider-Man (2018) for PS4, PS5, and PC - buy now
  • Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020) for PS4, PS5, and PC - buy now
  • Spider-Man 2 (2023) for PS5 - pre-order now

Where else has Insomniac’s Spider-Man appeared?

Let's not forget that we're living in the zeitgeist of the "Spider-Verse" - with both the animated movies and the MCU playing around with shared universes. So you might be wondering if either of the Spider-Men from this game have appeared in other franchises.

Well, actually, they have. Across disparate forms of media, too.

Let's take a look at the various places that Insomniac's Spidey has ventured to.

Comics

As the official comics are exploring themes of the multiverse, too, it only seems right that the Insomniac Spidey would make an appearance in the official printed lore.

He appears in the 2018 crossover event Spider-Geddon, which takes place after the first game, where we learn that his universe is "Earth-1048" in the wider Spider-Verse.

Insomniac's Spidey has also been seen in these comics:

  • City at War (2019) - this six-issue comic is a retelling of the main campaign from the 2018 game.
  • Velocity (2019) - and this one continues the story, telling its own original plot that you can't find anywhere else. So it's a must for fans.
  • The Black Cat Strikes (2020) this five-issue comic retells the story of The Heist (the first part of the DLC The City That Never Sleeps).
  • Free Comic Book Day: Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (2023) - To celebrate Free Comic Book Day 2023, and to promote the upcoming game, Sony and Marvel published this comic. Its story serves as a prequel to Spider-Man 2.

Novels

  • Spider-Man: Hostile Takeover (2018) - another prequel here, this novel by David Liss tells the story of Insomniac's Spidey before the events of the 2018 game. Definitely worth a read if you're a fan of this lore!
  • Spider-Man: Miles Morales – Wings of Fury (2020) - and this novel, written by Brittney Morris, serves as a prequel to 2020's Miles Morales. It's set in between the 2018 game and the 2020 spin-off.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)

And last but definitely not least, the same Peter Parker from Insomniac Games's universe appeared in this year's animated blockbuster, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

As we found out in the above comic, he's the Spider-Man of Earth-1048 - and he pops up in the base of the Spider-Society led by Miguel O' Hara. (If memory serves, Insomniac's Pete was there by accident and in the line to be sent home.)

What's even cooler about this appearance is that Insomniac's Spidey was voiced in the film by Yuri Lowenthal, the same actor who plays him in the games.

Eagle eyed viewers also noticed that someone was actually playing Spider-Man 2 on their PS5 in the background of a scene in Across the Spider-Verse, which raises even more questions that we don't have the answers to.

So, as you can see, Insomniac's Peter and Miles appear in plenty of areas outside of their respective games!

Don't feel pressured to read and watch everything they're in, though - you'll understand the games just fine without all the other media. But that extra fun is there if you want it.

All Spider-Man games ever in release date order

Don't have a PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 or a gaming PC to play the new games? If you only own older tech, there are plenty of excellent options when it comes to playing as Spider-Man.

Let's take a look through the years at the various incarnations of Spider-Man in video games. And let's start at the very beginning:

  • Spider-Man (1982) - Atari 2600, Odyssey 2
  • Questprobe featuring Spider-Man - (1984) - Amstrad CPC, Apple II, C64, C16, Atari 8-bit, ZX Spectrum, IBM PC compatible
  • The Amazing Spider-Man and Captain America in Dr Doom's Revenge! (1989) - MS-DOS, Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, C-64
  • The Revenge of Shinobi (1989) - Genesis, Sega CD
  • The Amazing Spider-Man (1990) - Amiga, MS-DOS, C-64, Atari ST, Game Boy
  • Spider-Man vs The Kingpin (1990) - Genesis, Master System, Game Gear, Sega CD
  • The Punisher: The Ultimate Payback! (1991) - Game Boy
  • Spider-Man: The Video Game (1991) - Arcade
  • The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (1992) - Game Boy
  • Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six (1992) - NES, Master System, Game Gear
  • Spider-Man and the X-Men in Arcade's Revenge (1992) - SNES, Genesis, Game Gear, Game Boy
  • The Amazing Spider-Man 3: Invasion of the Spider-Slayers (1993) - Game Boy
  • Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage (1994) - SNES, Genesis
  • The Amazing Spider-Man: Lethal Foes (1995) - SNES
  • Venom/Spider-Man: Separation Anxiety (1995) - SNES, Genesis
  • Spider-Man (1995) - SNES, Genesis
  • The Amazing Spider-Man: Web of Fire (1996) - 32X
  • Spider-Man: The Sinister Six (1996) - MS-DOS
  • Spider-Man (2000) - PlayStation, Game Boy Color, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, Microsoft Windows
  • Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six (2001) - Game Boy Color
  • Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro (2001) - PlayStation
  • Spider-Man: Mysterio's Menace (2001) - Game Boy Advance
  • Spider-Man (2002) - Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox
  • Spider-Man 2 (2004) - Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox, N-Gage, Mac OS X, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable
  • Ultimate Spider-Man (2005) - Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo DS
  • Spider-Man: Battle for New York (2006) - Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance, Mobile
  • Spider-Man 3 (2007) - Game Boy Advance, Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable
  • Spider-Man: Friend or Foe (2007) - Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable
  • Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (2008) - Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Xbox 360
  • Spider-Man: Toxic City (2009) - Mobile
  • Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions (2010) - Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360, Windows
  • Spider-Man: Edge of Time (2011) - Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360
  • The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) - Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360, Android, iOS, Windows, Mobile, Wii U, Windows Phone, PlayStation Vita
  • Ultimate Spider-Man: Total Mayhem (2013) - iOS, Android
  • Spider-Man Unlimited (2013) - iOS, Android, Windows Phone
  • The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) - Android, iOS, Windows, Nintendo 3DS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
  • Marvel's Spider-Man (2018) - PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Microsoft Windows
  • Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020) - PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Microsoft Windows
  • Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (2023) - PlayStation 5

And that's Spidey's entire gaming history so far, as a lead character at least! You'll also find him as a supporting character in great games like Marvel's Midnight Suns. But to list all those Spidey cameos would take the rest of our lives!

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