Marvel's Spider-Man
Insomniac's 2018 PS4 open-world superhero game built around web-swinging.
Where Marvel's Spider-Man comes up1 episode or test
Insomniac made web-swinging work from one held button, with hidden physics assists and no risk of crashing into buildings. Mark Brown first called it too simple, then saw it was built for casual players. The lesson: pick your audience and tune core mechanics to them. Spider-Man 2 later added a harder swinging setting, so optional depth can serve hardcore players too.
- Hold one button to swing
- Hidden physics assists
- No risk of splatting into buildings
- Easy swinging stays the default
- Harder swinging option added
- Veterans get extra challenge
Veterans got challenge without changing the core game
From Mark Brown's analysis of Spider-Man
What was said about Marvel's Spider-Man
Insomniac made web-swinging simple on purpose for casual players. Swinging works by holding one button, with hidden physics assists and no risk of splatting into a skyscraper. That gives casual players the sensation of being Spider-Man in the 2018 PS4 game.
Mark Brown, a hardcore fan who loves deep movement, first judged it too simple. He then realized a blockbuster PS4 tie-in is aimed at more casual players and revised his view. His takeaway: "you have to decide who this game is for, and tune your mechanics appropriately."
Spider-Man 2 added a harder swinging setting for veterans. Insomniac kept the easy default swinging for the main audience and added a harder swinging option in Spider-Man 2. Players more hardcore than the target audience got extra challenge without changing the core game.
Brown uses this as an example of optional content serving hardcore players: "options and bonus content can be used to make a game appealing to those who are more hardcore than the target audience."
10 Game Design Lessons from 10 Years of GMTK
Swinging works by holding one button, with hidden physics hacks and no risk of splatting into a skyscraper. Mark Brown first judged it too simple as a hardcore player, then realized it was made for casual players, and Spider-Man 2 added a harder swinging setting.
Insomniac made web-swinging simple on purpose for casual players. Swinging works by holding one button, with hidden physics assists and no risk of splatting into a skyscraper. That gives casual players the sensation of being Spider-Man in the 2018 PS4 game.
Mark Brown, a hardcore fan who loves deep movement, first judged it too simple. He then realized a blockbuster PS4 tie-in is aimed at more casual players and revised his view. His takeaway: "you have to decide who this game is for, and tune your mechanics appropriately."
Spider-Man 2 added a harder swinging setting for veterans. Insomniac kept the easy default swinging for the main audience and added a harder swinging option in Spider-Man 2. Players more hardcore than the target audience got extra challenge without changing the core game.
Brown uses this as an example of optional content serving hardcore players: "options and bonus content can be used to make a game appealing to those who are more hardcore than the target audience."
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