Marvel's Spider-Man 2 director says the "darker" sequel won't feature "the sweet Peter Parker that we love"

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 will follow a "darker story" than we're used to and won't feature "the sweet Peter Parker that we love," according to its director.

In an interview with NME, Bryan Intihar, creative director at Insomniac, reveals that we're meeting a very different Peter from the studio's previous games. Intihar says that Peter's relationship with the symbiote is used to explore themes of addiction and that "this isn't the sweet Peter Parker that we love," there's now "a roughness to him."

This isn't the first time we've heard about Marvel's Spider-Man 2's "darker story." Peter Parker actor Yuri Lowenthal has previously said he researched "the behaviors of addiction" to prepare for his character in the symbiote suit. This, along with the addition of new enemies Venom and Kraven the Hunter, shows that Insomniac is taking the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man to a much darker place this time around.

In the NME interview, Intihar also touches on Peter and Miles Morales' changing relationship, explaining that "one of the best parts" of Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is the way it tests and expands the pair's relationship. "The north star that we've had since the beginning of working on this thing was wanting to deliver the Spider-Man fantasy," the developer says, "But it's equally important to tell that relatable, human story. When you get people to care about stuff outside of the mask, they're going to care even more when Miles and Pete are inside the mask."

We are now just one single day away from playing Marvel's Spider-Man 2 as it's set to release on PS5 on October 20, 2023.

Want to get even more excited for its release? Take a look at our glowing Marvel's Spider-Man 2 review.