Man, Insomniac Games just can't catch a break. Last week the latest Marvel's Spider-Man 2 patch accidentally added a game-breaking debug menu and potential confirmation of an upcoming DLC. Now an alleged trailer for the developer's canceled multiplayer game, Spider-Man: The Great Web, has leaked, giving us our first look at the Spider-Verse-inspired title that could have been.
We first learned of Spider-Man: The Great Web from documents stolen in last year's massive data breach at Insomniac. At that point, the game had already been canceled, presumably another casualty of publisher Sony's pivot away from live service projects. Internal documents described it as an action-adventure multiplayer open-world game with in-game purchases.
The trailer, which was first shared by insomniacleaks on Reddit, shows off co-op gameplay that seems to support up to five players. Several spider-persons make an appearance as playable characters, including Spider-Gwen, Spider-Man 2099, Ben Riley and Venom. They're shown facing off in multiplayer combat against the Sinister Six, brawling against hordes of lackeys, and swinging between multiverses in the same vein as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
A new voiceover from Yuri Lowenthal, the voice of Peter Parker in the Insomniac games, plays over the action, explaining that the game's plot would have seen the five superheroes assemble to stop the Sinister Six from breaking out of prison.
Based on last year's leak, Spider-Man: The Great Web was intended to be a live-service title. It would have been built around a multiverse model, which was supposedly busted open by Scarlet Witch, and feature several customization options that would have let players create a diverse array of spider-themed superheroes.
It's not clear how much of the game would have tied into Insomniac's campaigns in the first two Marvel's Spider-Man games. Also unclear is how its development timeline would have impacted the release schedule for Spider-Man 2 DLC or future single-player games.
Given that the trailer largely uses assets from Marvel's Spider-Man 2, this was likely more a proof of concept to present internally rather than something the developer ever intended the public to see. While it looks promising, I wouldn't rush to lament the game that could have been just quite yet. Superheroes and live-service games don't mix well, or at the very least, developers haven't figured out the right formula. 2020's Marvel’s Avengers was such a bust for Square Enix that it's since been scrubbed from digital storefronts. And last year's Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League hasn't faired much better.
