Marvel's Spider-Man 2's new gameplay footage revealed that Peter Parker would be donning the iconic black symbiote suit during part of the game's story. The symbiote had been teased in both Marvel's Spider-Man and Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales, with Norman Osborn and Curt Connors using it as a way to treat Harry Osborn for the terminal illness his mother died of years prior.
In Marvel's Spider-Man 2's new gameplay, Peter uses the symbiote to fend off Kraven's squad of hunters, who are trying to track down Dr. Curt Connors after the scientist's transformation into The Lizard. Peter can be seen fighting more aggressively with his symbiote-enhanced attacks, wiping out entire groups of hunters and vehicles with the suit's tendrils.
The Symbiote Suit In Spider-Man 2 Enhances Peter's Spider-Powers At A Cost
The Venom symbiote bonds with a host and can make them stronger, improving Peter's spider-powers in nearly every way. It does take a toll on its host, however, as it makes them far more aggressive and corrupts them as it gradually takes control. This seems to be the case in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, and Miles and Ganke even comment on Peter's more aggressive demeanor which could imply a future clash between the Spider-Men later in the game with the gameplay confirming that while Marvel's Spider-Man 2 won't have co-op, Miles' Spider-Man will also be playable in the game.
Ultimate Spider-Man went a step further and showed the suit taking a physical toll on those who wore it unless it fed constantly. While this has been popularized in the Venom movies since, it doesn't seem to be the case in this gameplay, with Insomniac seemingly taking a more traditional approach to the symbiote's corruption. Ultimately, Peter realizes the hold the symbiote has on him, mainly through his treatment of his loved ones, such as Mary Jane, and gets rid of it. Upon this separation, the symbiote finds a new host and Venom is born.
How Will Peter Get The Symbiote Suit In Spider-Man 2?
It's not completely clear how the symbiote ends up in Manhattan, but in most comics, it is an alien being. In its very first appearance during the 1984 Secret Wars comics arc, Peter acquires it when he discovers a machine thought to be a fabric replicator upon damaging his original costume in battle. It's highly unlikely that this is the case in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, as the symbiote has already been in Manhattan for a while as part of Harry's experimental treatment.
The symbiote could still have originally fallen from space much like it does in most Spider-Man media. This may have been how Osborn and Connors originally acquired it, and Insomniac's use of H.R. Geiger-esque texturing on the comic-accurate suit does make it feel alien; however, its use for the treatment of Harry's terminal illness indicates that it could be man-made, much like the Venom suit in Ultimate Spider-Man, which was developed by Peter Parker and Eddie Brock's parents as a potential cure for cancer, and this would certainly be more in keeping with Insomniac's choice of villains so far, who have been largely science-enhanced.
With Peter seemingly trying to save Connors from Kraven's hunters in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, it's indicated that the two may be allies. Therefore, if Peter didn't get the suit during his reunion with childhood friend Harry - who Norman was finally pulling out of the experiment at the end of Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - he may have acquired it from time spent in Connors' lab. Miles' reaction to seeing the suit in the gameplay footage indicates that it's the first time he has seen Peter wearing it, so Peter may have acquired it just prior to this sequence when he was trying to track down The Lizard.
Source: PlayStation/YouTube
