Marvel’s Spider-Man hosts a ton of side activities in its open-world that players can choose to engage in or ignore depending on if they want more Token resources. These activities range from thwarting criminal activity, completing Taskmaster challenges, collecting backpacks, or taking photographs of landmarks throughout New York City.
The open-world in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will need to scratch this same itch with its own side activities, whether they are returning from Marvel’s Spider-Man or new to the franchise. Some of these activities may be expanded upon from how they were originally implemented, and one activity in particular would benefit from a gameplay or narrative expansion. Photography is a significant part of Peter’s life, as he had previously worked as a photographer at the Daily Bugle in Marvel’s Spider-Man, and this could be revisited again in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 for the sake of side activities.
A Brief History of Photography Missions in Spider-Man Games
Peter’s experiences being berated by J. Jonah Jameson at the Daily Bugle specifically or being a photographer otherwise have been included in Spider-Man games for a while. Neversoft’s Spider-Man on PS1, for example, has Eddie Brock Jr photographing Otto Octavius’ speech at the Science Expo 2000 in hopes of getting back on Jameson’s good side, and Spider-Man rescues Jameson from the vengeful Scorpion at the Daily Bugle.
Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3, being loose adaptations of the films, feature optional encounters with Jameson, Robbie Robertson, or Betty Brant at the Daily Bugle through photography assignments players can accept. Photograph assignments in Spider-Man 2 entail players racing from one waypoint market to the next and interacting with large icon prompts to snap a photo of a monument, landmark, or environment, before racing back to the Bugle before a timer expires.
Photograph assignments in Spider-Man 3, rather, are more involved in terms of actual camera lens mechanics where players are scored on how well-framed their shot is, but they are not timed and therefore can be less engaging or stimulating. The Amazing Spider-Man operates in a weird canon as a spiritual sequel to the film, and is thus an adaptation by extension. In its loose adaptation, The Amazing Spider-Man features freelance photography assignments Peter accepts from reporter Whitney Chang.
These are similar to Spider-Man 3’s own assignments, but players are either tasked with photographing certain environmental interests, or any enemies and super-villains they come across to log them in a database for unique concept art. Marvel’s Spider-Man lets players take photographs of landmarks for Landmark Tokens.
These tasks are completely unrelated to Peter’s career interests and have no meaningful significance to the game’s narrative. They are purely there as an optional activity players can indulge in if they need respective Tokens, and there is a salient reason why Marvel’s Spider-Man does not have Peter snapping these photographs for the Daily Bugle in the present day.
Marvel’s Spider-Man’s Peter Parker May Be Past His Photographer Days
In all likelihood, Marvel’s Spider-Man’s Peter has well moved on from his fledgling career as a freelance photojournalist. Marvel’s Spider-Man portrays Peter as an Empire State University graduate who is working as a part-time research assistant under Octavius’ tutelage. Peter’s scientific and technological ingenuity is demonstrated in this way, giving renewed credence to how he is able to design different costumes and produce new gadgets.
Peter’s life is certainly not luxurious or financially thriving, however, as Octavius is unable to pay him a decent wage without adequate funding, and their work on neurological prosthetics is eventually confiscated and prohibited by Norman Osborn. This dredges up a lot of the anxiety and tension Octavius and Osborn have between one another, and is a primary catalyst in Octavius’ dramatic transition into a super-villain terrorist.
Marvel’s Spider-Man ends without Peter having another job lined up, but the game does insinuate multiple career paths that he could take in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Peter is a scientist in Marvel’s Spider-Man, and it would not be surprising if Insomniac chose to pursue that further, potentially with a career working alongside Doctor Curtis Connors.
This is less likely due to the fact that Connors is already established as the Lizard, and if the public knows that then he may not be a favorable employer. Rather, he is seen working alongside Osborn in Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ post-credits scene, meaning he is not incarcerated, and perhaps not criticized or blamed for any of the resulting mayhem of his scientific transformation.
But if Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 chooses another career path for Peter, it is explicitly implied through character dialogue that Peter may take up a position as a lecturer or teacher in an undetermined capacity. This would not be the first time that Peter has taken on the role of a teacher professionally throughout Spider-Man’s source material, but could make Insomniac’s iteration of the character more unique as it is certainly not a career path that Peter has been largely depicted in.
Because of these two likely career paths being viable, there is a scarce chance that Peter returns to photography in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. He did, however, accompany Mary Jane Watson on a trip to Symkaria as her photographer on assignment, implying that he may not be fully abandoning those talents. If Peter is between gigs or needing supplemental work on the side, for instance, there is no reason why he would not be able to take spontaneous freelance assignments from MJ or the Bugle.
Photography Missions Could Supplement Marvel’s Spider-Man 2’s Optional Activities
Like Marvel’s Spider-Man, players will almost assuredly be taking photos in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 as a way to obtain Tokens if they are reprised as an upgrade and crafting resource. Photography is a simple mechanic and also had its uses outside of side activities, especially with how it was implemented into MJ’s own stealth encounters.
But if photography missions are indeed reprised in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, they may have much more of a narrative significance. This could be executed in a number of ways, but the idea would be that Peter could continue to take freelance assignments for MJ throughout Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, whether he already has a new job or not.
This would make Marvel’s Spider-Man’s Landmark Tokens much more interesting and engaging to seek out, as these assignments could come accompanied by dialogue between Peter and MJ and have more diverse events or circumstances to try to get a picture of, such as criminal activity or particular individuals that only Spider-Man could get close to. Narratively, however, if Peter was to return to the Daily Bugle in an official capacity, Insomniac could debut characters such as Betty Brant and Gloria Grant, or even Eddie Brock Jr.
Otherwise, it would simply offer more of an emphasis on Jameson’s character and show actual interactions between him, Peter, and MJ. Peter’s prior resignation from the Bugle could make returning difficult or implausible, however, so assignments taken unofficially for MJ may be the direction that Insomniac would take. This, or any other career path Insomniac chooses, is undetermined at this point, but it will be interesting to see if and how photography assignments are expanded upon in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is scheduled to release in 2023 on PS5.