In the world of comic books, the Marvel superhero known as Spider-Man may have the most colorful and varied rogues gallery of all. Among these many villains, Doctor Octopus may be his most formidable and cunning adversary of them all. Doc Ock has tangled with the web slinger on more than one occasion throughout the many comics, films and cartoons based on Spider-Man.
Now, Alfred Molina is set to reprise his interpretation of the villain in the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home, being featured in the final moments of the recent teaser trailer. Bringing Doc Ock back to the spotlight makes sense, as he is one of the character's most instantly recognizable foes, even for more casual viewers not overly familiar with the deeper lore. The supervillain has made many appearances in the various Spider-Man video games over the years, whether that be in more major or minor roles.
Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six
Spider-Man has had video game releases spanning all the way back to the NES era with Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six. As the name of the game would suggest, it revolves around Spidey taking on his many foes after they team up as one unit. In the comics, Doc Ock is usually the mastermind and leader behind this insidious union, considering his incredible intellect and tactical battle plans. This platforming action game appropriately placed Doc Ock as the final boss.
Spider-Man (2000)
While many superhero games struggled to capture the essence of being the character, mostly due to technical limitations, Spider-Man on PS1 was one of the first to buck the trend. Allowing players to fully swing around in 3D environments was a big deal, but the comics faithful storyline here was a huge plus. Many notable villains were featured here, but Doctor Octopus serving as the main antagonist after a surprise twist was a great inclusion. The developers didn't stop there, however, creating a brand new villain called "Monster Ock," which was the union of the Carnage symbiote onto Otto Octavius.
Spider-Man 2
At one point in time, nearly every major blockbuster film had a tie-in video game adaptation. While most were underwhelming, Spider-Man 2 broke new ground in superhero interactive entertainment. Being based on the Sam Raimi film of the same name, Spider-Man 2 featured Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus as the primary threat, allowing players to fight the villain in iconic set pieces from the movie including the epic train battle. In terms of accurately portraying what fighting Doc Ock should feel like in a video game, Spider-Man 2 was the first to truly deliver on the expected dizzying experience.
Spider-Man: Friend or Foe
This beat 'em up game is exactly what the subtitle would suggest, with Spidey having to team up with this greatest friends and foes in order to save the world from a larger threat. This means that for the first time, fans could now actually play as the many villains in Spider-Man's rogues gallery, taking advantage of all their abilities. Among these enemies was Doc Ock, with a move set customized entirely around what the character is capable of. Using his four mechanical arms to smash everything on-screen to bits was simple but energetic fun.
Spider-Man: Edge of Time
The sequel to Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions, Doc Ock's appearance in this title is a fun spin on what's usually expected. The game features time travel, and we see a version of Doc Ock who never turned to crime. However, in a tragic turn of events, he is fused together with the villains Walker Sloan and Anti-Venom to create a new villain named Atrocity. This freakish new creature is equipped with Doc Ock's powerful tentacles and Anti-Venom's abilities to numb Spider-Man's powers, making for a next-level kind of threat to the wall-crawler.
Marvel's Spider-Man
Last but not least is Otto Octavius' appearance in Insomniac's interpretation of the character. The compelling take on this version is in how players get to witness the sad downfall of a once brilliant scientist slowly turning to the world of crime. It makes his final transformation that much more tragic, making the final battle both a physical and emotional one. Doc Ock also makes a brief cameo during a flashback sequence in Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales.