Insomniac’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales was recently released on PC to huge acclaim. Newcomers coming into the spin-off hot off the heels of the original Marvel’s Spider-Man’s PC release earlier this year, as well as returning fans looking for replay with the PC port’s enhanced graphical fidelity, give rave reviews. Following the breakout success of the original game’s PC port just months earlier, this new version of the 2020 spin-off leaves the core experience intact, while providing numerous visual and quality-of-life enhancements.
The game's defining feature is Miles Morales himself. His new playstyle showcases his many differences from Peter Parker, while continuing to pay homage to the original game’s combat. Upgraded through an extensive skill tree, Miles’ many skills offer a wide variety of benefits both in and out of combat. A few in particular rise above the others as the most powerful abilities in Miles’ arsenal.
10 Web Cocoon Bomb
Many encounters in Spider-Man: Miles Morales begin with long strings of stealth takedowns before inevitably breaking into a full-on brawl. This makes the Web Cocoon Bomb a useful, if not situational, skill for thinning out the crowd. The Web Cocoon Bomb allows Miles to slam enemies who have been taken out by a perch takedown into other enemies, webbing them up while dealing considerable damage.
While this skill may not seem too useful on paper, it’s often able to instantly knock out enemies near walls or surfaces. It helps Miles quickly thin out large groups of enemies in the game’s bigger encounters.
9 Synaptic Breakdown
Pairing well with several other skills and suit mods, Synaptic Breakdown works great for temporarily keeping enemies off Miles in fights. Synaptic Breakdown increases the amount of time enemies remain Venom-Shocked.
This not only opens enemies up to more damage in subsequent attacks and maneuvers, but also prevents them from moving or attacking for longer. It's perfect for creating some much-needed breathing room during difficult encounters.
8 Spread The Love
Much like Synaptic Breakdown and In For a Shock, Spread The Love bolsters the effectiveness of Miles’ many Venom abilities while providing improved crowd control. Spread the Love causes Venom-Shocked enemies to spread shock to other nearby enemies.
Using this skill, a single Venom Strike can shock entire groups of enemies at once at the right angle, opening them up for further attacks. This skill can also prove very useful in some of the game’s later side missions, where stunning huge groups of enemies becomes a necessity.
7 Payback
Unlocked in the game’s second combat challenge, Payback is an early-game skill that only provides more utility as the story progresses. Payback is a defensive ability that causes web strike to instantly take down an armed enemy after a perfect dodge on a bullet.
While this may seem daunting to new players not yet able to consistently perfect dodge, suit mods can extend the duration of the red perfect dodge indicator. This skill becomes more useful over time as the game begins introducing more and more armed enemies.
6 Gunslinger
Unlocked in the game’s first combat challenge and returning from the original Marvel’s Spider-Man, Gunslinger helps Miles turn an enemy’s weapon against them while knocking back any other opponents in the way. Gunslinger pulls an armed enemy’s weapon to Miles as he charges it with Venom, applying Venom Shock to any opponent hit by the wide gun swing.
This skill pulls double duty as both a strong crowd control tool (especially on weaker grunts) and as an additional method of disarming enemies before they can get a shot off. Paired with Miles’ other venom-enhancing skills, Gunslinger can easily apply Venom Shock to entire waves of enemies at once.
5 Web Yank Opportunist
Web Yank Opportunist is a simple yet effective early-game unlock that adds extra power and utility to Miles’ basic combos. This skill lets Miles pull back enemies immediately after knocking them away for a Venom-Infused kick.
On top of applying Venom Shock to the enemy, the kick attack is Miles’ strongest grounded combo extender, linking into any other attack or action. Paired with other skills, Web Yank Opportunist does a great job at expanding Miles’ offensive options in any situation.
4 Venom Dash Launcher
One of the later skills in the Skill Tree, the Venom Dash Launcher significantly improves Miles’ Venom Dash ability and deals fantastic AoE damage to small groups of enemies. Venom Dash Launcher allows Venom Dash to link directly into Venom Jump without expending additional Venom.
Using both in tandem causes significant damage to one enemy while then immediately launching several others into the air and applying Venom Shock. This then makes it much easier to knock out enemies before they hit the ground.
3 Point Launch Boost
Unlocked in the game’s first Traversal challenge and returning from Marvel’s Spider-Man, Point Launch Boost is likely the skill new players will be using the most by far. Despite not having much use in combat, Point Launch Boost speeds up traversal by providing a huge boost in speed and momentum from a well-timed Point Launch.
With so much to do around the city, being able to zip from place to place quickly becomes essential to exploration. Despite mainly being geared around traversal, Point Launch Boost also has some limited utility in bigger stealth encounters to escape sticky situations.
2 In For A Shock
In For A Shock serves as Miles’ replacement for Peter’s Critical Strike in the original Marvel’s Spider-Man, sporting the most applications out of any ability. In For A Shock increases the amount of damage Venom-Shocked enemies take by 50%.
This simple yet powerful buff allows all of Miles’ venom abilities and buffs to become significantly more effective, clearing out entire waves of enemies in seconds using AoE attacks. When paired with some of the game’s more powerful suit mods, this becomes the most important skill for maximizing Miles’ damage output.
1 Bio Electric Instincts
Only available in the game’s New Game Plus mode, Bio Electric Instincts makes for a worthy reward for finishing Spider-Man Miles Morales. Bio Electric Instincts acts as a total reset in combat, triggering a mega venom blast that instantly knocks out nearby enemies when Miles loses all health.
On top of clearing out enemies, Miles’ health is fully restored. This skill essentially acts as a huge get-out-of-jail-free card that turns what would have been a game over into a near-instant win.