Marvel’s Spider-Man has a long history with video games, dating back to 8-bit side-scrollers to 3D open-world games that explored the cinematic side of the character. These games quite often pull from already established comic storylines, as we’ve seen with games like Spider-Man/X-Men: Arcade’s Revenge, Maximum Carnage, and the sequel Separation Anxiety.

More recently Spider-Man on PS4 created its own narrative but pulled from a number of other comic storylines and made one of the best Spidey games fans had ever played. So with talk of a sequel we wanted to take a look at a few other storylines from the comics that might make great games!

CLONE SAGA

“The Clone Saga” is not the most respected storyline from Spidey’s history considering it spun out of control and lasted far longer than originally planned, but that doesn’t mean it was all bad. The storyline actually occurs in two different eras of Spider-Man, with the original clone saga lasting little more than a couple of issues.

The storyline follows the Jackal’s genetic manipulations of Peter Parker and the various clones he created which include characters like Ben Reilly and Kaine Parker, who would both go on to wear the costume of Scarlet Spider. The game could place players in each of these roles as they attempt to find out the truth of the Jackal’s manipulations.

IDENTITY CRISIS

One of the selling points of games like Spider-Man PS4 and even the Distinguished Competitor’s Batman: Arkham Asylum series is unlockable costumes and skins for the main character. Comic book characters especially have a lot of costumes to choose from, and Spider-Man’s costume switches even have a relatable storyline.

After Spidey is framed for murder, he is forced to take on four other costumed identities to clear his name and keep crime-fighting. Players could follow this storyline and step into his new identities - Hornet, Richochet, Dusk, and Prodigy - as they attempt to clear Spidey’s name.

THE GAUNTLET

“The Gauntlet” wasn’t quite a Spider-event, and it didn’t feature a huge villain with a master plan, but it did incorporate most of Spider-Man’s greatest villains - Sandman, Electro, Lizard, Chameleon, Mysterio, Rhino, Morbius and more - as they took on Spider-Man one after another in the build-up to the “Grim Hunt” storyline.

“The Gauntlet” showcased some of the amazing developments Spidey’s villains had taken over the years and how they affected the life of the wall-crawler. Not only would exploring each of the villains a bit more in a video game do them justice but the unrelenting pace of “The Gauntlet” storyline is already fairly well-suited for a video game.

SPIDER-ISLAND

We’ve previously discussed some of the Jackal’s genetic experiments, but he didn’t restrict himself to the Clone Saga. During the “Spider-Island” event, the Jackal (working with the Queen) infected Manhattan with a virus that replicated Spider-Man’s abilities, giving everyone spider-powers before mutating them horribly into terrifying spider-monsters.

Not only did the event feature a number of Avengers characters who could feature into the game, but most of Spidey’s supporting cast also received powers. This would give gamers the chance to play as almost anyone in New York with the same game mechanics, meaning we could finally swing around the city as Mary Jane Watson instead of just playing stealth missions.

ENDS OF THE EARTH

While Peter Parker is usually known as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, there are a few times in his career where he reached the “Big Time” and went “Worldwide” as both a premier member of the Avengers and the scientific genius who worked at Horizon Labs and eventually launched Parker Industries.

It was during this period that Spider-Man ran into the Sinister Six during the “Ends of the Earth” storyline, which meant he had the tech and assets needed to jump around the world dealing with Doc Ock’s world-ending plan. The huge cast of characters, advanced tech and armor, and globe-trotting missions all culminated with an epic boss battle that was tailor-made for a video game.

SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN

Doctor Octopus is arguably Spider-Man’s greatest villain, but he has at different times been an ally and even a replacement for the webhead. During the Superior Spider-Man storyline, it was revealed that a dying Otto Octavius had switched bodies with Peter Parker to become the new Spider-Man, while Peter Parker died in Octavius’ old body.

Doc Ock featured heavily in Spider-Man PS4 as both a mentor and enemy of Spider-Man, so playing as Otto inside Peter’s body as he discovers his own heroic side while attempting to become a better Spider-Man. With so many Spidey games on the market already, taking the franchise in a new darker direction with Otto’s time under the mask could be just what the doctor ordered.

SPIDER-VERSE

We’ve already got a bit of a taste of the Spider-Verse on the big screen thanks to the animated Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse, which introduced movie fans to characters like Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, and everyone’s favorite, Spider-Man Noir.

Spider-Man: Shattered Realities dabbled in alternate realities, but there is a lot of potential with both the various alternate Spider-Men from the Marvel Multiverse and the powerful family known as the Inheritors who feed on spider-totems like Spider-Man. This premise was explored in the mobile game Spider-Man Unlimited but would do well in a larger console game.

GO DOWN SWINGING

Writer Dan Slott worked with Spider-Man for a decade and is responsible for a few of the storylines we’ve discussed today that would make good video games. When Slott left Amazing Spider-Man, it was with the epic storyline “Go Down Swinging” that saw a huge change from one of Spider-Man’s worst villains.

Norman Osborn/Green Goblin bonded with the Carnage symbiote to create the Red Goblin and set out on a mission to take down Spider-Man that saw him go after all of Spidey’s closest friends and family, which would give the game a number of popular guest stars while also bringing the threat of the Red Goblin to another medium.

HUNTED

We’ve been discussing some of Spider-Man’s greatest villains, but we haven’t talked much about Kraven the Hunter, who had been dead in the comics for years following the “Kraven’s Last Hunt” storyline. However, after his resurrection in the aforementioned “Grim Hunt,” Kraven had a new mission that no longer limited his sights on Spider-Man.

The “Hunted” storyline saw Spider-Man, along with a number of his animal-themed villains, trapped in Central Park by Kraven the Hunter while elitist hunters used high-tech avatars to hunt down the villains with extreme ruthlessness. “Hunted” would make for a great battle royale-type game and offer fans something different while exploring Kraven and some lesser-known villains.

ABSOLUTE CARNAGE

There weren’t too many Spider-Man fans who didn’t spend some time playing the Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage side-scrolling video game adaptation in the 90s, which was based on the comic storyline of the same name.

Now with the “Absolute Carnage” storyline upping the ante and unleashing a demonically-powered Carnage on the Marvel Universe, the time couldn’t be better to see a worthy next-gen successor to Maximum Carnage. The game could even put players in the role of characters like Carnage, Venom, and Miles Morales to really explore the comic event properly.