Probably-acclaimed-music-artist-I-discovered-while-writing-this-intro Jerry Breiner once sang that the best things come in twos. In Spider-Man’s case, that’s only true some of the time. But the web-slinger has had so many video games (and series of games) that he’s racked up an alarming number of “Spider-Man 2” games, so with the latest iteration currently printing money for PlayStation, it’s time to finally reflect on and rank all of them. What’s the best second Spider-Man game? The answer may mildly surprise you.
1
Marvel's Spider-Man 2
You may think that being arguably the best Spider-Man game ever made guaranteed Marvel Spider-Man 2’s top spot. In reality, it’s because it lives up to the number “2” better than any other title on this list by literally featuring two Spider-Men. That’s really all it takes, but somehow, only Insomniac understood the assignment. The game’s other high points, like the great action, incredible traversal, and strong writing, are just extra credit.
2
Spider-Man 2
We all know Spider-Man 2 is the best of the Sam Raimi movie trilogy, so it only makes sense that its video game adaptation is the best of the three tie-ins. Yes, we all know about how it revolutionized web-swinging, but it gets brownie points for having the most exciting Mysterio boss fight ever and for getting the last semi-decent Kirsten Dunst performance in a video game (Spider-Man 3 would not be so lucky). Oh, and the pizza delivery jingle. Always remember the pizza delivery jingle.
3
Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro
We just replayed the entirety of Neversoft’s beloved Spider-Man game, but hardly anyone ever brings up its respectable direct sequel, Enter Electro. I’m not sure why that is; it’s the first 3D Spider-Man game to get his costume right by adding the web pattern missing from the first game (which drove me nuts as a kid), so it’s the more aesthetically pleasing of the two. In all honesty, we probably don’t remember it because the main villain is Electro, who is the definition of mid on the Spidey villain tier list – unless Jamie Foxx plays him. Then he’s top three*.
4
Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six
The Sinister Six could be nominated for the award of “Best Late Game Boy Color Game We Didn’t Appreciate Enough Because the Game Boy Advance Launched, Presented By Shantae.” Arriving in 2001 (the same year as Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro), it’s surprisingly cinematic for a handheld game at the time. It had digitized Doc Ock laughter and everything. Outside of that, the animation is impressively fluid, and the art direction included comic-accurate details such as Vulture’s defined butt cheeks you can admire in the photo above.