Marvel's Spider-Man: The City That Never Sleeps

Marvel's Spider-Man is widely considered one of the best superhero games ever made, rivaling that of Rocksteady's Batman: Arkham Asylum. The recent finale for The City that Never Sleeps campaign released this week, marking the end for the title. Not only does this campaign extend the previous adventure but bridges the story in the expected sequel. Spider-Man must take on new challenges as incarceration of Wilson Fisk leads to a power vacuum and then an all-out gang war that sees the return of old allies, new frenemies, and a villain with a lot to prove. The City that Never Sleeps shares many of the qualities of the original campaign with hours of extensive Spider-Man action but also has its faults.

Spider-Man’s three-part DLC, The City That Never Sleeps, feels a bit like it’s trying to have it both ways by telling a story set after the main game without changing up too much for the sake of anyone who might not play it. It might not be entirely fair to complain that an add-on doesn’t feel like a true next chapter, and the gameplay certainly remains satisfying and tacks on some welcome challenge, but the full package is an unquestionable letdown after the soaring heights of the original campaign.

On the whole, if you liked Spider-Man itself, you’re almost guaranteed to enjoy The City That Never Sleeps. Collectively, all three episodes offer plenty of new content to dive into, a lot of which is excellently designed, while the core strengths of the base game – its traversal and its combat – are, obviously, very much on the forefront here as well.

As always, we want to know what you think! Is this DLC suite maintaining quality and interest? How do you like the new suits? Which suit do you need to have in the game? When will we see a damn Spider-Cop suit? Let Handsome Phantom know your thoughts, and be sure to check out our Platted That! for Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, or a ruminations on the pacing of Red Dead Redemption II!

As such, these three expansions are for those who simply can’t get enough of swinging through Manhattan, beating down bad guys, and craving whatever trail of breadcrumbs leads them into the next game. If you found yourself feeling burnt out after many hours with Spider-Man, there’s a decent six or so hours of additional story content to plough through but don’t expect anything too amazing or spectacular.

You can compare it to watching one of Marvel's TV shows ahead of one of the blockbuster movies; the story and action rarely reach the heights of the main event but then it's really meant as a small taste of the greatness that awaits. Still, we're confident that this return to Manhattan will be more than enough to satisfy most of your spidery needs.