Spider-Man game review: A masterful spin on the web master

The Peter Parker that Insomniac Games and Marvel Entertainment have crafted in the new Spider-Man game is nothing like the one we've seen in previous games, or in the many movies. In this Sony-published PlayStation 4 exclusive, Insomniac has crafted the best interactive Spidey adventure ever.

The Parker in this "Spider-Man" is older and wiser (23), so he's been fighting crime in New York City since he was a teenager in high school. That means the combat in this game offers a ton of options to keep Spider-Man alive when taking on wave after wave of heavily armed bad guys (we're talking enemies with rocket launchers) or the who's who of super villains like Rhino, Scorpion, Vulture, Kingpin, Mr. Negative, Dr. Octopus and Electro. And the controls are designed to allow for more casual gamers to easily button-mash for some great maneuvers, while more astute players can strategize with how they eliminate enemies (without ever killing them, of course).

The game's intuitive menu system allows you to pick exactly how you want to play as Spidey. This packs a lot of extra fun (and replay) to this game, which also offers a ton of side missions, collectibles and things to do outside of the entertaining story, which stands up to any of the recent movies. The story also offers additional playable characters in Peter's old flame Mary Jane Watson and African American-Latino teenager Miles Morales, which changes things up.

While Batman has had his own series of successful and very dark Arkham games in recent years, the thing that's so different and fresh about Spider-Man is his personality. Voice actor Yuri Lowenthal brings the wisecracking and freewheeling Peter (who hasn't lost his sense of humor) to life. It adds to the whole fun factor of this game, which offers a massive living city to explore. And web-slinging has never been so intuitive. This game delivers that thrill of swinging just above the rooftops of Manhattan's busy city streets like no other. The visuals are as amazing as Spidey's powers. Again, the replay value of this game is through the roof because it's just addictive to get lost swinging through and around the skyscrapers of the city.

The only way to play Spider-Man is on PlayStation 4. And this amazing take on the web-crawler is worth buying a PlayStation 4 to play, if you don't already own one. There's even a custom Spider-Man console available, for the die-hard fans. Whether your skill level is Friendly, Amazing or Spectacular, this game serves up an open-world adventure that allows you to customize Spidey as you see fit for one of the best games of the year.