Fans looking forward to the PlayStation 5 remaster of Marvel’s Spider-Man are in for some bad news, as progress from the PS4 original won’t transfer over to the new version. An upscaled edition of Insomniac’s blockbuster open-world superhero title has been confirmed as a bonus for the Ultimate Edition of Spider-Man: Miles Morales, itself set to launch alongside the PS5 in November.
Far from being a mere port of the best-selling 2018 crime-fighting simulator with updated graphics, Marvel’s Spider-Man for the PS5 will contain a wealth of new content to go with the game that fans hail as one of the greatest titles to feature Marvel’s legendary Wall-Crawler. This includes three brand new alternate costumes (perhaps including the scrapped Spider-Cop costume) and additional features for its beloved Photo Mode. Unfortunately, any fans who played through the current-gen iteration of Marvel’s Spider-Man will have to start Peter Parker’s journey through the streets of New York City from scratch if they wish to upgrade to the shinier PlayStation 5 edition later this year.
When asked by a fan on Twitter if their Marvel’s Spider-Man PS4 save will transfer over to the PS5 remaster, developer Insomniac Games gave a simple but definite no. The Ratchet and Clank developer didn’t give any explanation as to why this won’t be the case, but some commenters have speculated that it might have something to do with an updated list of achievements for the new version.
Previously, a report from last year stated that the PlayStation 5 would be able to import game saves from the PS4, as part of the PS5’s backwards compatibility with titles from its predecessor. However, some developers are choosing to forgo having old save progress make the transition to the new hardware, as is the case with EA's soccer simulator FIFA 21.
Some fans are understandably disappointed that they will have to play through everything a second time if they want to experience Marvel’s Spider-Man through the PS5’s stunning new graphical capabilities, given the sheer volume of the game's many side quests and collectibles. On the other hand, some have pointed out that the purpose of a remaster in general is to go through the game again, and playing through Insomniac’s brilliant take on Peter Parker isn’t the worst thing in the world. In any case, fans will get the chance to swing through New York City all over again when the Marvel’s Spider-Man PlayStation 5 remaster is released alongside Spider-Man: Miles Morales Ultimate Edition on November 12th.
Source: Insomniac Games