Developer Insomniac Games has responded to fan backlash over the upcoming Marvel’s Spider-Man suits, inspired by Spider-Man: No Way Home, explaining why these costumes will only be available on the PlayStation 5 version of its critically-acclaimed superhero title. Tom Holland's version of Spidey is set to swing into theaters once more in Spider-Man: No Way Home, where he will face off against past movie villains like the Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus, and Electro in a fight to save the multiverse. To commemorate Marvel’s latest blockbuster, Insomniac announced that it will be releasing movie-accurate costumes for Marvel’s Spider-Man: Remastered, based on the suits Peter will be wearing in No Way Home.
Marvel’s Spider-Man contains plenty of fun alternate skins that allow players to swing through the open-world of New York City as their favorite version of the ever-popular web-slinger, be that Tom Holland’s current teenage hero from the MCU, Tobey Maguire’s older incarnation of the Sam Raimi-directed Spider-Man Trilogy of the 2000s, or even the animated Peter B. Parker from Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse. Unfortunately for PS4 players, the Black And Gold and Integrated Suits from Spider-Man: No Way Home will only be available for PS5's Marvel’s Spider-Man: Remastered, unlike previous alternate suits Insomniac has added to Marvel’s Spider-Man post-release.
Players who only have the original PS4 edition of Marvel’s Spider-Man are naturally displeased at the news that they won’t have access to the new No Way Home suits, and have taken to social media outlets like Twitter to voice their disappointment. Insomniac Games has since responded to explain why the new costumes will only be available on PS5, stating that adding these suits would be too complex due to the large number of updates and patches the developer has already added to the PS4 version of Marvel’s Spider-Man. “Each patch has been more technically complex, especially with maintaining PS4 HDD streaming performance,” Insomniac replied to multiple commenters. As such, the team at Insomniac ultimately decided to only release the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home suits on Marvel’s Spider-Man: Remastered on the PS5, “where our PS5 engine allows us to update the game without jeopardizing player experience.”
Insomniac’s explanation has sparked yet another discourse in the comment section of its latest Twitter thread. While some players accept the rationale of the PS4 version of Marvel’s Spider-Man being too big to update at this point, others point out that even bigger games like Fortnite add new patches without this technical issue all the time - especially when it comes to new character skins like Fortnite Chapter 3’s recent Spider-Man content. Fueling some of the backlash is the fact that many players are still struggling to get their hands on a PS5 a year after its initial launch, something that's now particularly difficult due to increased demand for the holiday shopping season.
Whether Insomniac’s reasoning for only releasing the new Spider-Man: No Way Home suits for the PS5 version of Marvel’s Spider-Man is valid or not, players with the original PS4 edition won’t be able to add the Black And Gold or Integrated costumes to Spidey’s large wardrobe of crime-fighting attire. Perhaps these suits will be available in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 when it releases sometime in 2023, when more Spidey fans will hopefully have easy access to a PlayStation 5. Those who own a PS5 will be able to pick up the new suits from December 10.
Source: Insomniac Games/Twitter