Was Peter Nerfed in Spider-Man 2? Explained

It’s hard for a game to be perfect, and even harder for it to please everyone. Spider-Man 2 is a great recent example of that, as some players have found that Peter Parker’s true potential was hindered in this game due to writing. Was Peter really nerfed in the latest Insomniac title?

Is Peter Weaker in Spider-Man 2?

Some players have a gripe with the latest web crawler title in the sense that it doesn’t accurately represent Peter Parker’s powers compared to the previous entry. Just take a quick look on Reddit and you’ll see many similar threads on the subject. Most complaints are about how weak he was in comparison to Miles, or how easily enemies could best him throughout the whole game.

One example is during his first encounter with Kraven, where the webhead was easy prey to the Hunter. Players have argued that the same Peter who single-handedly defeated the Sinister Six in the previous game (while severely injured, on top of that) wouldn’t possibly be downed so quickly to a single knife stab.

More examples could include him being knocked down during the final Venom fight while Miles could stand his feet against the symbiote monster, only coming back in the last moments. Peter couldn’t deal with many enemies alone in cutscenes either, so it’s easy to see where the nerf allegations come from.

“In my opinion the final phase of the fight should’ve been with Peter as I feel like it would’ve been a lot more thematic for Peter to have to be the last person to fight Venom or at least have it be Miles and Peter.”, stated Reddit user JaxTru in one of these threads.

But the truth is that Peter wasn’t nerfed on anything. He remains the same Spider-Man he was in the first game, who’s now facing even bigger threats. The game constantly tries to show us that Peter alone wouldn’t be enough to save the day since he’s not invincible, even if that comes up as showing a weaker side of him.

Miles feels stronger because his powers are indeed a direct upgrade to his mentor’s. But Peter still has an edge with his experience and tactics, but he’s open to passing those on to Miles as he realizes the boy’s true potential as a hero. And having such a natural talent alongside a good teacher to help him is what makes Miles as strong as he is.

Peter had been active in the city for years before the first game, and that wouldn’t change just because he now has a powerful ally. Even if certain moments would represent him as weaker than usual, he’s still a superhero with all of his might, and nothing could change that. You’ll spend a good time in NYC swinging from building to building with him, and you’ll soon notice that.