Sequel Speculation – What Villains Exist in the Spider-Man PS4 Universe? January 25, 2020

We’ve made it to 2020 and all eyes are on Sony and Microsoft as they plan to release new gaming consoles this holiday season. With the extreme success of Spider-Man on the PS4, it’s all but certain Insomniac will be making a sequel. In fact, most critics who follow the gaming industry are currently putting even odds on the chance Spider-Man 2 would get announced at the same time as the PS5. With that announcement looming, I thought it would be fun to post an article here detailing all the possibilities a sequel to this game would mean.

The Spider-Man franchise is rich with great characters, both heroes and villains, and many (but not all) of those characters were name dropped in the PS4 games. What do you say we take a closer look at all of the villains that we know to exist in the Spider-Man GamerVerse, and speculate on what we might see in a potential sequel. Just be aware, this article will be filled to the brim with SPOILERS. Read no further if you haven’t completed the game and all of its DLC.

Villains We Fought in the Game

With this list I want to clear up everyone we interacted with for certain in the previous game.

• Kingpin – Wilson Fisk is seen in the book and the game. The Kingpin of crime kept an empire by running New York through fear and intimidation. In essence, when he is taken down the power vacuum created in his absence made the events of the game fall as it did. We did not see anyone break him out of his maximum security prison, despite several planned attempts my his men. He also did not appear to have broken out during the Sinister Six escape so it is theoretical he could still be in prison at the start of the next game.

• Mr Negative – Martin Li was the first officially revealed villain of the game when it was shown at E3 2017. He is obsessed with bringing down Norman Osbourne after an experimental treatment meant to help Harry Osbourne transformed him into Mr Negative. He is currently being held in The Raft.

• Rhino – The Rhino is a man trapped in an enormous indestructible suit he cannot remove, making him a perfect candidate for joining the Sinister Six. After the six’s successful break out he was defeated by Spider-Man and is currently held in the raft.
• Electro – The PS4’s version of Max Dillon is not a being of pure energy but according to Otto Octavius he has the desire to become one, leading to the design of his new suit. We know he went through at least one costume change before the events of the game because several of the university students dressed in his classic comic book appearance. We don’t know for sure how he got the scar on his face, but my theory is he got it after The Raft used him as an electric generator to offset their electricity costs.
• Scorpion – Mac is a part of the Sinister Six and his tail’s toxin made for one very trippy boss fight. We know his origin in this game is probably close to what happened in the comics. J. Jonah talks about it during one of his podcasts as Jameson bankrolled the creation of the Scorpion as a way to fight Spider-Man. Jameson takes no responsibility for the Scorpion’s actions as he felt it was unfair Mac didn’t tell him in advance he was nuts. He’s currently being held in The Raft.

• Doc Ock – Otto Octavius is possibly one of the most tragic figures in the history of video games. On the one hand he was the original designer of Spider-Man’s iconic Advanced Suit, on the other he is responsible for genocide. In this game, Doc Ock is suffering from a degenerative neurological disease similar to Parkinson’s or ALS (Lou Gehrigs Disease). His condition is not genetic, he believed it was environmental. It’s not fatal, but it eventually causes total paralysis. That’s why he made his mechanical arms in this game, to serve as a way to cope with that disease. However, his obsession with destroying Norman Osbourne compelled him to use his arms for evil. For his crimes, he is currently serving time in The Raft.
• Shocker – He shocks people, to quote Michael Keaton. He also made for one of the best chase sequences in video game history. While Doc Ock was able to provide him an improved suit and Martin Li was able to get him out of jail early in the game, he was not asked to be part of the Sinister Six when it formed during the Raft breakout and we never saw him in the game’s final act. It is likely he is still imprisoned.
• Hammerhead – A mafia boss with a steel plate in his head. In the three-part DLC story “The City That Never Sleeps” he becomes obsessed with bringing back Marvel’s version of the Mafia through making himself immortal. He is seemingly defeated by Spider-Man with the help of Silver Sable during the conclusion of the DLC.
• Black Cat: Don’t know if I can call her a villain but she deserves a mention in this list. In this game, she has a past with Peter Parker that is only hinted upon. It would have been great to learn more about their past relationship. Her performance was a highlight for many players, and I would love to see her come back for a sequel!
• Tombstone – After coming into contact with a rare chemical as a child this guy is huge and nearly unbreakable. His side mission arc in the main game could have been chopped off and sold as DLC if Insomniac was particularly evil. Thankfully they aren’t and the Tombstone side missions were a fun diversion during the game’s main story. He is seemingly defeated and rendered powerless (possibly temporarily) at the end of his story arc.
• Screwball – The newest Spidey villain made several side mission appearances in the main game and it’s DLC. The fan reaction has been…mixed. On the one hand, her missions made for some fun challenges. On the other hand…make sure to like and subscribe!
• Taskmaster – He creates…tasks…for Spider-Man to master…during the events of the main game. After completing this tasks a fight breaks out between the two and Taskmaster is seemingly apprehended. We see a version of the Taskmaster exists in the upcoming Marvel’s Avengers game by Crystal Dynamics but it is currently debatable if this game takes place in the same universe as that one. I hope it does.

Villains Referenced in the Game But Didn’t Appear

We never saw these characters in person but we were made aware of their existence through various nods.

• The Lizard – Dr Curt Connors experimented with lizard DNA in an attempt to regrow his own arm. It went badly and transformed him into the Lizard. We see someone dressed as him at the Halloween party so we know he exists but the actual villain’s whereabouts are currently unknown.
• Mysterio – The ultimate showman able to fool heroes with little more than smoke and special effects. Mysterio was famously killed in a Daredevil story written by Kevin Smith. We know he exists in the PS4 GamerVerse because someone was dressed as him at the party and someone using his alter ego’s name makes a cameo appearance in Spider-Man: Velocity.
• Sandman – We saw a vial with his sand in it as a collectible. Spidey mentions he won’t open it as he worried it would release the Sandman. If the Sandman does appear in a sequel, it is possible the Sandman is not in that container, or something could happen to the container outside of Spidey’s control.

Villains We Met in the Game’s Extended Universe

These characters are canon to the PS4 Spider-Man universe dispute the fact we never saw them referenced in the game.

• Echo – Maya Lopez was originally a Daredevil villain created by David Mack. While she is deaf she is able to perfectly imitate what she sees. She appears in the novel as an aide for the Kingpin. Originally I thought the woman running the Kingpin’s Art Museum Exhibit was Maya but it wasn’t her.
• Swarm – Bees. My god. Made his first in-universe appearance in the original comic story Spider-Man: Velocity, which takes place between the events of the main game and the first DLC.
• Blood Spider – This psycho Spider-Man cosplayer who despite having no spider powers has a unique ability to copy the fighting moves of others appears in the novel as a hit man for hire. You could make an argument he is actually the main villain of the prequel book.
• Arachnid – He first appears in all his glory early in Spider-Geddon #0. I haven’t read that book yet so I can’t comment on what happened to him. I admit I love his GamerVerse design.

Villains We Have Met But Don’t Exist Yet

• Green Goblin – Does not appear in the game but Norman and Harry Osbourne do. While it is unclear who might take up the Goblin in a potential sequel, Norman is a logical choice. He is an obsessed egomaniac willing to risk everything to fund the generic treatments he hopes will save his son. We also see a prototype Goblin mask and the goblin’s signature pumpkin bombs in Norman’s suite.
• Venom – GR-35 seems to be its official title, as it was written on the tank we find Harry in during the game’s post credits sequence. People are worried Harry Osbourne will be the Venom host instead of his traditional villian character, but as far as we can tell the two have not bonded. Eddie Brock, Venom’s traditional host in the comics, does not appear in the game but we do know that he exists and at one time worked for the Daily Bugle. Eddie’s signature was clearly written on Peter’s goodbye card.
• Wraith – Yuri’s faith in The Law took what must have been a complete dive following the events of the second DLC. While we don’t see her again after she is arrested for attempting to kill several mafia members, she leaves a trail of Sopranos-esque recordings for Spidey to follow in the third DLC. Highly likely we will see her back in some form.

So that’s a list of names and the current whereabouts of most of Spider-Man’s rivals in the PS4 game. It is highly likely some of these might appear in a potential sequel. Who would you like to see in Spider-Man 2? Post a comment below with your ideas.