Spider-Man 2 fans debate game's ending, after earlier draft appears online
Swing and a miss?
Several months down the line from Marvel's Spider-Man 2's launch, fans have been discussing the game's ending and whether elements should have played out differently.
This discussion has been prompted by the apparent emergence of an early plan for Spider-Man 2's story shared on reddit, originating from the files stolen by hackers who targeted Insomniac Games. In that early draft, one particular plot element was different - sparking debate now on whether it was a good thing Insomniac apparently changed its mind.
Please note, the rest of this article will contain major spoilers for Marvel's Spider-Man 2. Please read on at your own discretion.
Spider-Man 2's finale sees Peter Parker, Miles Morales and MJ Watson face with Venom, the game's monstrous 'big bad' that arrives after the Symbiote fuses back with Harry Osborne. The three each do their part to eventually overcome Venom and his spawn and then, under Harry's insistence, Peter destroys the Symbiote. This act leaves Harry comatose, and his father - Norman Osborn - distraught.
A Marvel's Spider-Man 2 end-credits scene then shows Norman popping over to The Raft to visit Dr. Octavius. It is heavily implied Norman is going to seek revenge on the Spider-Men for their part in returning Harry to his coma in a future instalment.
But, according to the apparent leak, an earlier draft would have called for Peter to kill Harry in order to defeat Venom, and would have included an epilogue set after his former friend's funeral. Harry would have left money to Peter in his will, which would be used to start "that business they always wanted" (presumably the Emily-May Foundation).
Would this have been a better ending? Well, fans have thoughts. While I am personally in the camp that feels this would have been too cruel, others think it would have been more impactful to have Harry die. This, many argue, would also give Norman stronger motivation for his revenge on the Spider-Men.
"In the game Spider-man literally saves Harry, and for some reason Norman hates him for it," one user wrote. Another added the actual ending for Marvel's Spider-Man 2 "really struck [them] as odd".
"It just felt like they wanted to keep Harry alive as an excuse to bring Venom back."
"But it's also the exact same ending we got last time - 'Peter has to make a choice that will sacrifice someone he loves dearly for the sake of doing the right thing'," another user countered.
"I'm not particularly crazy about how they chose to handle Harry/Venom in the final game, but from a thematic point of view, I love the subversion that it only seems like they're going the same route as the first game, but this time Miles' presence is what changes things up and leads to a third option where Venom can die while Harry can survive (albeit in a coma).
"It fit in perfectly with the theme that Miles being present in Peter's life will allow Peter to do things that were never possible before - which also ties into the ending in a great way... The whole thematic core of the game falls apart if Peter just has to off Harry and that's that. Literally zero character progression for Peter from the ending of the first game to the ending of the second."
What do you think? Should Harry have died in Marvel's Spider-Man 2?
For more on the ending, you can read Eurogamer's feature: Let's discuss Marvel's Spider-Man 2. Here, Marie and I share our thoughts on the game, and what we think could come next.