Summary

• Insomniac Games leaks hint at a potential Venom spin-off set after Marvel's Spider-Man 2.
• Venom in Marvel's Spider-Man 2 has a different story involving Peter Parker and Harry Osborn.
• The potential Venom: Lethal Protector game should include environmental destruction and take inspiration from past Marvel game titles.

Between the release of Spider-Verse type multiplayer title, and a potential Venom spin-off.

[WARNING: This article contains some story spoilers for the Marvel's Spider-Man games]Venom was the main antagonist of Marvel's Spider-Man 2, with Insomniac opting to do a different take on the classic symbiote storyline, which features Peter Parker becoming corrupted by the symbiote before breaking free of its hold and accidentally creating one of his most dangerous foes, Venom. While the Venom symbiote was still an alien - with the latter third of the game pulling elements from Donny Cates' King In Black comic run - Insomniac chose to make Venom's host Peter and Mary Jane's childhood friend, Harry Osborn, who originally bonded with the suit before Peter in an attempt to cure him of a terminal illness.

A Venom Game Is Reportedly In The Works

With Rumors That It Will Continue Carnage's Storyline

The Insomniac Games hack revealed a number of projects currently in development, including a game called Venom: Lethal Protector. While not much was confirmed about the title, subsequent reports indicate that it would take place after Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and would pick up the Carnage storyline that was set up during that game's The Flame side-missions, with the two symbiotic creatures clashing throughout the story.

It's unclear how Venom would come back after Peter, Miles, and Mary Jane seemingly destroyed the Venom symbiote - killing Harry in the process, albeit for a brief time - and the meteorite Venom used to spread the symbiotes across the city, ending the alien threat. Without the symbiote, Harry ended up in a coma, with Norman Osborn seeking revenge against the Spider-Men. Despite this, several other symbiotes can still be seen across various city events and crimes following the game's ending, and the Carnage symbiote will still likely be active to set up the rest of Cletus Kasady's story, so it's possible Insomniac would find a way to bring back Venom, even with a different host.

Environmental Destruction Is Essential For A Venom Game

Venom's Power Should Not Be Restrained

X Worm shared some development footage for Marvel's Spider-Man 2 that showed destructible environments as a symbiote-enhanced Peter Parker fought against various hunters and their drones, alongside a very early-development, mostly untextured clip of Spider-Man fighting Venom throughout the city, indicating that there could have been a showdown similar to that of the game's cinematic "Be Greater Together" trailer (which can be found on PlayStation's YouTube channel).

While there was an element of destruction in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, mainly in scripted moments such as the opening Sandman sequence, or the Lizard chase, it's a shame environmental destruction was removed from Marvel's Spider-Man 2's open-world events. Seeing storefronts being decimated during fights could have served a story purpose, showing how Peter became more dangerous and reckless in his general gameplay while being corrupted by the symbiote, with civilians potentially becoming more afraid of him and agreeing more with J Jonah Jameson's "menace" narrative. It would also have been a great way to show the symbiote's full power.

Such a feature would be perfect for the potential Venom spin-off, however. Players briefly got to take control of Venom when Harry first bonded with the symbiote and got a taste of the character's power as he fought his way through Oscorp and had a brutal showdown against Kraven the Hunter in Times Square. It was clear in this sequence that Venom's unleashed power made him far stronger than either of the playable Spider-Men, so a full game as the character should have the ability to cause more destruction to environments.

Insomniac Could Take Inspiration From Previous Marvel Titles

Two 2000s-era Marvel Games Had Plenty Of Destruction

While Insomniac has incorporated several of its own mechanics into the Marvel's Spider-Man titles, the studio has clearly taken inspiration from past Marvel titles, with the charged jump and swing-assist free features reminiscent of 2004's Spider-Man 2 movie tie-in game. Two 2000s-era Marvel titles that Insomniac could take inspiration from for the Venom: Lethal Protector game are Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction and Ultimate Spider-Man.

Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction saw the Hulk fighting his way across city or canyon maps against various military forces and supervillains, causing plenty of destruction to both buildings and vehicles. Meanwhile, Ultimate Spider-Man let players swap between Peter's Spider-Man and Eddie Brock's Venom, with both characters having different abilities, and Venom undoubtedly being the stronger and more ruthless of the two as he hurled vehicles at his foes, destroyed - mostly interior - environments, and outright killed his enemies by feeding on them or using brutal tendril attacks similar to those seen in Marvel's Spider-Man 2.

Insomniac has yet to confirm Venom: Lethal Protector, or even Marvel's Spider-Man 3, which seems inevitable after the success of Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and its predecessors, and it's possible the Venom-led spin-off could still be canceled, much like Spider-Man: The Great Web. If the game is still in development, however, taking elements from both of these titles would truly let players feel the full power of Venom, and would make for some impressive set pieces as he unleashes chaos across the city in brawls against Carnage and other foes.

Sources: Worm/X