Spider-Man has been the star of many memorable adventures in the videogame world throughout the years, with perhaps the biggest example being the most recent one as well: Marvel's Spider-Man 2. While Insomniac Games managed to crack the code behind how to make an almost flawless title featuring the wall-crawler, they had plenty of material to take inspiration from. Spider-Man 2 redefined the gameplay mechanics of its titular hero for generations to come, Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions featured a multiversal crossover before it was an overused card, and Ultimate Spider-Man brought many comic books to life and onto the screen.
Activision's 2005 title had cel-shaded graphics that worked wonders for its time, two playable characters in the form of Spidey and Venom, and it featured appearances of many heroes from the Marvel universe, such as the Human Torch and Wolverine. To say the game was ahead of its time would be an understatement.
But despite being Activision's biggest seller for its last 2005 quarter, Ultimate Spider-Man never got a sequel. However, that doesn't mean developer Treyarch never started working on one. Thanks to a video released by the spidey santa YouTube channel, we now have information on what Ultimate Spider-Man 2 could've looked like, and it is everything fans could hope for in the present day (let alone 20 years ago). Unfortunately, we missed out on something truly special.
Ultimate Spider-Man 2 featured 2 playable characters, a bigger map, and more
The first Ultimate Spider-Man game was all about Spidey and Venom's story, and its sequel would've followed a similar path except with a different antagonist. Norman Osborn's Green Goblin (who had a minor role in the first title) would've stolen the spotlight for the second time around. Not only was he set to be a playable character who performed huge vertical jumps to traverse the map (much like Venom), but the game's story would've seen him escape from imprisonment to wreak havoc in the city.
As you can see in the concept art above, players would've explored the streets of New York during winter (a setting that was planned for the original game but had to be cut due to technical difficulties). Furthermore, the playable map would've been bigger, as it usually happens with sequels. Texture artist Chris Salazar revealed that the development team intended to create Coney Island in the game while also opening up the bridge to Brooklyn. Manhattan was also planned to be split in half with the introduction of "restricted" or isolated zones.
The story of Ultimate Spider-Man 2 would've been based on the "Death of a Goblin" comic book storyline. The first mission would've kicked things off with Spidey and Daredevil teaming up to defeat the members of The Hand (and I'm just going to say that, if a Spidey game were to start like that in the present day, everyone would jump out of their seats in excitement). Things would immediately take a turn as players would witness how Norman Osborn would escape from his imprisonment in the Triskelion after the events of the first game.
Nick Fury would visit Norman's cell in an attempt to "cure" him, but the supervillain snaps at the mention of his son, Harry Osborn. He then transforms into the Green Goblin and wreaks havoc on the Triskelion, freeing many iconic Spider-Man supervillains along the way. As simple as that, a version of the Sinister Five consisting of Rhino, Kraven, Vulture, Electro, and The Green Goblin were going to come together to defeat the Spidey (originally, Sabretooth was planned to be the final member of the team but he was dropped due to his similarities with Kraven).
Spidey would then fight Vulture and Electro on his own, but he would've quickly realized that he needed help to defeat the new and improved version of the Rhino. So, who do you call in a situation where a big mechanical monster has to be sliced and torn apart? Wolverine, of course, who would've returned for the sequel after having a minor role in the first Ultimate Spider-Man game.
Parallel to Peter's story, players would've played as The Green Goblin as his own arc evolved. Norman would've attempted to free Harry Osborn from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s custody while facing villains such as Beetle along the way. Eventually, Harry would've turned into Hobgoblin, and he would've fought his father on top of the Helicarrier in what sounds like the most epic battle of the century. Unfortunately, the resolution of this conflict wouldn't have been so great, as the Green Goblin would've killed his own son after losing control. To make things even more tragic, Norman would've then turned into a human only to realize the price of his actions. At that point, Nick Fury would've put a bullet in Norman's head to stop the senseless carnage once and for all.
As additional tidbits, Ultimate Spider-Man 2 would've featured the appearances of Doctor Doom, Kitty Pryde, and Mary Jane, while Aunt May would've been on vacation throughout the entirety of the game. Furthermore, new attack helicopters would've been created as in-game enemies for the Green Goblin to fight. Lastly, the game was never made because Activision didn't consider the sales of the first title to be big enough for a potential sequel to be profitable. Besides, the studio was already working on a video game tie-in to Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3.
While it's unfortunate that we'll never get to play Ultimate Spider-Man 2, it's amazing to learn what it could've been like and just how ambitious its story, setting, and gameplay mechanics were. And with a little bit of luck, Insomniac's next Spider-Man game can also shine the spotlight on the Green Goblin with incredible levels of success.