A classic Spider-Man villain was teased for the upcoming PlayStation 5 game, Marvel's Spider-Man 2.
Fans are itching to see what is next in Insomniac Games' take on Marvel's super-powered world as the studio takes on the beloved wall-crawler yet again.
The hotly anticipated game reportedly "looks like" it will be coming this fall, according to one of its lead stars. This release timing is in line with past information from developers on the project who continue to be adamant Spider-Man 2 is coming in 2023.
Despite the PlayStation adventure having been announced nearly two years ago, not much is known about the title. Iconic comic villains Venom and Kraven the Hunter look to be getting in on the digital fun, but otherwise, there has been little information to go off of.
A New Villain Teased for Spider-Man 2
As a part of a recent comic book announcement, The Hood was hinted at as a villain for Marvel's Spider-Man 2.
The announcement was posted on the PlayStation Blog, detailing an upcoming prequel tie-in comic for the web-slinging sequel.
Narrative director at Insomniac Games Jon Paquette detailed the comic, as it sets out to ask the question, "What if Peter, Miles, and MJ had to team up against a new Super Villain whose powers they didn’t understand?:"
"When we initially sat down with the team at Marvel, we explored a few different ideas about what kinds of stories we could tell in a prequel comic. But we kept coming back to the same core premise—What if Peter, Miles, and MJ had to team up against a new Super Villain whose powers they didn’t understand?"
He added that he wanted fans to also get a glimpse at what this super-powered team "has been doing since the events of Marvel’s Spider-Man and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales:"
"Additionally, we wanted to make sure that we could get a peek into what this heroic trio has been doing since the events of 'Marvel’s Spider-Man' and 'Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.' What is Pete up to now that there are two Spider-Men in the city? How is Miles doing in school? And how is MJ’s journalism career going?"
And the name he and the team settled on for this on-the-page story was the classic Spidey villain The Hood (aka Parker Robbins):
"In this story, their lives collide as Peter, Miles, and MJ attempt to balance their responsibilities to the city, and each other. They keep coming back to one of the main themes of the comic: is magic real? Because in this action-packed issue, a beloved Supervillain makes their first appearance in our universe and appears to have supernatural abilities that defy mere webs and fists: none other than The Hood!"
It is unknown if The Hood will make the jump from this tie-in comic to the game proper; however, Paquette's use of "first appearance in our universe" makes it seem as though there is more in store for the supervillain than a one-off stint in a tie-in comic.
Who Is Spider-Man 2's New Villain?
Both Venom and Kraven the Hunter have been teased to be the villains at the center of Marvel's Spider-Man 2, but it seems unlikely that they are the only two antagonistic forces going up against Peter Parker and Miles Morales in the game.
That is why The Hood feels primed to make himself known in the upcoming sequel as well as this newly announced tie-in comic.
For those who do not know, The Hood has been around in Marvel Comics lore since 2002, as petty criminal Parker Robbins makes a deal with a demon and gains supernatural/magic abilities along with a kick-ass cloak and hood.
He is a known associate of Wilson Fisk/Kingpin on the page, a character who played prominently in Insomniac's first wall-crawling adventure.
After being a part of some major comic events over the years, The Hood is about to jump into the spotlight in a big way. The Spidey villain is set to make his MCU debut in the coming months with Hamilton and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts star Anthony Ramos set to portray the character in the Disney+ series Ironheart.
This magic-infused big bad would play perfectly into Marvel Spider-Man 2, fitting that supernatural role that was occupied by Mr. Negative/Martin Li from the first game.
No official release timing has been revealed for Marvel's Spider-Man 2; however, it is expected to swing onto PlayStation 5 consoles sometime this fall.
