The finale of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is incredibly dramatic, befitting the narrative’s high stakes and deeply personal character arcs. Insomniac Games’ latest sees the two Spider-Men, Peter Parker and Miles Morales, working side-by-side to stop Kraven’s Great Hunt from ravaging New York City. Although a daunting foe in his own right, Kraven isn’t the only marquee villain in Spider-Man 2; the Venom symbiote emerges to spread the Spider-Men even thinner, threatening both the city as a whole, and those closest to the web-slinging heroes.
[Warning: The following article contains major spoiler for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.]
Spider-Man 2 continues what has become a trend in the series – the main villain and final boss fight turns out to be someone extremely close to Spider-Man. The first game had Peter’s mentor, Dr. Otto Octavius, transform fully into Doc Ock and unleash the Devil’s Breath virus on New York, and Miles Morales saw the eponymous webhead’s childhood friend, Phin Mason, don the Tinkerer’s mask. In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, an alien symbiote has turned Harry Osborn into Venom, forcing Peter to confront his corrupted best friend in the game’s final showdown.
Venom Is The Final Boss In Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Desperate to have the cure to his genetic disease back, Harry reclaims the symbiote when Peter tries to get it to Dr. Connors for destruction. Throughout the game, the symbiote has seemingly been growing in strength while attached to both Harry and Peter, and Harry’s recklessness quickly results in the symbiote’s final form: Venom. The hulking figure rampages through Oscorp and tears through the streets of Manhattan, eventually being confronted by Kraven in Times Square. One of the game’s more unconventional boss fights ensues, concluding with Venom decapitating Kraven, adding the hunter to the dozens of other victims Venom’s entrance laid waste to.
Having also taken a mysterious bit of meteorite that the symbiote was discovered with from Oscorp’s labs, Venom sequesters it in a subway tunnel. From there, the symbiote grows throughout New York City, creating nests through which it similarly turns civilians into thralls. Re-grouping at May’s house, Peter, Miles, and Mary Jane create a plan for Spider-Man 2‘s final confrontation. Peter will aim to distract Venom, leveraging Harry’s desire to “heal the world” at his best friend’s side, which will give Miles a chance to hold the symbiote’s thralls at bay while MJ infiltrates the subway tunnel and retrieves the meteorite. The plan works almost seamlessly, and the next step is to destroy the meteorite with the particle accelerator at the Emily-May Foundation.
Peter’s distraction results in the first few phases of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2‘s final boss fight against Venom. Peter lures the Venom-controlled Harry to their high school, which is pulled apart into three distinct arenas across which Spider-Man and Venom battle. Peter is seemingly bested by Venom, who sprouts wings, grabs Peter’s limp body, and goes to retrieve the meteorite from the Emily-May Foundation. Another lengthy fight ensues between Miles and Venom, and the latter is only defeated once the two Spider-Men team up and desperately appeal to Harry.
Harry Is Nearly Killed At The End Of Spider-Man 2
Having beaten the symbiote into relative submission, Harry manages to briefly break through the veneer of Venom, telling Peter he knows what he has to do – that is, kill Harry in order to kill Venom. Reluctantly, Peter does just that, killing his best friend who he’s only recently been able to reconnect with. With quick thinking, however, Miles uses his bioelectric powers to defibrillate Harry, and after a few tries, a pulse returns. Though Harry’s life has been saved, his condition appears to be extremely fragile – he falls into a coma, and the status of his illness is unclear.
Shortly after Miles saves Harry, Norman Osborn arrives at the destroyed Emily-May Foundation in an Oscorp helicopter, retrieves his comatose son, and lashes out at the Spider-Men, asking what they’ve done to Harry. What follows is a heartbreaking scene, with Peter and MJ visiting Harry in a hospital bed in a private suite. Norman arrives, weeps for his son, and has a breakdown, smashing a window with Harry’s cane. Peter and MJ quietly exit the room, leaving Norman to grieve.
The final scene before the credits has Peter and MJ hosting a dinner at May’s (now their) house. Miles, his mother Rio, Ganke, and Hailey are all at the Queens home when Peter leads MJ outside to show her his new project, a revived Emily-May Foundation, which will operate out of the garage. The moment is interrupted by an alert coming through the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man app, but Miles dons his suit, leaps outside, and assures Peter he’s got the situation under control. Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 ends with Miles taking on the primary responsibility of being Spider-Man, giving Peter more time to commit to his personal pursuits.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Mid-Credits & Post-Credits Scenes Explained
The mid-credits scene in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is brief, beginning with Norman Osborn walking down a hallway, telling someone on the phone to “prepare the G-Serum.” It’s unclear what exactly the G-Serum is, but it’s reminiscent of similar substances from various comic book arcs, including the Goblin and OZ Formulas, which gave Norman superhuman abilities. This heavily implies that Norman will be making his expected transformation into the Green Goblin, most likely looking to exact revenge on the Spider-Men for what he thinks they’ve done to Harry. After hanging up, Norman comes face-to-face with his ex-colleague, Otto Octavius, who is in his cell at The Raft. Norman has come to Otto hoping to learn the identities of the Spider-Men. Otto doesn’t explicitly answer, and Norman subsequently asks what it is Otto is writing, to which Otto vaguely says, “the final chapter.”
Much like the G-Serum, Otto’s final chapter is mysterious, but steeped in hints. Although unconfirmed, the literal answer to Norman’s question may be that Otto is writing the final chapter of an autobiography or some other sort of autobiographical work about his life and research. Otto has a degenerative neurological disorder, and unable to continue his research, will likely lose all motor function eventually. “The final chapter” could also have a second, meta meaning, perhaps referring to Otto’s involvement in the next Marvel’s Spider-Man game, which could potentially be the series’ last. If not the series’ last, this is at least a strong hint that Peter’s time as Spider-Man is coming to a close permanently, as a 1998 four-issue comics run called The Final Chapter ended with Peter retiring from crime fighting and burning his suit. Spider-Man 2‘s post-credits scene, however, leaves the door open for even more possibilities.
In the post-credits scene, Miles, Hailey, and Rio are seen preparing for a dinner. The former two take a private moment in Miles’ bedroom to share a kiss before the doorbell rings. Although the faces of the Morales’ two guests aren’t shown, they are introduced as Albert Moon and his daughter, Cindy Moon. The latter is a hint that Silk, another hero with spider-powers, will play a part in the future of the Marvel’s Spider-Man series. While there’s no indication of how Silk will be involved moving forward, there’s conceivably three avenues: she becomes a prominent character in a DLC expansion for Spider-Man 2; she is a main protagonist of another spin-off game à la Miles Morales; or she does not become involved in the New York crime-fighting scene until a Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 is released.
Regardless, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 ends on both a dour and hopeful note. Miles appears to be in a more comfortable place balancing his personal life with the responsibilities of being Spider-Man, and Peter is finally living with MJ, with both of them pursuing career paths that provide fulfillment. Harry’s condition, however, is concerning, and Norman’s seemingly imminent turn to becoming the Green Goblin is worrying, especially if Otto’s so-called final chapter includes a public revelation of the Spider-Men’s identities. While practically every character in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 has a satisfying and complete narrative arc, the game’s conclusion leaves plenty of doors open for the future of the series.
