As a nod to the long-awaited cinematic release of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, we're republishing this list of the best Spider-Man games on Nintendo systems. Enjoy!
You feel that? That's your spidey senses a-tinglin'. Why? You're jonesing to play a game with a friendly neighborhood webslinger, probably.
There has been a whole load of Spider-Man games over the years, and most (but not all, of course) have appeared on Nintendo consoles. Switch owners might only be able to play as him in Lego Marvel Super Hero form or in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 (or in Fortnite, naturally), but there are plenty of other options on older Nintendo platforms.
But what's the best Spider-Man game ever? Which Spider-Man games are worth revisiting? Well, we enlisted the help of our friendly neighborhood readers and asked you to rate and rank your favourite Spider-Man games on Nintendo platforms — the results are below. These are games where Spidey takes a title role, rather than appearing as part of an Avenging ensemble.
Before we go any further, though, it's best we address the Rhino in the room. Insomniac's PlayStation-exclusive Marvel's Spider-Man is one of the best interpretations — perhaps the best — of the most Amazing of superheroes in game form, not to mention the excellent Miles Morales add-on. They're certainly the best-looking Spider-Man games you'll find, and any Spider-Fan will want to check those games out on PlayStation 4 or 5. They're available on PC, but you won't be seeing them on any other consoles, unfortunately. You can read more about them on our lovely sister site, Push Square:
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Remastered - Next-Gen Makes Insomniac's Superhero Romp Even Better
- Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales - A Sublime Superhero Spin-Off
With that caveat covered, let's dive off the building and swing our way through a whopping 38 Spider-Man games that have appeared on Nintendo consoles over the years...
Note: Remember that ranking here is updated in real-time according to each game's corresponding User Rating in the Nintendo Life game database. Even as you read this, it's entirely possible to influence the order below. If you haven't rated your favourites yet, simply click the 'star' of the game you wish to rate and assign a score right now.
38. The Amazing Spider-Man 3: Invasion of the Spider-Slayers (GB)
The Game Boy had a surprising number of Spider-Man games, though this one didn't go down particularly well at the time. In terms of the story it tied in with some of the comics at the time, which is a nice touch, but was a tricky and rather awkward game to play with its mix of combat and platforming / vertical traversal. Not a classic.
37. Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six (NES)
This NES entry looks suspiciously like a few other licensed LJN titles of the era, as a rather small Spidey run, jumps, punches and kicks enemies. He doesn't do Spider-Man things like swinging, web shooting and climbing walls, at least not as much as we'd like, but it's a reminder that the early '90s had plenty of games for the franchise and gave a lot of young gamers good memories.
36. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (GB)
A game that tormented many young players with some cruel difficulty spikes, it nonetheless does its best to provide an exciting Spider-Man adventure on humble technology. You climb walls, swing around, and there are even puzzle aspects to solve. It had some clever ideas and even story cutscenes, even if many never got to the end credits.
35. Spider-Man and the X-Men in Arcade's Revenge (GB)
Considering the limitations of the Game Boy this had an ambitious idea, with each level giving you control of a different hero including Spider-Man, Cyclops and Storm. Spidey was the star to open and close the game, but like a few others on this list this probably can't be considered a good game, with various quirks and frustrations common in the era. Still, the X-Men are cool.
34. Spider-Man: Friend Or Foe (DS)
In theory this should be an excellent game; it remixes encounters from the Sam Raimi trilogy of films but with new locations and ideas, and all the while Spidey recruits various allies (and even villains) to help him along. Despite the fun idea and even the flexibility to play as different characters, the DS version was rather rough around the edges and the gameplay didn't truly live up to the concept.
33. Spider-Man (SNES)
This was supposed to draw inspiration from the mid '90s animated series, and there would have been high hopes with it utilising the SNES. The end result is an action platformer that is pretty average all told, and wasn't particularly warmly received when it launched. Some will have fond memories, no doubt, but clunky controls and limited creativity in terms of enemies and settings hold it back.
32. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (3DS)
Developed by High Voltage Software (well known for The Conduit on Wii), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on 3DS was not the same game that graced other platforms, in fact at the time plenty felt it was a notable downgrade on its portable predecessor. With disappointing presentation and a focus on rather dull 2D action platforming (aside from some scruffy web swinging segments), this 3DS port is not fondly remembered by many Spidey fans.
31. Spider-Man 3 (GBA)
Another one developed by Vicarious Visions and tying in with the final Sami Raimi movie, on GBA this was a 2D sidescrolling beat 'em up with a decent amount of web grappling and wall climbing. With the technical limitations of the system this was nothing like the console versions and had a mixed response at the time. Not amazing Spider-Man, but has its charms.
30. Spider-Man (GBA)
Kicking off the trilogy of film spin-offs on the GBA, like its successors Spider-Man serves up sidescrolling 2D action. This entry was pretty well received at the time, though, with some fun takes on the source material along with plenty of web slinging and wall climbing. The 'BLAM' and 'POW' visuals as you sock enemies is pretty darn cool, too.
29. Spider-Man: Edge of Time (3DS)
Part of an era for the IP in games when there was some genuine storytelling ambition (prior to the excellent PS4/PS5 exclusives), even if the end results didn't quite live up to expectations. This is a dimension spanning 3D beat 'em up with present day and 2099 Spider-Man teaming up, which was perfect for the dual screens of the 3DS. There's quite a lot to like, but ultimately the game is rather rushed and buggy, letting down what could have been an excellent title.
Comments (52)
Spiderman 2 wasn't really a very good, the fact that it's number 1 tells you the low expectations of Spiderman games prior to the Sony one
Bro edge of time was my jam I 100% that game 3 times it's beautiful
I think I remember the GameCube versions... I am not really familiar with any of the rest.
Did I dream that this same article was posted a week or so ago?
Anyway, Spiderman 2 on the PS2/Gamecube may not have been the greatest game story-wise, but it was the best game where you actually got to feel the freedom of being Spiderman. I remember losing my teenage mind when I could actually go inside some of the buildings. The Spiderman games before this were super limited with the world, you'd "die" if you dropped down to street level. I do remember that one Spiderman game that actually let you play as Green Goblin with the hoverboard and everything, thought that was a cool bonus for beating the game.
I love Spider-Man the Return of the Sinister Six on the NES. It is easy and very fun to play
The best has always been to me the original Spiderman game from PSX. Neversoft nailed it with that game back then.
I still have to play the PS4 game though.
O H N O D O C T O R C O N N O R S C L A S S
This ranking has huge issues. Why is Spiderman Edge of Time on 3DS so bad ranked? This was the best 3DS Spidey. Mysterios Menace on GBA should be in top 10.
And Web of Shadows on DS is total crap and ranked way to high.
Spider-Man 2 swinging physics are still a joy, and the silly added villains like Mysterio are a great diversion. Still love this one to bits, ugly character models, pizza song, and all.
I've got Maximum Carnage on snes, love that red cartridge. It's a tough game, don't think I've ever actually beaten it.
SM2 was so groundbraking for its time and its web swinging is still the best and most technical even today. While the Insomniac games are clearly the best i do think Spider-Man 2, Web of Shadows (well the PS3/360 versions) and Ultimate Spider-Man are also pretty great.
@Big_Fudge I mean the reviews were great, its loved by fans and is still held in high regard now but yeah sure its "not very good".
2 of the TOP 5 are in my collection, so it's cool.
Played the heck out of the game boy spider man when I was young and had no concept of a bad game lol
@Big_Fudge
But you have to remember that Spider-Man 2 set the standard for how web swinging should be like. Its physics and mechanics were replicated in the modern, Insomniac Spider-Man games because they were simply the best out of all the games.
Besides, I'm mildly annoyed that Insomniac Spider-Man games are PlayStation exclusive.
@WallyWest It was great for a movie tie in. But it was still just a movie tie in with decent web swinging
Donno how the N64 version compares but I really like the 4th one on the list, the PS1 version of it anyway.
@Big_Fudge I mean, that game has a lot going for it like with the story presentation and graphics but the combat is really stiff and boring compared to prior Spider-man games, if we're being honest.
I find it especially funny how Spider-man punches a guy so hard square in the jaw that he is launched 20 feet into the air and is slowly suspended in the air for minutes while Spidey pummels the life out of him until he falls to the ground and he is still alive.
Everything in the combat you witness is so easily choreographed-looking that when he fights it looks like I'm watching a ballet recital or a generic hollywood movie fight scene where there feels like little weight being shown in the fights.
Compare the weird attempt at Insomniac's Spider-man for doing DMC-inspired combat to previous games like Web of Shadows or Shattered Dimensions and the absolute power and finesse witnessed in the attacks Spider-man can preform, you'll look and say "Huh, I guess Spider-man PS4 doesn't have the greatest combat."
Spiderman 3 on Wii always felt like such a ripoff, it's just the PS2 port with motion controls slapped in — it's lazy and it underperforms. While SP2 for GameCube ran great, looked great and overall felt more fun.
The N64 version of TASM is surprisingly an accurate port, but I feel this game is largely well regarded because of nostalgia.
Just hearing Scorpion go "Your time is running out, hahaha" and "Where ya hiding?" is iconic, but the gameplay is stiff and punishing at times.
So yeah, SP2 and Ultimate Spiderman are without a doubt the best games, GameCube is king.
@Astral-Grain it threw me off at first too but I think what happened is a week ago they posted an article basically telling people to vote for their favorite Spider Man games and now this is the results.
The top 8 here are quite solid video games that I have good memories of. However, I think I only saw half until the end. I agree with the top game here but I would put shattered dimensions and the amazing spiderman wii u a bit higher up in the rankings.
Someones trying to take advantage of the SpiderMan Google Searches related to Fortnite.
@Big_Fudge It had a sizeable open world what was a first, the best web swinging ever, decent combat and some good bosses. 80% on MC and 8.7 user score, so clearly it was loved.
Damn right it’s Spider-Man 2, the only game where you could piledrive a guy off a skyscraper
wow....you can change the title of the article with: find the differences
There used to be a great Spider-Man game called Total Mayhem (had a final fight or streets of rage style feel) on iOS years ago on the App Store. With bosses and fun combos to perform.
Spiderman Return of the Sinister Six
"He doesn't do Spider-Man things like swinging, web shooting and climbing walls"
Actually he does everything in the game
Lethal Foes should’ve been way higher up the list
We need more spider man on switch
@CheekyZelda not happening. Sony has a grip on the character. Unless if they relent which they won’t
I'm happy to see Spider-Man 2: The Sinister Six (GBC) decently high.
WEB OF SHADOWS on the DS is incredibly underrated. It's a MetroidVania style game with an amazingly fluid combat system that for my money is the best Spidey-combat to date. Griptonite would use the same engine for SHATTERED DIMENSIONS, IRON MAN 2, and CAPTAIN AMERICA. The best of that lot being (the also underrated) IRON MAN 2. Oh, and swinging with the Wiimote and Nunchuck in SM3 was incredible.
@ModdedInkling The Insomniac swinging comes close, but it's not quite the same.
@WhiteTrashGuy Edge of Time DS is by Ocean Interactive tho.
I love NintendoLife and I never suggest a correction, but team you completly overlooked another Spidey Game that came to the Wii U: Disney Infinity Marvel Super Heroes (2.0 Edition) Spider Man Play Set.
This is a full Spider Man game. The web slinging was really excellent. I thought the game was enjoyable and got about halfway through it.
I think this should be added as it is indeed playable on the Wii U.
Is it me or was Lethal Foes listed twice?
@PtM
Well I guess it is! SHATTERED DIMENSIONS must have been the only other Spider-Man game Griptonite made.
@PtM
Yes, but the developers did say that they tried to emulate the physics.
@ModdedInkling It does look pretty sweet, ngl.
I am genuinely surprised that Arcade's Revenge for SNES ranked as high as it did. I thought it was one of the worse games, even though I owned this one.
But yeah... Pretty rad soundtrack.
Somehow I have never played any of these games except for PS4 Spider-Man (which is pretty cool) and one of the games on Gameboy that I can't even remember exactly, but it was not great.
I've always loved Spider-Man in comics, and I've seen every one of the movies - I'm massively hyped for the new movie! But games, not so exciting.
If your jonsing for a Spiderman fix the only way to fix that is to play it on PlayStation... Its good enough to buy a ps4 just for that...as are the uncharted games and God of War 4.. the Spiderman movie games were okay for the times nothing to be excited about...but the one on ps1 and n64..that was pretty great for what it was
@Big_Fudge You mean a top tier movie tie-in (of an outstanding movie) with excellent web-swinging.
@Nintendo4Sonic These are community rankings. Obviously, your opinions on those 3 games don't match the general Nintendo Life user consensus. Feel free to rate them yourself though, and maybe it will be enough to slide one or more of them a spot in these rankings.
@Big_Fudge That's your opinion and I disagree. I loved the Spider-Man games based on the movies and having Bruce Campbell as the tour guide along with the Actors from the movies playing the voices made them even more fun. The Amazing Spider-Man was also a great 3D Spider-Man game and many people I know liked that and some even liked it more than the movie.
I lost count of how many times I played that.
@Debbiee They're not great games though. Just cos you enjoy them, doesn't make them great, surely you can look at it more objectively and see their many faults. I enjoy plenty of games that I'm well aware aren't actually very good. Licensed stuff is especially bad for it, but you put up with the faults because you have a fondness for the license.
@Big_Fudge Specifically what faults, though? Most people consider them to have excellent gameplay, graphics, and voice-acting (irregardless of them being licensed games), specifically the web-swinging in the 2nd game that holds up to this day as one of the best examples of the mechanic ever developed. They also naturally have excellent stories, having been based on such excellent movies.
Personally, I haven't played the second game, but I was extremely impressed at how well Spider-man's abilities were incorporated into the gameplay of the first GameCube movie game. You can't just go in fists swinging all the time, or you'll just get yourself killed, yet it still feels really nice to just punch out a bad guy on occasion. You have a lot of freedom in sticking to various surfaces. The acrobatics and various web abilities control extremely well, yet aren't too complicated, and they really make you feel like you're actually Spider-man. Then the Spider Sense is also implemented well, with set places where it acts as a warning siren that tells you to quickly get out of the way of a surprise attack.
@ThomasBW84, 3DS Amazing Spider-Man skipped the free-roaming just like the Wii version.
❗️I have all Spider-Man Games CIB on GBA, 'Amazing' and Web Of Shadows' on DS and both 'Amazing' Games on 3DS. (I did have ALL Spider-Man Games on DS but sold the ones I didn't like)
I WISH they'd re-release the N64 one (which was also released on the PS1 and where I played it).
It was a good Game and needed only a few QOL updates.
My overall favourite SpM Game is 'Spider-Man: The Movie 2' [GameCube] and my favourite Handheld SpM Game is the above GBA version.
@the_beaver It needed a re-release with a few QOL updates.
My favorite game is Marvel's Spider-Man. I know, that it's a PS exclusive, but it's definitely the best Spider-Man game ever.
The best Spider-Man game on Nintendo console is Ultimate Spider-Man from Gamecube. But I still prefer Xbox version
I've only played Spiderman 1 & 2 GCN (admitedly on the PS consoles if my Swiss cheese memory serves me) and Wii's Shattered Dimensions which I actually thought were decentish at best. That's it. Love the character though, lol
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