Insomniac Games may be planning a new story-based DLC for PS5's Spider-Man 2, but what do we know about the release, story, villains, and even potential Daredevil connections?
Spider-Man 2 launched in October exclusively on PS5, following the releases of the original game in 2018 and the Miles Morales spin-off in 2020.
While the latter skipped out on DLC, the former launched three packs bundled in a package titled "The City That Never Sleeps" featuring Black Cat, Hammerhead, and Silver Sable.
What DLC Has Spider-Man 2 Released?
Spider-Man 2's latest update and its biggest post-launch release yet arrived on Thursday, March 7 with new suits, updates, and some much-anticipated features.
Headlining the update was the long-awaited arrival of New Game+, allowing players to replay the game or specific missions on a harder difficulty with all of their unlocked suits or abilities carrying over.
The update also included alternate styles for Peter's symbiote story suits and the ability to change the color of symbiote abilities.
Along with this, Insomniac delivered new suits for both Peter and Miles, this time with Marvel's Hellfire Gala attires inspired by Marvel Comics.
This came alongside various bug fixes, photo mode updates, and the ability to change the time of day after completing the story. This DLC content was the first to come to Spider-Man 2 since its October release.
When Will Spider-Man 2's Next DLC Release?
Looking back at Marvel's Spider-Man, the story DLC arrived in the three chapters of The City That Never Sleeps, those being "The Heist," "Turf Wars," and "Silver Lining."
The chapters were released monthly in late October, November, and December 2018 after the game originally launched on PS4 in early September.
As such, with over four months passed since Spider-Man 2 was released, the wait for new story DLC has been far longer than last time. This comes after the Miles Morales spin-off skipped out on a post-launch story altogether as Insomniac continued to focus its development on Spider-Man 2.
While Insomniac has yet to officially announce new story plans for Spider-Man 2, a major leak from December 2023 that resulted in millions of files surfacing online confirmed three DLC releases are in development.
Now that New Game+ has finally arrived in Spider-Man 2, the focus ought to soon shift toward the story-based DLC, which will likely end up being paid content.
The studio may well opt to leave a reasonable gap between major content drops to keep interest in Spider-Man 2 alive for longer. As such, the earliest release date for the first DLC would probably be in late April or beyond.
Once the first DLC arrives, it wouldn't be surprising to see the remaining packs arrive monthly - ala 2018's Spider-Man - but they could also be more spread out.
Spider-Man 2's Potential DLC Storyline
Leaked DLC plans for Spider-Man 2 allegedly revealed the titles "Beetle Invasion," "Extreme Carnage," and "Spider-Verse Anomaly." It should be noted this information remains unconfirmed and plans may have been altered or scrapped altogether since the data breach took place in late 2023.
The leaked title was seemingly confirmed by a slip-up in the latest update that allowed players to access a developer commands menu. As part of this, players were able to see a list of currently unaccessible levels starring Beetle including a convoy and hostage missions which will culminate in a boss fight - via IGN.
After the main story of Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker appears to be taking a break from his heroic duties, leaving that duty to Miles Morales. As such, the three DLC packs ought to shift focus to the younger and less-experienced web-slinger after his mentor took most of the spotlight in the game's original story.
The first DLC title points toward the introduction of the B-tier Spider-Man villain Beetle, aka Abner Jenkins. The mercenary and thief is known for his high-tech battlesuit mounted with various weapons and gadgets.
Next up comes "Extreme Carnage," which comes as no surprise since Cletus Cassidy, better known in Marvel as Carnage, was teased in "The Flame" side quest line. The missions ended with the cult leader escaping with a red symbiote and teasing his plans to "bring truth, judgment, and carnage:"
“And when the Crimson Hour rolls over this earth, it shall bring truth, judgment, and carnage.”
Since Insomniac probably won't be looking to make yet another symbiote-focused game with Spider-Man 3, it only makes sense to utilize Carnage in a DLC addition.
"Spider-Verse Anomaly" has many fans expecting a crossover with Sony Pictures' popular animated franchise which was teased in the original game.
After collecting a set of Multiversal Spider-Bot collectibles, the player was met with a portal to a futuristic bar where they were told, "If Miguel comes looking for these, tell him finders-keepers," clearly in reference to Spider-Man 2099.
Perhaps the DLC could find itself linking into the Insomniac Peter Parker's cameo in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, revealing his recruitment to the Spider Society and his work with them while possibly also spawning some exciting cameos.
Will Daredevil Appear in Spider-Man 2's DLC?
While the only superheroes to appear in Spider-Man 2 were Peter Parker, Miles Morales, and Yuri Watanabe (aka Wraith), there were clear hints toward more world-savers out there in this Marvel universe.
This included having both the Avengers Tower and Baxter Building present, along with taking a trip to the Sanctum Sanctorum where Black Cat opened a very Doctor Strange-esque portal and Spider-Man received a note from Wong.
Upon the launch of Spider-Man 2, the sign for the Nelson & Murdock law firm, which is part-owned by Daredevil himself, was missing. During an interview with IGN, director Bryan Intihar curiously told fans to "stay tuned."
As pointed out on Reddit by Milkan27, the Nelson & Murdock sign has now been restored, perhaps suggesting this may have been a bug or mistake.
Via IGN, Spider-Man 2 players have discovered a mysterious room in New York, hidden behind a garage door with a strange red symbol above. Using camera trickery, fans have been able to discover swords, shields, guns, strange symbols, and bookshelves hidden inside.
Players have been able to get a closer look by heading around the opposite side of the building and entering the bookshop, from which the room can be seen through a bookshelf with other metallic animal skulls and strange paintings present.
The cult-like setting has led many to speculate this could be tied to the Hand, an ancient organization of ninjas closely tied to Daredevil.
So far, Insomniac has avoided having any other major Marvel superheroes appear in its Spider-Man universe, making it hard to imagine that changing now. While many would undoubtedly be thrilled if Daredevil were to join Peter and Miles in one of the upcoming DLCs, it seems unlikely that will happen as of now.
Spider-Man 2 is available now for PS5.
Read more about the PlayStation web-slinger series:
Spider-Man 3 PS5: Every Character Expected to Appear
Will Spider-Man 3 PS5 Happen? Insomniac Director Responds to Future Prospects
Spider-Man 3 PS5's New Villains Teased by Yuri Lowenthal
