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Spidey meets Sliders with Activision’s Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions

Spidey's going world-hopping, according to an announcement Activision made today. The company has released details about Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions, the newest Spider-Man game on the way. Instead of a single Spider-Man universe, players will be able to fight through four different worlds, each based on a different Spider-Man story/world/concept.

Activision has only revealed two of the four worlds: The Amazing Spider-Man and Spider-Man Noir. Amazing Spider-Man is the classic four-color Spidey, with visuals based on the comic books and a world based on Marvel's Earth-616. Spider-Man Noir is a 1930's variant of Spidey, based on the Spider-Man Noir comic series. It's darker, and its art style more reflects noir films, with heavy contrasts and desaturated colors.

This leaves two more universes to go. I'm thinking one of the worlds will be loosely based on Spider-Man 2099, the relatively short-lived 90's comic series with an alternate/future Spider-Man in a dystopian, Shadowrun-esque future. As for the other universe... Marvel Zombies would be awesome but highly unlikely. Perhaps an amalgam of the pre-Ultimatum Ultimate universe and the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon? High school Spidey, Eddie Brock's a childhood friend, he's still a gawky nerd getting used to his powers rather than a seasoned veteran.

Either way, let's hope that Shattered Dimensions will be better than the last few Spider-Man games. Friend or Foe and Web of Shadows were craptastic games that lacked any of the charm that made Spider-Man 2 and Ultimate Spider-Man so enjoyable. Activision needs to remember the most important thing about Spider-Man games: the swing's the thing. Combat's fine, but it shouldn't be a priority over the web-swinging freedom that makes Spider-Man so fun to play.