Spider-Man: Web of Shadows has a stirring introduction, opening with our hero caught in the middle of a full scale war between the symbiotes who are assaulting New York and SHIELD forces that are fighting to fend off the invaders. With the latter losing this war, Spider-Man is doing his best to assist them, meanwhile trying to find Mary Jane, but he is brutally interrupted by Venom, the main villain who is launching a surprise attack. The action then shifts back in time, four days before the dreadful events, and most of the gameplay revolves around this period, preparing the stage for the final confrontation.

For most players who expected a fast paced game, the initial chapters can look rather flat and unsatisfying as you spend most of your time training with Luke Cage, one of the super heroes that dwell in the city. Boring as this may seem, it's the only way to learn new combat moves and to get accustomed with some of the villains that must be dealt with, before they overrun New York. There are only slight differences between the red and black suit, with the most important being the ability of throwing cars when wearing black. On the other hand there will be certain moments when you'll have to decide between embracing the dark side or the righteous one, which will eventually lead to one of the different endings. Furthermore, depending on your decisions you'll be able to call heroes or villains to assist you, but that's rarely necessary and it's most unlikely that their contribution can make the difference.

There are plenty of "spider symbols" scattered around the city that you can collect while you deal with the bad guys which grant you extra experience, helping you to level up faster and unlock new skills. While there are plenty of moves to learn and master that should insure that combat will never get boring, it is certain that most of them will never be used. That's not too bad though, because those unwilling to take the time to pick them up won't miss anything special, as these are virtually extensions of the basic moves. Being said that I must add that even those who are not even remotely interested in improving their fighting skills will complete most of the missions easily, by pressing just a couple of buttons.

The web strike is one of the combat skills that nobody can afford to neglect because it is the only way to wipe out those enemies who can fly, or are equipped with high tech gliders. In fact this is by far the most efficient way to destroy enemy troops and it's so easy to master, that most of those willing to try Web of Shadows will love it and use it very often. A particular mission where you are supposed to annihilate some snipers before they can take out two targets is the highlight for this combat style and leaves no room for doubt about its effectiveness. On the bad side taking out 30 snipers by using the same technique is downright boring and if wasn't for its instructive role, this episode could easily be regarded as a major failure