You remember that feeling back in 2018? Swinging through a digital New York that actually felt alive for the first time? It was a massive moment for Insomniac Games. But honestly, Spider Man Remastered PS5 is where the vision finally caught up to the hardware. It isn’t just a simple resolution bump or a lazy port meant to pad out a console launch. It’s a ground-up technical overhaul that changes how the game feels under your thumbs.
Most people think "remaster" and expect some sharper textures. Maybe a faster loading screen.
This is different.
When you’re zipping between midtown skyscrapers at 60 frames per second, the entire rhythm of combat changes. You aren't just watching a movie anymore. You're playing a high-intensity action game that finally has the overhead to keep up with your reflexes. It's snappy. It's fluid. It's kind of addictive once you get the hang of the "Performance RT" mode.
The Controversial Face Swap and Why It Actually Matters
We have to talk about the face. You know the one.
When Insomniac announced they were replacing John Bubniak’s face model with Ben Jordan for the role of Peter Parker, the internet basically had a collective meltdown. People felt like they were losing a version of Peter they’d grown to love. It felt jarring. It felt unnecessary.
But there’s a technical reality here that many people ignore.
The remaster was built to utilize the facial performance capture of Yuri Lowenthal (the voice actor) much more accurately. The bone structure of the new model, Ben Jordan, aligns more closely with Yuri’s actual facial movements. When you watch the emotional climax of the game—especially that gut-wrenching scene with Aunt May—the micro-expressions on the new face convey a level of grief that the original PS4 model just couldn't quite hit. It’s subtle, but it’s there.
🔗 Read more: Jigsaw Would Like Play Game: Why We’re Still Obsessed With Digital Puzzles
Does he look a bit younger? Yeah, definitely. A bit too much like Tom Holland? Maybe. But after ten minutes of gameplay, your brain just sort of accepts it. The fidelity of the skin shaders and the way light hits the eyes makes the characters feel less like puppets and more like people.
Ray Tracing is the Real Secret Sauce
If you’ve spent any time looking at the windows of the Daily Bugle in the original version, you probably noticed the "cube maps." Basically, they were fake reflections. They looked okay from a distance, but they didn't reflect the actual world around you.
Spider Man Remastered PS5 fixes this with real-time hardware-accelerated ray tracing.
This sounds like a buzzword. It’s not. When you’re crawling down the side of a glass skyscraper, you can see the reflection of the taxi cabs on the street below and the sunset behind you. It anchors Spider-Man in the world. It’s no longer a floating character model on top of a static background. Everything is interconnected through light.
Insomniac gave us three main ways to experience this:
- Fidelity Mode: This is for the "I want it to look like a Pixar movie" crowd. Native 4K, 30fps, and maximum ray-tracing settings. It looks incredible in Photo Mode, but honestly, once you go 60fps, it's hard to go back.
- Performance Mode: Solid 60fps. No ray tracing. It’s buttery smooth. If you’re playing on a smaller screen or a 1080p monitor, this is usually the way to go because you won't miss the reflections as much.
- Performance RT: This is the sweet spot. It targets 60fps while keeping ray tracing active by adjusting the internal resolution and reflection quality. This is how the game was meant to be played. It feels like a true next-gen (or current-gen, depending on who you ask) experience.
DualSense and the Haptic Feedback Revolution
Let's get into the controller. The DualSense is the PS5’s secret weapon, and its implementation here is legitimately cool.
In the PS4 version, a web swing felt the same every time. In Spider Man Remastered PS5, the adaptive triggers give you actual resistance. When you shoot a web, the R2 trigger has a "click" point. You feel the tension of the line as Peter reaches the bottom of his arc.
💡 You might also like: Siegfried Persona 3 Reload: Why This Strength Persona Still Trivializes the Game
It’s tactile.
Then there’s the haptic feedback. It’s not just "rumble" anymore. You can feel the directional vibration of a subway train passing underneath you. You feel the heavy thud of a Brute landing a punch. It adds a layer of immersion that’s hard to describe until you’re holding the controller yourself. It makes the combat feel "crunchier."
Faster Loading is a Game Changer (Literally)
Remember the subway loading screens? Those little cutscenes of Peter sitting awkwardly next to New Yorkers while the game loaded the next district?
They’re basically gone.
The SSD in the PS5 loads this game so fast that fast-traveling across Manhattan takes about two seconds. You click a point on the map, the screen fades for a blink, and you’re there. While you can actually turn the subway scenes back on in the settings if you miss the charm, most people won't. The lack of friction means you spend more time playing and less time checking your phone during load screens. This flow state is crucial for an open-world game.
Combat Depth and the Inclusion of DLC
If you only played the base game on PS4, you missed out on a lot of story. The Remastered version bundles in "The City That Never Sleeps" DLC. This isn't just extra fluff; it’s a direct bridge to the events of Spider-Man 2.
The DLC introduces Black Cat, Silver Sable, and Hammerhead. More importantly, it challenges you. The difficulty spike in the DLC is real. You’ll deal with Gatling-gun-wielding enemies and jetpack troopers that force you to actually use your entire gadget wheel.
📖 Related: The Hunt: Mega Edition - Why This Roblox Event Changed Everything
You can't just mash square.
You have to use the Impact Web to stick enemies to walls. You have to use the Suspension Matrix to clear out crowds. The Remastered version also adds a few new suits, including the "Amazing" suit from the Andrew Garfield movies and some original designs that look stunning with the new material shaders.
Addressing the "Is it worth the upgrade?" Question
A lot of people ask if they should pay for the upgrade if they already own the PS4 disc.
Here’s the reality: If you care about "feel," yes. The jump from 30fps to 60fps isn't just a visual preference; it actually lowers input latency. You react faster. Parrying and dodging feel more intuitive.
However, there is a catch. You can't just put your PS4 disc in and get the Remaster for free. Usually, it's locked behind the Miles Morales Ultimate Edition or available as a paid upgrade through the Miles Morales menu. It’s a bit of a convoluted mess on the PlayStation Store, but for the definitive version of the game, it’s a hurdle worth jumping.
Actionable Steps for the Best Experience
To get the most out of your time with the web-head on PS5, don't just stick to the default settings.
- Switch to Performance RT immediately. Go into the settings and find the visual mode. Performance RT gives you the best of both worlds. The slight drop in resolution is barely noticeable compared to the massive gain in smoothness.
- Adjust the "Film Grain" and "Chromatic Aberration." Many enthusiasts prefer turning these down or off to see the crispness of the 4K textures without the artificial "movie" fuzz.
- Check your TV's HDR settings. This game has some of the best HDR implementation on the console. If the sun looks washed out or the shadows look gray, spend five minutes in the PS5 system-level HDR calibration tool.
- Use the Photo Mode. Even if you aren't a "virtual photographer," the lighting tools in the Remaster are incredible. You can add up to three custom light sources to any scene, allowing you to create cinematic shots that look better than some actual comic book covers.
- Transfer your save. If you started on PS4, you can upload your save to the cloud from the PS4 version's main menu and download it into the Remaster. You’ll even get a massive trophy pop if you already platinumed the original.
This game remains a benchmark for what a superhero title can be. It balances a deeply human story about a kid from Queens with the power fantasy of being a god-tier athlete. Spider Man Remastered PS5 is the polished, definitive vision of that balance. It’s the version that doesn't let the hardware get in the way of the heart.