Spider-Man: Miles Morales Animator Details Making The Game's Final Shot
In a recent post, one of the animators that worked on Spider-Man: Miles Morales has detailed the decisions that went into making the game’s cinematic final shot. Spider-Man: Miles Morales has been a huge hit for Sony. A more family-friendly title than other PlayStation exclusives, Spider-Man: Miles Morales has managed to maintain its popularity and strong sales every month since its launch. Recent figures show that it has managed to surpass the total sales of not only Sucker Punch’s epic Ghost of Tsushima, but also that of the record-breaking The Last of Us Part 2.
This news may not be that surprising. After all, Spider-Man, and the Marvel universe that he inhabits, are some of pop culture's most prolific assets. However, even without stemming from such an iconic franchise, Spider-Man: Miles Morales has more than earned its position as one of Sony’s top sellers. Its narrative manages to balance the fine line between action-rich gameplay and that of a compelling story; a story that sees protagonist Miles Morales adapting to his new, and often challenging, role as a super-hero.
Now, Liam Murphy, a cinematic animator at Insomniac Games, has revealed just how they used the game’s final few frames to further cement Miles Morales’ overall character development within Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Sharing the game’s final clip on their Twitter handle, Murphy stated that they “tried to set up the cameras, previs, layout and animation to mirror or "sum up" Miles' journey throughout the game.” The clip question shows Peter Parker (as Spider-Man) and Miles Morales swinging across the New York skyline. At first, the camera focuses on Spider-Man, before Miles Morales swoops in and becomes the more dominant of the two characters in the game’s final shot. Murphy says they hoped that this “visually reinforces (Miles’) growth from a young newbie looking up to Spider-Man, to a just as capable NEW Spider-Man that has his own, unique set of strengths.”
Little behind-the-scenes insights such as this are a truly fascinating way to see a game from a new angle. The extra thought that goes into a final release, such as this inclusion from Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ animator, shows just how much unseen (and often underappreciated) work goes on backstage. Murphy admitted that this conclusive and impactful shot nearly did not make it into the game at all, however, as it was not originally planned for. Rather, Murphy stated that “after some pitching and great suggestions from leadership, (they) were able to get some time carved out in the schedule” to include this final visual within Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
Sony has several new titles set to release for the PlayStation 5 later this year, including Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and Horizon Forbidden West. While both highly anticipated releases in their own right, they are going to have to be something incredibly special to reach the same level of popularity that Spider-Man: Miles Morales has managed to achieve in the five months since its release.
Source: Liam Murphy/Twitter