Spider-Man: Edge of Time Preview

A tale of two friendly neighborhood Spider-Men.

The future is a blank page with words yet unwritten that no one can foretell. We cannot see the consequences our actions will have on what will come. That is, of course, unless we have a counterpart from the future who gets trapped in a time vortex during an evil scientist's attempt to travel back into the past to find and kill us. If that happens, we'd obviously be able to communicate with our future doppelganger and try to not only stop the nefarious villain from carrying out his plans, but also prevent our own premature death in the process.

[image1]That's just simple science right there. Or at least it is for a comic book superhero. And that's what Peter Parker can expect to experience alongside his 2099 version, Miguel O'Hara, in Spider-Man: Edge of Time. Although the time paradoxes of the plot may seem a little strange at first, it's being penned by Spider-Man co-creator and master comic book writer, Peter David, so you know you're in good hands (I'm a huge X-Factor fan, so I'm biased - but ya know).

While last year's Shattered Dimensions had four web-heads to choose from, this next iteration will focus on the relation between the Amazing Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2099, and will jump between the two characters as they help each other traverse through their respective era's giant Alchemex Corporation buildings. Expect to see plenty of witty quips between the two Spideys as they work with each other to make the future as bright as possible - picture-in-picture squabbles such as Miguel fending off giant robots while yelling at Peter to hurry up and destroy the giant robot-making facility to change the layout in the future. Situations and scenarios like this will be prevalent throughout the entire gameplay experience.

[image2]Much like in the last game, there will be a large focus on combat with an open-ended combo system. Both characters will have their own special abilities, such as Peter's spider sense and webs, and while Miguel lacks both of these things, he has razor sharp talons on his arms and can create a hologram of himself to distract enemies. On top of that, the 2099 Spider-Man will also revisit the flying levels from Shattered Dimensions. But what would a sequel be without a little up in the ante? In order to really put the pressure on, certain missions will need to be completed within a time limit or else the universe will implode on itself, just like when that guy touched his past self in Time Cop.

Spider-Man: Edge of Time has just been announced, so there's still much more to be discovered about the upcoming sequel to Shattered Dimensions. Rest assured, though, that there will be plenty of cameos from heroes and villains of both timelines, and there's bound to be more surprises to come as we get closer to the release date. Look for it to "thwip' its way onto store shelves in Fall 2011 on PS3 and 360.