Spider-Man is a well-loved comic book character, and for good reasons. He has some of the same attributes as us, because he was a lanky, nerdy and overall average kid...aside from the weird spiky thorns coming out of his hands. That's a little weird. Also the fact that in newer versions, he sometimes shoots webs out of his skin rather than Stan Lee's previously preferred artificial webshooters.
Nevertheless, we love our webhead and the sticky situations hahahahasobad he gets himself into, such as the usual array of terrible games produced around him. I won't go on to list all of these, because there are far too many, it's unrelated to the subject at hand, and because that's just my personal opinion. So, on with the white, sticky...shut up, I'm talking about webs.
Spider-Man is an action-adventure beat-em-up, like the standard-fare of Spider-Man games. It has two sequels (that are both hilariously called Spider-Man 2). This game was originally released on the PS1, but was ported to PC, Game Boy Color, Nintendo 64, and Sega Dreamcast. My review is, of course, based on the N64 version. First up...
Fun Factor! This game, like said, is standard 3D beat-em-up. You run around and you beat everything up until it dies--I mean, disappears. Webs are swung off of, used to tie up enemies, used to pull enemies towards you, making gloves, and making web domes. This is all pretty fun, I have to admit. The game doesn't throw you into anything EXCEPTIONALLY challenging except during the last several stages, and those are easy unless you go for Hard difficulty. Nevertheless, it keeps your attention and makes sure that you won't get bored by giving you plenty of objectives. Fun-Factor gets 3/5. Next, of course...
Controls and Gameplay. The important stuff. How well does it work with the clunky-interface of the N64 controller? First off, for the record, I love the N64, even its controller. But this game can make me hate the controller. It feels like trying to stabilize the United States' national debt with microwaved Lincoln Logs. In other words; melty, weird, and why am I even trying. Even more confusing is that the controls change with difficulty settings. There are no controller settings, only difficulty. All of these are fairly awful, and you'll only get moderately into the game once you've figured out literally everything about the controls, studying them harder than your college textbooks. Because you don't study those, you just cry and get drunk and hope you learn something. I know you. Controls and Gameplay get 2/5.
Graphics. I know how the mainstream audience is now, and I don't blame them, why would you want to play something with horrendous graphics? Well, I was sorta born with this stuff. A little late to the true status of gaming, as I am late 90's. Nevertheless, I experienced the 8-bit era because of my dad, and I think it was beautiful. Games have wonderful graphics until you literally cannot recognize what's going on.
Spider-Man 64? Only slightly better than pictured to the right. But this game is still sorta playable. Graphics get 2/5, but only because they kicked the review system in the balls and ran off with 2 stars.
Sound. The sound is absolutely cheesy, with unrealistic punch sounds, Looney Tunes-esque gun sounds,, stereotypical (but almost accurate) missile shots and explosions, but top-notch for a kids' game. It doesn't sound like it was recorded in a child molester's basement, so it passes sub-par and reaches luke-warm. 3/5.
Replayability. One of the most important things. Is this game worth playing again? Probably not, unless for nostalgia or genuine personal interest. I've played the whole game tons of times, because I grew up with it on PC. It's fun, but it's not something you'd devote your whole life to playing for pleasure, only something you might go back to in a while because you miss pulling thugs off of buildings with your webbing. I'd give it, yet again, 3/5 on replayability.
Conclusion: This game is okay. It's not the best game ever, but it's far from ET. I've played it since it's been out, so it's amazing to kids if you've not already shown them the finer things of life...or to them, Call of Duty. This game is pretty damn classic, because it set the standards for a lot of other Spider-Man games. Just not its N64 port. Nevertheless, it's a fun game, and one you can pick up for probably 5 dollars or less. It's worth a little more, I think, but I've developed an attachment (luckily I can still think critically). You won't be breaking your budget on it, and your kids or little annoying nephews, nieces, cousins, and other "its" might like it. Overall, 3/5.