Marvel’s Avengers announced early this week that Spider-Man would be a Playstation exclusive. The devs note the decision stems from the connection between Sony and Disney.
Marvel’s Avengers revealed that Spidey would be a PS-only exclusive, among other things. This situation doesn’t sit well with fans, but the devs at Crystal Dynamic point to Sony. They detailed that Sony, as the owner of Spider-Man’s rights, can use him as they want.
Crystal Dynamics boss refers to Sony’s “movie rights”
In an interview, Crystal Dynamics head honcho Scot Amos was frank with his reply. Amos explained that the reason a fan-favorite character is a PS exclusive boils down to rights.
Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man comes to Marvel's Avengers, exclusively on PlayStation. Crystal Dynamics offers early details on its own, unique take on the post-launch Hero: https://t.co/GA3t6Y40KI pic.twitter.com/TEho59XfIc
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) August 3, 2020
“So the beauty of Spider-Man and what Spider-Man represents as a character in this world is, again, it comes back to the relationship with PlayStation and Marvel,” notes Amos.
“We happen to be ones who can execute and deliver when it comes down to choices of where and what Spider-Man can be, that’s a relationship question that you know PlayStation absolutely has the rights to that as you guys know with Sony’s [movie rights] ownership there and Marvel with Sony saying, ‘hey, this is something we can do, this is something we can do on this platform,’ and as creators we have this opportunity that we can make something unique and fun and awesome.”
The comment concerning “movie rights” harkens to Sony’s ownership of the Spider-Man IP. In 1999, Columbia Pictures bought the film rights for the superhero from a near-bankrupt Marvel. Sony Pictures owned Columbia Pictures, which gave them rights to the character.
Sony holds unique position over Spider-Man exclusivity
One problem that Marvel’s Avengers doesn’t tackle is the extent of Sony’s film rights. It’s a matter of discussion if such rights extend to video games. So far, Disney allows it, likely due to a recent deal with Sony.
If fans remember, Tom Holland’s Spider-Man almost left the MCU in 2019. All this came from a conflict between Sony Pictures and Disney. In the end, reports say that this issue received an internal resolution.
Such an event puts into question if Marvel wants to let Sony do what they want with Spider-Man. The unique hold that Sony has on the character is weird. Crystal Dynamics, however, brushes off Spidey’s full role in their game.
Amos noted in a separate interview that they are adding a lot of other things to the game. He believes there is enough content to keep fans busy, even with the absence of Spidey. Hawkeye, for example, will be the first DLC character for the game on all platforms.
If players want to play as Spider-Man in Marvel’s Avengers, there is only one way to do it. He says players “have the option to do so on PlayStation.”
Images courtesy of Marvel/Youtube Screenshot