Spider-Man Game Awards: Ranking the best parts of Spider-Man video games

Best Box Art

• Ultimate Spider-Man (PS2, Xbox, Nintendo DS, GameCube, GBA)
• Spider-Man: Edge of Time (PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, 3DS, DS)
• Spider-Man (PlayStation, N64, Sega Dreamcast, Game Boy, PC)
• Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six (NES, Sega Mark III, Game Gear)
• The Amazing Spider-Man: Lethal Foes (SNES)

Winner: Spider-Man

I’m old enough to remember when the box art for a video game was the be-all and end-all of decision-making. When I was a wee lad, there was no such thing as reviews or press coverage that allowed me to make a more informed decision. Well, there was, but I was one of those dumb kids. I was so dumb that it took me nearly an entire day to finish the first level in 2000’s Spider-Man from developer Neversoft, which narrowly secures the Best Box Art award.

For whatever reason, I had an intense irrational fear of being caught in stealth sections of video games when I was a child. But one thing that didn’t instill insurmountable fear into my feeble young mind was the box art, which felt reminiscent of the 1994 animated series (you know, the one with the kick-ass theme song).

The race for this award was close, but there’s something so classically cartoonish and straightforward that works better than the rest. I also didn’t include Maximum Carnage because it was the same as the comic book it was based on. Gotta have some originality, you know?