Spider-Man PS4: 10 Big Things We Learned From The E3 Demo

6. Yuriko Watanabe Is Making A Pre-Wraith Appearance

Yuriko Watanabe Wraith Spider-Man
Marvel Comics

During the demo, we got to see Peter liaise with one Captain Watanabe, a member of the NYPD and, would you believe it, a costumed crimefighter herself. In the comics, Watanabe is Spidey's key ally on the force, but she later decides that a more direct approach was needed in order to tackle crime - hence the purple getup.

Judging from the conversation the pair shared in the demo, it looks as though Yuri has yet to make the jump to vigilantism, but it is perhaps a change she will undertake during the game's proceedings. Indeed, the addition of both Watanabe and Mister Negative seems to suggest that Insomniac are taking heavy inspiration from Dan Slott's run on the character, departing from more classic interpretations and instead opting for a story that mainstream audiences will, I imagine, be largely unfamiliar with.

It's a great move, given that we've had so many Spider-Man games over the years tackle the same themes over and over again. Indeed, by focusing on this new mythology and placing these characters front and centre, Insomniac are proving that they are going to offer an altogether more different kind of Spidey game than most would've expected.

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WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.