Buy Marvel's Spider-Man

DLC is usually stand-alone in nature. There may be times when it offers up a further conclusion to the main campaign, but most of the time, the content is completely separate from the main game and other DLC offerings. The DLC for Marvel's Spider-Man, however, is very different because it has told a cohesive and connected story, so you need to play all three parts to enjoy it all. The Heist started off well to characterize Black Cat and the enemies you're facing, and Turf Wars added one new enemy type, although Hammerhead turned out to be a less compelling adversary. Silver Lining offers up a good story while maintaining the status quo everywhere else.

When we last left the game, Hammerhead was presumed dead, and police chief Yuri Watanabe was placed on administrative leave for her actions resulting in the mobster's demise. However, it turns out that Hammerhead is alive and well, and he's hiding out while his goons are still stealing parts meant for Project Olympus, a super soldier program. While out hunting down the whereabouts of Hammerhead, Spider-Man runs into Silver Sable, who's trying to collect the weapons that were stolen from her. Although they started off on opposite sides, the two reluctantly team up to take down the mobster for good.

Reluctant partnerships have always been done well in the Spider-Man universe thanks to the wit of Spider-Man often clashing with the straightforward attitude of whoever he's teaming up with at the time. That rings true here, as Silver Sable's serious nature serves as a good foil to Spider-Man's quips, often making him look a bit foolish for saying those things in the first place. There's some good humor here, and it's present throughout the experience, just like it is in the main game. Otherwise, expect the usual fun dialogue interchanges between him and MJ as well as with Miles Morales.

From a gameplay perspective, Silver Lining doesn't present anything new that you didn't experience in the prior DLCs. Many of your fights will be arena-style brawls against some high-level goons, and there aren't new enemies to fight along the way. The fights are still enjoyable, but there's not much to make you change strategies or start thinking differently about your combat approach. There's also the standard assortment of new suits in this pack, including a fourth Sam Raimi movie-inspired suit. The inclusion of the Into the Spider-Verse, Aaron Aikman's Spider-Armor, and the Cyborg suits are nice, but since there aren't any new powers associated, they're more cosmetic choices compared to the prior suits.

With that said, there are a few things that make this piece of DLC a little better than the last one. For one thing, although the missions are similar, you'll spend a decent chunk of your time fighting alongside someone. That's a nice change of pace from having to fight solo most of the time, and it's improved by the fact that Silver Sable is a competent fighter, so you aren't forced to take out everyone by yourself while she watches.

Another improvement is the fact that the DLC tries to wrap up everything it can in a succinct manner. The obvious conclusion comes from Hammerhead's defeat, but this DLC also means that you finally wrap up Screwball's arc, which is a relief since she provided an annoying diversion from the main storyline. Only one mission is dedicated to her, which is good since this DLC can be completed in a little under 2 hours – if you're trying to be thorough.

The only thing that's not wrapped up has to do with Yuri. The end of the last episode had her fall quite far off the deep end, and there is a side mission here that has you follow up on what she's been up to while on leave. Without spoiling anything, the result is fairly obvious if you've paid attention to her story path, and while it isn't completely spelled out what's going to happen to her, comic fans will love the nod and are probably looking forward to her appearance in the future.

Marvel's Spider-Man: Silver Lining wraps up a story and plants seeds for a possible sequel. These are important points since this episode doesn't introduce new mechanics beyond giving you some meaningful content if you've already finished the main campaign. In the end, it's good enough to keep you entertained if you need more web-crawling action.

Score: 7.5/10