There’s probably no greater feeling than web-swinging your way through New York City asSpider-Man,especially more so now that many of us are unable to travel and experience the freedom that we hadbecome so used to doingdue to COVID-19. Whether you enjoy collecting all the sound samples, postcards or underground caches, there’s no doubt about it that exploring the city withSpider-Catis one of the many joys found within the game. Being able to fight bad guys with your kitty companion tucked safely inside your backpack is a sheer delight and a beautifully wholesome feature. So today, let’s take a look behind the scenes at the real-life felines inMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.
If you haven’t had the chance to jump intoMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moralesyet, then let me explain: the game features a brand new side-kick lovingly calledSpider-Catwho becomes Miles Morales' new friend when Miles saves him and later they both go off together to fight the city’s crime. This mission also unlocks The Bodega Suit allowing players the ability to actually takeSpider-Catwith them through the city in the cutest backpack you’ll ever see. ButSpider-Catisn’t just there to look adorable, the ginger feline also comes prepared with his very own finishers, too.
Talking toMarvel.com,Boola Robello, a Senior Animator who worked onMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moralesand alsoMarvel’s Spider-Man,explained in length howSpider-Catgot his very own cameo and how he ended up animating the kitty fighting sequences forSpider-Man: Miles Morales.“When I found out we had a cat wearing a Spider-Man mask in this game, I jokingly said that we should create cat finishers. Everyone chuckled and that is where it ended,” but as we all know, this isn’t where the conversation ended as Robello explains “I sent out a video of my animation to the team, and before I knew it our Creative Director Brian Horton was asking for a compressed video so he could run it by [Director of Production at] Marvel Games, Eric Monacelli,” Robello continues “After approval, we moved it onto my schedule and into official production. I coordinated with Senior Programmer Paul Hiley, and with his programming, we worked out the technicalities to make the cat finisher a functional move for the game.”
Of course, animating and creating finishers forSpider-Catwas only part of the job, Robello now also needed some pretty convincing kitty sounds to go along with it so his first port of call was asking his work colleagues at Insomniac Games if anyone had a pet cat. “I put out a ‘cat-casting-call’ to two of my fellow Insomniacs who I knew had cats. I knew Tyler Held had a cat. I asked him if he had any recordings and I ended up using those for the meow/purring sounds as Spider-Man the cat goes back into the backpack." Robello continues “Tyler’s cat, Kevin had the perfect attitude of ‘Yep, just took care of those bad guys' and now it’s back into the safety of my backpack feeling. I had heard [Director, Audio Management] Karen Read’s cat on zoom calls, and Juicy the cat had the perfect ‘I mean business’ meow that is in the ‘ground finisher.’”
Naturally, you’ll want to meet these little furballs in question that helped shape the many wholesome features inMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Check out the felines below and their contribution to the game as well as getting to know a little more about their cat life outside ofSpider-Man.
This is Hawke who is six years old and belongs to Jeremie Voillot – Senior Manager of Sound Design at Insomniac Games. Hawke’s kitty noises can be found all overMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.Outside of the glamour of the video game industry, Hawke enjoys going on walks with his humans like a dog and eating…a lot! When asked what other Marvel pet would he like to team up with for a dynamic duo, his answer will always be Zabu.
Up next is Kevin, a two and a half-year-old ginger kitty owned by Tyler Held – Dialogue Coordinator and who provided the meow when Spider-Cat jumps back into the backpack after doing the finisher. Apparently, Kevin got his name after Tyler found him in the snow at a family Christmas party and Kevin hopped into their car. Unfortunately, the fame and success of being inMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moraleshas turned Kevin into a diva and now wants more food and also to own a Catillac. Bill the Lobster would be Kevin’s perfect Marvel character to team up with but who knows the real reason for that.
This elegant feline is named Kinako who is the animation reference and inspiration forMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Moralescinematic cat animation. Kinako’s owner is Insomniac’s Senior Animator, Kahye Hwang who says he loves nothing more than laying around sleeping all day. when he’s not outside going for walks. His perfect Marvel team-up would be with Chewie (Captain Marvel’s, Goose) and one of his key skills is that he can climb over any fence that challenges him.
This adorable little girl is Juicy who belongs to Karen Read – Director, Audio Management. If you’re wondering where you can hear her, well, she provides the voice of Spider-man the cat during the cat finishers. Owner Karen said that Juicy is “incredibly vocal until, of course, you attempt to record her - then she gets terribly camera microphone-shy.” Apparently, Juicy also has been making playing the game hard for her owner as she loves nothing more than sitting right in front of the TV, ready to jump into action. And just like Kinako, Juicy would love to team up with Captain Marvel’s Goose.
Last but not least, meet Mim, a handsome four-year-old cat owned by Sony’s Supervising Sound Designer, Emile Mika. Min lends his voice to various vocalizations for cinematics throughoutMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales. He loves to sunbathe on the patio but under supervision, as unlike Spider-Cat, Mim is an indoor cat. When not playing fetch with his toys, Min states that his favoriteSpider-Mancomic is theAmazing Spider-Manissue #3.
In otherSpider-Mannews, Insomniac Games have recently implementeda new updatethat includes ray tracing included in the Fidelity Mode, while also giving players that buttery smooth 60FPS of the Performance Mode.To celebrate the releaseofMarvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, DualShockers joined withLatinx in Gamingand a panel of guests to discuss our thoughts on Insomniac Games’ latest title and what it means for inclusivity and representation in video games.
Spider-Man: Miles Moralesis available right now as a PS5 launch title, alongside the PS4. If you were able to nab a PS5, you’re able to pick the title up on Amazonhere.
