When I first learned that Hot Toys had gained the license to the PlayStation 4 Exclusive Spider-Man video game, I could hardly contain my excitement. As much as I have enjoyed the company’s sixth scale Spider-Man figures in the past, those were all based on movies. Now, I like a Spider-Man film as much as the next person, but my heart will always lie with the original comic books. This Video Game Masterpiece series is still not technically based on the comics, but the game contains plenty of alternate skins that allow you to give your Spidey avatar different costumes. Most of those costumes? They’re from the comic books. It’s a tricky technicality that I am in full support of if it means I one day get more comic Spider-Men. Hooray for loopholes!

Oddly enough, despite my droning on about how this will mean more comic book Spider-Man outfits, this figure is actually not inspired by anything from the comics. This “Advanced Suit” is completely original to the PS4 game, giving the classic Spider-Man threads a unique spin. (See what I did there?) Let’s quit rambling and take a look.

The shoe box that Spidey comes packaged in is one of their prettier pieces. The mostly red box (sprinkled with Ben-Day dots that are difficult to see in the above photo, which is an homage to the comic book origins of the character) is vibrant, and the white and blue splashed against it really compliment each other. Even if you ignored the dynamic images of this Spider-Man in action, you’d still get the Advanced Suit color scheme hinting at the contents awaiting inside. Probably one of the few times I’ve considered displaying a box on my shelf.

I’m probably in the minority here, but I would have preferred Hot Toys to keep Spider-Man’s masks cloth in this series. I completely understand the benefits that a fully sculpted plastic head offers, but there’s simply something you can’t replicate by going the sculpted route. That said, that sculpt work is solid. The red parts of the mask do an impressive job matching the texture of the red parts on the actual outfit, while the black web-lines are recessed slightly, giving them definition. Those recessed web-lines, to my eye, don’t perfectly match the flat screen-printed ones on the outfit, but it’s not too distracting. The paintwork here is clean and the head pops on and off fairly easily via a ball joint.

The head sculpt comes with three sets of interchangeable, magnetic eyes, allowing us to give Spidey some different emotions. They all swap in and out with no fuss by gently pressing on the very top of the eyes and then scooping the bottom out.

The Advanced Suit outfit is created from a material that gives the entire suit a rubberized consistency, which feels great. The glossy white spiders on the suit’s chest and back area are raised slightly but remain flexible and durable. The sculpted shoe pieces that cover most of the feet blend well with the fabric and come off great.

Hot Toys utilized a base body that has plenty of muscle definition, giving Spidey the chance to cut a nice silhouette. The musculature is spongy to the touch, which compliments the material of the outfit in a strange way. I never thought I’d get so much enjoyment from pressing on Spider-Man’s pecs, but here we are. Toy collecting, ladies and gentlemen!

While the suit offers plenty range of movement, there’s undoubtedly only so far you can go. After posing my figure a bit in a fairly delicate manner for this review, I noticed some stress marks under the figures right armpit. Nothing I’ll lose too much sleep over, but I feel I should mention it.

In terms of articulation, it’s probably a good idea to curb your expectations. You are not going to get even close to replicating a Todd McFarlane-esque pose with this figure. Heck, you likely won’t even be able to recreate a pose from the game. The Advanced Suit Spider-Man is designed to look beautiful, and it succeeds at that. To be fair, however, this Spidey does have solid articulation. Double-jointed elbows and knees, swivel thighs and biceps, ratcheted hips and shoulders, and a toe joint which I love all add up to give the Web-head some moves. You’re going to have fun with this figure, but as with all things, too much fun will lead to regret.

Hot Toys gave the Advanced Suit release a wealth of accessories. In addition to the aforementioned interchangeable eyes, you get five pairs of hands designed for web-shooting, wall-crawling, selfie-taking and giving the peace sign. The reds and whites on the hands are vibrant and match the outfit perfectly. Three different sets of removable web-shooters are also included, which was a cool touch that reminded me how fun that game can be with its “electric” webbing, “impact” webbing, etc.

You also get a pair of web bombs, a Vulture jammer, a pair of trip mines, a smart phone, a pair of Spider signals, an adorable Spidey plush doll, and a Spider-Drone with articulated legs.

Bear with me as I’m nearly done. (I told you there were a lot of accessories!) Also included: The requisite 5 web-lines, an open spider-web effect, a dynamic figure stand with the game’s logo and design, a Spider-sense effect, a cardboard foldout backdrop of an NYC street, and some sort of spider-web sticker. These are all great, work well, and my favorite is probably the backdrop (though it does NOT fit in a Detolf shelf, so beware.).

So, is the PS4 Advanced Suit Spider-Man worth the steep price of admission? Without a doubt. If you’re just a general Spider-fan, a fan of the comics, and especially a fan of the video game, then you’re going to love this release. Hot Toys has accomplished a remarkable feat recreating Insomniac Games’ costume design and translating it into 3D form. While he won’t be out-posing any Spider-Men figures from other companies like Revoltech or Medicom, that’s obviously not what he’s been created to do. This Spider-Man’s raison dêtre is to make you fall in love with him for the most shallow of reasons: he’s gorgeous. Give in to that feeling, place him next to your television, and boot up your PS4 for some web-swinging action. You’ll be happy you did.

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