[Editor's note: The following contains spoilers for Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Like ... MAJOR spoilers.]

Now that you've had a chance to check out Sony PlayStation's Miles Morales, be it on the current-gen PS4 or the newly released next-gen console the PS5, you might have some questions. Or maybe you haven't had a chance to web-swing your way through Harlem and the surrounding boroughs of New York City just yet, but you want to know how Insomniac Games' standalone side-story concluded just the same. We've got you covered either way. But this is your last chance to zip back to safety; spider-spoilers follow from here on out!

The main crux of the conflict in Miles Morales is this: On the surface, the action-oriented crisis concerns the power vacuum left by the imprisonment of Wilson Fisk, a.k.a. Kingpin, and the rival organizations attempting to step in and control New York. There's the convicts from The Raft who escaped (again) early in the game, the criminal element known as the Underground who are now solidified and powered-up under a new leader who calls themselves the Tinkerer, and the supposed-to-be-the-good-guys super-troopers from Roxxon Corporation, who work for executive Simon Krieger. The local NYPD attempt to preserve the peace but they're bystanders and clean-up crews more often than not. So the only thing keeping civilians safe and sound is Spider-Man himself, Miles Morales. Yup, that's right, when Peter Parker swings away for an international assignment with Mary Jane Watson, young Miles is left alone (mostly) to defend Harlem and NYC. Tough task for a kid, super powers or not.

But there's much more to Miles Morales than just fisticuffs and web-'em-ups. The emotional core of the story, centered around its title character, involves friends and family, the super-powered and the non-superpowered alike, and spins quite the Shakespearean web of its own when it comes to reveals, betrayals, and last-minute heroics. And that's mostly where the spoilers come in. You see, Miles' uncle-with-a-troubled-past Aaron Davis comes back into his life relatively early on in the story, as does his childhood friend, Phin Mason. You might think they'd be more allies to Miles, like his mom Rio who's running for a city council position on a platform against the gentrifying corporate invader Roxxon, or his other best friend Ganke who knows his secret identity and helps him out with gadgets and tech, but you'd be dead wrong.

Image via Marvel, Insomniac Games

The big reveals of Miles Morales do heavy lifting on both the emotional circuit and the action-oriented one. Uncle Aaron figures out Miles' identity as Spider-Man early on, though it's a little while before his own nefarious double life as The Prowler is revealed to Miles, surprisingly, in a rather helpful way. The same could be said for Miles' discovery that Phin is, in fact, the Tinkerer, a truth they keep hidden from each other for some time. Emotional manipulations abound here; Aaron uses Miles' trust in him -- and his fondness for Phin -- against his newphew, selling The Tinkerer's identity and whereabouts to the Underground's rival, Roxxon's own Simon Krieger. Miles uses a similar tactic to learn about the Underground's plan by confiding in Phin that he wants to join the terrorist organization, only to infiltrate them as Spider-Man. None of that ends well for Miles, but it's the way in which the whole story ties together -- and comes crashing down -- that makes it such a compelling game to play until the end.

And the end plays out like this: After Miles and Phin escape Roxxon's facility in which a powered-up Rhino just about killed the both of them (Thanks, Uncle Aaron...), Phin, as The Tinkerer, aims to use Nuform to blow up Roxxon Plaza. Her master plan is driven by revenge for the death of her brother Rick thanks to Nuform's deadly side effects and Roxxon R&D Director Simon Krieger's cover-ups. What Phin doesn't know, and what Miles discovers, is that Krieger has stepped up the time-table on the Nuform reactor, making it so unstable that Phin's plan won't just blow up the plaza but all of Harlem. Miles tries to warn Phin about this but she doesn't listen. Oh, and also, his uncle kidnaps him to "keep him safe" before Miles can put a stop to Phin's plans.

Miles, as Spider-Man, battles against his uncle, as The Prowler, in grudge match that sees the young hero besting his mentor both physically and through strength of character. Miles comes into his own as a true hero here, and he might even change his uncle's criminal ways in the process...

The battle between Miles and Phin doesn't go quite so well. Phin is driven to near madness by the death of her brother, the betrayal she feels at the knowledge that Miles is Spider-Man, and the fact that Roxxon might be able to get away with everything once again. It's a knock-down, drag-out fight between Spider-Man and The Tinkerer, with Spider-Man trying and failing to draw off the excess energy from the reactor before it goes critical. That failure forces Phin to recognize just how bad the situation is; perhaps too little, too late. (Elsewhere, The Prowler uses his abilities and tech to help Ganke and Rio get Harlem residents evacuated to safety, even as The Underground and Roxxon forces continue to fight in the street.)

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Image via Marvel, Insomniac Games

Phin falls from the heights of Roxxon Tower, saved from certain death by Spider-Man who then goes to embrace death himself by approaching the ticking time bomb that is the Nuform reactor. Miles is able to absorb the excess energy but is left helpless, unable to move or even contain the radiation that's about to explode from him. This is where Phin's heroic sacrifice comes into play. She uses her tech to lift Miles and fly the both of them into the upper atmosphere, telling Miles to let go. When he does, the massive energy release triggers a huge explosion that presumably kills Phin and nearly mortally wounds Miles, who crashes to the ground, barely clinging to life.

In the wreckage, Rio, Ganke, Hailey, Teo, and other residents of Harlem rally to Spider-Man's side, protecting his identity from newly arrived news crews and supporting him as their own friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Miles is able to swing away to safety despite the traumatic ordeal he just endured. But to what end?

Well, four weeks later, we learn that Simon Krieger is off to jail, that Aaron Davis is getting a reduced sentence for testifying against him, and that Harlem is in the process of rebuilding thanks in part to the newly elected councilwoman Rio Morales. Peter Parker is back in town and has a thing or two to learn from Miles after the short time that he was gone. But while we get to see the duo swing away to protect the city just before the credits roll, the post-credits scene is all Miles as he says goodbye to Phin in a fitting fashion, leaving their shared award atop Trinity Church; you can watch all of that in the video below.

For me, the ending of Miles Morales is pitch-perfect, even if it is a bittersweet one. The story of Spider-Man, any Spider-Man really, has always been about love and loss, about personal responsibility and the sacrifices that come with it, and the intimately human emotions that form the core of even the most super of superheroes. Miles Morales takes a big swing with this relatively short standalone story, and though the bittersweet ending stings, it was absolutely worth the ride.