What Spider Man: Miles Morales Gets Right About Cultura and the Authentic Puerto Rican Experience
Spider-Man: Miles Morales opens with a smooth rumble of the Dual Sense controller and into 125th Street subway station, Harlem. The follow-up to 2018’s Spider-Man, knows exactly where it needs to place Miles to set the stage for a world that celebrates its title character’s culture. As Miles sets foot into the neighborhood he will soon fight to protect, we immediately see what sets this Spider-Man apart. Effectively known as the “Main Street” of Harlem, this neighborhood is known as a center of commerce, brimming with cultural significance. It’s where we first see Miles Morales take center stage. We’re greeted with the ice and snow-packed streets of New York at Christmas, and a thumping beat that Miles bops his head to. There is a sense of community and culture that Insomniac has taken meticulous care to craft.
Each detail and layer subtly represents Miles Morales’ Puerto Rican heritage in a way that feels authentic and indebted to it. Insomniac has worked to celebrate Miles and those cultural elements that set him apart from his fellow heroes. It’s in Spider-Man: Miles Morales where Insomniac is not just choosing to tell Spider-Man’s story, but Miles’ story – a Puerto Rican’s story. In doing so, Insomniac needed to ensure that they nailed the culture of its title character.
To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (also referred to as Latino Heritage Month), we're taking a closer look at what Spider-Man: Miles Morales gets right about the Puerto Rican experience.
As Miles steps out of the subway, he’s greeted with a message from his mother, “Can you pick up groceries for dinner? I’ll text a list.” We later learn an important part of this list includes coconut milk. Normally drunk during the Christmas season and Nochebuena (C
Read more on ign.com
