Introducing Spider-Weaver, the latest addition to “MARVEL Strike Force!”

Creative Director Sean Dugan discusses creating an original character for the Marvel Universe

“MARVEL Strike Force” features an expansive roster of characters spanning Marvel’s vast universe. In addition to familiar characters from Marvel’s film, television and comic releases, our team at Boundless Entertainment, a Scopely Studio, has been hard at work creating their own, entirely original, additions to the world of Marvel.

Spider-Weaver – the third original character for “MARVEL Strike Force” – recently made her in-game debut. In honor of this milestone, we spoke with “MARVEL Strike Force” Creative Director Sean Dugan to learn more about the inspiration behind Spider-Weaver, her role in the game, and the collaborative process with Marvel.


What inspired the team to create Spider-Weaver?

With this year being Spider-Man’s 60th anniversary, Marvel came and asked us whether we’d be interested in creating an original Spider character that added something new and unique to the Spider-Verse. Challenge accepted! So our team started discussing and exploring an idea based on a figure from Navajo folklore, Na’ashjeii Asdzáá, the Spider Woman. She’s a protector in Navajo culture who offers aid to her people in their struggles. That sounded like a great jumping off point for creating a new Marvel superhero!

What makes Spider-Weaver a unique addition to the Spider-Man universe?


We love that people can play our game and see their favorite characters who they can identify with and believe in. We thought Spider-Weaver allowed us to add to the Marvel universe by exploring a tradition not everyone is familiar with. Spider-Weaver is a different kind of Spider hero, with many of the familiar traits you expect from a Spider character but she comes from a more mystical background with a deep connection to the web of life and destiny. She ends up being a modern contemporary character who is also deeply connected to her culture and her roots.

What excites you most about introducing Spider-Weaver to players?


Spider-Weaver is a fun addition to the game with interesting gameplay that’s going to be valuable especially in the Cosmic Crucible. Given the number of Spider-Verse characters in “MARVEL Strike Force” that she can team up with – both heroes and villains – it’s going to be exciting to see what teams players end up creating. Beyond that, visually she’s an amazing character – she’s got a unique look and style you haven’t seen in a Spider character before. When you see her leap into battle, everyone will understand!

Tell us about how the MSF team collaborates with your partners at Marvel to create original characters for the Marvel universe.

It’s great to work with Marvel, as they’re a partner that really wants to help add to our game. We work extensively to come up with concepts that we can then get their feedback on and ideas to improve on the character. They give us a lot of freedom to create something new while offering guidance to make sure it has the Marvel look and feel. With this character in particular, we wanted to make sure that we were respectful to the culture and people who gave inspiration to Spider-Weaver, so we worked extensively with both Marvel and our own cultural consultant – a Navajo artist – to ensure we were creating someone who was authentic, respectful and a worthy addition to the Marvel universe.

Spider-Weaver is unlockable now in “MARVEL Strike Force.” Swing into the game to see her in action!