Venom is not only one of the most iconic Spider-Man villains, he’s also one of the most famous villains in comics and pop culture in general. While the Venom symbiote was originally introduced as a living alien costume in The Amazing Spider-Man #252 (May 1984), his first full appearance as Venom was in The Amazing Spider-Man #300 (May 1988). That means Venom is now 40 years old, and that he’s also been in video games almost as long.

In the meantime, you can head on over here for our review of Sony Pictures’ Venom The Last Dance, which is now showing in cinemas. Or you can head on over here for our breakdown of the movie’s ending and post-credits scenes. The latest entry in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (SSU), Venom The Last Dance is now showing in cinemas.

Let the symbiote madness commence below:

The Amazing Spider-Man (1990)

Developed by Rare, this game is notable for being the first game to ever feature Venom in any capacity. For context, Venom only made his first debut two years before this simple side-scrolling platformer game launched for the Nintendo Game Boy. However, Venom is only one of the enemies in the game and he’s not playable in 1990’s The Amazing Spider-Man. Still, this game deserves to be on this list because it was Venom’s first-ever appearance in a video game, so that’s a historic moment in time.

Spider-Man And Venom Maximum Carnage (1994)

It would be four years later before Venom became playable for the first time in video game history with Spider-Man And Venom Maximum Carnage. It was a side-scrolling beat ’em up game (where you could choose to either play as Spider-Man or Venom) for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Mega Drive/Genesis developed by Software Creations. This game is a classic for a reason and a remaster or remake would probably be a hit if it ever gets made.

Marvel Vs. Capcom Clash of Super Heroes (1998) And Subsequent MvC Games

Developed by Capcom, Marvel Vs. Capcom remains one of the most popular fighting game franchises to this day (though we still don’t have a new entry for current-gen platforms) and this was the one that started it all. Many 90s and early 2000s kids probably became Venom fans because of how awesome Venom’s fighting moves are in this game. Venom would go on to become a mainstay of the roster in every Marvel Vs Capcom game until the most recent entry, 2017’s Marvel Vs Capcom Infinite.

Spider-Man (2000)

Before 2004’s Spider-Man 2 and 2018’s Marvel’s Spider-Man, many fans considered this to be one of the best and most definitive Spider-Man games. This game featured Venom as one of the bosses and he’s rendered in full 3D for the first time in a video game, which makes his appearance in this game notable and worth mentioning on this list. Even though he looks dated by today’s standard, back then, this blew the minds of many young comic book fans out there.

Marvel Nemesis Rise Of The Imperfects (2005)

Back in 2005, Marvel Nemesis Rise Of The Imperfects was an arena fighting game with Marvel characters and bizarre original fighters created by EA. It was poorly received and quickly became forgotten but it featured Venom as one of its playable characters in its roster, so it’s still worth mentioning on this list. That being said, we don’t think EA will ever bring this game back for a remaster or remake.

Ultimate Spider-Man (2005)

For Venom in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, it’s clear that Insomniac Games was probably most inspired by the version of Venom in Treyarch’s Ultimate Spider-Man game, especially in the way that this Venom moves, attacks and other similarities. It was the first open-world Spider-Man game to feature Venom as a playable character and this is the first time that the ultimate universe version of the character is adapted into a video game. One aspect that this playable venom is better than even Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is that you can actually spend time exploring the open world with this Venom (while you can’t in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2.

The Marvel Ultimate Alliance Games (2006, 2009, 2019)

The Marvel Ultimate Alliance games remain one of the best Marvel game franchises featuring Diablo-like isometric action RPG gameplay. All three games featured Venom as a playable character, but if you’re wondering why you don’t remember Venom being in the first game, it’s because Venom as a playable character was exclusive to the Xbox 360 editions and the 2016 re-released versions of the game. However, both sequels, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 The Black Order, would later feature Venom as part of the main roster in all versions of both games.

Spider-Man Web Of Shadows (2009)

Spider-Man Web Of Shadows was notable for featuring symbiotes as a major focus of the game, and this includes Venom, of course. While Venom was not playable in the game, Spider-Man has access to the black suit, which is made of the Venom symbiote and comes with the symbiote abilities we all know and love. Venom and the symbiotes were a vital part of the game’s story and narrative.

LEGO Marvel Superheroes (2013)

LEGO Marvel Superheroes featured an adorable but still fearsome LEGO version of Venom. This Venom plays more like Hulk but that’s due to the limited gameplay mechanics of the LEGO games. Still, this is a fun game for gamers of all ages, and LEGO Venom is still Venom.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (2023)

Venom’s most recent and most highly-publicized appearance in a video game was, of course, his appearance in 2023’s Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. Venom is playable in this game but only for one brief part of the game. Another thing that makes this version of Venom unique is that it’s not Eddie Brock in the suit, but Harry Osborn instead, and it comes with the fairly new concept of symbiotes being the alien race known as Klyntar created by the symbiote god Knull (symbolized by the spiral symbol, which is featured in the game). This is also the best that Venom has ever looked in a game, which is no surprise considering that it’s the only current-gen (PS5, Xbox Series X/S) game on this list.