Hey, @jameslashomb.
It's probably time they made a decent Spider-man game. I think I may have tried to play an earlier version (can't remember which), and really never got into it for all the reasons you describe.
My sons both have it now, and with the opportunities they've had to play it so far, they echo what you've said about how good the game is. I'm not sure how much of the side quests they'll do, but they do like to do that kind of thing.
I'm kind of surprised about not having enough bosses. Some games I've played over the years had way too many, or they seemed pretty tough to beat. I admit to being a button masher, though. :)