14 DAY TRIAL // 
It’s no secret that Marvel’s Avengers was not met with outstanding enthusiasm, even after several updates remaining a deeply flawed experience. After a plethora of not very flattering words, among them greedy, Square Enix made another pass at making a successful superhero game. Is Marvel’s Guardian’s of the Galaxy a crowd pleaser or rather a half-baked plan that Star-Lord would cook up?
The Marvel universe exploded in the last decade converting into fans a lot of people that before wouldn’t even look at comic books. Riding this wave of popularity Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, developed by Eidos Montreal tries to convince us that not Sony can make quality video games starring superheroes – or rather a band of misfits incorporated into the Gardeners of the Galaxy.
The new game is faithful to the source material, oozing a peculiar sense of humor created by the various tensions among the team members, a soundtrack that is full of earworms and a story that flies you around the most iconic locations from the comics. Although no one is missing from the band of misfits, you will be able to directly control only the leader of the gang, Star-Lord. The presence of Gamora, Drax, Rocket and Groot does not feel secondary though, thanks to their endless banter on the Milano and the need to use their special abilities in the battles.
When they are not fighting a doomsday cult, vicious alien creatures or the Nova Corps, our heroes are fighting among themselves. These conflicts although mostly light, in some key points of the story will take a serious turn doing a great job of presenting the challenges of a dysfunctional family. Although the drama cannot be really taken seriously, the developers managed to recreate the atmosphere so typical to the Guardians of the Galaxy universe even better than the movies did.
A big part of the experience is the story, that condenses into 18-20 hours a tale that would have taken a few dozen comic issues at least to tell. Things always seem to go from bad to worse and you will constantly feel that you are the underdog messing with the most powerful forces of the galaxy. Thankfully the events are not a rehash of the movies but are presenting an original adventure rooted in the comics universe. It is not a Nobel worthy masterpiece, but it is fun and manages to keep you engaged for the length of the entire game.
This also means that the characters are based on the heroes from the comics, and not the Hollywood super stars. To ease the pain of those who only ever met the Guardians on the silver screen, among the numerous collectibles hidden in the levels are costumes that are based on the movie. Although altogether linear, there are some important decisions that you need to make, that will influence how things unfold. At one point for example you can decide if you want to scam a very powerful and spiteful lady by either selling Groot or Rocket as a rare monster.
Some of the previously mentioned collectibles are accessible also only if you gain the trust of a key character. All these choices, small and big, give replay value to the game, those who want to see everything that Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy has to offer, will want to play it at least twice. The collectibles mostly offer insight in the lore, either by giving background info or by igniting revealing conversations between the Guardians. The most coveted ones will be the different skins, devilishly placed, that cannot always be picked up in the very moment you spot them.
Next to the story and exploring the different levels, you will be involved in equally chaotic and spectacular fights. Equipped with two blasters and a set of special abilities, you will have to go through of countless waves of opponents. Although you don’t control anyone but Star-Lord you can call upon the help of your fellow Guardians by giving them orders related to their special abilities. These can be upgraded by investing points resulted from the experience conferred by every fight.
The battle system is flawed, but enjoyable. For example, the autotargeting sounds like a good idea, except it is very hard to change targets and this makes it almost impossible to focus on the opponent that may heal the others. Things are made worse by the camera that often positions itself in impossible angles, during both the dialogues and the fight sequences. On the other hand, the mechanism of the huddles is refreshing, and fun: giving the appropriate pep-talk to your fellow heroes can recharge their HP and give you free use of their special abilities for a limited amount of time.
Visually the game looks very convincing. The artists dreamed up huge spaces that have a typical sci-fi grandeur to them, no matter if they are iconic landmarks as Knowhere or new locations. In general, the game has a steady framerate, even when the screen is full of enemies and FX. The control can feel chunky, especially if you unlocked several special abilities for each hero and you want to call upon them during a heated battle. The only major issues are the different interactions with lore items and conversations that sometimes leave Star-Lord stuck in one place and irresponsive to controls. In these cases, the only solution is to reload the last checkpoint, a gamble that may take you back to a stage from even 20 minutes earlier.
The Good
- Very atmospheric visuals
- Great dialogues and atmosphere
- Engaging story
The Bad
- Glitched lore items and dialogues
- Chaotic combat system
- The checkpoint system
Conclusion
It does not miss the multiplayer or co-op experience at all, and you can feel that it was made with care. Guardians of the Galaxy makes us forget about the grindy gameplay of Avengers and proves that Square Enix can deliver an engaging experience.
Review code provided by the publisher.
