well we now have the sequel to the MCU, the MGU.
The Guardians of the Galaxy are underdogs within the Marvel universe as they’re not as popular as the X-Men, strong as the Avengers, or optimistic as the Fantastic Four. But the strengths of those three teams has rarely resulted in a good video game, which was most recently seen in 2020’s soulless Avengers title. In true dark horse fashion, Eidos-Montréal’s Guardians of the Galaxy game provides an excellently told story, well-defined characters, strategic combat, and beautiful alien worlds and comes in where Marvel’s other hero squads couldn’t.
Read the full review here:
https://www.comingsoon.net/games/reviews/1198037-guardians-of-the-galaxy-review-ps5
Read the full review here:
https://www.comingsoon.net/games/reviews/1198037-guardians-of-the-galaxy-review-ps5
This game was super enjoyable and an absolute blast to play through. Easily the most expansive form of media for the GotG universe outside of comics and has some of the best versions of these characters to date. I personally think its among the best comic book video games of all time. The soundtrack is fantastic and aside from some minor texture glitches here and there the graphics are great. With many Easter eggs to other Marvel properties and GotG comics, It also tells a very great and unique story and has some really cool boss fights. With no microtransactions its fun to just try to find the collectibles like in say Spiderman but in much more linear map. I do hope we get another game in this universe due to the potential this game showed for a further universe.
so the two ways to do a guardians of the galaxy game were to do mass effect or do tales from the borderlands and now that both have been tried, I like the mass effect one more (is it opposite day?), but both weren't great. the combat is only good in hectic situations, and it takes over half the games length to get hectic.
the dialogue was mostly fine (aside from the quips when you use the guardians which are just terrible) but this game has the worst line cut off I have ever seen in a game. if you move forward out of the tiny zone where a dialogue is active, the dialogue will be cut for another one, and you will not hear it again. it makes you want to stand still to hear instead of move forward and listen. not fun.
also has some major framerate issues on ps5 performance. i don't think it ever dropped below 30 but it got close, which is bad for 60fps target, and it wasn't just during combat, it was during whenever something open was on screen. during the second to last level it got so bad I considered just going to the 30 mode because at least it would be capped. i can't imagine how bad it is on the ps4 or xbox one.
the dialogue was mostly fine (aside from the quips when you use the guardians which are just terrible) but this game has the worst line cut off I have ever seen in a game. if you move forward out of the tiny zone where a dialogue is active, the dialogue will be cut for another one, and you will not hear it again. it makes you want to stand still to hear instead of move forward and listen. not fun.
also has some major framerate issues on ps5 performance. i don't think it ever dropped below 30 but it got close, which is bad for 60fps target, and it wasn't just during combat, it was during whenever something open was on screen. during the second to last level it got so bad I considered just going to the 30 mode because at least it would be capped. i can't imagine how bad it is on the ps4 or xbox one.
I feel bad for Eidos, The Avengers game was such a mess, such a dumpster fire, that it really put an uncertain cloud over this one but... wow wow wow WHAT! To my surprise this is... this is really good, and really fun?? It has so much heart and even though you could squint and it'd be a bit MCU-y, it still really stands on its own two legs as a Marvel adventure game. Yes. More Marvel stories in THIS format please!
This game slaps so hard!
It's got fun combat that stays enjoyable and thrilling the whole way through, solid mechanics, beautiful presentation, and a story that hit so many emotional notes and was a lot heavier than I expected which I loved.
I really wish I could play this on next gen hardware because I feel last gen doesn't do it justice but it was still so much fun regardless.
It's got fun combat that stays enjoyable and thrilling the whole way through, solid mechanics, beautiful presentation, and a story that hit so many emotional notes and was a lot heavier than I expected which I loved.
I really wish I could play this on next gen hardware because I feel last gen doesn't do it justice but it was still so much fun regardless.
flarking great
Cosmo. Best Boy.
Story, characters, and dialogue were the stars of this show. The variation in environments a joy to experience too. Also had the right amount of exploration for a linear game and just the right length at 15-20 hrs.
Combat was plenty of fun, but it could have been harder. Once you learn your best ability combos it becomes very satisfying, but can be a little one-note. I should have played on the harder difficulty, because on normal I literally never died.
Very little replay value aside from achievement hunting and collecting outfits but overall 100% worth a playthrough.
Combat was plenty of fun, but it could have been harder. Once you learn your best ability combos it becomes very satisfying, but can be a little one-note. I should have played on the harder difficulty, because on normal I literally never died.
Very little replay value aside from achievement hunting and collecting outfits but overall 100% worth a playthrough.
I grew weary of the characters squabbling, the word “flark”, the constant slides and gaps, and the combat/cutscene/combat/cutscene nature of the closing chapters. I still loved it. It has such great emotional highs and a chaotic joyousness pumping through its veins that kept me smiling and wanting more. It proves in this day and age that a linear AAA game can still offer up imaginative, wondrous ideas and sights. As a result it feels like a refreshing rarity in the current “bigger is better” market. Thank goodness it’s a single player game too and one that takes the time to build a complex, heartfelt narrative around its protagonist.
Tudo que o jogo dos Vingadores nao foi pqp
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Gotta hand it to Eidos, I was very, VERY pleasantly surprised by this game.
Screeching and clawing it's way from the debris and rubble left in the wake of Marvel's Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy trades in the kitschy, overwhelming Games as a Service model for a more laser focused, narrative driven single player experience that mostly pays off.
Hands down, the strongest part of this game is the story. Equal parts heart wrenching and heartfelt, and supplemented by thoughtful performances from little known talent that are adeptly brought to life by stellar animation and art direction all add to the strengths that this game's narrative boasts. Rocket is really fucking annoying and only gets bearable by the end. I'd say the most endearing part about this game is just how much player choice there is and how much it truly does contribute to this feeling of being a fast talking, gun slinging space renegade when more often than not you have to talk your way out of cinematic situations rather than watch a cutscene where everything happens for you.
While playing, I think I realized that the fabled "AAA Guardians of the Galaxy videogame" fantasy I had always had was fulfilled perfectly by this game, and that's not a particularly amazing feat, because I am not a professional game designer.
Combat is a bit too sandbaggy, certain enemies have far too much health and ability cooldowns are excruciatingly long so more often than not you just kind of end up strafing and shooting at the same guy for like two minutes. Frankly, I'd recommend playing on Hard if you want the most fulfilling experience with this game, as you're never really endangered enough to waste a Huddle on a particular-- OH and the Huddle Mechanic
I could talk about the Huddle Mechanic all damn day, but ultimately I think my thoughts on it mostly boil down to this: It takes too long to charge up for a short buff, half of the dialogue in the huddle itself is really really cheesy, and it's a tossup as to whether or not you get a really cool song or a dud from the licensed soundtrack once it's all over, but godDAMN if it isn't a remarkably ambitious and cool idea, if the game gets a sequel I'd love to see it refined just a tad.
Overall, this game dips in the middle with a lot of shooting galleries that kind of get frustrating, but the excellent writing and character on display here make every second of this game worth it.
Solid 8/10
Gotta hand it to Eidos, I was very, VERY pleasantly surprised by this game.
Screeching and clawing it's way from the debris and rubble left in the wake of Marvel's Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy trades in the kitschy, overwhelming Games as a Service model for a more laser focused, narrative driven single player experience that mostly pays off.
Hands down, the strongest part of this game is the story. Equal parts heart wrenching and heartfelt, and supplemented by thoughtful performances from little known talent that are adeptly brought to life by stellar animation and art direction all add to the strengths that this game's narrative boasts. Rocket is really fucking annoying and only gets bearable by the end. I'd say the most endearing part about this game is just how much player choice there is and how much it truly does contribute to this feeling of being a fast talking, gun slinging space renegade when more often than not you have to talk your way out of cinematic situations rather than watch a cutscene where everything happens for you.
While playing, I think I realized that the fabled "AAA Guardians of the Galaxy videogame" fantasy I had always had was fulfilled perfectly by this game, and that's not a particularly amazing feat, because I am not a professional game designer.
Combat is a bit too sandbaggy, certain enemies have far too much health and ability cooldowns are excruciatingly long so more often than not you just kind of end up strafing and shooting at the same guy for like two minutes. Frankly, I'd recommend playing on Hard if you want the most fulfilling experience with this game, as you're never really endangered enough to waste a Huddle on a particular-- OH and the Huddle Mechanic
I could talk about the Huddle Mechanic all damn day, but ultimately I think my thoughts on it mostly boil down to this: It takes too long to charge up for a short buff, half of the dialogue in the huddle itself is really really cheesy, and it's a tossup as to whether or not you get a really cool song or a dud from the licensed soundtrack once it's all over, but godDAMN if it isn't a remarkably ambitious and cool idea, if the game gets a sequel I'd love to see it refined just a tad.
Overall, this game dips in the middle with a lot of shooting galleries that kind of get frustrating, but the excellent writing and character on display here make every second of this game worth it.
Solid 8/10
Sorprendentemente, Guardian's of the Galaxy tiene todo para ser un candidato a Game of the Year.
Pese a que su gameplay está contenido a solo Star-Lord, Eidos logra que la dinámica con el resto de personajes al que podemos controlar a través de comandos rápidos al estilo FFVII se sienta fluida, y aunque las primeras habilidades de todos los Guardianes podrían considerarse como las mejores, haciendo al resto un tanto superfluas, son lo suficientemente interesantes para ponerse a descubrir la mejor manera de combinarlas.
Donde el juego verdaderamente brilla es en su historia y el ritmo de la misma, desde el inicio hasta el final no recuerdo un solo punto en donde llegara a cansarme o se sintiera aletargada. Más que personajes al servicio de su historia, es al revés, con cada uno de los Guardianes tiene un desarrollo que si me preguntan, supera a lo que ha hecho James Gunn con dos películas.
Incluso el sistema de decisiones, que pensarías no es más que una serie de mecánicas inconsecuentes tienen un impacto sorprendentemente relevante en cómo progresa la historia (y hasta su escena post-créditos).
Tiene suficientes guiños al vasto universo cósmico de Marvel, un soundtrack increíble y muchísima rejugabilidad. Imperdible.
Pese a que su gameplay está contenido a solo Star-Lord, Eidos logra que la dinámica con el resto de personajes al que podemos controlar a través de comandos rápidos al estilo FFVII se sienta fluida, y aunque las primeras habilidades de todos los Guardianes podrían considerarse como las mejores, haciendo al resto un tanto superfluas, son lo suficientemente interesantes para ponerse a descubrir la mejor manera de combinarlas.
Donde el juego verdaderamente brilla es en su historia y el ritmo de la misma, desde el inicio hasta el final no recuerdo un solo punto en donde llegara a cansarme o se sintiera aletargada. Más que personajes al servicio de su historia, es al revés, con cada uno de los Guardianes tiene un desarrollo que si me preguntan, supera a lo que ha hecho James Gunn con dos películas.
Incluso el sistema de decisiones, que pensarías no es más que una serie de mecánicas inconsecuentes tienen un impacto sorprendentemente relevante en cómo progresa la historia (y hasta su escena post-créditos).
Tiene suficientes guiños al vasto universo cósmico de Marvel, un soundtrack increíble y muchísima rejugabilidad. Imperdible.
I saw this game showcased during E3, and I found it interesting. I’ve been a fan of the GoTG movies since the first one came out, so I decided to get it. The gameplay and story looked good.
After playing and getting 100% in it, I can say it’s certainly not a bad game, but I would not recommend getting it full price.
The story was not long at all; I could finish multiple chapters in a single gaming session of 3-4 hours. With only 16 chapters and the majority of them being an hour or less, I found the game to feel short.
The actual story itself was really good and absolutely carried the game. Yes the story follows the movies, but even if someone had only seen one of them, you could understand the story well. The characters acted the same as they do in the movies, which was great. I was worried that the characters wouldn’t feel familiar.
Gameplay was also very fun. The combat system I really enjoyed, and even though you can’t fully control the Guardians except for Star-Lord, it worked. The enemies and boss fights were fun to do, and the unique enemies were fun to find ways to defeat.
So if I’m complimenting the game, why did I rate it low? Well, it’s the bugs and frame rate.
My PS4 is almost two years old, which certainly isn’t bad. I’d assumed that since it ran Cyberpunk 2077 very well, it would run GoTG well. But I was mistaken.
The game crashed multiple times in the middle of cutscenes (I lucked out and didn’t have it crash during a battle). The cutscenes themselves would be good quality one minute, then very grainy the next.
The frame rate was a huge issue for me in battles. It was so bad that sometimes the game would freeze and I’d have to wait for it to unfreeze. It would take almost a minute to unfreeze itself. The frame rate didn’t just affect gameplay, cutscenes were also affected. Having a laggy cutscene is never fun.
The bugs were also bad. Sometimes Star-Lord would get stuck in like a random bush and couldn’t get out of it unless I reloaded the save file. And one time, somehow, the optional dialogue options got stuck on the screen and wouldn’t go away unless I fully closed the game.
GoTG was a fun game with a great story, but the bugs and frame rate issues killed it. Out of 5 stars, I rate it a 3.
After playing and getting 100% in it, I can say it’s certainly not a bad game, but I would not recommend getting it full price.
The story was not long at all; I could finish multiple chapters in a single gaming session of 3-4 hours. With only 16 chapters and the majority of them being an hour or less, I found the game to feel short.
The actual story itself was really good and absolutely carried the game. Yes the story follows the movies, but even if someone had only seen one of them, you could understand the story well. The characters acted the same as they do in the movies, which was great. I was worried that the characters wouldn’t feel familiar.
Gameplay was also very fun. The combat system I really enjoyed, and even though you can’t fully control the Guardians except for Star-Lord, it worked. The enemies and boss fights were fun to do, and the unique enemies were fun to find ways to defeat.
So if I’m complimenting the game, why did I rate it low? Well, it’s the bugs and frame rate.
My PS4 is almost two years old, which certainly isn’t bad. I’d assumed that since it ran Cyberpunk 2077 very well, it would run GoTG well. But I was mistaken.
The game crashed multiple times in the middle of cutscenes (I lucked out and didn’t have it crash during a battle). The cutscenes themselves would be good quality one minute, then very grainy the next.
The frame rate was a huge issue for me in battles. It was so bad that sometimes the game would freeze and I’d have to wait for it to unfreeze. It would take almost a minute to unfreeze itself. The frame rate didn’t just affect gameplay, cutscenes were also affected. Having a laggy cutscene is never fun.
The bugs were also bad. Sometimes Star-Lord would get stuck in like a random bush and couldn’t get out of it unless I reloaded the save file. And one time, somehow, the optional dialogue options got stuck on the screen and wouldn’t go away unless I fully closed the game.
GoTG was a fun game with a great story, but the bugs and frame rate issues killed it. Out of 5 stars, I rate it a 3.
I rarely play a game because of it's narrative, the story or the characters. For Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy I made an exception.
I'm a gigantic fan of the GotG comics, the first guardians as much as the current ones. I honestly don't have that much to say about gameplay. It was inoffensive enough to me that it carried me through the game. It's not very varied but keeps introducing new elements at a good rate so the experience doesn't go stale. The spectacle is amped up to 11, set piece after set piece with this one. The Boss fights were my personal highpoints. All of them are fantastically executed.
However the heart and soul of this game are the characters. This game absolutley nails the new guardians, better than the James Gunn movies did. The relationship between these wacky misfits is a complete blast throughout. The first half hour starts kinda slow but after that I had to force myself to put it down. The characters, their arcs, developments and relationships are nicely interweaved with the gameplay.
They could have coasted on the fan service for all I cared and told a milktoast story to sell some copies. However they went above and beyond with the actual plot of the game. I shit you not this game tells a amazingly mature story about grief, loss, letting go and how important the people are around you are to move on. It honestly all came beautifully full circle while firmly remaining a GotG adventure throughout.
I'm biased but they really nailed this one for me personally. Some technical issues but there's so much to love here I'm honestly stunned.
I expected the worst and got the best.
I'm a gigantic fan of the GotG comics, the first guardians as much as the current ones. I honestly don't have that much to say about gameplay. It was inoffensive enough to me that it carried me through the game. It's not very varied but keeps introducing new elements at a good rate so the experience doesn't go stale. The spectacle is amped up to 11, set piece after set piece with this one. The Boss fights were my personal highpoints. All of them are fantastically executed.
However the heart and soul of this game are the characters. This game absolutley nails the new guardians, better than the James Gunn movies did. The relationship between these wacky misfits is a complete blast throughout. The first half hour starts kinda slow but after that I had to force myself to put it down. The characters, their arcs, developments and relationships are nicely interweaved with the gameplay.
They could have coasted on the fan service for all I cared and told a milktoast story to sell some copies. However they went above and beyond with the actual plot of the game. I shit you not this game tells a amazingly mature story about grief, loss, letting go and how important the people are around you are to move on. It honestly all came beautifully full circle while firmly remaining a GotG adventure throughout.
I'm biased but they really nailed this one for me personally. Some technical issues but there's so much to love here I'm honestly stunned.
I expected the worst and got the best.
cringe disney
garbage honestly
garbage honestly
Guardians of the Galaxy had a tough pre-release. Coming off of Square Enix's first venture into the Marvel multiverse with last year's misguided Avengers, people were reasonably hesitant when yet another Marvel project appeared on the horizon.
The good news is that this game is fantastic and will likely go down as one of the surprise hits of 2021. Square's Guardians of the Galaxy is, ironically, the antithesis of Square's Avengers: a no-frills single-player campaign with excellent writing, fun combat and. best of all, no microtransactions.
The story is absolutely great. You can tell that these writers truly loved getting to play in the Guardians toy box and that they really understand what makes the core five members of the team tick. There is so much dialogue in this game that I only ever heard repeated lines during a few of the longer boss fights, and it never gets old. Several of the game's one-liners really made me crack up. There are some serious heartfelt moments too, this game never loses sight of it's emotional core and towards the end there are a few parts that really tug at the heartstrings if you get attached to the characters like I did. There's some real surprises in here as well. I do wish Gamora got as much time to build her character as Rocket and Drax get to build theirs, she has a few moments here and there but unfortunately they do feel a bit like afterthoughts. Maybe on a different playthrough there's more of that because the story can change depending on the dialogue choices you make.
The combat is the real star of the show here. While you can only play as Star-Lord, you can indirectly control the other four members of the group using Guardians Mode. Each of the other Guardians have their own abilities and specialties in combat: Gamora deals high damage, Drax helps build finisher bars, Rocket has AOE attacks and Groot specializes in defense and support. All four Guardians are absolutely necessary to optimize combat, and when one isn't in your party because of story reasons you really feel their absense.
And of course I'd be remiss not to mention the best part of the game, which is the Huddle. As you fight you'll fill up your Huddle meter, which when filled allows you to gather the Guardians for a pep talk. Choose the right dialogue option and everyone will be buffed, and Star-Lord will play a classic 80's tune on his Walkman for everyone to enjoy. The songs are randomized, so you might be treated to some hair metal, a power ballad, and for some reason Don't Worry Be Happy. It's hilarious how some of the songs either energize you to fight like crazy or completely defuse any tension in combat with a particularly silly choice.
There are a few qualms, like some minor bugs like text getting stuck on screen or once spawning out of a cutscene that do force a reload (thankfully the game autosaves frequently), and they made the collectible costumes for the Guardians way too hard to find, I was actively keeping an eye out for them during my playthrough but I only found three out of the over thirty included. In the end though these are very minor gripes.
Guardians of the Galaxy isn't just Square's redemption for Avengers, it's genuinely the best game I've played this year. It's a must-play for Marvel fans, or anyone who's looking for something great to play over the holiday season. Check it out.
TL;DR - I am Groot.
The good news is that this game is fantastic and will likely go down as one of the surprise hits of 2021. Square's Guardians of the Galaxy is, ironically, the antithesis of Square's Avengers: a no-frills single-player campaign with excellent writing, fun combat and. best of all, no microtransactions.
The story is absolutely great. You can tell that these writers truly loved getting to play in the Guardians toy box and that they really understand what makes the core five members of the team tick. There is so much dialogue in this game that I only ever heard repeated lines during a few of the longer boss fights, and it never gets old. Several of the game's one-liners really made me crack up. There are some serious heartfelt moments too, this game never loses sight of it's emotional core and towards the end there are a few parts that really tug at the heartstrings if you get attached to the characters like I did. There's some real surprises in here as well. I do wish Gamora got as much time to build her character as Rocket and Drax get to build theirs, she has a few moments here and there but unfortunately they do feel a bit like afterthoughts. Maybe on a different playthrough there's more of that because the story can change depending on the dialogue choices you make.
The combat is the real star of the show here. While you can only play as Star-Lord, you can indirectly control the other four members of the group using Guardians Mode. Each of the other Guardians have their own abilities and specialties in combat: Gamora deals high damage, Drax helps build finisher bars, Rocket has AOE attacks and Groot specializes in defense and support. All four Guardians are absolutely necessary to optimize combat, and when one isn't in your party because of story reasons you really feel their absense.
And of course I'd be remiss not to mention the best part of the game, which is the Huddle. As you fight you'll fill up your Huddle meter, which when filled allows you to gather the Guardians for a pep talk. Choose the right dialogue option and everyone will be buffed, and Star-Lord will play a classic 80's tune on his Walkman for everyone to enjoy. The songs are randomized, so you might be treated to some hair metal, a power ballad, and for some reason Don't Worry Be Happy. It's hilarious how some of the songs either energize you to fight like crazy or completely defuse any tension in combat with a particularly silly choice.
There are a few qualms, like some minor bugs like text getting stuck on screen or once spawning out of a cutscene that do force a reload (thankfully the game autosaves frequently), and they made the collectible costumes for the Guardians way too hard to find, I was actively keeping an eye out for them during my playthrough but I only found three out of the over thirty included. In the end though these are very minor gripes.
Guardians of the Galaxy isn't just Square's redemption for Avengers, it's genuinely the best game I've played this year. It's a must-play for Marvel fans, or anyone who's looking for something great to play over the holiday season. Check it out.
TL;DR - I am Groot.
Wonderful game. Not perfect, but a blast to play through.
In our current times where everything is open world and "games as a service" is a game like this extremely refreshing. Linear, super story driven and technically absolutely stunning. My god does it look insane in the native 4K quality mode.
Besides some bugs and glitches here and there and a fighting system that could have been a little bit better and more fleshed out, this was an incredibly satisfying experience.
Also 25 hours, not too long, not too short, basically perfect.
Games like this need to be supported and will always get my money.
In our current times where everything is open world and "games as a service" is a game like this extremely refreshing. Linear, super story driven and technically absolutely stunning. My god does it look insane in the native 4K quality mode.
Besides some bugs and glitches here and there and a fighting system that could have been a little bit better and more fleshed out, this was an incredibly satisfying experience.
Also 25 hours, not too long, not too short, basically perfect.
Games like this need to be supported and will always get my money.
Guardians is a fun time, with great writing and genuine heartfelt moments. It manages to provide a cinematic experience without taking anything away with the gameplay or player choice
Combat is fun, but the lack of varied abilities is what lets it down. You either choose a stagger ability, or the one that deals the most damage. More varied Guardian abilities would've been great and possibly the ability to play as the other characters, even if just for a short while.
I was sceptical about only being able to play as Star-Lord, but now I appreciate the choice. You feel like you're genuinely commanding a team and your choices impact you personally, as well as Star-Lord. You want your team members to get along, you sympathise with them and you feel relationships form, which would've been completely missed if you could play as the whole team.
The soundtrack is an absolute banger. Star-Lord, the fictional band created for the game, have tracks that genuinely sound like 80s billboard toppers. Your dad could easily be wearing a faded out version of their shirt
(Code provided for free by Square Enix)
Combat is fun, but the lack of varied abilities is what lets it down. You either choose a stagger ability, or the one that deals the most damage. More varied Guardian abilities would've been great and possibly the ability to play as the other characters, even if just for a short while.
I was sceptical about only being able to play as Star-Lord, but now I appreciate the choice. You feel like you're genuinely commanding a team and your choices impact you personally, as well as Star-Lord. You want your team members to get along, you sympathise with them and you feel relationships form, which would've been completely missed if you could play as the whole team.
The soundtrack is an absolute banger. Star-Lord, the fictional band created for the game, have tracks that genuinely sound like 80s billboard toppers. Your dad could easily be wearing a faded out version of their shirt
(Code provided for free by Square Enix)
A confusing game considering it comes out from the same publisher in the same franchise with similar third person action gameplay, yet this game is structually the opposite of the Avengers game. It's just a straight up linear single player triple A game.
The main focus of the game is the relationship between the main characters, and this is usually only something done in JRPGs but here its done a little differently, the combat system is simple but by no means bad, it's fun and flashy. You can jump and boost around wildly while blasting enemies with your low damage pistols, while commanding your teammates to do specific high damage attacks. The main problem with the system is that at the start, it's far too simple. The variety of enemies is good and there is some environmental interaction as well.
The other aspect to the game worth mentioning is the telltale style dialogue choices, these are pretty simple but i found it made long story segments more interesting, and there are a couple choices that actually have a significant effect on gameplay, as i discovered in my second playthrough.
The story is a bit rough around the edges, and some of the dialouge is irritating, like when characters insult you for exploring the map instead of continuing with the main path. But by the end I did really end up liking all the characters, though I would say Gamora's arc is very rushed.
The visuals on this game are incredible, the lighting environments and the facial animation are top of the line, which should be expected considering this game is literally just a very linear campaign with no side modes or multiplayer elements, which is totally fine, but I would say the price is a bit high (£50 on steam which is a bit too much and £60 on playstation which is definately too much.)
All in all Guardians of the Galaxy is a fun, fast paced action game with a suprisingly good story, and plenty of fun gimmicks to break up story and gameplay. The visuals are incredible and it's refreshing to see a game that doesn't have ambitions way above what it's offering. However for what this is the price is a bit too steep, and I could see many people not wanting to pay full price considering the (fairly lengthy) single player campaign is all there is.
The main focus of the game is the relationship between the main characters, and this is usually only something done in JRPGs but here its done a little differently, the combat system is simple but by no means bad, it's fun and flashy. You can jump and boost around wildly while blasting enemies with your low damage pistols, while commanding your teammates to do specific high damage attacks. The main problem with the system is that at the start, it's far too simple. The variety of enemies is good and there is some environmental interaction as well.
The other aspect to the game worth mentioning is the telltale style dialogue choices, these are pretty simple but i found it made long story segments more interesting, and there are a couple choices that actually have a significant effect on gameplay, as i discovered in my second playthrough.
The story is a bit rough around the edges, and some of the dialouge is irritating, like when characters insult you for exploring the map instead of continuing with the main path. But by the end I did really end up liking all the characters, though I would say Gamora's arc is very rushed.
The visuals on this game are incredible, the lighting environments and the facial animation are top of the line, which should be expected considering this game is literally just a very linear campaign with no side modes or multiplayer elements, which is totally fine, but I would say the price is a bit high (£50 on steam which is a bit too much and £60 on playstation which is definately too much.)
All in all Guardians of the Galaxy is a fun, fast paced action game with a suprisingly good story, and plenty of fun gimmicks to break up story and gameplay. The visuals are incredible and it's refreshing to see a game that doesn't have ambitions way above what it's offering. However for what this is the price is a bit too steep, and I could see many people not wanting to pay full price considering the (fairly lengthy) single player campaign is all there is.
Overall a really solid linear/single-player experience that the Avengers game failed to achieve. This is basically what people wanted out of a Square Enix and Marvel partnership so it was strange that this got a lot of hate when it was first announced. There's a lot of creativity here with the Marvel universe foundation, and Guardians of the Galaxy actually drew from a lot of deeper cuts from the comics, as well as managing to touch on some more unique aspects story-wise. It still felt like the MCU's shadow was looming over it, as if the developers couldn't stray too far from the movie material (which isn't completely a bad thing, those movies added a lot of needed characterization to the Guardians cast), but this game manages to stand out on it's own.
There's a lot of nitpicks I had, though, such as getting all the upgrades and abilities when I was only a little over halfway through the game despite continuing to get the materials for upgrades, or encountering a ton of bugs where I had to reload saves. I got the feeling that with the poor reception of Avengers this game was rushed out before it could be as polished as it needed to be. Near the end the game also began to get a bit repetitive and turned into me just mindlessly playing as I tried to get to the ending as fast as possible.
From that first overly long trailer at the Square Enix E3 presentation I knew Guardians of the Galaxy would at least be fun, but I didn't expect the story to actually get pretty heartfelt. As someone that already enjoys these characters from their past material in comics and movies it ended up being more of what I enjoyed, and I hope if Eidos-Montréal makes another Guardians or Marvel game it will have a bit more to it and some more time to iron out the kinks.
There's a lot of nitpicks I had, though, such as getting all the upgrades and abilities when I was only a little over halfway through the game despite continuing to get the materials for upgrades, or encountering a ton of bugs where I had to reload saves. I got the feeling that with the poor reception of Avengers this game was rushed out before it could be as polished as it needed to be. Near the end the game also began to get a bit repetitive and turned into me just mindlessly playing as I tried to get to the ending as fast as possible.
From that first overly long trailer at the Square Enix E3 presentation I knew Guardians of the Galaxy would at least be fun, but I didn't expect the story to actually get pretty heartfelt. As someone that already enjoys these characters from their past material in comics and movies it ended up being more of what I enjoyed, and I hope if Eidos-Montréal makes another Guardians or Marvel game it will have a bit more to it and some more time to iron out the kinks.
This review contains spoilers
How catastrophically stupid of S-E to chase the GAAS train with Avengers when they have studios this capable. GOTG is a wonderful, cartoony slice of comic action, absolutely the kind of games that should be coming out of the MCU partnership.
For anyone on the fence, consider GOTG as Uncharted except the cover shooting bits are swapped with much more freeform flashy combat (that is a bit of a mix of ME: Andromeda, Avengers, and Tales of Arise).
Some things I disliked:
If I never hear the word flark again, it'll be too soon.
Sometimes the emotional up and downbeats are predictable to the point of fatigue. It is also hard to place how long the Guardians have been together; are they a grizzled squad or greenhorns in friendship. It still feels like they hate each other at the beginning, it's a bit strange.
Speaking of hating me, most of the game my crew will whine and moan if I do the videogame thing and go off the beaten path to look for the big shiny collectibles. That shit got annoying real fast. Rocket is also truly insufferable for a large portion of the game, surprisingly, and I wanted to shoot him out the airlock.
This might be a bit unfair, but it would be interesting to see someone with a motivation or tragic backstory that doesn't revolve around a dead loved one. That is EVERYone in this game, except maybe the communist mewtwo dog Cosmo.
I had a few bugs on the PC version. The most consistent one would cut out dialogue or mute characters during exploration, like the proximity-based audio was thoroughly glitched. So I missed out on bits and pieces of a lot of banter. Other than that, technical performance was pretty solid.
Things I liked:
This game is wonderfully economical. It will throw beautiful vistas, skyboxes, and new worlds to explore but is not afraid to hide some "backtracking" in clever ways. Exploration is also rewarded with fun outfits that you can actually see in most of the games cutscenes. I loved collecting fucking ponchos in Jedi Fallen Order so im just a sucker for collectible cosmetics like this.
The shooting is fun man. I never felt like the game was "unfair" or "bullet spongey" on hard, and the ramp up in battle complexity is paced perfectly with the doling out of new abilities. Very satisfying, but not very complex, which you probably don't want for a breezy adventure game like this.
People reflexively dunked on the Guardians designs when the game was first unveiled at E3 but tbh theyre good. Gamora is better, Drax is better, Rocket and Groot are basically the same. Peter Quill looks dorky...but he is, he's a fucking dork.
Is the story of this game a takedown of fanatical religious fundamentalism? I dunno, but I could interpret it that way if I wanted to. It's unflinchingly humanist; loss is inevitable, but it is what brings us together. Anything trying to tell us otherwise is a scam and pulls us apart; NovaCorps from those who it should protect, Cosmo from his litter, Drax from his new family, etc. Very solid emotional core for a AAA superhero game about leonardo dicaprio pointing at all the 80s songs.
For anyone on the fence, consider GOTG as Uncharted except the cover shooting bits are swapped with much more freeform flashy combat (that is a bit of a mix of ME: Andromeda, Avengers, and Tales of Arise).
Some things I disliked:
If I never hear the word flark again, it'll be too soon.
Sometimes the emotional up and downbeats are predictable to the point of fatigue. It is also hard to place how long the Guardians have been together; are they a grizzled squad or greenhorns in friendship. It still feels like they hate each other at the beginning, it's a bit strange.
Speaking of hating me, most of the game my crew will whine and moan if I do the videogame thing and go off the beaten path to look for the big shiny collectibles. That shit got annoying real fast. Rocket is also truly insufferable for a large portion of the game, surprisingly, and I wanted to shoot him out the airlock.
This might be a bit unfair, but it would be interesting to see someone with a motivation or tragic backstory that doesn't revolve around a dead loved one. That is EVERYone in this game, except maybe the communist mewtwo dog Cosmo.
I had a few bugs on the PC version. The most consistent one would cut out dialogue or mute characters during exploration, like the proximity-based audio was thoroughly glitched. So I missed out on bits and pieces of a lot of banter. Other than that, technical performance was pretty solid.
Things I liked:
This game is wonderfully economical. It will throw beautiful vistas, skyboxes, and new worlds to explore but is not afraid to hide some "backtracking" in clever ways. Exploration is also rewarded with fun outfits that you can actually see in most of the games cutscenes. I loved collecting fucking ponchos in Jedi Fallen Order so im just a sucker for collectible cosmetics like this.
The shooting is fun man. I never felt like the game was "unfair" or "bullet spongey" on hard, and the ramp up in battle complexity is paced perfectly with the doling out of new abilities. Very satisfying, but not very complex, which you probably don't want for a breezy adventure game like this.
People reflexively dunked on the Guardians designs when the game was first unveiled at E3 but tbh theyre good. Gamora is better, Drax is better, Rocket and Groot are basically the same. Peter Quill looks dorky...but he is, he's a fucking dork.
Is the story of this game a takedown of fanatical religious fundamentalism? I dunno, but I could interpret it that way if I wanted to. It's unflinchingly humanist; loss is inevitable, but it is what brings us together. Anything trying to tell us otherwise is a scam and pulls us apart; NovaCorps from those who it should protect, Cosmo from his litter, Drax from his new family, etc. Very solid emotional core for a AAA superhero game about leonardo dicaprio pointing at all the 80s songs.
Humor can be hit or miss but, at its core, Guardians of the Galaxy remains true to the spirit of the ragtag team of misfits by injecting them with a flarkload of heart and passion, replete with many quiet moments of empathy and growth amidst a sea of laughably easy combat encounters.
Eidos Montreal may have been toiling away in the Square Enix IP mines for a while but it's clear that they still have a team of talented creators at the helm. Would love for Square to let them finish Deus Ex now. Or any time. Please, I need more... I'm asking for it. It's been too long. Please, Square.
Eidos Montreal may have been toiling away in the Square Enix IP mines for a while but it's clear that they still have a team of talented creators at the helm. Would love for Square to let them finish Deus Ex now. Or any time. Please, I need more... I'm asking for it. It's been too long. Please, Square.
I think I liked this better than any of the Mass Effect sequels, lmfao. The Guardian's kits are eally fun and they synergize well, even if it's a little shallow. Setpieces were all fantastic, Eidos Montreal clearly did their homework on how to do "cinematic" stuff after the far more ludic Deus Ex games. If you like these characters, especially the James Gunn versions, you'll enjoy the hell out of this.
Edit: Bumped to 4 stars over 3.5, felt a little too low for something I think I enjoyed better than any of the Mass Effect sequels.
Edit: Bumped to 4 stars over 3.5, felt a little too low for something I think I enjoyed better than any of the Mass Effect sequels.
What this game lacked in polish it MORE than made up for with great writing, fantastic characters (some of my favorite in recent memory), and a whole lotta charm. It cannot be understated how well the dialogue is written, and don’t even get me started on the wonderful use of licensed music. The structure/pacing is fantastic as well and reminded me of when I played Uncharted for the first time as a kid. Overall this game made me feel like a kid again for 14 hours and provided me with quality, wholesome escapism
Guardians of the Galaxy is an unabashedly goofy game. Lots of humor, a lot of it works and got a decent amount of very hearty, very audible laughs out of me. Sometimes it doesn't work as well, but even then, as our protagonist would say in one of his teambuilding hype up monologues, there's a lot of heart here in this cast of characters and the story they stumble their way through.
The cast is the real highlight here. The team dynamic in this game, as in the chemistry between the cast members and their growth over the course of the game, is portrayed wonderfully and really gives the impression of a, somewhat dysfunctional but ultimately loving, family battling the odds. It just works. Even in the more low key and downer moments, the characters and their VAs simply sell it spectacularly. It's easy to care about these characters and easy to see their perspectives throughout the story.
The gameplay is probably the most divisive aspect about the game from what I've seen myself. I personally like it. It's a light action rpg with an Uncharted approach to linear game design. I personally think the combat works quite well. It's not spectacular really, but chaining team commands is not only quite fun, but contributes to the selling of the team building aspect of the story. I think the gameplay and story actually come together quite well in a theming sense at this aspect. The base gameplay itself was always engaging for me, and I never really had an issue with it outside of a little too much repeated enemies and some uninspired designs such as enemies that look almost literally like just globs of jello.
All in all, I didn't have high expectations coming in, but I came out with one of the best games of the year, and arguably the best marvel game in recent memory. Eidos has convinced me, and I'll be here and ready if they ever make a sequel.
The cast is the real highlight here. The team dynamic in this game, as in the chemistry between the cast members and their growth over the course of the game, is portrayed wonderfully and really gives the impression of a, somewhat dysfunctional but ultimately loving, family battling the odds. It just works. Even in the more low key and downer moments, the characters and their VAs simply sell it spectacularly. It's easy to care about these characters and easy to see their perspectives throughout the story.
The gameplay is probably the most divisive aspect about the game from what I've seen myself. I personally like it. It's a light action rpg with an Uncharted approach to linear game design. I personally think the combat works quite well. It's not spectacular really, but chaining team commands is not only quite fun, but contributes to the selling of the team building aspect of the story. I think the gameplay and story actually come together quite well in a theming sense at this aspect. The base gameplay itself was always engaging for me, and I never really had an issue with it outside of a little too much repeated enemies and some uninspired designs such as enemies that look almost literally like just globs of jello.
All in all, I didn't have high expectations coming in, but I came out with one of the best games of the year, and arguably the best marvel game in recent memory. Eidos has convinced me, and I'll be here and ready if they ever make a sequel.
After last years Avengers disaster it’s great to see a single player story driven game, that has no monetization, be great. Guardians of the Galaxy is the quintessential single player AAA game, it focuses on story and presentation over gameplay but it’s done with such care that it makes for an extremely enjoyable experience.
The structure follows the AAA playbook to a tee. It’s a very linear game with the usual small branches to find a hidden collectible. This game a game with the classic trope where you need to make a choice on which path to take , you want to take the one that leads to the hidden item but instead you take the story critical path and it immediately locks you from going back meaning you miss the item. There are a bunch of squeezing through tight quarters to hide loading (damn last gen). It has mild character building where you use whatever upgrade you find scattered around the level to level up abilities, by the end you will have way more than you ever need as everything will be maxed out. There are minor puzzles a baby can solve, simple platforming sections and the ever popular slide down a very long slope while moving side to side to avoid stuff. This game is not breaking any new ground, it’s as by the book as it comes.
The core combat is nothing to write home about either. You control Star Lord who can hover with jet boots and shoot his two laser guns at enemies. There is a charge shot, a dodge move (with slow down if you time it right), a melee attack, and a few special attacks that you can use that have a cool down. As the game progresses the guns earn elemental statuses that are used against enemies weak to that type. The rest of the team is controlled through commands issues by shortcuts, each member has four abilities all controlled by their own cooldown. The way it controls is similar to Mass Effect but with none of the depth of classes or any real strategy.
Most of the encounters are kind of chaotic with hordes of enemies of different types attacking the team. Most of the time you are just dodging attacks, spamming your guns and constantly cycling through the team attacks. Yes there is a strategy to taking some enemies down as there is a stagger bar and a health bar, bigger enemies need to be staggered to enter a weakened state where the damage dealers (gamora, rocket) can really unleash their best attacks. Also different team members can use environmental hazards to their advantage simply by highlighting it and pressing triangle. Knowing when to use the powers and in what order to maximize the effectiveness of the attacks is key to victory… well probably, I think you can just spam attacks and survive it just won’t look pretty. Some enemies have shields of a certain type so switching between elemental attacks is step one, then use a stun power from Groot or Drax then attack with Gomora and rocket as well as usual a special attack from Peter, that’s the usual flow I had.
Some encounters add environmental obstacles to the mix, like needing to disconnect giant power couplings from a big machine. Attacking weak points of some gigantic monstrosity while dodging area attacks that rain from above. Some enemies are healers and try their best to run from you making targeting them the priority. Eidos Montreal does the most with its very limited combat system, enough so that I was entertained. I played the game on the hardest difficulty and died a few times, I had to pay attention at least which made the fights more fun for me. I didn’t dread getting into fights, and I quite enjoyed when a fight went perfectly coordinated and I achieved a max rank.
Speaking of which there is a unity bar that fills when you vary attacks and use the team well, this leads to a point where you can achieve a huddle. This is one of the strangest gameplay mechanics I have ever seen in an action game. It halts the game completely, the team comes together and they say a few phrases which are shown in text around the team just in case you are too dumb to remember what they said. Then two dialogue choices appear and you should pick the one that mentions the words the team just mentioned, this is baby stuff. If you pick the right one the entire team gets a massive boost with health and cooldowns and the best part, Peter turns on his tunes and a random 80s song plays during the fight. This entire sequence takes a good 30-40 seconds, sometimes it’s needed if the battle is a tough one but most of the time you can totally do without but because I love the 80s music I always went for it. Nothing quite like getting Rick rolled while fighting space bounty hunters. I wish I could pick which songs are included in the randomized set list as I felt I had one important boss battle ruined by the horrible We Built This City on Rock and Roll. This mechanic is a strange experiment, one they should totally scrap or retool entirely so that it doesn’t act like a gigantic pause to the action.
So far this review sounds quite negative, taken in a vacuum the gameplay is just standard stuff. Well games aren’t just one aspect or another, it’s a combination of many elements and it’s all those other elements where Guardian soars. Rarely do I see a game with so much care put into how every moment of the game is part of the story, it’s Naughty Dog like in its execution. You are almost never alone, the team is with you and they never stop talking. Every location, every time you run off to get a secret, during every fight, every moment they are commentating. By the end of this game I couldn’t help but feel like one of the team. A movie gives you two quick hours with characters, some show seasons about 10-13 hours, here you are with them for about 20 hours. This makes the game come alive, moments that would just be the boring trek across a linear map to the next fight is a chance for the characters to grow, it’s a chance for revelations about a characters backstory, no time is wasted.
The entire story is brilliant in its writing and execution. While the basic plot is superhero stuff, some bad thing threatens the entire Galaxy and heroes need to band together to fight them; the games focus is more about this group of misfits learning to work through their faults, confront their past and becoming a family. If that sounds like the movies that’s because it is similar, but that’s the source material, I find this game’s take to be different enough to be worth experiencing even if you seen the movies multiple times. For one the characters are more balanced between being jokers and being serious.
The most significant change comes from Drax who in the movie is basically played just for laughs as an oblivious grunt. Drax is still used to great comedic effect but he has maybe the most emotional storyline of the group that legit moved me. He is a complete fleshed out character in this game. Same goes for Peter Quill who in the movie is basically a lovable dumbass but here he is a smart ass who you can see being a great leader. Gamora and Rocket are very close to their movie counterparts, they each have their moments. Groot is Groot. Rounding out the stellar cast is collection of characters from Guardian comic lore including Mantis and Cosmo. Mantis in particular is leagues better than whatever version of her they put in the movies. There are so many deep cuts, surprise characters and more, for Marvel fans this game delivers so much. I cannot heap enough praise on the voice talent, everyone does a superb job bringing not just comedic chops but the ability to carry heavy emotional moments.
What’s so great about the story is what a grand adventure it is. This being a linear game helps the pacing so much. There is no wasting of time swinging around New York doing pointless side quests. The game starts and never stops for 20 hours, it’s just one moment after the other. The Guardians travel to remote planets, battle all kinds of creatures and super villains. One moment they are fighting among each other on how to proceed the next they are coming together with a totally insane plan where they have to work as one to succeed. There are so many exciting moments, these set pieces like situations that sadly aren’t executed as well as a Naughty Dog game but at least it builds the excitement for what the player is doing. And that’s the sign of a games story and gameplay working together, when I don’t want to stop playing because I don’t know what’s going to come next.
Some of the most exciting moments of the game lead into boss battles, there actually aren’t that many but they are pretty damn good. I especially loved the massive screen filling “torso” boss battles, yes you know the trope, big thing is at the top of the screen while your characters avoid attacks on the bottom arena. You follow the pattern and eventually the giant thing gets weak and allows you to damage it. It’s not original but it works and in this game it’s a huge spectacle and at least it changes the pace of the usual battles. Above all I found them all to be good battles, that’s important for the exciting story beats to enhance the best gameplay moments.
Between levels you can have some downtime with the crew on the Guardians ship the Milano. This is like a mini Normandy where you can chat up every member and have some team building. There are hidden artifacts to find in the game worlds and these open up some optional conversations with every team member to learn more about them, it has zero impact on the gameplay but it’s good story content.
There are some story choices that come up during the game, don’t expect some Mass Effect level differences in how teammates or the story reacts to you but it does have some influence on how situations play out. Sometimes it can lead to different routes through a level, other times totally different dialogue situations. Many choices in the middle of the game affect how difficult the final battles are. It’s mostly there for show but at least it makes you feel like Peter making choices and seeing that have some impact on what is basically a linear story.
Graphically the game confuses me cause on one hand it’s beautiful to look at and at the same time it shows it’s last gen nature in animations and weird effects that don’t match the rest of the game. For instance when there is an explosion and some debris falls in the game world, that debris is made of very low quality models and it almost immediately disappears from the game world as if it’s some PS2 game. Animations of the characters are stiff during most combat and when performing actions, they looks so video gamey, clearly no real motion capture was happening here. The facial animations are fine but not in the realm of what the best studios are producing. But the environments are stunning to look at, this game has some all time beautiful skyboxes, made all the more stunning in quality mode which plays the game in 4k but 30FPS. I went quality cause the drop on resolution was pretty big on performance and it’s not really a game where you need good frame rate for the action. It’s no Naughty Dog but it’s still a looker.
One very easy way into my heart is to have an 80s soundtrack in your game and this has one of the best collections of 80s tunes around. Hit after hit after hit, including maybe my all time favorite Everybody wants to rule the world. These aren’t just played at random during the huddle events, but key story moments use certain tracks to great effect just like the movie does. On top of the licensed music there is a fantastic score with a great theme and memorable music throughout.
I want to conclude the review by addressing the roles of story and gameplay in games and how many view it differently. For me it’s always been gameplay first but the story can always help tremendously to elevate a game. That’s is clearly the case here, Guardians is just any random average action adventure game but when you add the magic sauce of an excellent story, well written characters, great pacing, all the elements that make a AAA game feel like playing a major movie all of a sudden that average game rises to new levels. I can only go by how much I enjoyed my time playing this game and I had a smile from beginning to end. I laughed out loud plenty of times, I would get giddy with excitement at the idea of where the story was taking the Guardians to next. I would feel heartbreak when one of the characters reveals their most painful memories. It’s why I say gaming could be more powerful than movies or shows, it can do all the things those two can do but they can never place you in control, make you an active participant in the story and that alone makes gaming so much more interesting.
But others don’t feel the same way, I know many players that feel if a developer isn’t going to bother making a game with deep gameplay then it’s a waste of time. Some think a story driven game might be better off leaving behind average gameplay, they might say it just gets in the way. Some people play games in the lowest setting because they find the actual playing to be a chore. And others might be bored of the AAA template this game desperately adheres to. These are all aspects to consider when choosing to play a game like this, if any of what I mentioned above describes your feelings on certain games then maybe this one isn’t for you.
I don’t think Guardians of Galaxy should win any awards for being the best game of the year as it does not bring much to the table gameplay wise, so there is a limit to how good this game is. But it executes all other aspects extremely well and it provides an experience that is so much fun to watch, play and listen to. It also uses the Marvel property in a sublime manner, this even rivals the movies and I love those movies. Guardians of the Galaxy is everything good about the AAA single player gaming experience (and maybe everything wrong with it as well) but for me it’s exactly the kind of game I enjoy.
Score: 8.6
The structure follows the AAA playbook to a tee. It’s a very linear game with the usual small branches to find a hidden collectible. This game a game with the classic trope where you need to make a choice on which path to take , you want to take the one that leads to the hidden item but instead you take the story critical path and it immediately locks you from going back meaning you miss the item. There are a bunch of squeezing through tight quarters to hide loading (damn last gen). It has mild character building where you use whatever upgrade you find scattered around the level to level up abilities, by the end you will have way more than you ever need as everything will be maxed out. There are minor puzzles a baby can solve, simple platforming sections and the ever popular slide down a very long slope while moving side to side to avoid stuff. This game is not breaking any new ground, it’s as by the book as it comes.
The core combat is nothing to write home about either. You control Star Lord who can hover with jet boots and shoot his two laser guns at enemies. There is a charge shot, a dodge move (with slow down if you time it right), a melee attack, and a few special attacks that you can use that have a cool down. As the game progresses the guns earn elemental statuses that are used against enemies weak to that type. The rest of the team is controlled through commands issues by shortcuts, each member has four abilities all controlled by their own cooldown. The way it controls is similar to Mass Effect but with none of the depth of classes or any real strategy.
Most of the encounters are kind of chaotic with hordes of enemies of different types attacking the team. Most of the time you are just dodging attacks, spamming your guns and constantly cycling through the team attacks. Yes there is a strategy to taking some enemies down as there is a stagger bar and a health bar, bigger enemies need to be staggered to enter a weakened state where the damage dealers (gamora, rocket) can really unleash their best attacks. Also different team members can use environmental hazards to their advantage simply by highlighting it and pressing triangle. Knowing when to use the powers and in what order to maximize the effectiveness of the attacks is key to victory… well probably, I think you can just spam attacks and survive it just won’t look pretty. Some enemies have shields of a certain type so switching between elemental attacks is step one, then use a stun power from Groot or Drax then attack with Gomora and rocket as well as usual a special attack from Peter, that’s the usual flow I had.
Some encounters add environmental obstacles to the mix, like needing to disconnect giant power couplings from a big machine. Attacking weak points of some gigantic monstrosity while dodging area attacks that rain from above. Some enemies are healers and try their best to run from you making targeting them the priority. Eidos Montreal does the most with its very limited combat system, enough so that I was entertained. I played the game on the hardest difficulty and died a few times, I had to pay attention at least which made the fights more fun for me. I didn’t dread getting into fights, and I quite enjoyed when a fight went perfectly coordinated and I achieved a max rank.
Speaking of which there is a unity bar that fills when you vary attacks and use the team well, this leads to a point where you can achieve a huddle. This is one of the strangest gameplay mechanics I have ever seen in an action game. It halts the game completely, the team comes together and they say a few phrases which are shown in text around the team just in case you are too dumb to remember what they said. Then two dialogue choices appear and you should pick the one that mentions the words the team just mentioned, this is baby stuff. If you pick the right one the entire team gets a massive boost with health and cooldowns and the best part, Peter turns on his tunes and a random 80s song plays during the fight. This entire sequence takes a good 30-40 seconds, sometimes it’s needed if the battle is a tough one but most of the time you can totally do without but because I love the 80s music I always went for it. Nothing quite like getting Rick rolled while fighting space bounty hunters. I wish I could pick which songs are included in the randomized set list as I felt I had one important boss battle ruined by the horrible We Built This City on Rock and Roll. This mechanic is a strange experiment, one they should totally scrap or retool entirely so that it doesn’t act like a gigantic pause to the action.
So far this review sounds quite negative, taken in a vacuum the gameplay is just standard stuff. Well games aren’t just one aspect or another, it’s a combination of many elements and it’s all those other elements where Guardian soars. Rarely do I see a game with so much care put into how every moment of the game is part of the story, it’s Naughty Dog like in its execution. You are almost never alone, the team is with you and they never stop talking. Every location, every time you run off to get a secret, during every fight, every moment they are commentating. By the end of this game I couldn’t help but feel like one of the team. A movie gives you two quick hours with characters, some show seasons about 10-13 hours, here you are with them for about 20 hours. This makes the game come alive, moments that would just be the boring trek across a linear map to the next fight is a chance for the characters to grow, it’s a chance for revelations about a characters backstory, no time is wasted.
The entire story is brilliant in its writing and execution. While the basic plot is superhero stuff, some bad thing threatens the entire Galaxy and heroes need to band together to fight them; the games focus is more about this group of misfits learning to work through their faults, confront their past and becoming a family. If that sounds like the movies that’s because it is similar, but that’s the source material, I find this game’s take to be different enough to be worth experiencing even if you seen the movies multiple times. For one the characters are more balanced between being jokers and being serious.
The most significant change comes from Drax who in the movie is basically played just for laughs as an oblivious grunt. Drax is still used to great comedic effect but he has maybe the most emotional storyline of the group that legit moved me. He is a complete fleshed out character in this game. Same goes for Peter Quill who in the movie is basically a lovable dumbass but here he is a smart ass who you can see being a great leader. Gamora and Rocket are very close to their movie counterparts, they each have their moments. Groot is Groot. Rounding out the stellar cast is collection of characters from Guardian comic lore including Mantis and Cosmo. Mantis in particular is leagues better than whatever version of her they put in the movies. There are so many deep cuts, surprise characters and more, for Marvel fans this game delivers so much. I cannot heap enough praise on the voice talent, everyone does a superb job bringing not just comedic chops but the ability to carry heavy emotional moments.
What’s so great about the story is what a grand adventure it is. This being a linear game helps the pacing so much. There is no wasting of time swinging around New York doing pointless side quests. The game starts and never stops for 20 hours, it’s just one moment after the other. The Guardians travel to remote planets, battle all kinds of creatures and super villains. One moment they are fighting among each other on how to proceed the next they are coming together with a totally insane plan where they have to work as one to succeed. There are so many exciting moments, these set pieces like situations that sadly aren’t executed as well as a Naughty Dog game but at least it builds the excitement for what the player is doing. And that’s the sign of a games story and gameplay working together, when I don’t want to stop playing because I don’t know what’s going to come next.
Some of the most exciting moments of the game lead into boss battles, there actually aren’t that many but they are pretty damn good. I especially loved the massive screen filling “torso” boss battles, yes you know the trope, big thing is at the top of the screen while your characters avoid attacks on the bottom arena. You follow the pattern and eventually the giant thing gets weak and allows you to damage it. It’s not original but it works and in this game it’s a huge spectacle and at least it changes the pace of the usual battles. Above all I found them all to be good battles, that’s important for the exciting story beats to enhance the best gameplay moments.
Between levels you can have some downtime with the crew on the Guardians ship the Milano. This is like a mini Normandy where you can chat up every member and have some team building. There are hidden artifacts to find in the game worlds and these open up some optional conversations with every team member to learn more about them, it has zero impact on the gameplay but it’s good story content.
There are some story choices that come up during the game, don’t expect some Mass Effect level differences in how teammates or the story reacts to you but it does have some influence on how situations play out. Sometimes it can lead to different routes through a level, other times totally different dialogue situations. Many choices in the middle of the game affect how difficult the final battles are. It’s mostly there for show but at least it makes you feel like Peter making choices and seeing that have some impact on what is basically a linear story.
Graphically the game confuses me cause on one hand it’s beautiful to look at and at the same time it shows it’s last gen nature in animations and weird effects that don’t match the rest of the game. For instance when there is an explosion and some debris falls in the game world, that debris is made of very low quality models and it almost immediately disappears from the game world as if it’s some PS2 game. Animations of the characters are stiff during most combat and when performing actions, they looks so video gamey, clearly no real motion capture was happening here. The facial animations are fine but not in the realm of what the best studios are producing. But the environments are stunning to look at, this game has some all time beautiful skyboxes, made all the more stunning in quality mode which plays the game in 4k but 30FPS. I went quality cause the drop on resolution was pretty big on performance and it’s not really a game where you need good frame rate for the action. It’s no Naughty Dog but it’s still a looker.
One very easy way into my heart is to have an 80s soundtrack in your game and this has one of the best collections of 80s tunes around. Hit after hit after hit, including maybe my all time favorite Everybody wants to rule the world. These aren’t just played at random during the huddle events, but key story moments use certain tracks to great effect just like the movie does. On top of the licensed music there is a fantastic score with a great theme and memorable music throughout.
I want to conclude the review by addressing the roles of story and gameplay in games and how many view it differently. For me it’s always been gameplay first but the story can always help tremendously to elevate a game. That’s is clearly the case here, Guardians is just any random average action adventure game but when you add the magic sauce of an excellent story, well written characters, great pacing, all the elements that make a AAA game feel like playing a major movie all of a sudden that average game rises to new levels. I can only go by how much I enjoyed my time playing this game and I had a smile from beginning to end. I laughed out loud plenty of times, I would get giddy with excitement at the idea of where the story was taking the Guardians to next. I would feel heartbreak when one of the characters reveals their most painful memories. It’s why I say gaming could be more powerful than movies or shows, it can do all the things those two can do but they can never place you in control, make you an active participant in the story and that alone makes gaming so much more interesting.
But others don’t feel the same way, I know many players that feel if a developer isn’t going to bother making a game with deep gameplay then it’s a waste of time. Some think a story driven game might be better off leaving behind average gameplay, they might say it just gets in the way. Some people play games in the lowest setting because they find the actual playing to be a chore. And others might be bored of the AAA template this game desperately adheres to. These are all aspects to consider when choosing to play a game like this, if any of what I mentioned above describes your feelings on certain games then maybe this one isn’t for you.
I don’t think Guardians of Galaxy should win any awards for being the best game of the year as it does not bring much to the table gameplay wise, so there is a limit to how good this game is. But it executes all other aspects extremely well and it provides an experience that is so much fun to watch, play and listen to. It also uses the Marvel property in a sublime manner, this even rivals the movies and I love those movies. Guardians of the Galaxy is everything good about the AAA single player gaming experience (and maybe everything wrong with it as well) but for me it’s exactly the kind of game I enjoy.
Score: 8.6
This game is everything 'Marvel's Avengers' should have been.
A fun and very often hilarious single-player story with stunning visuals, lovable characters, a stellar voice cast and fluid gameplay, and I was really glad that the developers decided against an open-world setting, and instead focused on other elements. There were some bugs here and there at launch, but I believe most of them have been patched by now.
I strongly believe this is the direction Marvel action-adventure games should go in the future.
A fun and very often hilarious single-player story with stunning visuals, lovable characters, a stellar voice cast and fluid gameplay, and I was really glad that the developers decided against an open-world setting, and instead focused on other elements. There were some bugs here and there at launch, but I believe most of them have been patched by now.
I strongly believe this is the direction Marvel action-adventure games should go in the future.
I was skeptical at first but goddamn, this game is a surprise. A very linear single player game with some RPG elements. Unfortunately I had a lot of glitches.
The characters are more like the comic cast which is great. Seeing other known characters but also original characters is amazing. The comedy is top tier, it never misses.
The combat is slow at first but once you unlock more abilities, it becomes a lot of fun. I'm actually glad we can only play as Star-Lord.
The soundtrack is of course perfect as we know it from the Guardians of the Galaxy. NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP.
The characters are more like the comic cast which is great. Seeing other known characters but also original characters is amazing. The comedy is top tier, it never misses.
The combat is slow at first but once you unlock more abilities, it becomes a lot of fun. I'm actually glad we can only play as Star-Lord.
The soundtrack is of course perfect as we know it from the Guardians of the Galaxy. NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP.
Didn't know what to expect from the game because I didn't want it to be another Avengers mishap but was really pleased with the game. It gave me FF7 vibes in terms of combat and was actually stocked with the story arc they pulled from the comics.
Had quite a few visual clitches and found the game impossible to play without headphones because of spacial audio and had frame rate issues, restarted at checkpoints seemed to fix it.
Overall the game left me wanting more so that's the best thing you could hope for from a game.
Had quite a few visual clitches and found the game impossible to play without headphones because of spacial audio and had frame rate issues, restarted at checkpoints seemed to fix it.
Overall the game left me wanting more so that's the best thing you could hope for from a game.