‘Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy’
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) opened up a universe of incredible characters to people whose familiarity with Marvel characters didn’t extend much beyond Spider-man.
One of the MCU’S biggest splashes came in the form of a green assassin, a tattooed brute, a genetically enhanced raccoon and a sentient tree-thing, all led by a half-human/half-god (“little g” according to daddy ego himself.)
“Guardians of the Galaxy” racked up nearly $775 million at the box office, an extraordinary feat for a littleknown comic that only debuted six years earlier. (The original “Guardians of the Galaxy” released in 1969, but the team the movie is based on came out in 2008.)
Since its debut, this wonderful band of misfits has become some of the MCU’S most popular characters, making them ripe to appear in a video game.
When Square Enix announced said game in
June 2021, my first reaction was excitement, followed closely by an uneasy feeling that came from playing the publisher’s previous foray into the Marvel Universe, “Marvel’s Avengers.”
I’m pleased to report that these trepidations were unfounded. “Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy” somehow manages to avoid the pitfalls that consumed the “Avengers” game, while delivering an experience worthy of both the comics and the films.
Fans of the movies will first notice the striking character designs. Pulled more from the comics, the charac
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Any gamer looking for an amazing narrative adventure
PS4, PS5, XBOX
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ters don’t try to mimic the MCU. While Rocket and Groot pretty much look the same, Starlord, Gamora and Drax all look markedly different, much closer to the comic book designs.
Before you start mourning the loss of Chris Pratt and company, know that the voice acting here is top notch. After a few minutes of listening to the characters banter and bicker, you won’t be missing the actors you know and love.
The game relies heavily on its narrative, telling the story of a group that’s not yet bonded. Drax doesn’t trust Gamora, Rocket only seems to care for Groot and Starlord mainly wants to get paid.
When a plan goes south, they must pull together to find a lot of money to bail themselves out of trouble. And they only have a few cycles to get it done.
Thus brings a wacky adventure that will take you across the galaxy, put you in the cockpit of Starlord’s ship, the Milano, and bring the Guardians together as the team we know they can be.
Players directly control Starlord, with the other characters playing support roles. They will fight along side you in battle unprompted,
but each has special abilities that can be called upon in certain situations, accentuating the teamwork dynamic that every level requires at some point.
The game features massive areas that are a joy to explore, each with its own atmosphere and style. Traversing these areas feels like a platform game at times, but enough opponents await to keep the action fast and the threat real.
The game isn’t all action, though. Many sections focus on the story, build the characters and offer an insight into what makes such a group of diverse loners the perfect fit for each other.
The game’s graphics are stunning on new generation systems, and the sound borrows heavily from the films. Along with a stunning amount of voiced dialog (character banter is constant and, from what I could tell, never repeated itself) there’s a classic rock soundtrack to die for.
Loverboy, A-ha, Tears for Fears, Kiss, Billy Idol, Culture Club, Blondie and many more help players rock out with a distinctly 1980’s style.
And, the game includes a feature I expect to see more often. Since streaming gameplay on Twitch, Youtube, etc. has become so popular, games with licensed soundtracks have become more problematic. It seems like artists don’t want their songs broadcast without extra royalties.
“Guardians of the Galaxy” fixes that by letting streamers turn off the licensed songs and play only original music while streaming. Simply genius.
“Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy” does nearly everything right. Story, characterization, action, exploration — it should satisfy anyone who enjoys Marvel movies or comics. I don’t know if it will hit game of the year status, but it will easily make the finals.