Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Review

Last year, Square Enix found itself in a real environment of disappointed gamers and fans of the Marvel universe. Marvel's Avengers session multiplayer project became a financial and reputational disaster for her, the smoking consequences of which are noticeable even today. Suddenly announced in the summer of 2021, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy against this background was received by the audience rather coolly. It seemed that the addition for the “Avengers” at the last moment decided to turn into a separate game, and the painted Star Lord and the bearded Rocket hinted at failure. But before us is the very case when the first negative impression is exceptionally deceptive.

Game Guardians of the Galaxy exist in an alternate reality of the Marvel metaverse, where Thanos has already been defeated, but the "Guardians" have not met with the Avengers and Spider-Man. The Star Lord's team, driven into debt, is trying to earn some money by going to the quarantine zone in search of a dangerous monster that can be profitably sold to the queen of Monsters, Lady Hellbender. But everything is going according to Peter Quill's crooked plan again, and the team finds itself on the basis of the Nova corps. Now its participants will have to pay a huge fine and find another monster for Lady Hellbender. And the more actively this story develops, the more ambitious and incredible it becomes. Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is one of the few games that manages to combine an incredibly rich and fascinating plot with an equally globally developed world and characters. And this is, perhaps, one of the most striking and cinematically large-scale works over the past few years.

If you take a few timid steps away from the narrative, then we can say that Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy offers a fairly diverse gameplay, starting from fights with opponents in the style of the first Mass Effect trilogy, only without an active pause mode, and ending with puzzles and arcade flights on a spaceship in the spirit of chases from the world of Uncharted.

Your hero has only a couple of blasters, which, as the story progresses, receive an alternative fire mode, very useful for destroying enemy shields and immobilizing mini-bosses. The same abilities will be very useful in solving simple puzzles and in finding alternative routes. For example, in freezing mode, you can create ice steps from geysers and block motors in damaged doors. Electric shots will help activate circuits and open previously closed doors or start a nuclear reactor.

Periodically, the game offers choices that can affect the relationship within the team. Throw a Raccoon over a bridge or refuse, give Groot into slavery or send a Rocket there. To lose the money received with sweat and blood in slot machines or to hold back ... All this gives the player a sense of variability and involvement in the gameplay.

In action-packed battles, Peter Quill mostly performs a conditioning or supporting role. He tells the companions how to use skills, builds a sequence and helps remove the protective shield or freeze enemies. At the same time, you are offered a unique variety of combinations. For example, you can freeze the first of the enemies, force them to group in one place, tie them up with a Groot and hit them with a Rocket bomb. Or take off the shield and hit with Drax on one side, and finish off with Gamora's sharp blade on the other. Naturally, not all combinations work well against certain types of enemies, so you have to coordinate your actions better.

When the enemy has received enough damage, the game allows for joint attacks of several heroes – together they cause maximum damage. In addition, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy has a special ability, which received the name “Letuchka” in the Russian version. When it is activated, the battle is interrupted, and the characters gather for a council, where they need to choose the right option and inspire their companions. If everything went well, you will receive additional reinforcement and protection. At the same time, the enemies are not inferior to your squad. They use armor and shields, pick up fallen comrades or try to lock you in an energy cage, the walls of which slowly shrink, taking away health.

The pumping system involves improving Quill's skills in the use of weapons, shields and boots on the workbench in exchange for components collected at the stages. Most of these features are made for show, but others, like increasing the shield and health, are very useful. Separately, in exchange for the experience collected by the team, you can get new abilities for each of the heroes. But the number of points is divided into the whole group, so you need to carefully choose which ability and which of the characters to pump first. How useful will the sharp roots of Groot be? Or is it still worth investing in Quill's powerful shots? It's up to you to decide.

The already mentioned passive skills of the heroes are used while solving puzzles. Drax breaks through walls, Gamora cuts cables with a sword, and a Rocket penetrates ventilation and hacks computers. Groot builds bridges across the abyss with the help of roots.

Graphics on the new generation consoles are one of the most powerful sides of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. During the passage of the PlayStation 5 version, I got the impression that we really have a full-fledged next-gen game with well-developed character models, advanced facial animation and the highest cinematic level of staging. Levels with sufficient linearity offer a unique design and great attention to detail.

Competently managing the license obtained, the developers from Eidos Montreal filled their brainchild with ingenious jokes and situational humor, a lot of Easter eggs for fans of the original source and the Marvel universe as a whole. The constant dive of the Rocket and Drax or Gamora makes the gameplay as lively as possible, and the player feels the maximum level of involvement.

The Russian localization is on top, offering a wonderful example of dubbing. Instead of the dumb way of direct translation, localizers have relied on a unique adaptation. Therefore, instead of a Russian mat, a ringing ”dent" sounds here, perfectly fitting into the game atmosphere and the style of the characters.

The recipe for success is completed by a selection of licensed music tracks, which is a real storehouse of pop hits from the 80s and 90s. Fighting the boss under ”Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler or ”I Love It Loud" by KISS is a real treat.

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is a superbly staged story game with perfectly written characters, humor, an exciting plot and a new generation of graphics. No online, no multiplayer, no live service. If I were choosing a contender for the title of game of the year right now, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy would be one of the main favorites.