Square Enix announced a partnership with Marvel back in 2017 with Marvel’s Avengers as the game to kick off the new deal. After a less than enthusiastic response to the Crystal Dynamics developed title, I wasn’t expecting much from the second game in Square’s lineup, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy from Eidos Montreal. The trailers didn’t do much to change this perception, styling the game as another Guardians film mixed with Avengers-style combat.

I’m happy to say that I could not have been more mistaken. While the game draws a lot of inspiration from the MCU movies, it does so in a way that often surpasses those interpretations and tells a more nuanced and emotional story. It’s an extremely enjoyable experience from the opening moments all the way through to the finale.

Story

Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy (GOTG) tells an original story separate from both the comics and films, though it does draw on both to give players a more solid foundation. The team boasts the same makeup from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and picks up shortly after the Guardians have all decided to form a team and try to make a name for themselves as heroes for hire.

The story this game tells is one of the best video game narratives I’ve experienced all year, and easily the strongest superhero story a video game has ever told. There is no shortage of humor, something that’s to be expected in a game with characters like Rocket Raccoon and Star-Lord, but the game tells a far more heartfelt story than I was expecting.

On more than one occasion I was brought to tears, something made easier by the absolutely stunning character models and animation. But the game ultimately tells a story about grief, growing up, and learning to accept yourself, and it pulls off these themes better than many other pieces of media that have tried.

Eidos Montreal crafted a lovely, well-paced story that takes the Guardians all across the Andromeda galaxy and into the orbit of several characters of varying notoriety from Marvel lore. GOTG digs deep for some of its cameos and easter-eggs and takes some bold choices in how it reinterprets classic Marvel characters.

But at the center of the story are the Guardians themselves, and they’re just a blast to spend time with. The dialogue between characters is tightly written and never feels stale, even after the fifth joke about Rocket’s size or texture. It feels natural, like a group of dysfunctional friends just doing whatever they can to distract from the horrible things going on around them.

The decision to include dialogue options that change the flow of the narrative seemed like an odd choice at first but seeing the results of my decisions come to fruition hours after I made them was a very cool addition. I’m invested enough to go back through and make different choices to see how differently the story might play out.

GOTG also threw me for a loop a few times, seemingly building up to a climactic finale only to surprise me with at least another few hours of gameplay. It’s a pleasant surprise, as the story just keeps building in scope and intensity before making its triumphant landing.

Gameplay

GOTG has quite a few different gameplay systems that occasionally meet the level of complexity I believe Eidos Montreal was going for. There are a few different methods for enhancing and growing each member of the team, but a lack of specificity or customization robs this progression of any profound meaning.

The most evident progression system is the experience meter that goes up after every encounter, earning players experience points with each level up. These points can be traded in to unlock powerful abilities for each member of the Guardians team, but all abilities can be unlocked relatively quickly. After that, battles stop rewarding experience points entirely.

This lack of tangible reward robs battles of any purpose outside of general enjoyment, which can be pretty hit-or-miss throughout the game. While some battles are well-designed and allowed me to make the most of my characters’ abilities, many others took place in awkward arenas or were filled with bullet-sponge enemies that took too long to whittle down.

That said, when the combat works it can be incredibly fun. Chaining just the right moves from each member of the team to stack damage bonuses made me feel like a tactical genius as I took down entire groups with a single blast. Different environmental effects add a bit of spice to each location, essentially adding a free special ability that had to be tactically activated.

Peter himself is an uneven experience as well; at times he feels great to inhabit, flitting around on his jetboots and firing off shots from on high. But he doesn’t pack much of a punch, and controlling him can feel clunky at times with so many different attacks keyed to the same buttons. There were many instances where I tried to fire off an elemental shot only to accidentally pull up the teammate ability menu.

Gameplay outside of combat is relegated mostly to just exploring the world and having conversations with different characters. The writing in this game is so good that I never got bored engaging in another chat with a teammate, especially when there were critical narrative choices to make. The game’s numerous collectibles also unlock special dialogue when discussed back at the ship, tying exploration to character development.

Audio & Visual

This game is utterly gorgeous. Everything from character design to environmental design just pops with life, and I recommend everyone play this game on the best hardware possible. It is a truly beautiful piece of art that should be enjoyed at the highest settings. Colors pop on every world as the Guardians move through dense forests or across frozen lakes.

The major characters look absolutely amazing and strike a realistic balance that never triggers the Uncanny Valley. I was especially floored by the facial animations: the attention to detail is so minute that I could see the skin on a character’s lips tighten and wrinkle as they spoke. And this level of detail is noticeable across multiple characters, not just the main cast.

But as good as the game looks, it has to sound good as well, and GOTG delivers on that in spades. The licensed music is great, but it was an expected feature that I ultimately felt wasn’t well utilized. The game’s score, however, was much more fun and provided the swells of emotion I’ve come to expect from Marvel’s musical arrangements.

And if the music is good, the voice is even better. There’s not a single bad performance in the whole game, from the core team down to characters as one-note as the Blood Brothers. One particular stand-out in the cast was Nikki, a central character to the story whose involvement I won’t spoil here. Let’s just say she’s awesome, and her voice-acting and motion-capture are nothing short of exceptional.

What Could Be Better?

On the narrative front, there’s not a single note I would give. Eidos nailed this game’s story down the final moments, and I’m only disappointed that I’ll have to wait a bit to spend any more time with these characters.

On the gameplay side, I would have liked for the progression systems to feel deeper and more purposeful. Unlocking perks for Peter’s gear never felt all that important, and with only 15 perks total I had them all unlocked well before the game was over.

Earning skill points never felt like a necessary feature either, and ceased to exist once all abilities were unlocked. I’d have liked to use skill points to enhance and customize my character’s abilities instead of just unlocking them. It would have given the skill points more value and added variety to combat encounters.

Verdict

I think it’s safe to say that Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy is this year’s sleeper hit. It uses Marvel’s rich history to tell a Guardians story that surpasses their film appearances while offering players the chance to live the adventure. Its slightly underwhelming combat aside, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy is a wonderful, emotional, hilarious romp through the stars and a must-play for any gamer or Marvel fan.