Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy review: A hard-rocking space adventure

Our Verdict

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy delivers a hard-rocking space adventure filled with thrilling action, captivating alien worlds and memorable characters.

For

Varied gameplay
Relatable and sympathetic characters
Monumental conflicting worlds
Hard rocking soundtrack

Confronting

Persistent hidden load screens

Tom's Guide Verdict

Marvel'south Guardians of the Galaxy delivers a difficult-rocking space adventure filled with thrilling action, captivating alien worlds and memorable characters.

Pros

+
Varied gameplay
+
Relatable and sympathetic characters
+
Awe-inspiring alien worlds
+
Hard rocking soundtrack

Cons

-
Persistent hidden load screens

Curiosity'S GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY SPECS

Platforms: PC (reviewed), PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch
Price: $60
Release Date: October 26, 2021
Genre: Activity/adventure

Marvel'due south Guardians of the Galaxy is a Marvel Cinematic Universe film in video game form. Information technology has all of the humour, action, and memorable music that made the franchise a striking. Y'all could argue it's only as good or better than its source material due to it beingness interactive. Guardians of the Galaxy'south stylized graphics, exceptional voice acting and rocking soundtrack make it among the almost enjoyable titles of 2021.

In many respects, Guardians of the Galaxy is a "pure" activeness adventure experience. Eschewing modernistic AAA game trends, it'due south a surprisingly stripped downwards and focused affair. At that place are no side quests or skill trees, nor is there leveling up or inventory direction. This aspect might displease players seeking endless hours of playtime, only it's refreshing to come across a high-profile game jettison extraneous content in favor of delivering a straightforward adventure.

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Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy review: Story

The game starts with the Guardians of the Galaxy entering an aboriginal starship graveyard to retrieve a "mortiferous" creature for a warlord named Lady Hellbender. At this betoken in the Guardians' career, Peter Quill (Star-Lord) tries to keep the newly-formed band of misfits together. Drax distrusts Gamora, Gamora remains distant and Rocket and Groot seem to only care about their own interests. The squad succeeds in their mission merely to observe themselves arrested by the Nova Corps who police the spaceways. This, in turn, drops the Guardians in the center of a struggle that could engulf the unabridged universe.

The story delivers all of the requisite twists and action sequences expected from the genre and a Marvel Cinematic Universe picture show. It's an engaging tale on its ain, only it's the Guardians and their respective internal struggles that lend the story both heft and centre. As the tale progresses, you'll gain insight into each Guardian. Seemingly comedic characters like the foul-mouthed Rocket or too-literal Drax hide tumultuous and painful pasts. Overcoming trauma is the core theme of Guardians of the Milky way and one that will resonate with audiences who've had to or go on to deal with life's tribulations.

marvel's guardians of the galaxy — (Image credit: Square-Enix)

Characters don't just interact during cutscenes. They converse and bicker with one another all along the adventure. You'll frequently get dialogue options to respond to characters' conversations. Agreeing with Rocket when he wants to destroy something or telling Drax to calm down doesn't touch on the larger narrative, simply these instances can open up upward additional dialogue options later on.

There are certain events that alter the narrative, though only slightly. For instance, speaking into a pilfered Nova Corp helmet will effect in a boxing, while doing the opposite avoids the run into. Some non-playable characters may lend their help if you side with them, making certain battles easier or giving y'all access to sealed-off rooms. Simply no matter what choices you brand, the main narrative remains unchanged. Still, the choices, equally superficial every bit they may seem, are appreciated.

Marvel'southward Guardians of the Milky way review: Gameplay

Guardians of the Galaxy feels similar a narrative-driven tertiary-person action/adventure game released in the late 2000s or early 2010s. There is a counterbalanced mix of gainsay, platforming and mild puzzle-solving. Aside from prolonged combat encounters during the third act, you're never doing a single activity for very long. This keeps the game moving at a steady footstep since information technology'due south always engaging yous with different objectives.

Blasters are your principal weapons, though yous tin can appoint in melee combat to deal with enemies that get likewise shut. Dodging and jumping over attacks is some other function of your repertoire. As the game progresses, the blasters proceeds elemental effects that work well against specific enemy types. Some foes are weak to ice and burn blasts while others cannot handle electric of earth attacks. Yous can swap between element types at whatsoever moment, which yous'll need to do when the game tosses enemies with various weaknesses against you. Shattering frozen opponents affected past water ice blasts or locking multiple foes in place with a chain lightning attack is not only enjoyable just strategically sound. Though you simply have direct command over Star-Lord, his numerous and ever-evolving abilities prevent gainsay from becoming stale and repetitious.

You cannot assume control of your teammates only you can have them perform different attacks and abilities. Gamora and Drax's abilities are best suited against unmarried opponents, while Rocket and Groot are ideal for handling large groups. There is a minor cooldown period every time y'all use one of the Guardians' abilities. Getting into the habit of using your mates' powers is crucial, especially during the latter half of the game. Just once you've mastered Star-Lord and the Guardians' unique skills, you lot'll brand curt piece of work of anyone and anything you come up across.

Ane of the most enjoyable mechanics is the team huddle. A meter located on the right-manus side of the screen fills during boxing. When information technology tops off, you tin can telephone call your squad to huddle upwards. Words and sentences, along with lines delivered past the Guardians, provide a glimpse into their mental state. The team may be overconfident or feel hopeless. Yous'll have to select one of two speech options to either cool the Guardians down or inspire them to persevere. A correct selection gives the entire squad an set on boost. Conversely, a wrong choice results in only Star-Lord gaining added law-breaking. Team huddles are not but beneficial when you're on the proverbial ropes but they make yous feel as if y'all and the others are a tight-knit squad.

When non shooting upward alien baddies, yous'll appoint in balmy puzzle-solving and platforming. In that location is no shortage of expansive gaps to surmount or security systems to featherbed. Star-Lord'southward jet boots assist you jump over small gaps or reach high ledges with minimal endeavor. Platforming doesn't feel every bit intuitive or effortless equally it does in games similar Uncharted or Tomb Raider, simply the mechanic works well plenty.

Peter's scanner displays interactive portions of the surroundings. This mechanic is most useful for solving puzzles, simply information technology can also display enemy weaknesses. Some locked doors need power to open. Unlocking these doors usually requires you to reroute power to them. The simply way to do that is to utilise your visor to see where the power lines lead so yous tin redirect and change their form. You won't find many of these specific types of puzzles. Near have you ordering specific Guardians to interruption walls (Drax), slice power cables (Gamora), create vine bridges (Groot) or crawl through air vents (Rocket). The puzzles are simplistic, but they space out battles and give something dissimilar to focus on.

Guardians of the Galaxy contains mild office-playing game (RPG) elements. Dissimilar other action-heavy franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Guardians' RPG elements are complementary and take no detrimental consequence if you choose to ignore them. This tin be a negative for those who seek deeper function-playing mechanics, but a positive for people who simply desire to relish the gamble.

You lot'll discover subconscious and not-so-hidden components strewn across each level that y'all tin give to Rocket, who volition create mods at workbenches. There is a workbench on the Guardians' starship, but each level also has one. Abilities and bonuses include enhanced shields, faster cooldowns, additional health and more. You're free to completely dismiss this attribute of the game but it'south there for those who savour crafting.

Skill points earned in battle tin can so be used to unlock new abilities for the Guardians. Each Guardian (yourself included) has four skills max (with the quaternary being locked behind story progression). Though you can ignore this attribute, I advise against it. The game becomes quite challenging in the 2nd half. Every bit such, it's good to have a wide range of abilities and powers at your disposal.

Hidden load screens are nothing new in gaming. We've all played games which require you lot to crawl through wall cracks, walk beyond empty halls, slide down steep cliffs or take long elevator rides. Guardians of the Milky way has all of these instances and more. I'm not sure if Guardians actually has more of these sequences than normal or if I've only become overly sensitive to them, but there are points when I felt bombarded by endless corridor and wall crawls. These hidden load screens prove that, no matter how gorgeous the game looks, it is decidedly a concluding-gen title. This doesn't ruin the feel in any meaningful way, but it is the game's biggest flaw.

Curiosity'southward Guardians of the Galaxy review: Visuals and sound

Guardians of the Galaxy is a visual stunner. The detailed graphics contain a stylized flair that gives the game a distinctive identity. The otherworldly environments and set pieces brim with an array of fetching colors and captivating alien architecture. Visual effects like volumetric fog and ray tracing are both subtle and harsh where they need to exist, making the planets you visit feel accurate and lived in. Whether it's an abandoned Nova Corps station, the packed streets of Knowhere or Maklu-IV's frozen wastes, there is no shortage of incredible locations

Characters receive the aforementioned attention to detail as the environments. While Peter Quill and his compatriots may not resemble their cinematic or comic book counterparts, they wait bang-up regardless. This is likewise true for the expansive assortment of friends and foes yous meet along the journey. Every space slug, shady multi-armed merchant or elemental being looks fantastic.

The game's difficult stone and heavy metal-packed soundtrack amplifies the experience. Hearing bands like Iron Maiden, Motley Crue and Kiss volition get your blood pumping during over-the-height activity sequences. The songs played after performing team huddles enliven conventional enemy encounters.

The fictional in-game "Star-Lord" band that inspired Peter Quill'southward superhero moniker rocks but equally hard as any of the classic acts on the soundtrack. The band'south catalog of songs contains everything from baking rockers to soaring power ballads. Despite the musical variety, all of the songs' lyrics share a similar thematic chemical element. Tunes like "No Guts, No Celebrity" and "Ghost" center around underdogs rising to see life's challenges and overcoming their personal demons. That theme is the heart of what makes Guardians of the Galaxy resonate with audiences. The licensed music alone would have sufficed but the Star-Lord ring makes it truly exceptional.

Marvel'south Guardians of the Galaxy review: Verdict

Marvel'south Guardians of the Milky way is one of the almost enjoyable games of 2021. It is the definition of a crowd-pleaser due to its easy-to-master controls, lush alien environments, relatable characters, and hard-driving soundtrack. This may be unfair to say, simply Guardians of the Galaxy is what we wanted from Marvel'southward Avengers: A fun, focused single-player action/run a risk game. Eidos-Montreal crafted something special with this game and we expect forward to seeing where they accept the franchise next.

Tony is a computing writer at Tom's Guide covering laptops, tablets, Windows, and iOS. During his off-hours, Tony enjoys reading comic books, playing video games, reading speculative fiction novels, and spending too much time on Twitter. His non-nerdy pursuits involve attention Hard Rock/Heavy Metal concerts and going to NYC bars with friends and colleagues. His work has appeared in publications such as Laptop Mag, PC Mag, and various independent gaming sites.