One of the biggest surprises from Square Enix's E3 presentation was the debut trailer for Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy from developer Eidos-Montréal of Deus Ex fame. While it's not the first time Square Enix has taken on a Marvel property, Guardians of the Galaxy seems to have taken note of the missteps suffered by Marvel's Avengers and are set to prove themselves with a single-player, third-person action-adventure game starring the ragtag group of intergalactic zeroes turned heroes. Here's everything we know about Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy.
What is Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy?
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is a new single-player action-adventure starring the Guardians of the Galaxy, the ragtag group of space heroes who protect the galaxy for a fee. The team consists of five core members: Star-Lord aka Peter Quill, Gamora, Rocket Racoon, Drax, and Groot, though you'll only play as Star-Lord in this adventure. While the team might be familiar to fans of the movies, the upcoming game has nothing to do with the MCU. Instead, it's a wholly original tale crafted by Eidos-Montréal.
"A distinct mix of sci-fi, family drama, and rock 'n' roll attitude with an edgy aesthetic is the foundation for our Guardians franchise", said Jay Ong, EVP and Head of Marvel Games. "We are thrilled to collaborate with Eidos-Montréal knowing they are the team that can deliver on this core promise. The team's laser-focused vision for our beloved band of misfits shines in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. "
What's the story?
What we know so far is that the Guardians of the Galaxy attempt to make a quick buck while adventuring throughout space when a silly bet leads to "a very small accident" that snowballs into a series of catastrophic events that can ultimately destroy the galaxy if the Guardians don't right their wrongs in time.
Award-winning comic book writer and novelist Dan Abnett along with the team at Marvel, worked closely with the team to cherry-pick characters, locations, and situations from the comic books for the dev team to adapt in their own way. Eagle-eyed fans will recognize spot many references and locations pulled straight from the pages of the comic book, including cameos from the cheerful alien Mantis and Cosmo the Space Dog.
The design of the characters borrows elements from both the comics and the movies. Star-Lord, for example, has a loud leather jacket ripped straight from the '80s. Gamora is decked out in full tactical body armor, Drax is wrapped in his signature body markings, and the dynamic duo Rocket and Groot, who share elements of each other's design. The team seems dedicated to nailing down the personalities of each of Guardian, and you'll hear them bickering often while in battle. From Star-Lord's cocky attitude to Rocket's devil-may-care attitude, fans of the movies and comics will find a lot to love.
What's the gameplay like?
Guardians of the Galaxy puts you in the role of Star-Lord, the human "heart" and leader of the team. He'll be able to use his trademark jet boots as well as twin blasters to dodge and shoot enemies, but you'll also have access to elementally powered guns and other gadgets as Star-Lord. You won't be able to control your teammates directly, but you'll be able to command them and set up team attacks, so long as you're able to boost team morale.
And you'll be able to do that with the new "choice and consequence" system, which means that the player's choices will change the player's experience, and affect the journey and relationships between Guardians. The story still begins and ends in the same place, but it remains to be seen how many branches each decision will lead to. Eidos-Montréal is best known for its work on the Deus Ex RPGs, which features tons of dialogue options that affect how characters perceive you, so we hope there's some overlap in the new game.
What's the music like?
Music is an important element to Star-Lord's character, as it is one of the only things that he has left of his time on Earth. The '80s influence is strong in this one, and the game's soundtrack will feature Kiss, Iron Maiden, Wham!, Blondie, Pat Benatar, and other hit artists from the era.
Music is more than just a background element, though. Star-Lord can huddle up his allies and choose a song to charge up the group. Choose the right song to match the mood, and everyone gets a performance boost; choose the wrong one, and only Star-Lord receives benefits. You can also listen to the music on your own, if you please.
The developers have also confirmed that you will have the option to disable licensed music, so streamers can rest easy.
How much will Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy cost?
Guardians of the Galaxy will cost $60 at launch. There's also a Cosmic Deluxe Edition available for $80 which includes the game, a City-Lord Outfit and Sun-Lord Outfit for Star-Lord, The Art of the Game Mini Artbook (Hardback), a digital download of the game's soundtrack, and a steel bookcase.
When is Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy coming out?
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy releases on Xbox Series X and Series S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, PC, and Switch via Cloud on Oct. 26, 2021. It's early, but it seems like Square Enix and Eidos-Montréal are confident in their vision for the Guardians of the Galaxy, and it might just end up being one of the best Xbox games of 2021.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy getting DLSS and ray tracing support on PC
Announced at Gamescom 2021, NVIDIA and Square Enix have partnered to ensure DLSS support comes to Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy at launch on PC for supported hardware.
Not only this but supported RTX graphics cards will also be able to enable NVIDIA's ray-tracing tech, making the Guardians look their absolute best on Team Green gaming PCs.
Latest trailers for Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy
As the road to launch gets ever closer, Square Enix has started to feed our appetites for the game with new cinematic trailers. The latest releases introduce Lady Hellbender, Grand Unifier Raker, and the Universal Church of Truth (UCT), while also namedropping The Matriarch.
The newest is a story trailer released to coincide with Sony's PlayStation Showcase in early September.
The soundtrack for Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy
A huge part of Guardians of the Galaxy is the music. Peter Quill's love of 80's tunes is an integral part of the universe and the game will be absolutely no different. In Square Enix's tale, Quill chooses the name Star-Lord, after his favorite band. It could have ended there, but with music being so important, the developers actually created the band for real and recorded an original album that will feature in the game.
The first track, "Space Riders With No Names" has been released already as a teaser of what's to come and is available to stream on all major music services.
In addition to the original music, a number of 80's songs from huge acts like Iron Maiden, Kiss, New Kids on the Block, and Joan Jett have already been confirmed, with many more still to be revealed. Oh, and Rick Astley. Because why not.
Certain versions of the game will also come with a downloadable copy of the full soundtrack.
From misfits to superheroes
Control Star-Lord and lead the Guardians of the Galaxy on an adventure through the galaxy.
