Guardians of the Galaxy - Episode 1 | Review

Review by Gianluca “DottorKillex” Arena

Guardians of the Galaxy - Episode 1

New tour, new adaptation of the boys of Telltale of a very successful series: this time it is the turn of the Guardians of the Galaxy, on the wave of the success of the two films, one released in 2014 and the other only a few weeks old.
Despite the huge reuse of mechanics and assets from the countless titles published in recent years, the products of the US software house continue to have a good success both from critics and from the public: let's find out why in our review of the first episode, in the Xbox version One.

All new

As it has often done with its products so far, TellTale distances itself, at a narrative level, both from the two feature films and from the Marvel comics, exploiting the charisma and love of fans for the characters to put them at the center of completely new events. , which this time revolve around the discovery of a temporal artifact, the potential of which is initially unknown.
Known faces will also return among the enemies, but Tangled in blue (this is the title of this first episode) focuses on the unexpected responsibility that weighs on the group of weird super heroes protagonists, called to manage an enormous power of which they know little but that, and it was to be expected, it tickles the palate of several shady characters, starting with Hala, who stands out on the horizon as the main villain.
Although there is no lack of a twist of a certain magnitude and a final cliffhanger, now classic for the episodic productions of the Californian team, like all the introductory chapters, Tangled in blue turns out to be slow and wordy, not shy in taking all the time necessary to introduce the characters, reveal some background, put their ideas and characters in the square, forcing the player to make very specific choices, siding with one rather than the other.
Also in this case, the real impact of the player's decisions can only be had starting from the next episodes, but this first chapter of the story, if on the one hand it manages to dissect intimate aspects of the characters (above all the protagonist, to whom a significant flashback), on the other hand it fails to give rhythm to the narrative, which, after an initial crackling sequence, ends up slowing down heavily, dragging itself somewhat tiredly up to the inevitable final pending.
After the fluctuating experience of the TellTale series dedicated to Batman, we therefore reserve the right to suspend the judgment on this aspect for the next four episodes, which should not be made to wait too long.

Verticality

Little but nothing to report as regards any gameplay news compared to what the US software house has accustomed us to: the jetpack supplied to Star-Lord allows you to also explore the levels vertically, a feature that, by heart, it was not present in any other TellTale product, but the impression is that this possibility is heavily scripted, limited only to the sequences in which the programmers have decided to make it available.
More welcome, because apparently free from game design choices, the possibility of using the communication system inside the helmet to relate to one's fellow soldiers in real time: some tasty jokes from this first episode spring from this possibility, and, in addition to this, it seems to be particularly useful for neophytes of TellTale adventures, since often the protagonist's companions will give advice and tips on solving the puzzles, however never too complex.
The clash with the Titan, which is certainly the most successful sequence of the entire episode and which reveals itself after a few minutes of play, denounces a brilliant and rapid use of the QTEs, which, if on the one hand they have become, from exit to exit, increasingly difficult to make mistakes, on the other hand they give a little rhythm and panache to the slow pace of progression, often mimicking the movements that the heroes make on the screen in a very effective way, along the lines of what David Cage did with Beyond Due Anime a few years ago.
The furious alternation between the two triggers of the Xbox One pad recalls the use of two guns of Star-Lord, as well as the lateral sword strokes are read without any input lag from the system.
The general impression that Tangled in blue gives is that of a linear but refined, slow but pleasant product, which resorts to an intelligent use of well-known characters but does so with a touch of mannerism too much and without panache.
There are prerequisites for a good product, but there is too little meat in the fire to completely dispel the doubts about production, which for now walks on the edge of the abyss that divides the most successful products of the Californian software house from the less enjoyable.

More stable

The technical sector of TellTale productions has always represented one of the points that have most divided the public, among those who love the aesthetic solutions chosen by the Californian development team (from the "American comic" style of The Walking Dead to the watercolored one of Game of Thrones) and those who criticize the woodiness of the animations and the presence of numerous bugs.
This first episode of Guardians of the Galaxy may not meet the tastes of detractors, as it abandons both of the aforementioned styles to rely on graphics that are as realistic as possible, although still weighed down by unnatural movements and some animation that seems to come straight from the PS2 generation. , but at least it will silence those who hit the bug button.
In the little less than two hours it took to complete this first part, we did not run into any significant problems on the Xbox One, the version we tested, which is an indication of the greater testing work that the product went through before landing. on the digital platforms of PC, PS4 and the Microsoft console.
Lovers of comics and / or movies related to this series may not like the reinterpretation of their favorite characters, but the work done by the TellTale graphic designers is overall well done, beyond personal preference.

Final comment

This first episode of the new TellTale series adds a couple of new gameplay dynamics and offers a welcome psychological introspection of one of the protagonists, but does not completely escape the doubts regarding the rhythm, the success of the twists and the impact that the choices of the player could have on the continuation of the adventure.
It will be necessary to wait for the second episode (and perhaps also the third and fourth ...) before we can express ourselves regarding these aspects, but for now we feel like promoting The Guardians of the Galaxy, albeit with some reservations.