While the cosmic action game is faithful to the source material, chose Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy due to the team's underdog status, but major departures from Marvel Comics lore were apparently considered early in development.
Upon release last year Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy was highly praised for its art direction and writing. Eidos-Montreal successfully balanced humor and emotion, with the lighthearted nature of Marvel's cosmic team leading to some truly hilarious moments when the action game isn't delving into the personal flaws and fears of each Guardian. Masterful voice acting also brings Star-Lord, Gamora, Rocket, Groot and Drax to life alongside a colorful collection of allies and villains. The title's combat was more divisive, however, with players controlling the relatively weak Star-Lord and relying on their allies to succeed in battle. While the game sets up a sequel, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy writer Mary DeMarle has since moved on to help craft the story of Mass Effect 4.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy art director Bruno Gauthier-Leblanc recently discussed some unused character designs in an interview with Edge magazine (via GamesRadar). The art director explains that they wanted to avoid being influenced by Marvel, feeling that this would lead to generic character designs. Gauthier-Leblanc instead drew inspiration from 80s and 90s art, which emphasizes simple shapes and colorful patterns. This led to truly otherworldly concepts like a "fat Drax," a "human-sized Rocket" and a Star-Lord with "almost a full cosmonaut suit." However, Marvel and Eidos-Montreal eventually reached a middle-ground that resulted in the final designs seen in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy.
While the project may never see the light of day, a Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy sequel has plenty of characters and storylines to explore. The potential sequel could easily expand the Guardians roster, allowing players to fight beside cosmic heroes like Nikki Gold, Mantis, Adam Warlock, Nova, Yondu and more. A Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy 2 could even let players directly control the other Guardians, which would address a major criticism of the first game. Eidos-Montreal was sold to Embracer Group earlier this year, however, creating uncertainty around the franchise's future.
Character designs in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy found a perfect balance between familiarity and originality. Each of the game's cosmic characters were faithful to the source material, but each of their designs also matched their unique in-game personality and alien nature. While a chunkier Drax does sound interesting, a human-sized Rocket Raccoon probably would have been terrifying.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and PC.
Source: GamesRadar