Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Episode 1: Tangled Up in Blue Reviews
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy feels like a mixed bag. While there's the promise of a fun adventure in the Marvel universe with a likable group of characters, it's hampered by the same problems of nearly every Telltale game in the last few years, plus a few new ones. It's not terrible, but I'd wait to see what the other episodes look like before picking it up.
Reactions to Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series will depend largely on how receptive a given player is to seeing more of the Guardians of the Galaxy in general. Unlike their successful big-screen debut, the narrative missteps in Tangled Up in Blue mean that players of the first episode won't immediately fall in love with this motley crew of ne'er-do-wells. Anyone that's already open to their cosmic antics will find a family that seems worth sticking with.
I really enjoyed the small details Telltale brought forward, and am excited about the potential this series holds for Both TT and Marvel.
Overall, this wasn’t a bad start to the series, but the story did dip in places after a massive spike right at the start, it kind of came crashing down with a slight peak again towards the end.
What we have here with Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy - Episode 1: Tangled Up in Blue is a solid if unspectacular entry into the latest Telltale Games series. I have really high hopes for Guardians of the Galaxy, and while Tangled Up in Blue does a decent job of setting the stage without any major trip-ups, there is plenty of room for improvement to be had as well.
In the end, Tangled Up in Blue shows me that not everything fits into the standard Telltale Formula. Mechanics found in other Telltale games feel out of place in this title and decisions carried very little weight to what we were doing. That said, it was still an enjoyable experience and built up enough intrigue to make me consider checking out the other episodes. If anything, this can quench your GotG thirst until the movie arrives.
All in all, despite a slew of visual glitches and indefensible movement problems caused by Telltale refusing to seriously upgrade their engine, the excellent writing and abundance of humour stops Guardians Of The Galaxy from sinking into the pit of ‘bad video games based on commercially-successful movies’. The fascinating character interactions and engaging storyline that never ceases in springing up surprises around every corner makes this a must-play for fans of the series and those who want a bit more after coming home from watching the feature film.
It's a mixed bag, but there's cause for both optimism and concern after completing Episode One
This first episode definitely wasn't bad. It scores well for its humor, music and nice graphics. Points down for weaker storyline and uninteresting decisions. The quick-time events can also get pretty annoying.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Unfortunately I was a little let down. I’m not sure how to describe it. In relation to all of the other Telltale games I’ve played this isn’t a terrible episode by any means. But it isn’t great either and more than usual it really felt like paint by numbers. Considering how much fun the movies were I expected that sort of tone to carry into this game. But it didn’t.
Just like any other Telltale game, Guardians of the Galaxy is a great adaption. It suffers from some minor technical and gameplay issues, but strong story, high replay value, and marvelous sound design and music easily overcome those shortcomings.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Guardians of the Galaxy - The Telltale Series doesn't bring anything particularly new or very interesting when compared to other Telltale games, but it is able once again to competently adapt the universe in which it happens, with the spirit and jokes from the films without repeating the movie's plot. Being similar to a cartoon episode's style in its storytelling is fun for anyone who is a fan of the franchise.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
An interesting prologue filled with action, jokes and our favourite team of former outlaws, but the "more of the same" feeling that the gameplay gives you is stronger than ever.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy : The Telltale Series tells a story that is both interesting and surprising. But the technical limitations of Telltale's engine are really starting to drag its games down. The game's half-assed translation is also pretty annoying.
Review in French | Read full review
On the bright side, Tangled Up in Blue is a solid first salvo for Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series. Though some of the early storytelling does prove to be disappointing, it is nice to know that they have plenty of room for improvement in future chapters. Given the nature of the conflicts dealt with in this installment, I am still extremely curious to see where things go from here. The sky's the limit for this series. Let's hope that Telltale is shooting for the stars.
I'll admit to being initially dubious about Telltale's prospects of taking on these characters, who we already know well from the first Guardians movie and the comics, and involve them in a compelling story that doesn't tread too heavily on the toes of the upcoming second movie.
Ultimately, Telltale's first episode of its Guardians of the Galaxy series is a solid start. While I'd definitely like to see Telltale take their foot off the gas when it comes to driving the story along in future episodes in favor of more quality time with the characters, the high-tempo introduction to the series is sure to keep players hooked.
"Episode 1: Tangled Up in Blue" is a satisfactory launchpad for the rest of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series. So far the game has a distinct identity chock-full of cheesy dialogue, catchy tunes and badass superheroes, although moments of seriousness and sadness that seem to come out of nowhere don't fit in.
It takes a while to find its voice and stretches a three song soundtrack to near breaking point, but this first episode demonstrates a willingness to take a stand-alone Guardians of the Galaxy plot in intriguing directions. Most importantly: it pulls off just enough jokes.
It's not a bad game by any means, but I'm starting to feel fatigued by episodic games. The characters work well together, and there are some nice ideas, but I'm not finding anything beyond this to keep me hooked.