Marvel’s Guardians Of The Galaxy’s Most Impactful Choices
Players will need to make difficult choices in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy that will impact the direction of the playthrough and the story's overall outcome. Choices throughout the game range from significant decisions, such as letting Gamora go after Raker, or minor choices, like siding with a teammate in a passing argument. Some decisions don't have much of an impact on the game, but the important ones can also seem insignificant initially.
[Warning: Major spoilers for Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy are below.]
While playing, some decisions can affect the player's relationship with their teammates which can change the dialogue between them. Certain choices in Guardians will also change gameplay in the short term, but each path will lead to the same outcome. For example, choosing to sell either Rocket or Groot to Lady Hellbender will change the middle portion of Chapter 4 leading to different collectibles and outfits. However, no matter what players choose, they have the chance to get 12,000 units and will need to defeat GotG's the Dweller-In-Darkness at the end of the chapter.
Decisions like who to sell or whether or not Drax should throw Rocket on Seknarf Nine have no long-term, permanent effects on Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. These minor choices affect some dialogue or banter and can change parts of a mission, but none of them are game-changing. Chapters are also replayable for those that want to see every outcome of GotG's story without having to beat the whole thing multiple times. The impactful decisions are those that continuously affect the story or cause major splits in Star-Lord's path as it progresses.
At the very beginning of Chapter 2, players will be caught by Nova Corps and confronted by Ko-Rel. Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy's Star-Lord can try to talk his way out of trouble, but players will eventually have to decide whether they want to hide the Llama found in the Quarantine Zone or Rocket's stash of illegal parts and weapons. Both decisions will have a few different effects throughout the game starting with how much money players will be fined for breaking the law. If players hide the stash, they are charged 8,000 units for entering the quarantine zone and bringing the Llama aboard. Hiding the Llama will result in a 7,000 unit fine.
Hiding the Llama costs players less money and will save them time when beating Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy. If players chose to hide the Llama in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, then Star-Lord will be able to quickly escape his room after Drax locks him in at the start of Chapter 10. The creature will have chewed a hole through the wall, and players can climb through behind the poster. If the stash was hidden away instead, then players will need to steer the Llama using the touchpad in the room. The parts hidden in the stash will also be used to enhance the guardians' ship later in the game, but the advancements aren't very significant.
Siding with either Ko-Rel or Nikki doesn't necessarily change the game overall, but if players side with Ko-Rel they will miss locked areas in Chapter 7. Choosing Nikki's side and taking the blame for her indiscretions will make her trust Star-Lord during Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy's story. She will give him her access card, which can be used later in the game. Chapter 7 has a lot of missable collectibles that players will not be able to obtain unless they side with Nikki in Chapter 2, while siding with Ko-Rel has no real benefit.
In Chapter 8, players will be able to support or stop Gamora when she wants to go after Raker. The decision seems out of the player's hands at first, because Gamora states she's going after him and not to follow her before running off. However, players have the option of running after her, which will change the game later on. Letting Gamora go is the better decision in the long run however, because it will give players an advantage in the boss fight later.
In Chapter 15 of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, players face Raker, who will be weakened if Gamora was allowed to go after him. Choosing this option means Gamora won't be with the group for the rest of Chapter 8, which makes combat encounters a little harder. However, the advantage over Raker is worth supporting her. For those that want to stop her, Star-Lord needs to run after her. He will fall and grab a ledge, causing Gamora to stop chasing Raker and save him. Raker will get away, Gamora will be furious with Star-Lord, and Raker will not be weakened for Chapter 15's boss fight.
During Chapter 9, players will have the chance to sow doubt in the Worldmind through dialogue choices. Convincing the Worldmind to help will assist players with the fight in Chapter 14. If the Worldmind in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is not convinced, players won't get its help later on, and the battle will be more difficult. Any enemies the Worldmind would have taken out will be the player's responsibility. While this interaction and the dialogue choices don't change the game, the impact on the battle later is significant. To convince the Worldmind, players need to choose the following dialogue options:
- Share intel
- Appeal to duty
- Put in perspective
Similar to the Worldmind choices, the decisions regarding Cosmo will affect the Chapter 14 fight. Players that want an advantage during that battle will need to help free Cosmo of his Promise. He will have a unique weapon during the fight later on and deal a large amount of damage to many enemies. Failing to convince Cosmo means he won't join the fight, and there will be an additional illusion sequence to play through making the game take longer. Convincing Cosmo in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy can be accomplished by choosing:
- Offer hand to Cosmo
- Focus on present
- Remind about puppies
Most of Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy's important story decisions need to be chosen quickly because they will have a time limit for deciding. Making these split decisions can have significant consequences later in the game, like how difficult a boss fight is, or how many units players will be fined. Each of the most impactful choices steers the direction of the game over multiple chapters or causes the biggest changes to the story.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is available on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.