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Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, a new game by Square Enix and Eidos Montreal, will be departing from a very standard convention in the gaming industry.
According to multiple sources, Square Enix and Eidos' upcoming comic book adventure game will be single-player and will not feature downloadable content (DLC) or microtransaction payments for in-game content.
This stands in stark contrast to the development/publisher duo's previous Marvel title in Marvel's Avengers, which was visualized as a live-service game that failed to meet expectations. In many players' opinions, the amount of money players could pour into Avengers did not measure up to the in-game content received.
Guardians of the Galaxy is departing from the new industry standard and returning to a classic format.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy: What to expect as a non-live-service game
Though many games in the current AAA market have resorted to microtransactions and DLC content as a means of extending a game's earning power after release, it appears Square Enix and Eidos will be focusing on Guardians of the Galaxy's single-player experience. According to the announcement via Square Enix's E3 presentation, players will take control of the core five guardians Star Lord, Rocket Raccoon, Gamorra, Drax, and Groot for an adventure filled with third-person combat. Narrative choices have also been hinted at as well, changing the course of the overall story depending on what selections players make.
Returning to Square Enix's single-player and story-driven roots is likely a good thing. It has served the publisher well throughout its most well-known series Final Fantasy, or its more recent successes in Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, and Hitman.
Marvel's Avengers was almost a non-factor during Square Enix's presentation, and this could be for good reason. Though the game was ambitious in scope, it was somewhat sabotaged by the shoed-in microtransactions, DLC, and delayed post-launch updates. If Guardians of the Galaxy is releasing as a finished product without the need for additional content, it shouldn't fall into the same pitfalls as Avengers did.
With four months until release, there is likely still plenty to do to make sure players are satisfied with Guardians of the Galaxy from day one, and that is exactly what the development team is focused on, according to director Mary DeMarle during E3:
"For us, it's very important that on day one, when players get this game, they can have access to everything there is about this game and experience it. So right off the bat, they can get all of the costumes or outfits that are available. They can find all the abilities as they progress through the game. It's all there."
This is likely something players of AAA games aren't used to seeing lately. DLC and microtransactions have largely become the norm in the industry, so a publisher as massive as Square Enix refuting them for this Guardians of the Galaxy title is a rarity.
It's not only a rarity, but it will likely give an entire fanbase hope that Square Enix and Eidos have learned from their missteps and are dedicated to making it up to their devoted players. Marvel and Square Enix fans may both be pleasantly surprised with the final product if Guardians of the Galaxy truly sticks to its guns.
Read More: When and where to watch the Nintendo Direct E3 stream.
