Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series - Episode Five: Don't Stop Believin' (PlayStation 4) Review

Simply put, Episode 5: Don't Stop Believin' pays off all the story threads fantastically. The decisions made during the course of the earlier episodes finally added up to something worthwhile. Depending on what decisions were made before, the story in this final episode can have two different ramifications for future seasons, if they were to happen. The flat one-sided decisions that were prevalent so far were the direct opposite due to the final stages of the season having an actual tough call to make that tugged at the heartstrings and are sure to cause heartbreak either way.

The main cast member yet to have a dedicated episode is Groot, and this time it is his turn to take the centre stage. Well, only shortly as his limited dialogue leaves minimal options for a long, drawn-out sequence. However, the small scene he does play a huge role in, is quite a comical scene that brings about some hideous images of the main man, Star-Lord. It also gives a small glimpse into what Groot is trying to say to the rest of the group, which is a fascinating experience.

The rest of the character development kind of stalls at this stage, as the rest of the cast does not have a lot of maturing left in them. Unfortunately, previous decisions that were made to try to tear the team apart just cannot cause an actual split, as the game always finds a way to pit the Guardians back together again, even if it makes no sense within the context of the canonical decisions from prior episodes. Alas, when the group does band together to make its final stand, it is quite a powerful moment as each has their time in the sun during the final battle.

Unfortunately, the dull gameplay mechanics are also still present, although thankfully Don't Stop Believin' only has one moment of manual control. Manoeuvring anywhere in Telltale's current gameplay model is never fun, so limiting the movements to just the interior of the Guardians' ship is a welcome one at that. However, the Quick Time Events (QTE) are a lot more refined here, and they do not feel like cheap deaths when there is a mistake. The missed events do seem to be a little more forgiving this time, so as not to greatly impair on the pacing of the episode, which is a nice touch.