There are a lot of decisions to make in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, and not all of them have an obvious right or wrong answer. Most are linked to the main story and do alter character conversations. There are only a select few choices that affect the ending.
Updated September 14, 2022, by Michael Llewellyn: Despite not selling well at launch, Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is among the best superhero video games fans can buy. It sits with the likes of Spider-Man and the Batman: Arkham series as one of the best. Like those games, the development team behind Guardians of the Galaxy seems to understand what makes these characters work and why the fans love them. The game has many references and allusions to the source material for fans to spot. One of these allusions is in Chapter 5, as Peter finds a lone prisoner on an abandoned ship. In Marvel lore, the prisoner is a character called Jack Flag. Jack Flag is a character that has helped the Guardians of the Galaxy and appeared in several Captain America comics by getting involved with the Civil War events. In Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, Flag appears in Chapter 5 as a lone inmate in the abandoned Nova prison. It's up to the team if they choose to release him from his cell. Jack Flag hasn't appeared in any of the movies yet so many players won't know the character's identity unless they read the comics, but he is an ally.
One of the more unique choices in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy can be found in Chapter 5 while exploring the Nova ship. The team finds the place deserted, so they make their way deeper into the ship in search of someone. While exploring, there is an optional room in Guardians of the Galaxy that contains a prisoner who asks them to free him.
Should You Free Prisoner on The Ship in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy?
To get the chance to free the prisoner on the ship in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, players must
- First, interact with him. Ask him what crime he committed.
- Or enquire about the mysterious lack of Nova presence on the ship.
- After the conversation with the blue prisoner on the ship, a prompt will appear to the left of his cell.
- Players can interact with it to try and free the prisoner. The good news is that this decision won't alter anything past the current chapter.
If Star-Lord in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy chooses to let him out, the prisoner's cell is released into space. Meaning players are unable to let him out of his cell. By venturing further into the ship, the team will come to a prisoner line-up room, and his cell will appear for a short time before disappearing again.
Interacting with the console in front of the line-up will reveal the prisoner's identity as a rarely seen hero in the Marvel universe, and an occasional member of the Guardians. It's a fun reference for fans of the comics and might make his appearance more likely in future DLC or a sequel if the game does well. That is if he ever escapes his cell, which is floating in space by the end of the chapter.
The mistake falls in line with the Guardians' antics on film and in the comics, but if players choose not to press the button to free the prisoner on the ship, nothing seems to happen. The information learned from the console can still be obtained, but he will remain in his cell where players found him.
After Chapter 5, players will soon be visiting Cosmo in Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, and if they still plan on paying their Nova fine, they should try and limit how many Units they spend there. However, once the chapter is complete, it can be replayed to see the different results. So players can go back and spend as much as they like. Unlike Mass Effect, Chapter 5 in the Guardians of the Galaxy video game lacks story-changing decisions and events. As a result, players can replay the missions to experience the different interactions and conversations without consequences once the story is complete.
However, if Peter and the Guardians choose to free the Prisoner he can be seen outside the window of the Milano in the later chapters. Like other things that can occur on the ship in between chapters, this is a randomized event so keep an eye out for him.
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.