The Last Guardian - Catdog bird, Trico

[Sure Thing Idiot]

It's kind of a sleeper hit but entirely worth the time invested. I don't really get into games on an emotional level, but this game was an experience I've never had before. I was hyped for it when I saw the first trailer like seven years ago. The trailer was released for ps3 but there were issues developing the game and it only recently came out for the ps4.

Has anyone else played it?

 

[Overcast]

I have.

I've been a fan of Ueda's work since Shadow of the Colossus, which is pretty much my most favorite game. I played ICO when the HD collection came out and loved it as well.

Considering how long this game took to come out, I was kind of expecting the game to bomb. I bought it day 1 anyway, and after playing through it, I can honestly say that I'm so happy to be wrong.

The game gave me the same kind of feeling the other games gave me. You can tell a lot of effort was put in to make this game good. Trico is one of the most amazing AI buddies I had the pleasure of being with. The way he moves, the way he interacts with his environment, the bond he shares with the boy, it's ridiculous how well programmed he is.

It was an emotionally engaging journey all the way through. I got to the ending, and my brother, who was watching, ended up crying by the time it was over. He told me that he NEVER cried at a video game before.and he and I have been playing games for the better part of twenty years.

The Last Guardian is truly a magical experience and really lives up to its pedigree. I'm grateful to have experienced it.

 

[Sure Thing Idiot]

I've not played Ico yet though I've only ever heard good things, a few people have been hounding me to get to it. I don't get heavily invested in games on a deep level, but I've been waiting for The Last Guardian since the release of the teaser trailer. The continuous postponement, then cancelation, the issues ongoing kind of had me thinking it would never happen and there was a while I just forgot about it.

While the gameplay is a little clunky at times, I would consider it easily one of the best stories out there. The environment is gorgeous and the overpowering sense of insignificance against the towers and the goliath structures is really believable. There's something about what it gives you and doesn't give you that makes it a really genuine, long-lasting story. Not to mention Trico is arguably the most convincing side supporting partner I've ever seen. His movements, his behavior, his reactions. I can see why it took so long to come out and why there were so many issues, so I think now any flaws with the gameplay, while there, are understandable.

The only other game I've felt emotional after playing was Journey. It was a combination of music, a lack of direction and that someone I knew had died suddenly not long before. Kind of side swipped me. I wanted to recapture the feeling so I played a few times over, but with The Last Guardian my experience felt so near perfect in a cinematic way it's one of the few games I can't see playing again for years - if ever. Journey and The Last Guardian are the only two games that have brought tears to my eyes but for entirely different reasons. I only know one person IRL who's played it and we both had the same feeling of loss and appreciation for it. Like we've waited so long and it's over.

It would make an amazing animated movie.

 

[Jackal]

I'm in the same boat of having played both Ico and Shadow of the Colossus and falling in love with Ueda's work long before The Last Guardian came out. Shortly after the first trailer was released, I stumbled across it on Youtube and watched it on a whim; I didn't realize it was a Team Ico game at first. It was the first shot of the boy that gave it away. He invoked such strong memories of Ico and Wander, and sounded exactly like Ico when he made sounds. Then I checked the description of the video and saw that my hunch was right. I was ecstatic.

Waiting all those years, I was worried. It was sort of a tie between everyone saying that Trico was definitely going to die because "all cute animal sidekicks die" (my insistence that this was not Ueda's style fell on deaf ears), and just how long production was taking. Ico and Shadow of the Colossus pushed their tech to the limits and were surreal, incredible experiences because of it and Ueda's amazing storytelling abilities. But could The Last Guardian, a game with such high expectations, ever deliver as well as its predecessors?

I lost track of development as real life sort of took me away from the gaming world, and suddenly, The Last Guardian had been released. I was very careful not to spoil myself, and a month or so after we got our PS4, my boyfriend surprised me with it as a gift.

I think the most telling thing about the experience is that I walked away with one solitary complaint. One. And that's that the camera was wonky and didn't like to play along. All the same, if you've played Shadow of the Colossus, it's more or less the same exact camera.

Everything else about The Last Guardian blew my mind away.

The scenery, the story, the puzzles, the fights, Trico's AI, Trico's physics - everything was what I had hoped for and more. Though I wish it had been a longer game simply so I could have enjoyed it longer, by the end I was not left wanting. It was so very much a perfect blend of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus while also being its own thing. I also have to say I agree with the comparison to Journey; though very different experiences, The Last Guardian and Journey do share in expansive adventure, beautiful scenery, and a deeply emotional atmosphere.

Gaming and game design are passions of mine, and to put it simply, The Last Guardian is an inspiration. I love it deeply and will treasure it as much as I've treasured the games that came before it, if not moreso. I'm grateful for the experience and will be happy to go through it again for the achievements and extras... when I can emotionally handle it.