The Last Guardian clearly has elements in common with Fumito Ueda’s prior masterpieces, Shadow of the Colossus and Ico. Despite its frustrating times, it’s a game that captivates and thrills. You can love her with a hard love that will tolerate all of her defects.
Shortcomings can manifest themselves. Liquidity reduces, sometimes dramatically, after exiting confined rooms. When we are climbing on top of an animal buddy, the camera might go nuts, and even jumping from a chain towards a rock ledge can be an extraordinary accomplishment that requires many attempts. When we die and realize that the failure was not due to our inattention or lack of reflexes, but rather to bad manufacturing, we might become quite upset. After a time, however, we are once again immersed in the game’s incredible atmosphere. This is one of the most intriguing works of the year. We sense the distinct mood from the moment we meet the hero. He is an unnamed youngster who finds himself in a cave under odd circumstances. He regains consciousness and learns he is next to Trico, a monster that looks like a hybrid between a dog and a griffin.
The youngster resolves to assist the captive beast, removing spears from its back and even locating food for the enormous animal. This is how the journey begins, as well as the characters’ collaboration and camaraderie. The game’s idea is simple: we must escape the strange ruins. So we continue our quest by covering future places and solving environmental problems. You may need to discover a means to remove an impediment, open a gate, or urge Trico to move. Problem solving is diverse and needs thought. The game doesn’t really guide us at all. The magical arrow or luminous dot does not indicate the way to the objective. The Last Guardian necessitates breaking many habits from current games that provide several amenities. We must be vigilant and take meticulous observations. Finding a method to open the next route is always satisfying, especially when we care about and support the characters so much. Trico might easily become connected to you. The beast acts organically and does not react to orders automatically, like a robot might. Sometimes we show him the route, and he will pause for a while, gaze at the location indicated by the boy, and then jump there. He may poke the food barrel with his paw a few times before devouring it completely.
However, it must be noted that such naturalness can be overbearing in some circumstances. Our patience is put to the strain as we have to wait over twenty seconds for the beast to react. We, on the other hand, seldom remain furious with a virtual buddy for too long. It’s tough not to grin when you see some of his moves and actions. When he is anxious or irritated, we get concerned as well. We treat him as if he were our own dog. Owners and pet lovers appear to have a greater affinity with Trico than others. Our buddy can help us in a variety of scenarios. Sometimes we have to slide down its tail, while other times the only way to continue the voyage is to cling to the animal’s back as it leaps towards faraway objects. Because the hero cannot fight, we must rely mostly on the beast when we confront adversaries. However, later in the game, we have some control over the fights. We can hit the stone warriors, causing them to drop the glass shields that Trico is scared of. By striking foes, we temporarily stop them from hurling spears. However, we must constantly exercise caution and avoid getting carried away. When the opponent takes up the youngster, we have to swiftly hit different buttons on the gamepad, which becomes tiresome. A unique ambiance is created by combining various materials. This is an excellent use of quiet, paired with the introduction of lovely music where it is required. It is also a pervasive feeling of mystery, the particular enchantment of the portrayed universe, and the hero’s relationships with the animal.
The plot is extremely engaging, despite being conveyed in a pretty simple manner. The developers do not provide apparent and definitive solutions to the player’s questions. The bizarre setting in which we find ourselves fascinates us until the very end, and even after the credits, we have questions regarding numerous narrative elements. We even want to restart the trip, to look at everything from a fresh viewpoint, enriched with new facts. The designers also managed to give the settings a distinct personality, which is particularly surprising given that we are primarily dealing with stone structures. They may appear conventional and dull at first look. They do, however, fit well into all scenarios, the mood, and the entire tale.
The Last Guardian is a one-of-a-kind game with only Ico from the PlayStation 2 to compare it to. The developers’ hand may be felt here, since they have already given unique and amazing experiences. This wonderful journey cleverly takes us into a mystery universe and leaves a lasting impact, even if it does test our patience at points.