

As the game moves along, both Trico and the boy discover new ways to deal with obstacles: early on, you will find that Trico is able to shoot lightning from his tail to destroy certain obstacles when ordered to do so, while the boy can ride on Trico to cross great chasms and even give Trico commands after they’ve developed a high enough level of trust. There are numerous instances when this combination of platforming/puzzle-solving is done under pressure, if one or both of the companions find themselves in immediate peril. Considering the two very differently-sized protagonists, multiple routes must sometimes be found to let each of them continue.

PS4 BURLY MEN AT SEA MISSES THE MARK HOW TO
Puzzle-solving also factors in, generally involving figuring out how to open a gate, getting to a switch, or clearing a path to move on. Luckily, Trico is the proverbial muscle, and does the lion’s share of fighting, with the exception of a few annoying sections when the boy has gone off on his own and it becomes easier to simply dodge around the enemies rather than engage them. This is easily my least favorite aspect of gameplay: the boy is small, weak, and for the most part unarmed, and is a poor match for the stone statue soldiers that come to life to harangue him and Trico throughout the game. This includes jumping, running, crawling, balancing, and climbing, as well as some light combat. Some platforming is required, as navigating the environments is what’s normally needed to progress. The Last Guardian often defies genre classifications. The pair help each other overcome environmental obstacles and rely on each other to survive, though sometimes the way past an impediment is to simply clamber onto Trico’s back and let him carry you. I would often turn the camera after passing an obstacle to make absolutely sure Trico was getting past it safely, too. There’s a real sense of boy and beast needing each other, and not just for the platforming’s sake. As the game progresses, the two become an inseparable pair, and Trico will cry out loud in distress if you move too far away from him. This builds up trust between the two, and made me feel like I was bonding with the monstrous-yet-cuddly behemoth. The first several actions that need to be performed include feeding Trico and tending to his wounds, before freeing him from his chains. More importantly, they allow a relationship to form right away. The initial thirty minutes or so serve to teach you how to control the boy and interact with Trico. Described as a man-eating beast by the narrator, the creature named Trico is wounded, with spear-ends still implanted in his leg and shoulder, and behaving aggressively and hostile like any cornered animal would. There’s little time to wonder about the backstory, though, as an immense, slumbering creature chained up right next to the boy is immediately revealed. The game is actually a flashback, with occasional narration by the boy, now grown into a man. There’s no explanation of who he is or how he got there not until much later anyway.
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The adventure opens as the nameless player-controlled boy awakens in a cave, his skin covered with mysterious tattoos. It’s not a mystery, a thriller, or a comedy it’s a game about a bond of friendship, pure and simple. To that end, and in keeping with the style of the previous two games, the narrative is fairly limited and unobtrusive. The result is essentially just that: a vehicle to build a sense of connection and make players really care about their on-screen ally. Seeing how fans of Shadow of the Colossus related to the bond between silent protagonist Wander and his horse Agro, The Last Guardian’s designer and director Fumito Ueda set out to create a game that revolves around the emotional attachment between the player character and a digital companion. The PlayStation 4 exclusive isn’t entirely without its hiccups, but it succeeds spectacularly in most areas and turns out to have been well worth the wait. Using a similar minimalist design approach as its predecessors and focused on creating a meaningful relationship between the unnamed player character and a giant cat-bird-rodent hybrid, The Last Guardian is intended to provide a unique experience for all gamers, while offering returning players an immediate sense of familiarity. A ten-year development cycle didn’t help matters any. Sony’s The Last Guardian had some very high expectations to live up to, being the spiritual successor to Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, both cult classics in their own right.
