The Last Guardian Reviews
The Last Guardian offers something different and contrasts the hand-holding nature and ease-of-progression that modern titles offer. Despite all its issues, The Last Guardian stands as a bastion of what video games used to be in-terms of progression, combined with an animal so imposing, mythical and mesmerising that its a wonder how they managed to make it so lifelike. The Last Guardian won't be to everyone's tastes, but you should go out of your way to experience it for yourself.
The Last Guardian was 10 years in the making, and it feels like it, for all the good and bad that implies. It's a masterpiece in terms of creating a living, breathing AI partner who is a wild and dangerous beast. The atmosphere, the environments and the puzzles are a delight. It's impossible to get around the fact that the game is built with frustration as a feature, and your enjoyment of it will depend on whether you're enough of a cat person to mind spending 10 minutes solving a three-second puzzle. It's a remarkable game that is all the more remarkable for almost living up to 10 years of hype. If you have the patience, The Last Guardian is a must-play for PS4 owners.
Although I've been critical of the gameplay of The Last Guardian, it's actually quite a beautiful title on the PlayStation 4 with a very moving story. So if you can forgive the technical issues of the game and if you enjoyed Ico or Shadow of the Colossus, it's still an interesting experience that is a thoroughly enjoyable and emotional narrative on this console.
The Last Guardian certainly feels like a masterpiece that will gamers will look back to. While it might not be everyone's cup of tea, it's a unique game that that everyone should try to experience.
Ueda has worked on a game that's not perfect, but it's purposely not perfect… which ironically just about makes it a perfect experience. If you have a heart it's going to pull on all those strings, be prepared. Ueda is truly the last guardian of pure gaming 'feels' of our time.
Much like its predecessor, The Last Guardian is an unforgettable journey bordering on being more art than game.
In the end, I can say that I truly cherished every moment spent playing The Last Guardian but that it came with a heaping dose of forgiveness on things I might not forgive any other game for.
I have never, in my three decades plus of gaming been as motivated to save another video game character as I was during the last act of The Last Guardian.
Despite its problems, The Last Guardian is an incredible piece of imaginative world-building. As a game, it mostly succeeds. As something we've been anticipating for nine years… well, that might be too tall an obstacle for even a giant flying dog to get over.
In Technical terms, The Last Guardian is a disaster. Control issues, bad camera angels and graphical bugs are all over the place. Nevertheless, The art design, character development and story are so incredibly good that you can close your eyes on all of those technical issues and just enjoy a masterpiece.
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Despite the myriad issues that crop up to mar the experience, when everything is going off without a hitch The Last Guardian is a breathtaking adventure that deserves to be played. It's just a shame the many beautiful moments found within this package are buried under some antiquated and ill-conceived mechanics that make much of this 12-hour journey feel more like work than play. Still, if you're willing to weather the storm in order to witness one of the more touching tales to ever grace the medium, The Last Guardian is worth adding to your collection.
The Last Guardian can be frustrating gameplay-wise, but the connection you'll feel to its beautifully-realised yet intractable companion creature leaves no room in your heart for such concerns. Somehow, this game was worth the wait.
"The Last Guardian" is all about a collection of small and large gestures that expand, enrich, and end a relationship. Although I experienced some camera-angle issues during my playthrough — it was easily lost in Trico's plumage — I'd like nothing more than to experience the game again. I'm left wondering, as I often do after encountering a great work of art, how it all came together.
Days after meeting them, I still carry these protagonists and their tale in my thoughts, though genDESIGN and SIE Japan Studio have carried them much longer. The Last Guardian's troubled development cycle spans nearly ten years, surviving taxing setbacks and delays in hopes of delivering this story.
The Last Guardian's seven-year development cycle is evident in antiquated design, but ultimately, it isn't enough to spoil this charming fantasy tale.
The Last Guardian is not a perfect game. None is. But I can't think of many titles that deliver such powerful experiences utilizing the tools that only gaming can provide. I couldn't in all honesty sit here and nitpick the controls or the occasional graphical hiccup, because I had too much damn fun and made a great friend along the way.
What a pleasure it is to find a video game with such warmth and fascination with companionship. And what a joy it is for it to be found in a game with such an elegant sense of exploration.
All in all, I didn't really enjoy the game as a whole when looking at its mechanics, narrative and characters separately, thanks to technical issues and bizarre choices that mar it as an interactive experience. But I did find a forever friend in Trico, who I'll remember for the rest of my time in gaming. If you do play The Last Guardian, I surmise that's the takeaway you'll have from it too.