The Last Guardian Reviews
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.
In retrospect I believe a friend put it best – 'it's a flawed masterpiece' he said and I truly believe that.
The Last Guardian is a love letter to anyone who loved Team Ico's previous games. It's a shame that this game won't receive the mainstream attention it deserves. Kudos to Sony for sticking with Fumito Ueda for so long and getting the game out on the shelves. Truly, The Last Guardian marks the end of an era.
The Last Guardian closed Ueda's trilogy with an important signal: the poem before the content, but the poetry tends toward the vacuum, leaving a beautiful picture to see, but not beautiful to live.
Review in Italian | Read full review
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.
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.
Despite its lingering flaws and often frustrating pacing, The Last Guardian rises above expectation to deliver an engrossing adventure. Team Ico have brought together everything they've learnt over their past two games to present a heartfelt tale wrapped in an often-bewildering platformer – even if it took nearly a decade to make it here.
Because of its gigantic chief character The Last Guardian is an atmospheric experience, despite all its shortcomings.
Review in German | Read full review
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.
Be prepared for some huge irritations but buy The Last Guardian despite these. It's the kind of game you won't forget.
After over seven years it feels surrealistic to finally play The Last Guardian. Has it been worth the wait? No idea – some players will complain about the unpolished controls, the graphics and the bad camera angels. On the other hand the story is beautiful and the world is as stunning as it was in Ico and Shadow of the Colossus. For us, this is one of the best adventures in the recent years.
Review in Swedish | Read full review
All round, The Last Guardian feels meticulously pieced together and is easily one of the PlayStation 4's stronger exclusive titles. It's risky and unconventional, flouting modern design practices in a way that few other AAA game would dare to in 2016. Although far from perfect and a little worn from age, it's a one of a kind experience and hopefully won't be the last we see from Fumito Ueda and this enchanting world.
Playing The Last Guardian reminds me a lot of playing Half-Life games: The actual moment-to-moment of working my way through the game involves an enormous amount of frustration and annoyance... but when I look back at it, all I see are the happy memories of the experience. That's due in large part to the incredible design of Trico, and also to the spectacular emotive ending. Make no mistake, though, you will want to tear your hair out throughout your journey with Trico... but patient players will find the payoff justifies the suffering.
The Last Guardian forges a connection between the player and Trico unlike anything else in gaming. You need to experience it, despite its problems in other areas
Not quite up to the same standards of its predecessors, but this is still an emotionally draining and beautifully realised story of friendship against the odds.
The bond between the boy and the Trico tugged at my heartstrings. Even though the controls and camera made the game a little unnecessarily frustrating at times, the story and relationship developed made up for the flaws.
Trico is battered and bruised and bloody by the end of this story and he remains a faithful friend until the end. His sacrifice and the emotional weight it carries are incredible. Near the end there is a climactic battle and I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a character I care about so much be so utterly brutalized. It’s haunting. He risks everything to protect you, everything. And it feels so good when you get to return the favour in one of the most bittersweet endings to any game I can remember.
An emotional journey, a decade in the making
Prepare your handkerchiefs, because from this point on, the matter is serious. We approach the final chapter of history, and we prefer not to tell you anything.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The Last Guardian is the game we needed in 2016