The Last Guardian

 PlayStation 4
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2785 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,068 out of 2785
  2. Mixed: 302 out of 2785
  3. Negative: 415 out of 2785
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  1. TerrorClaws
    Jan 2, 2017
    7
    + monster design and behaviour
    + puzzle design
    + story
    - camera movement
    - character controls
    - minor framerate issues
    - a bit repetitive surroundings

    I played this one through and enjoyed in overall, but also got very frustrated at times. It's a good game, which had so much potential to be great.
  2. roundtablegamer
    Dec 13, 2016
    7
    The Last Guardian Review

    Alex the Kidd, Gamers of the Round Table From the makers of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus comes a new adventure from the team at JAPAN Studio. The Last Guardian, a title under development for the better part of a decade, arrives to the PS4 an entire console generation later than anticipated. The question is whether this title lives up to its long    The Last Guardian Review

    Alex the Kidd, Gamers of the Round Table

    From the makers of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus comes a new adventure from the team at JAPAN Studio. The Last Guardian, a title under development for the better part of a decade, arrives to the PS4 an entire console generation later than anticipated. The question is whether this title lives up to its long anticipated release.

    The Good

    The Last Guardian is a beautiful game. The details put into Trico, the large feathered beast, clearly show the dedication that went into this project. The environment is massive in scale to both characters, and players can feel completely immersed in the world of the game. Each set piece requires the characters to work together to overcome the obstacles placed before the player; taking direct control of the young boy, players will attempt to guide Trico to progress through the game.

    The bond between boy and beast develops through the player’s success, and communication improves between the two. The challenge in many parts of this game comes from communicating with Trico, and getting him to perform the tasks that need to be done. Players can feel a sense of accomplishment from achieving successful co-operation form the two characters.

    The Bad

    The challenge in this game stems more from the ability to guide Trico then the actual level maps; what was made to feel like a creature that had its own attitude and intelligence can come off as a broken game mechanic at times. This is especially true when you use all the methods to guide Trico, nothing happens, then you run around the area trying to figure something out, only to have Trico jump up onto the ledge you thought he couldn’t reach in the first place. The controls to guide Trico aren’t user friendly, and can be difficult to understand exactly what it is you’re trying to get Trico to do as the camera tends to pan to Trico as you give commands.

    There isn’t much to do here except move from set piece to set piece, and while they are beautiful to experience, the game can feel less engaging at the beginning. There is little plot or drive in the game beyond working with Trico, and discovering more about the area where he dwells.

    Rating

    7/10 – This game isn’t for everyone, but it’s not a bad game. The Last Guardian is a well put together experience, with a few setbacks regarding Trico’s response to command. While epic in size, this isn’t the next big adventure game; Players need to try this game to decide for themselves if it’s a game they will love or not. At the end of the day, Trico is a welcome member to the PlayStation family, and The Last Guardian an overall success.    … Expand
  3. LucianoGB
    Jan 8, 2017
    7
    Not a game for everyone but those who enjoyed ICO and SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS (references to these games will be necessary) would definitely like it. It´s a shame that it has a lot of issues regarding camera angles and controls. Those things have been a constant all over the entire playthrough. And that is exactly why it will not be remembered as a masterpiece (unlike ICO & SOTC).

    Trico    Not a game for everyone but those who enjoyed ICO and SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS (references to these games will be necessary) would definitely like it. It´s a shame that it has a lot of issues regarding camera angles and controls. Those things have been a constant all over the entire playthrough. And that is exactly why it will not be remembered as a masterpiece (unlike ICO & SOTC).

    Trico responses well but very slowly which it makes it sometimes a bit frustrating. However the boy´s control are just mediocre. You will also be struggling with the camera very often: bad camera angles, sudden blackouts and pointing nowhere.

    It is still enjoyable but thanks to its flaws, I never thought I was playing a 10-years-development game. Music and graphics are great. And the story fulfill its objective. Those who have played ICO & SOTC will understand tt despite being not so explanatory, the plot can be very beautiful.

    The bound between Trico and the Boy will not be as impressive or touching like Joel and Ellie (TLOU) but is very great indeed. We will see Trico as a companion and we will care about him.

    Conclusion: A nice game but it definitely has its flaws which makes it an above-the-average game. Not an instant classic and not recommended for everyone. I would recommend anyone to play SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS, but this is not the case.    … Expand
  4. das_1990_paulie
    Dec 8, 2016
    7
    Good game
    controls are like a empty potato bag (or a plastic bag) on a rainy day. Boy movements are like amoeba toy (a very popular toy in my country).
    But I love the game. So unike though. The last guardian is a gem for Playstation 4 owners. English is my second language. Not 0-10 pontuation, games are a experience. Personal and subjective. My veredict: 2016 - Doom, Inside,    Good game
    controls are like a empty potato bag (or a plastic bag) on a rainy day. Boy movements are like amoeba toy (a very popular toy in my country).
    But I love the game. So unike though. The last guardian is a gem for Playstation 4 owners.
    English is my second language.
    Not 0-10 pontuation, games are a experience. Personal and subjective.
    My veredict:
    2016 - Doom, Inside, Uncharted 4 and The last guardian. I only play single player though.
    I love Team Ico work and this is a must play for me.
    My 7 means that it is a good game and one day you will play it.    … Expand
  5. Danieljreid1987
    Dec 17, 2016
    5
    I can see what the developers were trying to achieve but its years to late old clunky controls wonky camera and A.I constantly plays up not to mention poor graphics for this generation rather than connecting with the creature you'll end up frustrated and angry with him not listening to a word you say is everything worked properly I should get behind the story a lot more and would enjoy itI can see what the developers were trying to achieve but its years to late old clunky controls wonky camera and A.I constantly plays up not to mention poor graphics for this generation rather than connecting with the creature you'll end up frustrated and angry with him not listening to a word you say is everything worked properly I should get behind the story a lot more and would enjoy it but after one playthrough I would never want to do it again and if you are a trophy Hunter you'll have to do it many times… Expand
  6. JohnPetersonius
    Feb 10, 2017
    10
    The Last Guardian is a video game that makes me realize how fake most video games are. In most video games, health and ammunition are strewn everywhere for no believable reason (not to mention that the idea of consuming “health” is absurd). In most video games, my screen tells me how much stamina my character has, or shows me a digital map that has no reason for existing. In most videoThe Last Guardian is a video game that makes me realize how fake most video games are. In most video games, health and ammunition are strewn everywhere for no believable reason (not to mention that the idea of consuming “health” is absurd). In most video games, my screen tells me how much stamina my character has, or shows me a digital map that has no reason for existing. In most video games, puzzles make absolutely no sense, as though my enemy would hire a construction crew for a week to build a puzzle to slow my progress. In most video games, characters move through the world and react to me with a predictable set of animations. In most video games, characters and the world twist and bend to make my progression effortless, and as we all know this is not how life works.

    And you know what? It’s forgivable that video games do these things, because unlike movies or other storytelling media when you hand the controls to the audience you have some serious problems on your hands. How much realistic control do you give them? Too little and they’re running on rails, and too much and they’re falling to their deaths every minute. How do you create living characters that feel real, but aren’t boring because they get tired, don’t listen to you, or need to go to the bathroom like any living character actually would? How do you prevent the player from getting stuck without breaking the fourth wall and ruining the realism? The answers to these questions are very hard, perhaps 10-years-of-development hard, and The Last Guardian attempts to answer them and does so very well.

    The screen has no UI, save for rare reminders of what button you use to pick things up or pull on levers. The game’s narrator is an old version of the protagonist, allowing the game to guide the character in a realistic way (the narrator can tell you what to do in the past tense, because he’s already done it). It’s genius and flawless.

    And Trico. Trico is a triumph. I’m not sure how they did it but I never saw him repeat the same animation twice. He moves like a living being, reasons like a living being and reacts like a living being. Early in the game he doesn’t trust you and it’s hard to get him to follow your commands. It’s frustrating, but that frustration makes it so compelling when you finally earn his trust and notice in subtle ways that he has learned to like you. [It’s kinda like how Dark Souls pummels you into the ground, and that’s OK because if you could slay a demon from hell on your first try, that wouldn’t be realistic. And it feels that much better when you do.] It feels like a real relationship and it’s five million years ahead of any relationship I’ve ever experienced in a game. Mass Effect is cool because it kind-almost-slightly simulates relationships, if only for the fact that I’m picking from 4 pre-written answers and can see the dialogue tree in the background.

    Now here’s the catch. Do we want games to perfectly simulate life? No, that would be boring and frustrating. So it’s a question of balance and the talent of the developer. Can they make the elements of the world feel real but also fun? The Last Guardian toes the line between boredom and fun, realistic frustration and fake ease. Early in the game it steps more to the real/boring/frustrating side of the line, and I suspect it loses many players here. Which is a damn shame, because like any Souls fan will tell you, the early frustration that comes from a realistic world (LG) or enemy (Dark Souls) is a necessary element of the final payoff. The Last Guardian’s frustrations lessen significantly as time goes on, just as this journey would in real life. You just have to trust it, or you’re going to ruin it for yourself and lose the ability to appreciate what’s happening.

    I could go on forever (they should do game design classes on this game). But I’ll just leave by saying that The Last Guardian is the most real experience I’ve ever had in games, and I don’t see anything reaching those heights for another decade.    … Expand
  7. Victor_Felipe
    May 5, 2018
    10
    Incredible game. Just incredible. Amazing and unique experience, such as I never lived before playing video games. Extraordinary. Trico´s IA is outstandig. Congratulations for Ueda and crew.
  8. saysay
    Jun 18, 2018
    6
    Cons: Controls are garbage - unresponsive, finicky, inaccurate. Camera is garbage - doesn't follow well, often gets stuck. The timing and pacing of auto-events/cut scenes is confusing and frustrating. They either take way too long to trigger or have long pauses right in the middle, so it isn't clear if you need to do another thing or not. This happened a lot. The puzzles aren't superCons: Controls are garbage - unresponsive, finicky, inaccurate. Camera is garbage - doesn't follow well, often gets stuck. The timing and pacing of auto-events/cut scenes is confusing and frustrating. They either take way too long to trigger or have long pauses right in the middle, so it isn't clear if you need to do another thing or not. This happened a lot. The puzzles aren't super challenging, but manipulating the boy and beast to solve them is often infuriating.

    Pros: Trico is a cute character. Graphics are beautiful. Storyline is interesting and creative.

    Final Thoughts: With the controls being as unresponsive as they are, this would make a better movie than game. I can't recommend it unless you have patience for finicky controls. I found myself screaming at the game throughout even to the very end when there was yet another repetitive cut scene where I wasn't sure if I had to press a button to make it continue or if I just needed to watch Trico look right then left then right then left then right then left again and again until he started doing something else. It was the latter, but I still pressed buttons, saw the boy do stuff, and then saw it have no effect whatsoever on the scene making me still not sure if I had to do something else. The pacing reminded me of older style Japanese films that are edited to progress slowly. It can be nice in a movie, but it's extremely frustrating in a game where it's unclear when the player is in control of pacing and when they aren't.
    I'm so glad I got it on sale for $15. I would have been absolutely furious if I had paid $60 for this piece of beautiful garbage. Unfortunately, the stuff I liked didn't overcome the extremely frustrating experience of the game as a whole. I really want to like this game as much as I like Trico, but I just can't. The gameplay was too frustrating.    … Expand
  9. DogeWowIsBack
    Mar 15, 2019
    3
    Eight years in development and countless delays, only to match Duke Nukem Forever level of disappointment. This game was originally designed for Playstation 3, it looks like a one of early Playstation 3 game and yet it's framerate on a Playstation 4 and Playstation 4 Pro is horrible beyond believe. Not only that, it has typical for Team Ico awful controlls, really weak story and it'sEight years in development and countless delays, only to match Duke Nukem Forever level of disappointment. This game was originally designed for Playstation 3, it looks like a one of early Playstation 3 game and yet it's framerate on a Playstation 4 and Playstation 4 Pro is horrible beyond believe. Not only that, it has typical for Team Ico awful controlls, really weak story and it's pretty short.
    The whole game tries it's hardest to be emotional and make you care about that flying rat-dog thing, but Trico is just so dumb to the point where you won't feel anything but hatred with a burning passion towards him.    … Expand
  10. Clanet
    Mar 19, 2019
    2
    The AI was horrible, my animal friend got stuck in the wall all the time and wouldn't listen to me, making the game harder than it had to be.
  11. jmpaley
    Jan 2, 2017
    0
    Disappointing. It's basically a more annoying-to-play version of their first game ICO, with better graphics. The puzzles are nearly all solved by riding on Trico, unless you have to feed him or open a gate. You seemingly wander around in endless circles with no objective or sense of accomplishment. Trico is annoying to control, and will occasionally sit and do nothing while you're spammingDisappointing. It's basically a more annoying-to-play version of their first game ICO, with better graphics. The puzzles are nearly all solved by riding on Trico, unless you have to feed him or open a gate. You seemingly wander around in endless circles with no objective or sense of accomplishment. Trico is annoying to control, and will occasionally sit and do nothing while you're spamming commands repeatedly because he's turned ever so slightly the wrong way. The gameplay is slow and tedious and lacks anything to draw you into the game other than graphics. Most game developers today don't seem to have any idea what actually makes a game fun to play, they must think if graphics sell movies, they can sell games.… Expand
  12. Underpants158
    Jun 6, 2017
    5
    CONS:
    -God awful camera
    -Slippery movement
    -Poor framerate
    -Gameplay=look around environment for way to proceed then proceed.

    PROS:
    -Trico...he is quite cute
    -Art style
  13. GamerJosh0137
    Dec 14, 2016
    5
    The Last Guardian was a game I wasn't sure I would like going in. I just never was that big a fan of Ico or Shadow of the Colossus, that isn't to say I don't appreciate the impact those games had on the industry or their fan base. I would say though that if you like Ico and SotC you should probably try The Last Guardian. The Last Guardian to me was a great idea that didn't quite panThe Last Guardian was a game I wasn't sure I would like going in. I just never was that big a fan of Ico or Shadow of the Colossus, that isn't to say I don't appreciate the impact those games had on the industry or their fan base. I would say though that if you like Ico and SotC you should probably try The Last Guardian. The Last Guardian to me was a great idea that didn't quite pan out. To be honest it really feels like a ps2 game. It is definitely very beautiful in it's own way but I feel it suffers from a lot of problems ps2 games had back in the day that have by now been improved upon and almost perfected like the camera, or hit detection etc. The camera is the absolute WORST when in tight spaces. Granted, once the game opens up a bit it's not quite as bad, but when it is bad it is super frustrating. My other problem is Trico (the bird dog). Sometimes you will ask Trico to do something and 60% of the time he will either just stare at you like an idiot or do the exact opposite. I understand that Team Ico wanted to make the relationship a bit more complex by giving Trico a mind of his own, and setting a sort of "language barrier", but in my humble opinion that is NOT fun. I got to a environmental puzzle where I thought I had to get Trico to jump up to a small platform and I kept telling him to jump SEVERAL times and he just wouldn't do it. Then I started to think that maybe that was not where I was supposed to go so I spent a little over 30 minutes trying to find the way to go. When I couldn't find anywhere else to go besides up, so I go back to the same EXACT spot I tried before and tell Trico to jump one more time and he does it immediately! WTF!? That and the completely absurd camera made this game so frustrating to the point where I almost didn't even finish it, but my friends kept telling me the ending is worth the frustration. Well, I just finished it and I gotta say it's really good. The whole story is really good! It is just a shame that my frustrations with the game totally erase any motivation to ever play it again. Although I have the utmost respect for both Team Ico and their fans I just can't give The Last Guardian anything higher than a 5. Like I said the story is definitely worth a play through but with all of the ps2 era problems that have for the most part been fixed by now The Last Guardian should be bought at a very steep discount.… Expand
  14. ThinkSamich
    Dec 8, 2016
    6
    Somehow Team Ico has turned the gaming industry on its head and made people change their minds about escort quests. I suppose the change of heart is happening somewhere with the emotion this game captures, but for the most part I really can't understand the overwhelmingly positive reviews. Team Ico has always done a good job of making me feel lost in video games again, a feeling from mySomehow Team Ico has turned the gaming industry on its head and made people change their minds about escort quests. I suppose the change of heart is happening somewhere with the emotion this game captures, but for the most part I really can't understand the overwhelmingly positive reviews. Team Ico has always done a good job of making me feel lost in video games again, a feeling from my childhood. The Last Guardian is another world to find yourself lost in, but it doesn't come without its ugly bumps, bruises, and cuts.

    Team Ico games have always had significant flaws, Shadow of the Colossus had some of the worst controller input lag I have ever experienced in a game, once paired with your horse the issue gets even worse. Just like SoTC, The Last Guardian has a wonderful idea, an amazing landscape and environment, and wonderful puzzles. For The Last Guardian, the issue is the difficult to work with AI. Despite only needing a very few amount of inputs per puzzle room is among the most annoying issues. I suppose this comes with the territory, which honestly at this point I'm starting to question. The swimming controls in The Last Guardian are to the Horseback controls in SoTC, both very raw and unrefined setups.

    Similarly, both games SoTC and The Last Guardian also suffer from low framerates and framerate spikes. For SoTC this made the controller input lag much worse, The Last Guardian suffers some from it, but definitely not nearly as bad as SoTC. The PS4 pro will help you a little in this regard, but you're still going to suffer from these issues.

    There is more that could be said about the game, but at this point the effort seems fruitless. You will either love it or you will hate it, if you have followed the series it's going to have a nostalgic feel for you. If you are a newcomer I suppose its a toss up. I can't recommend this game, but I also cannot condemn it. I rated it a 6 because I feel like it has everything necessary to be considered a game. It does however, need a lot of quality time spent on refinement to be great. At this point I feel like Team Ico are master world-builders, and definitely know how to capture emotion and tell a story. But perhaps they should leave everything else up to another team that could set a standard for gameplay mechanics appropriate for this decade.    … Expand
  15. madno
    Jun 7, 2017
    4
    El juego esta bien, pero esta lleno de fallos, errores y problemas de control, se salva por Tico que es encantador, pero es un juego de ps3, no de ps4, una tomadura de pelo clásica de Sony. Merece la pena alquilarlo un finde y pasarlo, comprarlo ya a decisión de cada uno.
  16. doug_quaid
    May 9, 2017
    4
    Shadow of the Colossus is easily in my top 10 games of all time, making this review a bit of a sad affair.

    The Good - It's an interesting concept, combing Ico with Shadow of the Colossus, tag-teaming with a giant creature to try and solve puzzles and navigate a crumbling ruin. - The graphics, while overall looking very PS3 instead of PS4, occasionally have their moments and can    Shadow of the Colossus is easily in my top 10 games of all time, making this review a bit of a sad affair.

    The Good
    - It's an interesting concept, combing Ico with Shadow of the Colossus, tag-teaming with a giant creature to try and solve puzzles and navigate a crumbling ruin.
    - The graphics, while overall looking very PS3 instead of PS4, occasionally have their moments and can occasionally be beautiful. The physics feels pretty cool, things bounce around and smash nicely.
    - The animation on the creature is spot-on. The animators did a really good job of bringing it to life and giving it personality.

    The Bad
    - It's clear this game languished in development hell for years. There's hints of a solid concept here, but it looks like the developers couldn't actually make things work to match with the creator's vision. The result is a glorified tech demo.
    - Many puzzles are so obtuse you will literally never figure them out without consulting a walkthrough. Puzzles are repeated a dozen times, i.e. 'oh another eye mirror, how do I smash this one?' Several puzzles just aren't that interesting to solve anyway, less 'aha!' and more 'are you kidding me, that's what you wanted me to do?'. As your frustration increases, halfway through the game you'll give up and just have the walkthrough open on your phone anyway. A few play-testing sessions watching actual players get permanently stuck would have cleaned all this up immeasurably.
    - The game is *extremely* linear. I get the impression after years of failed attempts to create an interactive, exploratory experience with the creature/code failing to fulfill it's end of the bargain the team was forced to cut back to something extremely short, linear, repetitive and largely based on cutscenes. Expect 20-25% of the game to be waiting patiently until you can play again. There is one way through and if you can't find it you will simply wander around in a room until you do. In some cases you're not supposed to be wandering anyway, the creature will simply hop to the next section for you, much to your frustration.
    - The boy's controls, presumably in the interest of showcasing his fluid animations, making the game feel tense and/or your character feel a bit helpless, are extremely sloppy. Halfway through the game you're still getting tutorial prompts because you still need them.
    - If you need a Japanese voiceover with subtitles to tell you what to do every other puzzle or so you've completely failed at prompting the player to solve things on his/her own. Go back to the drawing board and clean up the level design and cues/clues so that the player feels like they're figuring things out on their own.
    - Mashing buttons to make glowing shapes go away every time you die is such a poor design decision I can't believe it actually shipped in the final version of the game. This makes me wonder if nobody on the team is able to even give the creator feedback anymore, or if everything is subservient to his 'vision'.

    The Ugly
    - The creature's AI is a nightmare of indifference, ineptitude, confusion and irritation. The creature failed to catch me a half dozen times leading me to fall to my death, but suddenly caught me once, long after I'd assumed I was doing the wrong thing and explored every avenue for another route. I also sat in a tree for about 20 minutes mashing the 'help' button until it decided it was ready to save me. That's beyond ridiculous. That's not gameplay. It's more like if you took your dog to the supermarket and tried to painstakingly teach him to shop for groceries over days or weeks while it looked at you in confusion. After hours of begging, pleading and cajoling, and occasionally screaming at it, I actually grew to hate the stupid thing. I'm assuming this was not the studio's intention, lol.
    - The 'cinematic' camera is one of the most frustrating things I've experienced in a video game. The only explanation here is an underpaid, irate programmer who was hell-bent on creating something that would literally nauseate players.    … Expand
  17. PabloDark03
    Dec 21, 2016
    6
    Ultimamente este videojuego está siendo llamado como uno de los mejores de la historia . Sin duda , no es un mal juego , aunque no se le puede llamar juego. Es más bien una experiencia . No tiene jugabilidad,tiene errores y controles deficientes.
  18. sphirit
    Dec 27, 2016
    6
    Not fulfilled my expectations.I can't understand how it took 10 years to do it.The camera controls are very bad
    Shadow of the colosus It's much better game.On the other side, Ttrico is adorable
  19. ibs1984
    Oct 28, 2018
    7
    تقييمي للعبة يشمل التروفي ... اللعبة تستحق تقييم افضل قبل ما احاول اخذ البلاتينيوم
    اللعبة بشكل عام جيدة والقصة ممتازة وتدخل في جو العواطف والجيم بلاي جيد .. حتى جاء وقت حصاد البلاتينيوم .. كان في تروفي يطلب منك تنهي اللعبة في 4 ساعات .. وهنا بدأت احس بعيوب اللعبة
    بدأت احس بمعاناة مع "توريكو" المخلوق اللي توجهه ... التواصل معه متعب وتنفيذه للأوامر عشوائي في بعض الأحيان اجبرت اني اعيد    تقييمي للعبة يشمل التروفي ... اللعبة تستحق تقييم افضل قبل ما احاول اخذ البلاتينيوم
    اللعبة بشكل عام جيدة والقصة ممتازة وتدخل في جو العواطف والجيم بلاي جيد .. حتى جاء وقت حصاد البلاتينيوم .. كان في تروفي يطلب منك تنهي اللعبة في 4 ساعات .. وهنا بدأت احس بعيوب اللعبة
    بدأت احس بمعاناة مع "توريكو" المخلوق اللي توجهه ... التواصل معه متعب وتنفيذه للأوامر عشوائي في بعض الأحيان
    اجبرت اني اعيد اللعبة اكثر من ثلاث مرات بسبب الاستجابة السيئة لتوريكو ... في النهاية اللعبة جيدة وتستحق التجربة واتمنى استوديو يابان يبدع بأفكار جديدة مثل هذي اللعبة.    … Expand
  20. MeherBabafan
    Jun 13, 2017
    6
    In a video game I am looking for an immersive and enriching experience. I put less emphasis on game mechanics. I found the Last Guardian to be very satisfying in their visual presentation of the boy, Trico, and their relationship. The two go from one problem to another, working together as they try to escape their current confinement, and move to the next. One problem is that theirIn a video game I am looking for an immersive and enriching experience. I put less emphasis on game mechanics. I found the Last Guardian to be very satisfying in their visual presentation of the boy, Trico, and their relationship. The two go from one problem to another, working together as they try to escape their current confinement, and move to the next. One problem is that their dilemma is pretty inexplicable. They're trapped in this huge labyrinthine castle. Not only are there no clues as to why given, but there are no little respite areas to explore. The demands just go on incessantly. Because the boy and Trico are, naturally enough, unable to converse, the stark settings and endless problems make the game's tempo austere and relentless. A bit more reveal on the backstory to stir up curiosity could have been melded with some non-death-defying interludes of exploration to open up the experience and make it more fun. As it is, if you want to spend many hours escaping a sometimes gorgeous prison, with leaps and creeps, going from one puzzle to another, with the help of a beautifully rendered beast-helper, but with nary a sign of another human (evil robots don't count) this is a great game for you.… Expand
  21. Marlim
    Oct 13, 2020
    3
    Terrible Gameplay and Mechanics. There is no way that game is fun. Frustating levels designs and puzzles
  22. Sirmonkage
    Mar 18, 2017
    7
    The game does a good job in immersing you in it's beautiful world. Yea it's a little rough controlling the characters but that doesn't really bother me. My ambition to explore the world keeps me engaged. My main problem with the game are the boring sequences in which either the boy or trico are supposed to be in "distress". They always end anticlimactically and are never reallyThe game does a good job in immersing you in it's beautiful world. Yea it's a little rough controlling the characters but that doesn't really bother me. My ambition to explore the world keeps me engaged. My main problem with the game are the boring sequences in which either the boy or trico are supposed to be in "distress". They always end anticlimactically and are never really exciting to begin with. After traversing the beautiful landscapes and getting connected to trico for so long I'd expect a little payoff. But it's just not there... This game is great eye candy for sure and can also put a smile on your face for a while. But the climactic scenes just pull you away from that and don't really do a good job of creating the feeling that I assume the creators wanted you too.… Expand
  23. BubaMan
    Mar 17, 2017
    8
    Pros
    The story is fantastic - despite the lack of conversation, I found myself really invested in the welfare of the protagonists and feeling genuinely concerned whenever Trico got hurt.
    The puzzles vary from quite easy to devilishly difficult. The game looks very nice (usually in strong sunlight) but the graphics can be beaten. The sound and soundtrack set the scene very well. Cons    Pros
    The story is fantastic - despite the lack of conversation, I found myself really invested in the welfare of the protagonists and feeling genuinely concerned whenever Trico got hurt.
    The puzzles vary from quite easy to devilishly difficult.
    The game looks very nice (usually in strong sunlight) but the graphics can be beaten.
    The sound and soundtrack set the scene very well.

    Cons
    There were quite a few occasions where I couldn't get Trico to do what I wanted... to the point that I assumed I'd missed something and had to refer to a walkthrough, only to have it confirmed that what I wanted to do was correct.
    There were a few camera control issues (while trying to climb Trico in enclosed areas) but no worse than other games in its ilk.

    Overall, I thought it was a really lovely game, had an involving story, looked pretty and had a lovely soundtrack which was complemented by an infrequent Japanese narrative.
    Controlling Trico was sometimes very frustrating so I had to drop 2 marks for taking the polish off an otherwise great game.
    You can complete the game in a couple of sittings so I recommend that you buy a physical copy so that you can trade it in afterwards as there's not much to offer in terms of replay (unless you're a trophy hound).    … Expand
  24. IONOSGAMES
    May 14, 2017
    8
    Es un titulo que no tiene el genero bien definido, igual que Shadow of the Colossus, y aunque Ico sea uno de puzles, es muy peculiar y especial.Claramente no es un juego para todo el mundo, es un juego de puzles, con una jugabilidad bastante simple, dar ordenes a la bestia para resolver puzles. Muy buena historia y relacion entre personajes. El juego tiene graficos muy flojos para laEs un titulo que no tiene el genero bien definido, igual que Shadow of the Colossus, y aunque Ico sea uno de puzles, es muy peculiar y especial.Claramente no es un juego para todo el mundo, es un juego de puzles, con una jugabilidad bastante simple, dar ordenes a la bestia para resolver puzles. Muy buena historia y relacion entre personajes. El juego tiene graficos muy flojos para la epoca, pero con escenarios bonitos, y un framerate entre bien y regular. Si dais mucha importancia a la historia es un juego recomendable, pero si buscais graficos y diversion, entonces no os va.… Expand
  25. yoyo321
    Apr 11, 2017
    8
    La mejor forma de definir este juego, es diciendo que es un puzzle en sí mismo.

    Tienes que escapar de la prisión en la que te encuentras y zona a zona tienes que mirar, buscar y pensar de que manera avanzar. Lo más curioso del juego es la inteligencia artificial de Trico (el bicho gigante), es sumamente curioso la manera que tiene de comportarse y moverse. Lo malo que le veo es    La mejor forma de definir este juego, es diciendo que es un puzzle en sí mismo.

    Tienes que escapar de la prisión en la que te encuentras y zona a zona tienes que mirar, buscar y pensar de que manera avanzar.

    Lo más curioso del juego es la inteligencia artificial de Trico (el bicho gigante), es sumamente curioso la manera que tiene de comportarse y moverse.

    Lo malo que le veo es que hay veces que la cámara se sitúa en lugares incómodos o poco acertados y la jugabilidad es tosca, notas que hace falta pulirla y hay saltos imprecisos en los que caes al vacío cuando no deberías.

    El juego esta chulo y es muy entretenido.

    Le doy un 8.

    Saludos    … Expand
  26. mrseannathan
    Mar 21, 2017
    7
    Maybe this is because I haven't put much time into it (and I will definitely pick it back up and try it) but I'm very iffy when it comes to the movement controls. It's a huge turn off how off putting it is. Beside that, story seems great and the visuals are incredible.
  27. EEKtheratbat
    Mar 20, 2017
    6
    This game has a big pro and that's the flying dog. He looks just great but that doesn't make up for the simple boring puzzles, the terrible camera-angles and other frustrating gameplay. I never mind dying in a game because i made a mistake but i do mind dying when the game makes the mistakes.
  28. andykara2003
    Apr 4, 2017
    10
    I can appreciate the frustrations people were having with the controls & camera (not an issue for me), but on the other hand, by focusing so much on these issues I think that some people missed something truly spectacular here that will become a landmark in gaming history. This game is so much more than the sum of it's parts and having finished the game now, I can say that in my 35 yearsI can appreciate the frustrations people were having with the controls & camera (not an issue for me), but on the other hand, by focusing so much on these issues I think that some people missed something truly spectacular here that will become a landmark in gaming history. This game is so much more than the sum of it's parts and having finished the game now, I can say that in my 35 years of gaming, for me, very few games have reached these heights in being able to convey such depth of emotion, beauty and wonder. I think that for so many of us to be saying that this experience was so deep and will stay with us forever points to a possibility that some reviewers were so focused of the technical shortcomings that perhaps they ended up not being able to see the woods for the trees - and by overly engaging in such negative feelings as a result, unfortunately missed out on a profound gaming experience.… Expand
  29. Ericsora
    Dec 14, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. jogo horrível, controle zoados, IA burra, tudo mal feito, você comanda e não responde… Expand
  30. stasweb
    Jan 23, 2022
    1
    Totally unplayable on PS5 as there is huge input lag there. Sony is not even tried to fix it before giving this game via PS+ Collection.
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Awards & Rankings

51
#51 Best PS4 Game of 2016
8
#8 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2016
10
#10 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 110 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 82 out of 110
  2. Mixed: 27 out of 110
  3. Negative: 1 out of 110
  1. Vgames
    Mar 8, 2017
    84
    After 7 years in what seems to be development hell, Team Ico finally introduces us to the majestic Trico and its heartfelt relationship with a young protagonist. While the long development cycle does show its age in certain parts up to a point of some frustration. The experience as a whole is one of the most unique ever.
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  2. BaziCenter
    Feb 10, 2017
    100
    The Last guardian is indeed suffering from some technical and control input issues, but its warm, beautiful adventure filled with countless touching moments is something we’ll never forget for the rest of our lives. The Last Guardian is not just a game, it’s an absolute work of art.
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  3. Edge Magazine
    Feb 8, 2017
    90
    The Last Guardian doesn't just live up to its forebears' legacy, it goes further. Despite the callbacks to Fumito Ueda's previous works, it is a unique creation. Outside of indie experiments, we don't get to say that about modern videogames often enough.
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