Games are generally about you making characters move but there are some, like The Last Guardian, that aim to flip that statement to make the characters move you. Fumito Ueda has, remarkably, made only three videogames inclusive of his latest, yet he is fairly recognised as a special talent.
To say that The Last Guardian has been delayed may be an understatement in gaming terms and it started active development in 2007[1], a little after the Playstation 3 was released. Games can take a long time to make, this is true, and gargantuan games such as GTA 5 will take 3 years or so of active development but these are truly massive worlds that are created. Niche, more artistic games with little likelihood of breakout success do not take this long - and the time is much harder to justify when the revenue is not likely to be blockbuster level[2]. And to understand why people have been eagerly waiting for The Last Guardian, what Ueda's earlier games Ico and Shadow Of The Colossus (both available in remastered form on both PS3 and the lesser known Playstation Now service) were needs to be explained, at least briefly.
Ico is a puzzle platformer with a single interesting mechanic that transforms it into a classic. You play as a child escaping a crumbling castle but also helping another prisoner within the castle - a slightly older, but still young, princess with whom you cannot talk to. The princess is scared and quite weak - as are you but as this is relative, you must protect her from the black, smudgy demons and the environment to escape together. The interesting mechanic of helping others is effected using your hands and so, by taking her hand, you are connected in a way that speech cannot do. It is a remarkably affecting dynamic and the slight tug of the princess, Yorda, is superbly realised in a way that was incomparable at the time. A game unlike games for gamers that only gamers knew about. In 2001, this did not necessarily great spell commercial success although it was critically acclaimed.
A few years later came the semi-connected Shadow of The Colossus which was unmistakably of the same stable. With a little more marketing, this was a more successful game commercially and also critically which revolved around a mechanic of defeating 16 large monsters in a variety of ways in order to try to save a young lady. Again, you were not alone and this time your companion was a horse, named Agro, that would help you travel the vast distances more quickly. In many ways, this was a more traditional game with combat and a defined level structure but it soon created a mythology around it based on the beautifully realised art direction.
Both of these games tried to create emotional connections within the player that were not usually explored within the industry at the time and so have left lasting impressions on many of those fortunate enough to have played them. It does also mean that, if you didn't get that connection, Ueda’s games could be seen as empty and trite - a camp which a proportion of players will always fall into.
And so, to The Last Guardian - another game that is standalone yet imbued with the worlds of Ico and Shadow of The Colossus through the whole piece. The game starts with the protagonist, a small boy, passed out next to a rather dangerous looking beast - a beast called (or the species is) “Trico”[3] that looks hurt and angry. Coming near it does not please it yet there are spears jabbed into it that look like they need removing. How could you gain the trust of the beast, to help it? At this point, I think the fact that the protagonist is a small child makes much more sense as children do generally believe in the goodness of animals so he goes off to find food for the beast. The beast’s food, in a nod to the fact it is a game, comes in the form of silver barrels of which there are a few dotted around. Once the beast is sated and released, the journey can begin as the two of you build a bond over time and attempt to escape from wherever you are together, as a team. Trico is still wary of you and so you must continue to build trust with food and kindness (as with Agro in SOTC, you can calm Trico with a pet or a stroke) as you journey on.
The gameplay is simple and reminiscent of Ico with the puzzles fairly simple combinations of doors and levers but spiced up with a huge catlike chicken thing that helps and hinders you throughout. The puzzles do have some combat elements sometimes but Trico is a beast by action and name and will deal with foes violently and with genuine anger when they cross his path - it is your role to ensure that they do get seen by Trico. The enemies make Trico go berserk[4] and point to a historic reason for that level of rage and apparent revenge. Ico is a template for this game due to it falling into the same genre but it could be seen as a flipped arrangement with you playing the princess role and Trico the protector. Watching Trico defending you is a sight to behold and in an entertainment form which places such importance on agency, it is interesting to lose that at points to let something else be awesome. You do have to be careful at these stages too, as he can also lash out a little too indiscriminately.
The game continues in this vein (as usual, I will not be too specific about the journey) as you attempt to escape from the ruins in which you find yourself but much of the formula for the next 10-15 hours is set within the first few minutes which evolves over time as your bond with Trico adapts and changes.
In a way, after just 3 games, it is interesting that Ueda has such a coherent style that is easy to replicate yet is not replicated by others. The bloom, over-saturated lighting and solitude seems so simple to create but it is not done by anyone else. The Last Guardian is a game and should be judged on that basis but it is not really like other games. The industry has moved on hugely from the point where Ico was a breath of truly fresh air to an industry of indies that attempt to capture much of the ethos. Ico fleshed out a skeleton of a fairly simple set of gameplay mechanics with an atmosphere that felt markedly different to the competition. It wasn't particularly hard and aimed to funnel you through a batch of puzzles that would make you wonder for only a short while. In retrospect, it was a 3rd person "walking simulator"[5] before it became a genre. The change in the industry that makes the game both standout and, maybe, leaves it flailing, is the cottage industry of atmospheric games. In 2001 and 2005, there was a single proper price point for games - full price (and discounted as they got older). That necessitates a certain weight to your game with many seeing a nice, solid experience as needing fifteen hours. The walking simulators and indie games that often seem to get good coverage are often far shorter. 3-5 hours is a good length for this which means that you have a tight experience with no real need to expand the mechanic too much. The question is whether TLG can really justify itself on these terms.
I enjoyed The Last Guardian tremendously but I cannot be sure how much of that was just a desire to enjoy it after so long and just having the opportunity to enjoy a game without cynicism. The start, which is in an enclosed space, sets the whole game up very well and the art style is evocative, as Ueda’s work always is, of a faded grandeur that asks as many questions as an environment can do. So much is left to your own interpretation in terms of the architecture and design that it will doubtless be pored over by fans for years to come. Trico is a charming creature and the bond between the two of you is expertly crafted and realised with the way that you both help each other. He, or she, is at turns angry or playful or docile or perky. Each Trico is a little different, apparently, depending on how you treat it and so mine was quite obedient as I regularly stopped to care for it. I have read complaints about Trico being frustratingly selfish and stubborn but I am a very caring gamer, so I did not have these issues. The world created is beguiling and welcoming but that is only half of the story - and it is the other half of the gameplay mechanics that may leave some unsatisfied.
Ueda’s games are rooted in the early 2000’s and things which were acceptable then are not as freely accepted now. The most common complaint is that the camera is difficult to control which is not something that I had any difficulty with at all. Most modern games follow a template of control that has been refined of left stick to move and right stick to rotate the camera - and this retained in The Last Guardian. The difference is that it is not as smooth (and this is obviously by design) and quick as in other games using a dreamy, floaty camera that does not always see you central. Your character, as a child, either scampers or tiptoes which has also caused complaint as people expect a different type of control. Most ridiculously, in my opinion, a regular complaint is also that the buttons are not as expected - because the “X” button is not the jump button. I think, due to the way all games seem to be so customizable and so fall into the template of design, this has caused unhappiness but I think this is misplaced. I am used to learning the controls of a game and see no issue with this but I recognise that others might. I had no issues with any of these gameplay mechanics and think they are overblown, but it is worth mentioning[6].
Ueda’s games are rooted in the early 2000’s and things which were acceptable then are not as freely accepted now. The most common complaint is that the camera is difficult to control which is not something that I had any difficulty with at all. Most modern games follow a template of control that has been refined of left stick to move and right stick to rotate the camera - and this retained in The Last Guardian. The difference is that it is not as smooth (and this is obviously by design) and quick as in other games using a dreamy, floaty camera that does not always see you central. Your character, as a child, either scampers or tiptoes which has also caused complaint as people expect a different type of control. Most ridiculously, in my opinion, a regular complaint is also that the buttons are not as expected - because the “X” button is not the jump button. I think, due to the way all games seem to be so customizable and so fall into the template of design, this has caused unhappiness but I think this is misplaced. I am used to learning the controls of a game and see no issue with this but I recognise that others might. I had no issues with any of these gameplay mechanics and think they are overblown, but it is worth mentioning[6].
The puzzles are simple enough but I did sit there perplexed for decent stretches of time which is both refreshing and a little frustrating as the puzzles are quite linear. Again, I am happy to not have it all handed to me on a plate so I appreciate that sense of discovery and “eureka” but there is something a little disappointing about the fact there appears to be single solutions.
Overall, The Last Guardian is definitely a delightful highlight for me with the overall thrust of the game and story easily enough to propel the game through the hiccups in mechanics which are still quite rare. I would recommend to anyone interested as it will either be something that grabs you or it will, at least, be a game that you are not going to replicate.
The Last Guardian is a PS4 exclusive and can be purchased on the Playstation Store or in shops - the trailer is below:
1. Fairly recently, there have been a number of big Japanese games that have finally seen the light of day after incredibly long development times - metal gear solid V spent x years in development which also resulted in the creator falling out with, and then leaving, his employer Konami. Final Fantasy XV has been in development for the best part of a decade. Last Guardian is published by Sony and was originally designed for the ps3.↩
2. Global sales on the PS2 for both of his earlier games was about 2m combined).↩
3. Team Ico have created three games: Ico could be the Japanese word for 1. The project name for SOTC was “Nico” which can translate as two. Trico sort of follows this convention although tri is not the Japanese for 3, the intention is clear.↩
4. Berserk is also is a Final Fantasy status affliction that makes characters attack constantly without considering other options - highly appropriate here.↩
5. This has become, almost, an implicit term of criticism for the number of games, such as Everybody's Gone to the Rapture, that eschew much combat for, instead, the joy of traversing an area or building intrigue. As games have become more popular, the market for games has widened but, as in so much of life in 2016, those that had it all their own way before don't seem to like opportunities for other people to do things that they can already do. This is a very interesting article about that..↩
6. To be honest, a lot of gamers are very vocal about these kinds of things and I think they let themselves dislike things for slight drops in quality.↩
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