The Last Guardian

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Synj

Dystopian Dreamer
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So I didn't see a thread, apologies if there is one.

Just beat this last night around 1am. Gameplay was simple puzzle solving, lots of issues with the camera and controls but overall this game is more about the journey and its themes. If you've ever played Ico or SoTC then you'll recognize this right away and probably love it if you loved those two.

This one was by far the most emotional and surprising to me. The gameplay was okay but I loved the journey and was honestly surprised by the ending and post ending.

Anyone else play this?
 

Big_w_powah

Trakanon Raider
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What is the general theme of this game? Like, what the fuck do you do? I know nothing, and don't care to spend time googling it.
 

Intrinsic

Person of Whiteness
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Most of the reviews and responses were in the PS4 thread? Really wanted to pick it up since we've been waiting so long, but the initial reviews seemed kind of critical especially for it it be a full price $60 game. Just going to wait a little longer and pick it up on sale. But glad to here from the people who are enjoying it.

What is the general theme of this game? Like, what the fuck do you do? I know nothing, and don't care to spend time googling it.

Did you play Ico or Shadow of the Colossus? The gameplay should be similar or a mixture of the two. You basically control a character and travel throughout this "castle" or environment and solve puzzles along the way while picking up backstory. In this one you have a huge dragon / dog friend that helps you get through the environment and solve puzzles.

Ico and SotC weren't groundbreaking mechanically (although SotC kind of was awesome in climbing massive bosses and figuring out their weakspot). But the presentation and style of the games were always amazing.
 
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Synj

Dystopian Dreamer
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You're a young boy and you wake up next to Trico a "dog-bird", or "cat-eagle" Chimera type creature that is much larger than you and that has been chained up and is riddled with spears. There is no narrative except for some situational comments by the boy such as, "the creature looks hungry." These are your only basic hints at what to do next. The boy and Trico become companions helping each other as they try to escape their confines. The gameplay is essentially of the puzzle/exploration variety, small gate that Trico can't get through, find the hole that the boy can crawl through to pull a lever, etc. Trico can also take "commands" from the boy but he acts on his own accord much of the time. Trico will protect you throughout your adventure and can travel over large distances. But this is a one-way trip. There's only ever one solution to moving forward but it feels much bigger than that.

The camera and controls are...sketchy. Thematically it's a game about companionship and sacrifice and has a very interesting resolution in the end. I picked it up during the B2G1 from Best Buy, I had about 11-12 hours before I beat it and now I'll trade it in. Worth $60? Probably not but what is? Find someone with Amazon Prime or Best Buys GCU and get it for 20% and trade it in.

EDIT: or Redbox it and power through in 1-2 days, I see no real reason I would replay this now that I've seen the story.
 

Dandai

Lesco Brandon
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11 hours? What the fuck were they doing for 10 years
It's impossible to say how many rewrites occurred and how much was cut to make a better, tighter experience.

The first example off the top of my head is Bioshock Infinite. It was in development hell for years because the publisher (2K Games) decided to give Ken Levine complete creative control and essentially a blank check. It was reported that the developer made enough POLISHED content (ie not cheap and fast rough prototypes) for several (3-4) games. That same article claimed that there were multiple rewrites and heavy edits to the final game. If you go back and watch the earliest trailers and gameplay previews you'll see some stuff that made cut, but for the most part those early trailers had very little representation in the shipped game.
 

Synj

Dystopian Dreamer
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11 hours? What the fuck were they doing for 10 years

LOL yeah, it might have been closer to 15 but it was pretty short. Honestly this is the perfect length for me because: 1) I just don't have time for games like I used to and 2) I don't have the attention span like I used to. This game presents a nice, tight story and I don't think it could be told any other way. I don't think it will appeal to a mass audience but it was a really nice ride while it lasted and I'll remember the story and emotional experience for a long time.
 

Elidroth

Trakanon Raider
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The Dog-Bird thing is the most beautifully animated character I've ever seen in a game. The camera controls are fucking awful. I still can't decide if I like the game or not. It's interesting.. though I'm not playing it much lately.
 

Fippy Darkpaw

Molten Core Raider
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From what I understand, they have been trying to get the stupid birddog to follow commands.

Has anyone that has played it through confirm if this is really indicative of the whole game? It doesn't look like the kind of thing I would play, but I would love to watch the woman play it and cry in frustration.
 

Synj

Dystopian Dreamer
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I loved this game. Gameplay and camera were very frustrating, puzzles were challenging but not aggravating.

The story is very emotional, stuck with me for a long time, though some people will hate it. The development of the relationship between the boy and dog bird is awesome. Has the same mysterious vibe/theme as previous Ico/SoTC games.

It's about 10-12 hours I think. Worth it for the story IMO, but still hard for me to give a hard thumbs up. Call it a thumbs up with caveats: if you liked Ico or SoTC you will like this, if you didn't, you wont.
 

Folanlron

Trakanon Raider
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Its not bad but I haven't played it sense I plat'd the game Trico is awesomely created but his AI is either on auto-pilot or he's off doing his own thing(even after the point of getting the "enhanced" commands he still derps a lot)
 

Utnayan

I Love Utnayan he’s awesome
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Playing this now through Gamefly now that those idiots decided to ship me a game.

Overall, controls are horrid, but I really like where it could go story wise and I think Trico rocks. Problem is going to be if I can get passed this awful control and responsiveness scheme.