Taking seven years from its original announcement to its eventual release The Last Guardian was a long time coming. From the studio best known for Shadow of the Colossus reasonably there was high expectations for the eventual release. Having finally played this now six year old game I feel like I can put its history aside and just appreciate it for what it is. As with others games from Fumito Ueda its hard to stick on genre on The Last Guardian. I'd say it is mostly a cinematic adventure game with puzzle elements but I almost feel breaking it down does the game a disservice; a classic case of the sum being greater than it's parts. This is a emotion experience that will be enjoyed most by those looking to play something that breaks away from the mainstream videogame conventions.
In the Last Guardian you play as a young boy who awakes to find himself trapped in a small ravine with a giant gryphon like creature. This huge beast, which is as much bird as it is a cat, is named Trico. It turns out you and Trico are near the bottom of what appears to be a hollowed out volcano with an ancient structure built in its base. You must work together if you wish to get to the top of the highest tower and uncover the mystery of this magical place. As you journey along your bond with Trico grows and you'll start to remember more about how you got here. Although this place seems abandoned parts of the structure are still functioning making you wonder what its true purpose might be and if there is other inhabitants.
In this game you only have control over the boy so you'll need to help guide Trico from one place to the next. This is usually accomplished just by calling out to Trico or pointing the beast in the direction you wish to proceed. Of course Trico has a mind of his own so you may need to call for him more than once or find him food to get him motivated. You aren't spending all your time just caring for Trico. There are many places and objects only the boy can get in to or interact with. You may need to pull levers to open up passage ways to move objects around to access different areas. Climbing these different structures and finding ways around these puzzling rooms it may be fair to make a gameplay comparison to that of the Zelda series.
The Last Guardian features a wonderful score with compliments the brilliant visuals. The music does a great job getting you excited at the right moments while bringing a more somber touch to the more emotional moments of the game. Trico is probably the most striking thing to stick out visually; from his flowing fur, to his array of facial expressions, and the way heap leaps around. Of course the environments are a treat to look at too, especially to grassy vines you can climb have a nice breathy affect to them. I do think having a majority of the game take place in the towering structure leads to a bit of repetitive elements in the scenery but it isn't too terrible.
I'm glad I had the chance to play through this game even if no particular element stood out as particularly exciting. While the few twists in the plot are exciting but the most enjoyable part of the narrative is probably watching the relationship between Trico and the boy flesh out. The gameplay suites the story well and the puzzles range from quite easy to real head scratchers. Thankfully, if you are ever stuck in one area for too long the commentator narrating the story will give you a hint. I'm proud to say that I didn't look up any puzzles even though I was very tempted a handful of times. So if you like a good mystery and want to game that breaks from the norm then check out The Last Guardian.