I won't defend every criticism of the game because I agree with many of them. The Last Guardian is not a flawless game and its rough edges are abundantly obvious. And while I will defend Trico’s sometimes stubborn AI as a genius design decision that strengthens the core experience, I will also point out that it doesn’t always lend itself to a particularly fun moment to moment experience. It's very un-gamelike, and even off-putting for some- most people immediately wrote it off as badly programmed. Gaming has not traditionally taught us to think with this level of intimacy with in-game characters. There's more than a language barrier between our heroes here- Trico needs to actually see the boy and what he is doing to act accordingly. That's why when Trico does something you want, the moment feels earned. To illustrate a bond, the game puts the responsibility on YOU to understand how your feathery companion behaves. It asks for a level of patience that many gamers simply don't possess. Remember that one game you played where you could order your AI teammate around at a moments notice to beat a level? TLG isn't that game, nor is it trying to be. Too many people played The Last Guardian like any other game, expecting traditional game-like qualities. You can't do this alone, and you need your new four-legged friend as much as he needs you. From the scale of the world and your companion, to the way the player character controls, the game is telling you something. In most ways, the game is intentionally trying to make you feel small and weak. It hasn't been game-ified to have a satisfying gameplay loop or a progression system, or even a fleshed out combat system. It has a core theme to convey, and it doesn't care if its conveyed in a traditionally “fun” way.

Games can be played for challenge, for emotion, for strategy, for community, for escape- the list goes on.įor me, The Last Guardian is a game ABOUT something. The limited definition that would have accurately described the medium in the 90's is no longer fitting. Games have become so many things to so many people.

Interactive entertainment has finally “grown up” and allowed people to interactively experience stories about depression and separation (Night in the Woods), what it means to love someone as a father (The Last of Us), or even what it's like to feel a close bond with a mythical animal. Thanks in no small part to games like Ico and the indie boom of the late 00’s, games are more comfortable to be about something- about more than just moment to moment fun, a high score, a kill count or a leveling system. Thanks to a broader acceptance of the gaming industry now, new themes are finally being explored in gaming. We formed a concept of how things SHOULD be and how games SHOULD feel. It taught us many of the gaming habits we still have. Most of this was to appeal to a young male demographic- but it stuck, and began to define what the medium was. Though there were notable exceptions, games tended to center around killing, being in control, and becoming stronger in one form or another. The videogame industry, through most of its early years, focused on thematically similar games- usually based around a power fantasy. For example, film can be used to express emotion ranging from fear, sadness, and isolation all the way to humor, romance and joy. Those art forms have had the benefit of time to experiment and more fully explore their boundaries.

Interactive entertainment is a relatively new artistic medium when compared to the likes of writing, film, painting, music or even stage performance. I think to understand this concept, you have to distance yourself from what you expect from entertainment in the medium of videogames. It's also a game I would not describe as fun to play. The Last Guardian is one of my favorite games I've ever experienced.

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