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The Last Guardian patch 1.03

Alucrid

Banned
I'm with you. I finished it last week and it was a struggle the whole time. I was miserable every second I played this game. Was so relieved to have finished it. Wouldn't recommend this game to anyone.

"i played through an entire game that i hated!"
 

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
I don't know if they intend to fix the boy's controls at some point, but making the camera less terrible and getting rid of the constant button prompts are huge steps in the right direction.

The boys controls are entirely intentional and I don't think much will change about them.
 

Chumley

Banned
They need to fix OG PS4 performance. I don't care if they have to reduce the shadow resolution to shit-tier or whatever else, sub 30fps is not acceptable.
 
...Huh, well now I know when I got the trophy. When that happened I thought the narrator was referring to Trico getting anxious over an eye symbol. MUCH later at the very end of the game on
the tower
I saw those "jelly blobs" and wondered what they were supposed to be for... I didn't realize what happened until I looked it up and saw the trophy in my list.


Edit: wrong post quoted.
 

JP

Member
...Huh, well now I know when I got the trophy. When that happened I thought the narrator was referring to Trico getting anxious over an eye symbol. MUCH later at the very end of the game on
the tower
I saw those "jelly blobs" and wondered what they were supposed to be for... I didn't realize what happened until I looked it up and saw the trophy in my list.
It was pretty much the same for me. I got the trophy notification but Trico was some distance away and on a higher level so I didn't even notice what had happened. It wasn't until I read the trophy description later after closing the game that I know what had happened.

I was strangely disappointed that I hadn't actually seen it happen.
 
So the input lag for the camera is improved?

XZ5hq2L.gif


If so, awesome news! That's my number one problem with the game. I think fixing that is even more important than fixing the way the camera behaves and the framerate.
 

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
That's a damn shame. The boy's terrible controls made the whole experience so much more frustrating than it needed to be.

To each their own, I didn't mind them aside from the occasional random weirdness but those were never constant or bothersome enough to hurt the experience for me.
 

ScOULaris

Member
Alright, just played through a new game on 1.03 for a little ways, and I'll post my impressions thus far:

  • The button prompts have not diminished from what I can tell. This is my third playthrough of the game, and they are appearing with exactly the same frequency as before. This might change later on in the game, but so far I think that this was falsely reported.
  • Good news: the camera acceleration curve has definitely been tweaked to feel much more responsive. It accelerates and decelerates faster, so it doesn't have that floaty/delayed feeling to it like it did prior to 1.03. I have zero doubt that this was actually changed and not some kind of placebo. It's immediately noticeable if you have been used to playing the game pre-patch. So while it loses some of that Team Ico dreamlike feel with this update, it gains fluidity and responsiveness that I think most people will prefer. Basically, it feels more like a traditional third-person camera now.
  • While I can't speak conclusively on this one (due to lack of framerate measurement methods available to me), I think I can say with some level of confidence that 1.03 has introduced some slight performance improvements. I took this playthrough through several stress areas in the game that consistently resulted in low-20's fps prior to 1.03, and I felt a slight increase in framerate in these sections.

    That's not to say that the game is hitting 30fps all the time on the standard PS4 now, but when it dips it doesn't dip as low or stay low for as long. The overall feeling is that frametimes are more consistent, so even when the fps might be dipping a bit you don't get the same amount of visible and palpable choppiness as before in certain areas that tax the hardware. This is a good thing, and I look forward to testing 1.03 in some of the later areas in the game when certain setpieces dipped to what felt like sub-20fps before.

    I'd love for someone with the ability to capture framerate measurements on the PS4 to prove me right here. It's not a night/day improvement, but it's an appreciated improvement nonetheless.
  • Lastly, I think that maybe this slight performance uptick has been achieved by some slight tweaks to the engine, perhaps. My eyes could be deceiving me, but it feels like bloom and fog have been dialed back slightly in outdoor areas. Lighting in general looks a little flatter and lower contrast to my eye, but by all means this could just be me seeing something that isn't there. Take this last bullet point as food for thought rather than as a statement of fact.

Those are my impressions. I'd love to hear from someone else playing on the standard PS4 who has an eye for framerate fluctuations. Improved performance is my biggest dream for TLG. For someone like me, steep framerate dips during gameplay or setpiece moments really hampers my enjoyment because I can't keep myself from focusing on it.

FYI - I've played up until the first time Trico
swallows you
, so I made sure to test out some of the more demanding early outdoor areas (
the forest
) before posting this.
 
Alright, just played through a new game on 1.03 for a little ways, and I'll post my impressions thus far:

  • The button prompts have not diminished from what I can tell. This is my third playthrough of the game, and they are appearing with exactly the same frequency as before. This might change later on in the game, but so far I think that this was falsely reported.
  • Good news: the camera acceleration curve has definitely been tweaked to feel much more responsive. It accelerates and decelerates faster, so it doesn't have that floaty/delayed feeling to it like it did prior to 1.03. I have zero doubt that this was actually changed and not some kind of placebo. It's immediately noticeable if you have been used to playing the game pre-patch. So while it loses some of that Team Ico dreamlike feel with this update, it gains fluidity and responsiveness that I think most people will prefer. Basically, it feels more like a traditional third-person camera now.
  • While I can't speak conclusively on this one (due to lack of framerate measurement methods available to me), I think I can say with some level of confidence that 1.03 has introduced some slight performance improvements. I took this playthrough through several stress areas in the game that consistently resulted in low-20's fps prior to 1.03, and I felt a slight increase in framerate in these sections.

    That's not to say that the game is hitting 30fps all the time on the standard PS4 now, but when it dips it doesn't dip as low or stay low for as long. The overall feeling is that frametimes are more consistent, so even when the fps might be dipping a bit you don't get the same amount of visible and palpable choppiness as before in certain areas that tax the hardware. This is a good thing, and I look forward to testing 1.03 in some of the later areas in the game when certain setpieces dipped to what felt like sub-20fps before.

    I'd love for someone with the ability to capture framerate measurements on the PS4 to prove me right here. It's not a night/day improvement, but it's an appreciated improvement nonetheless.
  • Lastly, I think that maybe this slight performance uptick has been achieved by some slight tweaks to the engine, perhaps. My eyes could be deceiving me, but it feels like bloom and fog have been dialed back slightly in outdoor areas. Lighting in general looks a little flatter and lower contrast to my eye, but by all means this could just be me seeing something that isn't there. Take this last bullet point as food for thought rather than as a statement of fact.

Those are my impressions. I'd love to hear from someone else playing on the standard PS4 who has an eye for framerate fluctuations. Improved performance is my biggest dream for TLG. For someone like me, steep framerate dips during gameplay or setpiece moments really hampers my enjoyment because I can't keep myself from focusing on it.

FYI - I've played up until the first time Trico
swallows you
, so I made sure to test out some of the more demanding early outdoor areas (
the forest
) before posting this.

Hell yes! Thanks for the write up.
 

gfxtwin

Member
Maybe I'm just having a lot more luck than everyone else but I have noticed one DRASTIC improvement. After installing the patch I started playing from the e3 scene on the collapsing planks up through the underwater caves and I swear to Ueda Trico's responsiveness is up 90%. There wasn't a single time he stalled, or glitched out, or wouldn't move when I issued one of the commands. They more or less all worked instantly. To give you an idea of how improved it is, for the scene where Trico is pawing at the wheel to open a gate that you use as a seesaw, in earlier versions it was lots of patience and sheer luck that got me though. this time, all I had to do was point in the direction of the when and he immediately opened the gates. And in the underwater segment, he swims the moment you point him in the direction of the underwater cave and/or press X to signal "go down". It worked like a charm. The part where he jumps in the water to let you ride a wave up to the lever happened with no hassle whatsoever as well.

Basically, it looks like the one part of the game that everyone was complaining the most about (trico's unresponsiveness) is fixed, from what I can tell in my playthrough. This is major, major, stuff. And I haven't noticed any camera problems this time, where it was noticeably janky last time. After the next few patches, some reviewers might need to update their reviews if this patch is a prelude of things to come.
 

ScOULaris

Member
Maybe I'm just having a lot more luck than everyone else but I have noticed one DRASTIC improvement. After installing the patch I started playing from the e3 scene on the collapsing planks up through the underwater caves and I swear to Ueda Trico's responsiveness is up 90%. There wasn't a single time he stalled, or glitched out, or wouldn't move when I issued one of the commands. They more or less all worked instantly. To give you an idea of how improved it is, for the scene where Trico is pawing at the wheel to open a gate that you use as a seesaw, in earlier versions it was lots of patience and sheer luck that got me though. this time, all I had to do was point in the direction of the when and he immediately opened the gates. And in the underwater segment, he swims the moment you point him in the direction of the underwater cave and/or press X to signal "go down". It worked like a charm. The part where he jumps in the water to let you ride a wave up to the lever happened with no hassle whatsoever as well.

Basically, it looks like the one part of the game that everyone was complaining the most about (trico's unresponsiveness) is fixed, from what I can tell in my playthrough. This is major, major, stuff. And I haven't noticed any camera problems this time, where it was noticeably janky last time. After the next few patches, some reviewers might need to update their reviews if this patch is a prelude of things to come.
This I'm not so sure about. Trico behaved for me in 1.02 the same way you describe in your 1.03 examples.

That being said they very well might have fixed possible bugs that some players experienced in particular areas of the game, but I doubt that they outright made him more responsive in general.
 

Stoffinator

Member
Somethings I think changed in the patch are.

1) Seems like they adjusted lighting in some areas. Some hallways that were pretty dark seem a lot brighter now.

2) I think the amount of smoke and fog has been reduced.

3) Frame rate seems a little better(?) But not sure cause didn't experience much problems with it.

4) Camera is certainly tighter now. Feels a lot more like a modern TPS. Least when it comes to camera.

For the reference, I am playing on the PS4 Pro. First play through was on 1080p and it seemed solid. Second play through I am going through on 4K and it seems solid. Haven't noticed any issues with it.

And on a side note, cause I add how stupid some of the trophies are with this game? :p
 

A-V-B

Member
I'm with you. I finished it last week and it was a struggle the whole time. I was miserable every second I played this game. Was so relieved to have finished it. Wouldn't recommend this game to anyone.

Why do you spend many hours being miserable by your own volition, without stopping?
 

Betruzki

Neo Member
All I want is an option to turn off button prompts.

Same. I feel it really breaks the immersion in some parts. It's fine in the beginning when introducing the mechanics but the game insisting on explaining how to pick up barrles for the 56th time really rubs me the wrong way.
 

Dmax3901

Member
So I just started this game today and damn if the camera's been improved in this latest patch I can't imagine how annoying it must've been beforehand.
 

Lord Error

Insane For Sony
Is this patch already up in North America (Canada specifically)? I'm thinking of skipping it, if it changes camera to feel less cinematic, reduces bloom or fog, and offers. I other improvements. I kind of don't like what I'm reading in this thread.
 
I'm with you. I finished it last week and it was a struggle the whole time. I was miserable every second I played this game. Was so relieved to have finished it. Wouldn't recommend this game to anyone.

There's one point in the game that was pure hell and probably one of the most annoying things I've ever tried to do in a game! The part where
Trico has to swim through gates under water, the twat would just paddle without moving, then decide to go back to the dry land only to repeat it over and over, then dive but not make it through the gate.
Unbelievable.
 
Why do you spend many hours being miserable by your own volition, without stopping?

As someone who can do this with standard open-world games, it is necessary to get the "full picture". Otherwise, you get the "but you didn't see the whole game excuse".

The number of games that makes me do this are getting fewer though.
 

Hedon

Banned
Well shit.

Trico is already super obedient. It's the kid that has some issues.
Maybe the water section won't be frequently broken now. I do hope they kind of work on the kid being occasionally less terrible to control, like not grabbing on during scripted moments or grabbing the wrong things.

You got a better Trico than the rest of us. I am about to put him in an invisible fence and finish the game on my own.
 
So framerate has been patched? I'm a gigantic fan of Team Ico but after coming from the remasters of Ico/SotC which fixed framerate issues and whatnot I'd really rather not deal with another game constantly dipping. Been waiting for this kind of news!
 

Hedon

Banned
So framerate has been patched? I'm a gigantic fan of Team Ico but after coming from the remasters of Ico/SotC which fixed framerate issues and whatnot I'd really rather not deal with another game constantly dipping. Been waiting for this kind of news!

I have seen confirmation that it has fixed camera lag when moving the camera. I haven't heard if it has or hasn't fixed framerate. I haven't launched mine since the update dropped.
 

Mariip

Member
Nice to see the framerate is being adjusted, i couldn't play the game before because the camera and the framerate were giving me nausea(i have motion sickness) and i thought they wouldn't touch it after launch...
 

graybot

Member
I just see it all the time... people forcing themselves to play games they hate. It seems so needless :(

Well for me, I paid full price for the game, So I will play it from start to finish.

The story and relationship is an interesting part of the game and I want to see how that pans out

But the controls and camera, make it in my opinion an awful experience

Im shocked that so many reviewers appeared to be so forgiving.
 

ScOULaris

Member
So framerate has been patched? I'm a gigantic fan of Team Ico but after coming from the remasters of Ico/SotC which fixed framerate issues and whatnot I'd really rather not deal with another game constantly dipping. Been waiting for this kind of news!
There's no confirmation on performance improvements just yet, but from my testing it seems to have improved slightly. It still dips during demanding scenes, but not as noticeably as before the patch.

I think they they've toned down the fog and bloom effects a bit to get some frames back. The lighting seems slightly different too, but that could be placebo.
 

LiK

Member
Wait, is that the "catch Trico in the act" one? I was wondering why I got that.

You don't even need to see it. It'll pop if you're near him when it happens. The trophy actually notified me of it and I quickly turned around to see Trico starting to take a dump.
 

FaintDeftone

Junior Member
Glad to hear of the improvements. Is Trico less of a pain in the ass to jump off from now? That's always been my major gripe with the game. I wanted to pull my hair out the last time I had to climb Trico and jump from his head to another platform because it felt like the boy didn't want to unattach himself from Trico.
 

thatJohann

Member
Why do you spend many hours being miserable by your own volition, without stopping?

Well I'm a huge fan of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus so I really wanted to experience this. That's why I pushed through. But yea now that I finished it, the only memories i have sadly are of frustration and annoyance which is a bummer.
 

ScOULaris

Member
Anyone else get a chance to test this patch in the later sections of the game? I'm specifically wondering about performance improvements on the standard PS4, but I'm at work all day and can't test myself.

I tested it last night in the early hours of the game and felt some small but noticeable improvements in areas that tax the hardware. The slightly improved performance seems to come at the cost of some of the bloom/fog that was being used more heavily before this patch unless my eyes/memory deceive me.
 
Glad to hear of the improvements. Is Trico less of a pain in the ass to jump off from now? That's always been my major gripe with the game. I wanted to pull my hair out the last time I had to climb Trico and jump from his head to another platform because it felt like the boy didn't want to unattach himself from Trico.

x to let go?
 

A-V-B

Member
I do wonder why there is no grip button. There doesn't need to be a stamina meter, but a grip button would do wonders for easily dislodging from Trico. And it could be in the options menu to have it work that way. If you want manual grip, turn off auto grip and now R2 is the grip button.
 

Lord Error

Insane For Sony
Does anyone know if the off-the-disc game install supports PS4 Pro? What was added in 1.01 and 1.02 patches?

I do wonder why there is no grip button. There doesn't need to be a stamina meter, but a grip button would do wonders for easily dislodging from Trico. And it could be in the options menu to have it work that way. If you want manual grip, turn off auto grip and now R2 is the grip button.
In Ico EU/JP versions of the game there was just such an option to enable or disable button hold for holding Yorda's hand. I wouldn't be surprised if they add an option here.
 

gfxtwin

Member
The ending doesn't trigger any more.
As soon as you get th the top of the tower the scene where the other tricos fly in never plays and it just resumes gameplay again. I've tried restarting the checkpoint several times and it keeps happening.
Fuck.

EDIT: nvmnd, looks like it wont trigger unless you unequip the shield, oddly enough.
 
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