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The Last Guardian: Review Thread

There is no way this game is going to review well in today's atmosphere. But if you're a fan of his work then that should never stop you.

Even back in the day Ueda's games always ended up reviewing around the low 80s.

StoC was given an 8/10 by all major reviewers and I think ICO was around there as well.
 
Alright the arbitrary "Number the game I care about so I feel validated. Even if the number doesn't match my internal 'care' number I'll still care about it, but will be tilted." is slowing down.

Everyone begin airing your grievances towards each other.

Let's make sure we have extreme hyperbole i.e.

"PS4 is dead", "Sony didn't give Ueda enough time to polish it", etc.


I can't wait to pick my copy up tomorrow.
 
Bloodporne said:
As much as I don't like to let reviews influence me, his points regarding the gameplay issues sound like they would enrage me to no end as well.

I know from previews that Trico wouldn't always obey you immediately but the extent to which this could possibly be a thing based on Sterling's review is a bit hair raising to me. I know it's probably meant to be realistic but it sounds extremely frustrating.

It's a huge wrench in the gears for me when a game doesn't have clearly defined rules and internal logic so I'm hoping the frequency of the game breaking these isn't as brutal as Sterling seems to imply here when I end up playing it.
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Isn't that the beauty of it, though? I am all for another experience in games. If it is frustrating then it is frustrating in a different way, not the same old too-much HP, cheap-shots, enemy is faster than my character, bullet-hell way.

I feel like this game will show us that we have been conditioned to play a certain way and if it does not conform to the rules and patterns we have built in our minds then it will be the game's fault, not ours. :)
 
I wonder if most of tbe reviews that score it 8 or below mention technical problems impacting the score mostly... as in I wonder if a patch correcting the framerate/ glitches would potentially improve them (theorically speaking of course, scores won't change)?
At work, so can't browse reviews.

Anyways, 80+ seems great, specially considering the technical problems it looks like. Will be my first Ueda game.
 
Who will get higher? This or FFXV?
 
Lionel Richie said:
I already fucking hate this midgen refresh world we live in.
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Well, I don't think the Pro really factored into development. Without it, the game would still have shipped in this state on PS4 and can likely not be fixed. Not after all this time.
 
SomTervo said:
He talks explicitly about both.

Regardless, if we're just talking about getting Trico to do what you want, nobody in the Early Impressions thread (about 3-5 people) reported issues getting Trico to do what you want. They praised Trico for being just like an animal.

Interesting if you're right about critics missing particular behaviour paths/commands.
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I'm referencing a theme that has flowed through a number of reviews and seems to be the biggest hit in said reviews. It seems like the concept of him not responding to your commands frustrated people. This can be endearing to some and make others bounce off.

Kotaku

Sometimes Trico is perfect. He’ll see the ledge I want it to jump to, recognize my character’s hopping motions, and leap gracefully through the air, small boy clinging desperately to his back. That’s a good Trico, making me feel like we’ve reached a new level of understanding.

Other times he’ll make a warbling noise, maybe sniff at the wall I want him to hop over. Maybe, in the middle of a series of complicated jumps, he’ll turn around and go back the way he came. Or perhaps I’ll spend five minutes trying to make it jump to a new area, mistake the creature’s reluctance for misdirection on my part, only to have him immediately make the jump once I’ve spent another five minutes exhausting all other possibilities. That’s a bad Trico, slowing an already leisurely game to a plodding crawl. Good thing we had all of that practice being patient, right?

The unpredictable AI can make for some frustrating moments, but that frustration only enhances the illusion that this strange cat-beast is a living thing. I am not irritated with a video game. I am irritated with my large feathered friend.

The remainder of The Last Guardian’s challenge lies is getting Trico to do what you want him to. After describing the creature control ups and downs to a coworker who hadn’t played the game, he said it sounded horrible. But he didn’t know Trico like I know Trico. Time and time again the magnificent beast saved my life, risking his own to remain by my side. The lengths Trico goes to demonstrate his dedication are inspiring. If he wants to spend a couple of minutes sniffing a tower, who am I to deny him?
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Jimquisition

To begin with the most glaring fault, Trico truly puts the “artificial” in “artificial intelligence.” While sometimes he’ll follow commands and do what’s necessary, trying to get him to perform simple tasks is all too frequently like pulling teeth.

He’ll regularly turn around and go back the way he came, unresponsively dawdle around despite repeated calls for action, and generally be a complete pain in the arse to deal with. I cannot thoroughly enough express the sheer frustration involved in knowing exactly what the beast has to do, knowing how to get him to do it, and being left exasperated as Trico just won’t do it.

Sometimes I had to lead Trico away from an objective and then lead him back in order to get him to act. Sometimes he’d just take ages to do anything and I frequently was left in quiet suspense, not knowing if the game had ignored my command or was just taking forever to process it. Despite knowing how to provide visual clues, The Last Guardian is frequently awful at communicating or confirming things, and you just never know if the game’s working as intended.

Trico can’t even eat those barrels without great difficulty, needing them in exact spots before he’ll gobble them up. Sometimes you can throw the barrels and he’ll snatch them in mid-air, which is both cool and cute. Sometimes he’ll let the barrel just bounce off his stupid bloody face, and it’ll look bloody stupid.

A command system is in place, but it’s bizarre, relying on holding down a button and using the left stick to point at things. What are you pointing at? The game provides no HUD elements or visual stimulus to let you know. Most of the time, you’re commanding blindly and hoping for the best.
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IGN

The problem here is that there were countless times where I’d mentally solved a puzzle and knew exactly what to do, only to find that Trico stubbornly refused to go to the spot I needed him to get to. Whether he was facing the wrong direction and refused to turn around or was just a few steps to either side of where he needed to be to initiate a jump, I became exhausted by his refusal to heed my commands. A little bit of this obstinance added to Trico’s charm, but it happened far too often, so most of the time it just bombarded me with frustration and made me lose any feeling that I existed in this world. If I try a solution to a puzzle for 10 minutes only to find that I was trying the wrong thing, that’s my fault; if I try a solution for 10 minutes only to find that it suddenly arbitrarily works because of a slight readjustment to Trico that was beyond my control, that’s just plain annoying.
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Digital Trends

The Last Guardian very accurately simulates the experience of having a dog without much training. The entire game is predicated on the relationship between an unnamed boy, who the player controls, and Trico, an AI-controlled giant mythological bird-lion-dog creature. Trico is very nice to hang out with, but he can get confused sometimes. And that makes spending time with him very frustrating.
More: ‘The Last Guardian’ creator Fumito Ueda can’t believe it’s finally finished
The only thing that’s more irritating than trying to get an animal to listen to you when they don’t understand what you’re saying, is trying to get an animal to listen to you while you’re trying to solve puzzles. The Last Guardian is a long, expansive series of puzzles, most of which offer little in the way of guidance as to how they should be approached or solved. The process of solving them often comes down to trial and error — giving your big animal friend commands and hoping they’re the right ones. Trying every possible answer, a.k.a. “brute-forcing,” is not a particularly enjoyable way to solve a puzzle under the best of circumstances. Brute-forcing your way through a puzzle with a slow-to-respond animal who isn’t much help — well, it’ll get your blood pressure up.
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Ars:

Of the 14 or so hours it took me to see The Last Guardian's end credits, I'd estimate a good three or four were spent solely on fruitlessly trying to guide Trico to do the one thing I needed him to do to move on to the next room. That includes a frustrating five-minute stretch waiting for Trico's tail to drop through a hole in the ceiling so I could climb up to safety. It includes all the times Trico would jump to his next foothold, then immediately jump back, then spend a few minutes wandering around as I yelled at him to make the jump again. It includes the times he'd clamber up on his hind legs against a wall to give me the extra height I needed, then clamber back down before I could find secure enough footing to jump off his head to the next ledge.
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Metro Gamecentral's review just went up:

http://metro.co.uk/2016/12/05/the-last-guardian-review-shadow-of-ico-6302518/

Sum up:

In Short: Not quite up to the same standards of its predecessors, but this is still an emotionally draining and beautifully realised story of friendship against the odds.

Pros: Trico is an absolute delight and a breakthrough achievement in animation and game design. Clever level layout, beautiful artwork, and an unforgettable ending.

Cons: Horribly frustrating camera. Some underwhelming puzzles and imprecise movement. Rare but serious bugs, and some frame rate issues on the standard PlayStation 4.

Score: 8/10
 
Anoxida said:
Almost every aspect of that game when it comes to both narrative and game play is top notch. Giving it a 7.5 is indeed atrocious. You don't even have to like a game like TLOU but if you fail to realize how well made that game is then I don't even know.
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I feel very similarly. Seems like reviews are looking for flaws rather than enjoying the game.
 
Trojan said:
I'm not, this game was going to be a lightning rod of controversy no matter what. It's a game that requires patience and has a deep character relationship at its core...in a world that wants a quick payoff.
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Well nowadays everything is classed as a fucking walking simulator if it has 10 minutes of a stretch without a set piece or killing. We're already seeing this impatient "concern trolling" around walking simulators for TLoU part 2.

Heck apparently the UC4 DLC is now a walking simulator because of the PSX segment which was done specifically to tease.
 
Not Spaceghost said:
There is no way this game is going to review well in today's atmosphere. But if you're a fan of his work then that should never stop you.

Even back in the day Ueda's games always ended up reviewing around the low 80s.

StoC was given an 8/10 by all major reviewers and I think ICO was around there as well.
Click to expand...
Except it's reviewing quite well?
 
Not Spaceghost said:
There is no way this game is going to review well in today's atmosphere. But if you're a fan of his work then that should never stop you.

Even back in the day Ueda's games always ended up reviewing around the low 80s.

StoC was given an 8/10 by all major reviewers and I think ICO was around there as well.
Click to expand...

But it is reviewing well? Mid 80s is great.
 
Not Spaceghost said:
There is no way this game is going to review well in today's atmosphere. But if you're a fan of his work then that should never stop you.

Even back in the day Ueda's games always ended up reviewing around the low 80s.

StoC was given an 8/10 by all major reviewers and I think ICO was around there as well.
Click to expand...

I agree with you that I wasn't expecting The Last Guardian to review particularly well in this climate, but Ico and SotC both have metacritics of over 90.
 
PlayerOne said:
From IGN's review:




Ueda already stated it'd be a boring game if Trico just does whatever you want him to.
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I've read that part about puzzles in a few reviews, I think it's just one puzzle that has this issue, people had issues in the impressions thread as well.

Sucks about the camera, that can really drain enjoyment out of a game (FF15 lol)
 
Griss said:
It seems clear from the reviews that a huge amount of how much you like this game will boil down to whether you perceive Trico not following your commands as realistic animal AI or simply bugged controls / shoddy AI. Kind of how some people though Aggro controlled like shit in SotC and others thought he was like a real horse. (I was in the latter camp, loved him.)

It could be either, I guess I'll have to wait and find out how I'll feel about it.
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Yeah, it seems to be subjective down to whether you have pets and/or like animals or not - also just whether the game tells Trico's rules to you well enough.
 
MC dropping like a rock. Not going to cancel the pre-order because I have been waiting 10 years for this game but I was not expecting it to be this divisive. SotC had critical acclaim, I expected the same from The Last Guardian.
 
JetSetRadio said:
Low sterling score is a good sign.
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I like Jim as a writer but honestly a lot of his game reviews can seem a little arbitrary and like he gets hung up on things that would never bother me. To each their own of course but he has some very odd hang ups on certain things that never really bother me to begin with.
 
I don't know why some people are dissapointed in the score. It's done well and by the sounds of it if you loved Ico or SOTC then you'll enjoy this.

I'll pick it up in the new year when my backlog isn't an issue.
 
Ostinatto said:
Guys im scared. im shaking. I am cold.



it hurts all over my body. the reason why I got a PS3 has come to this day. the reason why I started playing the early Adventure games like Okami and Limbo and Journey and Zelda... it was all because of this day. because of this game.

this game that will not only be the last significant game of all time. but also the game that will counter-attack and kill Overwatch and all the other "Omg online phenomenon". Red vs blue on this... its going to be... I cant write anymore. I cant. I have to hide under my desk.

I just cant. I just cant....
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What
 
The divide in reviews got me more hype! Some love it, some wrestled with controls, some couldn't overlook glaring faults, some didn't enjoy it. Sounds like Ico & SotC!

I'm ready for the world! Ueda has done nothing but inspire, if it's anything like his other two games I'll be blown away!
 
GHG said:
Can someone fill me in here, since when was a score in the 80's a negative thing?
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When you connect your happiness to how a game does and thoroughly expect it to be at least 90, getting 81 is a negative thing... I guess.
 
Anoxida said:
Almost every aspect of that game when it comes to both narrative and game play is top notch. Giving it a 7.5 is indeed atrocious. You don't even have to like a game like TLOU but if you fail to realise how well made that game is then I don't even know.
Click to expand...
Doesn't matter. A score isn't a reflection of quality, but of the reviewer's enjoyment. Hence why movies as meticulously crafted and considered genre classics today like The Shining or The Thing weren't well received when they released
 
I expected Duke Nukem Forever but reading the reviews it's what you would expect from a Team ICO/Ueda game. Baffling actually but great.
 
Magic Mushroom said:
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-the-last-guardian-face-off

Go Pro, basically.
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'The 20-30fps performance profile is a clear upgrade over the 'cinematic' presentation seen in Shadow of the Colossus, but it's still way off the pace compared to what we've come to expect from a modern PS4 title.'

Yikes.

You know, I'm almost embarrassed to say this- But I never finished Ico or SoTC. Maybe I'll play those first and then get around to this once I get a Pro.
 
Not Spaceghost said:
There is no way this game is going to review well in today's atmosphere. But if you're a fan of his work then that should never stop you.

Even back in the day Ueda's games always ended up reviewing around the low 80s.

StoC was given an 8/10 by all major reviewers and I think ICO was around there as well.
Click to expand...
nah, Ico and SotC average high mate. Meta is at 90 & 91 for them. This looks to be under, but it today's seemingly harsher climate, reviews are essentially on par.
 
ethomaz said:
Not terrible but just fine.

ICO 90
SotC 91

I expected high 80 or 90.
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In this day and age I wouldn't expect a game that skipped a console gen, has control and tech issues to get a 90. Nope. Not today. That shit is under a microscope these days
 
Don't think any reviews that start with this line should count:
eleftmL


Which would be the most unbiased review? Looks like a lot of 10's are from people that were going to give it 10's regardless.
 
Blackthorn said:
Odd that the Eurogamer review specifically mentioned reading the beast's body language and expressions to know what to do, while others seem to shrug and say, "It does what it wants."

Interested to know where the truth is, and whether it's the sort of game that doesn't hold up well when someone's playing to a deadline.
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That highlights the difference between a patient, observant player, and a frustrated player.
 
6.5 from Jim Sterling. Ouch*.










*
disclaimer, I'm not picking on this score or game more commenting on the fervour to see a game get a low review. It's embarrassing for those who do it.
 
BluePikmin11 said:
I feel very similarly. Seems like reviews are looking for flaws rather than enjoying the game.
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For many the core gameplay was impacted by some bad mechanics as in the case of I think Sterlings review. So in fact that isn't looking for flaws that is literally doing what should be done on a review which is indicating what helps and hinders you enjoying the game.
 
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