It doesn’t just feel like a space for the game to take place in, but a real, though quite bizarre location.Įach structure seems to have a purpose, giving hints at The Nest’s mysterious backstory. Space never feels cheated, and in the various outdoor sections of the game you can map where you are from the landmarks, mostly the dizzying towers and precarious walkways. Tightly designed, you’ll spend the game weaving between its many structures. The game’s design revolves entirely around the relationship between boy and beast, forged in their mutual struggle to escape “The Nest”, a mysterious valley filled with ruins and ancient mechanisms.
In the few sequences where you have to fend of suits of animated armour you have to rely on Trico to take them out, while you finish off the occasional survivor, or knock Trico-repelling wards out of the hands of enemies. It forces you by necessity into a more passive and supportive role. The Last Guardian is inversion, as the boy must rely on Trico for guidance and protection. In ICO you led Yorda around by the hand, fending off shadows as you both tried to escape the castle. Of its two predecessors The Last Guardian is closer in tone and mechanics to ICO. The game’s design revolves entirely around the relationship between boy and beast.
