Entering an environment and figuring out what he can climb, destroy, or interact with requires a healthy dose of careful observation. Herein lies one of The Last Guardian’s most conflicting features: I love the concept of not possessing or physically maneuvering Trico, in that it preserves the feeling that he’s an independent and intelligent creature. I use the word “vague” before, because even as the credits rolled, I still didn’t feel like I had a firm grasp of how to get him to do what I wanted or needed.
Many times I found my attempts to get back to solid land were thwarted by getting caught in my cute companion’s weird underbelly. Grabbing onto a tuft of feathers as Trico leaps from ledge to ledge can be oftentimes thrilling, but at the same time, the simple act of dismounting him is cumbersome. A lot of these are done while you’re climbing on top of him, which mirrors that main, memorable mechanic of Shadow of the Colossus.
“You don’t have direct control of Trico, but can prompt him with a series of commands and gestures that nudge the beast to jump, swipe, or head in a general direction.
