Given that it’s the early moments of the game, the puzzles are ridiculously simple, and likely not indicative of what you’ll get up to a few hours into the game. What I found myself focusing on was the interactions between the boy and Trico. Like Ico, their bond gives this adventure weight, and while it’s too early to say whether The Last Guardian succeeds in making you care about the two of them, I can say that it was a joy to watch them playfully interact.



There are two examples that stand out in particular.



One, when you’re trying to feed Trico for the first time, if you approach the beast with food in-hand, he unleashes a terrifying scream in protest. Instead, you need to drop the food near him, walk away, and give him space to calm.



Two, as you’re leaving the opening area, an underground lake appears. It seems Trico is afraid of water (possibly because of his electric tail?), and won’t follow you any further. Fortunately for the boy, there’s a stash of food hidden away, and if you toss one of them in the water, Trico will spend a hilariously uncomfortable amount of time wondering if they should jump in the water. Trico will put one of their feet forward, feel some rocks fall into the water, then back off. Then, they’ll notice the food bobbing up and down and reconsider their decision. Eventually, hunger trumps all, and Trico dives down, gets soaked, and lumbers over to the food barrel. One hopes the game is full of such moments.