September 2017 Playthrough - The Last Guardian

[GrayGhost81]

Glad both of you guys finished and enjoyed the game.

Same.

I'd like to talk about the ending and post-credits sequence now that everyone is finished with the game.

*******MAJOR SPOILERS INCOMING***********



As you will hear when the podcast comes out, I'll make it quite clear that the pre-credits ending was perfect for me. I was certain that the villagers would slaughter Trico right in front of me, so giving him the chance to get away offered a glimmer of hope that was just good enough. The comment by one of the villagers that Trico was so wounded that he would likely not survive made the whole situation so much more torturously tenuous, and I LOVED IT.

Then, they seemingly tacked on the post credits sequence that in a very cheesy way confirms that Trico survived. The guaranteed happy ending is why I have so little interest in American movies, tv, etc, and I was befuddled and disappointed to see it used here. Not to be too harsh, as I adored this game overall. It's not like it ruined it for me, but man, I wish they had just stuck with the open-ended conclusion and stopped there.

I already know Rich's stance on this and I'll certainly let him explain, but I'll preemptively respond by saying that his extenuating circumstances are not in any way relatable to me, and my experience in the context of my own personal tastes is what shapes my opinion of the ending.

PS - This show was running really long we didn't address the animal companions question. I'm sorry about that because I really appreciate the responses and I really wanted to acknowledge them. It just didn't happen.

[singlebanana]

In short, my kids watched me play the game, so that additional ending really saved my ass. My daughter before the final ending, "Why did you make us watch this? I hate you!"

However, I agree with Shawn. Would have been more powerful without that additional ending.

But, let me propose this....we enter into a dark cavern and only see some glowing eyes. Who is to say that these specifically belong to our Trico? Perhaps the reason we do not see the full figure is simply to let us know that this breed of fantastical creatures has survived. I think it can still be inferred that our Trico is deceased. Still, I'd find it unnecessarily uplifting. Nothing wrong with getting a little choked up. As long as kids aren't around.

[Disposed Hero]

I really expected Trico to die at some point in the game.  After that last sequence where he's being mauled by about a dozen other creatures for about 10 minutes (at least in my game since it took me about that long to figure out what to do), I thought there was little hope left for him.  I didn't need the game to have a happy ending, and thought it would have been really moving if Trico died right after bringing the boy back to his home.  Despite what the villager said about Trico, I thought it was obvious that he survived.  In pretty much all forms of media, you can't assume somebody (or something) is dead unless you see a body.

However, my interpretation of the post-credits scene was that Trico and the boy would reunite after some 40+ years.  It's obvious that they had an incredible bond after everything they went through, and I'm sure that the boy would have assumed that Trico was dead, so the idea that they could be together again after all this time was also pretty moving for me.  I wouldn't exactly call it a storybook 'happy' ending, since the boy (now a man) spent decades with the belief that the best friend he's likely ever had is dead (not to mention that he's probably an outcast thanks to those strange markings all over his body), and Trico spent all that time alone living in a dark cave.

Unless of course if Trico hooked up with a female Trico and had a bunch of Trico kids, but I only saw one pair of eyes in that final scene.  

[singlebanana]

The second pair of eyes are a bit less noticeable and have a less pronounced glow. I almost missed them myself.

[douglie007]

We don't know if that was Trico, after the fight with the other beasts it looked like he got an eye removed.  He could have awakened another beast with his mirror shield and it's coming to take vengeance.

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[singlebanana]

Eye was damaged in the fight and closed, but not lost. He reopens it in the village. Believe me, my damn kids were screaming at me about it....

[GrayGhost81]

Still, I love Doug's idea as a badass "what if" scenario.

[singlebanana]

Vengeance is good.

[Addicted]

To me all three games (ICO, Shadow, Last Guardian) are about relationships. I believe that there are two relationships in the Last Guardian. The one between Trico and the Boy and the one between the two Trico's. To me the other Trico that hunted the boy and the Trico that helped the boy were male and female. During the ending cut scene the other Trico is shown at the bottom of the tower and acknowledges the other Trico. It seems fitting that the pair of Trico's are reunited after the evil that controls the mountain is destroyed.

[Disposed Hero]

Ah, I just went back and rewatched the post-credits scene, and I see the second pair of eyes now.  Totally missed them the first time.