10 Awesome Video Games Where The Gameplay Is The Worst Part
4. The Last Guardian
Fans had spent years and years and years waiting for the release of Team Ico's spiritual follow-up to Shadow of the Colossus, and in 2016 The Last Guardian finally hit stores.
The end result was largely accepted to be a for-the-fans outing, delivering the same overwhelming sense of atmosphere as its predecessor, if also struggling with gameplay that left players hugely divided.
The Last Guardian's core loop required players, who control a young boy, to interact with and instruct a fantastical winged creature known as Trico, each employing the other's help to traverse this mysterious land.
Despite its peerless aesthetics, The Last Guardian stumbles where Trico's A.I. is concerned: convincing him to do basically anything is awkward and frustratingly unresponsive.
Though some have defended this as an intentional flourish to reflect the uneasy growing relationship between the boy and Trico, it can make even simple manoeuvring and puzzle-solving a major pain in the ass.
As successful as the game is at building a wordless bond between boy and creature, the gameplay tries its damnedest to undo that by driving players to rage at Trico for not doing what they ask.
And so, it's a game liable to leave you tearing your hair out in frustration while also being profoundly moved by its subtle, environmentally-driven storytelling.