Sony have unveiled a new trailer for Team ICO’s highly anticipated The Last Guardian. Eager fans whetted their appetite for the game when the trailer was exhibited at the recent Tokyo Game Show.

For the uninitiated, The Last Guardian is the third release from Team ICO. The studio’s PlayStation 2 titles, ICO (2002) and Shadow of the Colossus (2005), became cult hits and showcased the talents of designer and director Fumito Ueda.

A PS3 exclusive, The Last Guardian, promises lush and immersive environments.

Ueda has proclaimed he wanted to create “a strange and fantastic world”. The attention to aesthetics is amazing from the blades of grass moving in the wind to the shifting of the clouds above. Coupled with a meticulous soundtrack of crackling fire, happily chirping birds and an evocative score, it will not take gamers long to be absorbed into Ueda’s world.

From the brief snippets you see here, The Last Guardian has a Never Ending Story feel, with a young boy encountering a strange birdlike creature. Befriending this unusual animal is integral to solving puzzles and progressing through the narrative. This does not happen automatically, mind you. The player must initially win the trust of the animal to receive any help. In the long term you are expected to care for your new friend by providing him with food and treating his wounds. That seems fair.

Ueda is excited about The Last Guardian and no doubt fans of Team ICO will be too. It’s due for release in 2010.

There's nothing quite so civilised as an afternoon nap.