Shadow of the Colossus

The Good
I tried to make this review as short as possible, but the truth is that I simply can not. The truth is that this game cannot be summarized with words alone. Despite the fact that I try not to over hype this game, it is not easy to give this game an honorable review without writing multiple pages of paragraphs and paragraphs filled with why this game is so amazing. This game can simply suck you in for hours on end without so much as letting up.

And despite the fact that this game is one of the best I have ever played, I have continually put off writing this review for a while until I think I have contemplated it enough to give it a decent review. I mean that when you think you have covered everything this game offers you, it throws some more stuff at you for you to cover. For this reason, I will be writing one of the longest reviews I have ever written for this game.

But God, where do I start!? I suppose I should start off with the games basic drive. Well to start off, you are a man (the instruction manual says his name is Wander) who is traveling to the far end of the Earth. You are carrying your dead lover Mono, who has been sacrificed because of her cursed fate. You finally reach the end of the Earth, and you meet Dormin, a god-like being who hears your cry for help. Wander pleas to the being for help in bringing back the woman’s soul. Dormin says it is the law of mortals that no soul should be brought back, however, with the sword he possesses it might not be impossible. Despite the warnings of heavy consequences, Wander accepts the challenge of defeating 16 colossi that are scattered across the land. And so the adventure of a lifetime begins.

As soon as you leave the main temple, you are thrust into a rich, detailed world sprawling with secrets and things to uncover, filled with colossi the size of mountains to defeat, and adventures to be had. The world lies before you as you can see literally miles around you. And I do not exaggerate. The world consists of miles and miles of land to explore. Some parts of it are teeming with life, while other parts have become a barren wasteland. You set off with just a horse, an ancient sword, a bow, and the clothes on your back as you fulfill your quest. And it soon becomes obvious that these are the only weapons that you will be getting for the rest of the game.

One thing I would like to point out is what these guys were aiming for: immersion. They made the world as realistic as possible. The made it seem like nothing seemed artificial, that this world they create could possibly exist. There is no RPG system to bog it down, no magic spell casting or stupid upgrade systems where you can buy armor off of a screen. They aimed for realism, and they did it nicely. Nothing seems out of place in this world. The characters are probably some of the most believable characters ever created, and the world flows naturally through sections. There is no loading time to make it seem even more realistic. Okay, maybe giant rock monsters isn’t the most realistic, but my point is that there’s nothing out of place to remind you that this is a video game and some cheap manufactured plastic disc game. And it’s for this reason that it can capture your emotions and your mind so effectively.

The game play is simply unflawed. I don’t think there is any other game like it. You are first thrust into your first colossus battle and it does not skimp on the content. The purpose of the colossus battles is to find its weakness and exploit it. Your adrenaline will rush through you as you scale and slay a hundred foot beast. As you play this battle you need to use all of your resources and your intelligence to overcome such beasts.

The colossus battles are often huge and over the top. Fighting a giant 100-foot colossus is not only fun, but it is dramatic and beautiful in its own way. Not only are these battles epic, but they are packed with action. In order to slay a colossus, you need to climb up it using hair, ledges, and sometimes quick jumping to get to the spot where you can actually slay your foe. Not only this, but the colossi aren’t going to give up that easily. They will resist, sometimes shaking you very violently. Others will turn completely upside down! You know you got a good game when a giant flings you around 100 feet above the ground, as you desperately try to cling on and make it to its head. It’s these types of things that make the game so simply amazing. The game consists of 16 of these epic battles as you continue through on your quest.

As these battles rage on, you can’t just use Rambo moves to take down the colossi. In order to bring them down, you must attack it at a certain weak point, where a symbol is displayed. But first you must figure out how you are going to execute this entire battle. And that’s where some of the beauty of the game is: simply trying to get on these beasts and getting to the weak point. Doing this requires quick thinking. Every colossus has a different way for you to bring it down. For example, you may need hit the colossus in its weak spot, and then get it to fall over and climb up it before it gets up. Or you may need to reach a higher spot and drop down on it as it constantly attacks you. Most of the time, it is a constant combination of both. Between a combination of action and puzzle solving, the colossus battles turn out to be like something no other game has ever been able to do. They are heart-pumping and tough, and it is always necessary to be a quick thinker or else you’re not going to make it through the battle.

But colossus battles are only half of the game. The other part of the game is simply exploring the massive landscape the designers have set up for you. The developers did an amazing job to make this world seem like a living breathing world. Everywhere you go there are always birds flying above you and in every lake there are little fish swimming around. There are no loading times throughout the entire map, even during boss battles and in giant, mile long fields. The landscape is so literally beautiful that when you stand up on top of a mountain and look down, you can see miles around you in all direction. And not only this, almost everything you see is able to be explored.

As well, they have created a diverse landscape filled with forests, lakes, rivers, beaches, plains, canyons, and fields. They do such a great job at creating this, that most of the time you will pass through to a different landscape without even noticing. They blend the world together, that it seems like one giant level rather than being divided up into sections. Unlike the Zelda series, where all the parts of the map are divided up into sections, SotC does a great job of mixing all the areas up to seem like one big realistic world. They made sure that all of the fun wasn’t just fighting colossi over and over again. That would be boring and repetitive. 1/3 of the game is actually getting there and enjoying the landscape. Not to say that getting there isn’t a challenge. Sometimes it is very hard just to find the colossi, let alone kill it.

On top of that, there is no combat to keep you from the next colossus. That’s right. There are no enemies in the game besides the colossi. Even though this may seem like a bad thing, it is in fact one of the best things they chose to do. Menial in-between combat would seem trivial compared to the colossal battles waiting for you. Not only would enemies distract from colossus battles, but it would distract from the landscape and atmosphere. It would take away time for you to just ride in bliss and take in the landscape. Imagine taking a car ride through a picturesque landscape of rolling hills and castles. You could take in the tranquility and sereneness of the area. It feels like there isn’t a person for miles around. You are heading to your favorite sporting event, [insert favorite sporting event here]. It is the biggest game of the year. Then all of a sudden you arrive at a 10 minute traffic jam. Not only this, but these traffic jams happen almost every 5 minutes, and all look exactly the same. This is what putting enemies in the game would do. It would mar down the fun factor, as well as this, they would seem trivial to put in compared to the boss battles that await you. Plus it would take away from the atmosphere of this land that seems so devoid of life. Enemies would just destroy the illusion of immersion.

The storyline of the game is like that of 2001: A Space Odyssey. It does not need words or dialogue to stop you from truly appreciating the story. It uses mood and atmosphere to tell most of the story. Instead of having to talk and go on long monologues to develop the story, the developers used the character’s actions and facial expressions and the atmosphere to paint a story. Through action alone we can come to conclusions and the nature of the scene. An example of this is how they paint the scene of the over world. It is populated by some trees; however there are barely any animals save for some small land mammals and birds. And then there are areas of the map which are literally paradises while other parts are cold and desolate and devoid of life. The game doesn’t tell you how the land has come to this but we can draw our own conclusions.

Furthermore, it does the same for characters. Characters aren’t the plain 2D cardboard people we are used to seeing in series like The Legend of Zelda and Mario and Resident Evil. The hero is all that “heroic”, the damsel in distress is far from being in “distress”, the evil guy isn’t all that “evil”. In fact, they aren’t clichés at all. They all have depth and persona behind them which we can observe through their actions rather through their words. In fact, sometimes the sides of good and evil are skewed. Rather than there being a defined good and evil, there are just people and a conflict, with no definite side of good and evil. Through this beautiful narration we see that all of the characters have depth. They all have things which motivate them, and they all have personalities through their actions, not words.

Even the colossi aren’t the cliché dungeon bosses that we are used to. All of the colossi carry with them a majestic feel. As if they really were filled with life. It feels like they really are intelligent and thinking creatures. As if they really had emotions like anger and passiveness. All of the colossi have a unique character to them. Some are slow, some are incredibly fast, some are big, and some are small. Some are aggressive, while others are passive, some are angry, while others at peace. Some will attack you head on, while others will flat out ignore you. It is far from the cardboard cutout enemies like other games. When you defeat them, it feels like a god is falling from its power. These enemies have personality. Every one is unique, and as a result, are a vital contribution to the game.

Shadow of the Colossus can do all of this without using dialogue. Shadow of the Colossus can paint these images of characters and story without having to use long monologues or having characters talk to themselves. And when they use feelings and atmosphere to convey a story that is when the player will put his or her feelings and emotions into this game. That is the beauty of this game. It pulls peoples feelings from deep inside them and puts them into the story. It is in fact one of the most immersive stories I have ever played because of this.

The graphics are some of the best I have seen on the PS2. And let’s face it. The PS2 has never been the console of choice for graphics. If anything, the PC sports better graphics than any system. But this game is a true exception. Every hair on the backs of the colossi is animated and flows with the wind. Every tiny crack on every surface is a polygon all its own. Not only that, but the game has no loading times between anything, making a truly magnificent display of landscape and textures. The game has a beautiful way of making textures. Everything seems real when you look at it. The water actually looks real with everything that touches create a magnificent ripple on the surface. The animations, especially on characters, are some of the most realistic I’ve seen on the PS2. The animations on the horse are especially realistic.

The lighting effects of this game are simply astounding. Because light is a key factor in the game play, the designers needed to make the lighting effects high quality. It is pure bliss when you see the sunlight pouring through the pillars in the temple, or the shadows the landscape creates. When every leaf on a tree is a polygon, when every hair on the colossus is animated, when the lighting effects rival that of the movies, and when you can see miles around you without any graphical slipups or cutting anything out, you know the graphics are good. I am not kidding when I say that the graphics must be seen to be believed.

The amount of detail the developers also put into the game needs to definitely be noted here as well. For example, at the beginning of the game, you are clean and perfect. By the end of the game, you are beat up and dirty simply from the physical and mental anguish of battling the colossi over and over again. And also, the opening sequences are all done with the games game play engine, so cut scenes are not intrusive and flow seamlessly in and out of the game. A lot of detail was put into this game just to make it seem realistic and immersive.

While I do admit the graphics are great, it is probably out shined in the sound department. The sound is both epic and dramatic. It is perfect during any scene. While you are battling a colossus it is tense and fierce. When you finally get on top of the colossus, it becomes like Lord of the Rings or Indiana Jones, with epic and heroic music chiming in. And when the colossus finally topples over, it becomes dramatic and somber. When you see one of these colossi falling over, it is almost as if a god was falling from its power, and the musical score that accompanies it is flawless.

Ambiance really adds some atmosphere to the game. On your long trips to the colossi, it really adds something to the atmosphere of the game to hear what you’re expecting from the scene. Like in a rich lake filled with wildlife you will hear some soft splashing of waves and birds chirping, while on the cold cracked plains you will hear nothing but the cold wind and some hawks overhead. Truly it only serves to add to the atmosphere of the scene, whatever that scene may be.

The voice acting is good, despite the fact that it isn’t in our language. I believe they truly could have screwed up here, but accents are done fairly nicely. Voices match the lips of characters well, and are well matched for their character. Echoing seems to be done pretty well with voices. But like I said before, this game isn’t built upon dialogue so voice-acting needn’t be a huge deal here. But like I said, it was good but not a real contributor.

The controls are nice and tight for Wanda. You use R1 to hold onto everything and use square to stab anything and everything. This really adds a good feeling of “being there”, because as you press down on the R1 button, it really feels like your grabbing onto something. The square button is used for the sword, which also makes you feel there because you get that satisfying feeling when you jam down on the button; it feels like you really are doing the stabbing. Other than that do have to admit the controls are pretty much unremarkable.

And lastly, this game will keep you coming back for more. Even the 2nd time around, I still had found tons of things to do. An example of this is the time trial mode, where you can play any colossus over any amount of times you want. As well as this, it allows you to unlock cool stuff like a cloak that makes you invisible. There also some cool collectibles to find in the over world, but I strongly recommend that you beat the game before you attempt to collect these, lest you take away from the fun the first time around. I also noticed that I had yet to explore a good 1/3 of the map, or more or less failed to take a good look around and enjoy the scenery. So undoubtedly this game has plenty of replay value, as well as content, innovative game play, and a great storyline and atmosphere.

The Bad
Well I did notice some minor errors in Shadow of the Colossus which seemed like some minor annoyances rather than huge disasters.

First and foremost, I did not like the horse controls. You have to continually keep tapping X just for the horse to maintain a top-speed, which in my honest opinion isn’t all that fast. As soon as you stop tapping X the horse begins to slow down which is a true annoyance. Most of the time you won’t actually even notice you tapping X, but occasionally it becomes way too obvious. An example of this is when you run into a wall. Your horse completely comes to a complete halt, and you have to tap X a million and one times just to get it back up and running. Also, the horse has no stop. Pulling back on the reins makes it slow down, but it takes a good 10-15 seconds for it to come to a complete stop. Sometimes it is just better to run into a wall or jump completely off. In fact, most time you will just jump off the horse and let it run off.

And despite the fact that the horse was well-animated, its AI seemed stupid at times. Sometimes it will completely veer off course and stagger into a rock. As well, sometimes I will jump off of a 10 foot cliff and then all off a sudden it won’t slide down a 30 degree slope. Also, shooting your bow off the horse is similar to Zelda, in that you have to get your horse on a straight away, aim the bow, fire, and when you’re done change weapons and speed up again. Also, the horse will not go fast at all in a narrow space. For example on a thin land bridge he will walk slower than a turtle with its legs chopped off. The horse also has some trouble in forested areas due to his problems with veering off course.

The game also has a few minor graphical hiccups. The opening cut scene can sometimes have some choppy graphics. Also, sometimes some textures don’t fill in (the area will remain completely black). However you will be pleased to know that I have never experienced a slowdown, and never once has it frozen on me. So it is nice to know that even though these do occur, they are few and far between.

The last point I would like to show you is not a fault of the designers at all. It’s just sometimes these types of games are not for all gamers. As I stated before, 1/3 of this game is just taking in the landscape. It is a beautiful thing and needs to be enjoyed and savored. But that is just not for some gamers. The times in between exploring the landscape will seem like down-time in between colossal battles. Also, the lack of enemies, though it was a good move, will simply bore the Hell out of some people.

Truthfully I could see how it could bore someone. When you look at it from a technical standpoint, its pretty much just get to colossi, kill it, and repeat the process over again until all 16 are defeated. But when you look at it in a bigger perspective, it is much more complicated than that. The world is filled with more things to do than kill colossi, but some gamers will not see this and that is why it probably won’t entertain them much. This is why I recommend you rent it before paying full price for this game.

The Bottom Line
Here is my complete recommendation for this game:

Clear out an entire day. Do whatever it takes just to get a good solid day free for just you. No one else needs you that day. If necessary, disconnect the phones or set it in a place where it won’t bother you and turn on the answering machine. Bring your PS2 to the biggest TV in your house, especially on in high def to bring out the colors and contrast. Surround sound is brilliant, but optional. Block out all natural light sources with blankets or shades or whatever. Grab some good snacks and drinks, snuggle under your favorite blanket on a great, comfy chair and turn out the lights. I can assure you this game will suck you into it for hours.

This game is something that needs to be played to be felt. Words alone cannot describe how immersive it is. How everything feels real and nothing is out of place. How the world is so majestic and the storyline compelling. How everything clicks and nothing seems artificial or intrusive just to make the game seem better. How it will suck you in from start to finish without letting go. This is the world of Shadow of the Colossus.

The Good
Once the introduction to "Shadow of the Colossus" is through playing and option to start a new game appears the audience knows that they are about to embark on an interactive journey like nothing else they have ever played. Like all good story telling the introduction tells the audience what they are in for. The camera set-up is following a bird soaring through a canyon, and beyond it is a great big beautiful world where you will live for the near future. There is orchestral music playing but the audience only hears a few solitary instruments - there are moments of quiet and stillness that give the audience time to think and remark. There is a man on a horse traversing difficult terrain and they work together to jump to higher ground; there is comfort and friendship between horse and rider. What the audience is left with is a feeling, not exposition - and that's what this title is about: feeling.

Drama aside there is a plethora of other "good stuff" to talk about. First the camera. There has been some criticism made about the camera system - I think they are misdiagnosed and reviewers fail to acknowledge how successful the designers were to create a camera that even worked for something this ambitious. And the camera does more than get the job done. - it feels purposeful and always reacting to the dynamics of the title.

The camera follows the controls very closely. But the camera has to deal with three different types of control: character, character on horse, and character interacting with the colossi. Normal player controls feel allot like "Ico"; that is a good thing. Character on horse controls are simply awesome. You the player feel like you are actually riding a horse, an animal that has a mind an instincts of its own, instead of directly controlling every movement of the horse. There are many points in the game where you the player can put down the controller and the A.I. of the horse will navigate the world successfully. Finally there is character interacting with the colossi control. They are very intuitive and fit the purpose perfectly. Clambering up and down giants that are always moving, scrambling to hang on for dear life when they attempt to throw you off their bodies, and making your attacks on them are executed wonderfully, and more importantly, simply.

The visuals of the game are, of course, beautiful. The distance that the player can see is limited only by the horizon. Distant mountains are hazy and close rivers are a torrent. The character models are dazzling and the colossi are truly a thing to behold. In conjunction with the visuals are the movements in the game. The models are not just beautiful to look at they are beautiful to see in motion. When your character is fleeing on the ground from a lumbering colossi the look is familiar and surreal. When the character mounts his horse, either to ride to a colossus or from a colossus, is either some of the best key-framing or best motion capture ever done for a videogame.

And finally, the music is what binds this adventure together. It takes the experience beyond a meager television screen and showers the audience with magic. It catapults the events on the screen into your mind and gives them a voice of their own.

The Bad
The game is so much fun that the audience might feel guilty identifying some of "Shadow of the Colossus's" weaker points. There are some instances of a drop in frame rate. But to the developer's credit the pace of the game does not slow with the frame rate, so the action continues at the same rate. This is evidence that the developers knew they were encountering limitations in the PS2 technology but sought to overcome it the best way they could.

The Bottom Line
All people would be better off playing this game, (or at least seeing it be played). There were moments in this game I will never forget. But these moments were unlike anything other in a videogame. I felt a sense of awe and joy, and I relished every second and every minute of it. When the character is toppled from a colossus, scrambles to his feet, and with a press of the X button yells desperately for his horse "Agro", you the player are no longer in a room with four walls, your back on your horse accelerating between the legs a moving mountain, standing up in the saddle, and preparing to jump back onto the colossus that you must bring down.

The Good
Even before starting Shadow of the Colossus, one might already have an inclination as to how beautiful, how epic, or how different this game will be. And after the introduction, one might have an even greater sense of what is to come. Yet, that one still has no idea.

It is nearly impossible to describe the feeling that springs forth upon seeing the first cinematic of the first Colossus lumbering about its portion of the expansive landscape. All that was expected, or imagined, is washed away to be filled with a... an uplifting awe. If it were not for the sublime, heavy task that, you, the hero(Wander) agrees to undertake, one might be content just admiring the impressiveness and beauty of the giant. However...

There is a battle to be had. You are not entirely alone in this struggle, as you have your most reliable steed, Agro, accompanying you into danger, but it is you alone who must scale and ultimately fell the Colossus. It knows you are there and perhaps even knows why you are there. It will not allow you to simply climb, find its point of weakness and drive your sword into its body. Crushing you beneath its feet, smashing you to bits, violently thrashing you about, but you are triumphant. The Colossus is slain and there is satisfaction, albeit short-lived.

That is only one of 16. Each Colossus bringing a sense of wonderment. What will the next one look like? What is needed to be done to defeat it? Each defeat becoming less satisfying and possibly more sorrowful. One might wonder at the killing of these giants. The cinematics, the music all lending, and leading to a very heartfelt, soulful conclusion.

The Bad
Much has been said about the camera being a nuisance at times, and slight graphical errors. All can EASILY be dismissed. There is one conscious disappointment for me. However, it will not be mentioned, for I fear it would turn you away from partaking in a tremendous experience. It did not do so for me, but it can be regarded as a bummer, and might do so for you.

The Bottom Line
Shadow of the Colossus is a game that could play a sweet, sweet melody on your heartstrings. If you prefer to experience a game, rather than just play it, Shadow certainly is one. If you prefer to play, let Shadow satisfy you.

The Good
Most gamers have heard of Shadow of the Colossus by now. But what about the average person who's never even heard of this game? Describing it as "A game where you slay 16 huge monsters across a empty world." is criminally misleading. Yes, you have to destroy 16 giants, but why?

Love. That's the reason you (The wanderer in the game.) came to this land. To seek out a ancient cursed shrine. On your horse (Agro.), lies the body of young woman. She was sacrificed for reasons you can't fathom. But you love her, and would go to these accursed lands, just to save her. It's said, a being named Dormin lives there and it can bring back the souls of the dead. As you lay your love on a altar in the central shrine, Dormin speaks to you. As you speak to the godlike being, it offers to bring back the soul of the maiden. But only if you slay sixteen mighty beings called Colossus. Your love for her is so deep and desperate, you agree to go out into this barren land time has buried, and set out on the impossible task.

It is only you and Agro on this journey. Your only weapons are a magic sword, and a bow. The sword, when held up in sunlight, reflects intense beams of light. As you turn around left or right, the beams start to converge, and become one beam at a certain point. The merged beams point to the location of the colossi. Go in that direction, and you will find it. But it's not like going point a to b. This a wholly contained world you must travel across to get to it. There are no neatly divided sections. It's remarkably consistent in style, no matter how different the environment.

Great stone ruins are scattered across your path. Withered and hewn by the forces of time, they loom over you, like they were carved by gods. Stone temples carved into mountain sides out of sheer will, are slowly filling with dust. Scant traces of road can be found at bridges, barely holding onto the chasms they span. Stone steps and arches that have no more travelers. Only weeds and ancient dust. Crumbling canyon walls disguise the road you ride upon. Large stones that tumbled in make it uneven, grass and dirt hide what's underneath. It seems a work of nature, until you come across road markers. Untraveled, neglected roads that lead to dead cities. Great vaulted dwelling places, large open stone yard, water drains and tall spires is what they're made of. Lonely for nobody now, it crumbles away where nobody can see it. How odd that it's bright and covered in green foliage.

One can't help but wonder what great people once lived here. What magnitude of disaster makes a place so ruinous? How long ago was this land forsaken? All fruitless questions, as no answers are ever given. Only you are left to wonder why.

Perhaps it isn't so sad. Nature seems to keep this place company, even while aggressively eroding it. Weeds take root on crumbling stone edifices no matter how shallow the soil. Great washes of green cover cliffs, canyons and plains. The forests are damp, shady, and cool. Streams flowing from places you'll never see, fall over deep chasms, slowly eroding them into cliffs. A stray lizard or bird is almost the only type of life you'll see in these lands. Even fish don't appear that often. They swim in flooded court yards, that are now like small lakes. Large collections broken of stone collect at the bottom of high canyon walls. The brightest and most beautiful green grass grows there. It leads into dry, blighted areas, where it seems nothing lives. Not even weeds deem those places fit to live in. The sun doesn't even care to shed much light on this place. The desert seems like a relief from this wholly dead and depressing place. Low dunes undulated across it's openness. Only occasionally interrupted by a free standing set of stones, or a few blocks of a building long gone.

All of this describes the world you explore. You think the landscapes alone are pushing the PS2 to its limits? Just look at Agro. He moves like a real horse. He has momentum when he runs, and takes a moment to slow down. He even stands around like a real horse. Even you move like a real human being. If just the two of you are so well portrayed, what will these colossi be like? The time for wondering is over. You have arrived at your destination. You have to climb a high wall to get to it though. You're suddenly reminded that Agro is the only living thing in these lands that cares for you, and he is your only source of companionship. As you climb off of him, you can give him a comforting pat with the circle button, unsure whether you'll ever see him again. As you pull up the cliff, the ground starts to shake. Dust comes in large drifts. Trees, barely alive shake all the way to their roots. And then it appears, the first colossus.

It lumbers across the plateau unaware of your presence. It stops and stands at the other end, just looking around. It's larger than you dared even imagine. You pull out you bow, and let loose one arrow into its back. It groans, and turns to face you. It's looking right. At. You. It starts moving towards you. Now is the time to start running towards it.

Suicide you might say. But the only way to defeat it is to climb it, and find its weak spots. Simply plugging it with arrows and slashing at it wildly won't subdue the giant. But how? Its skin is covered in fur and protective stone! Panic sets in. Then it dawns on you. You can grab it's fur and armor to get where you need to go. You climb it's back, and jump to each armor piece. It'll try to shake you off. You have a energy meter that wears down the more you hold onto the the behemoth. It will momentarily stay still long enough to let go of it's fur and let you run to it's weak spot, refilling your energy in the process. You pull out your magic sword to make the spot appear glowing. You grab hold on top of the spot, but the colossus thrashes violently to shake you off. After each thrash is the time to strike, plunging your sword in deep, and pulling it out again and again until his life bar is empty. Great plumes of black blood gush out, almost obscuring your view. The throws become even more violent until the last stab drains all of the creatures resolve to fight, and to live. It falls with such force, the ground all around it shudders and shatters. A great thing is now dead. As it falls, you see the light literally go out in its eyes. Its essence, is a black vapor that envelopes it, evaporates, and then is drawn into you. This surge of energy makes you collapse, and black out.

The game prompts you to save, and you wake up at the central shrine. Weary, and exhausted, you rise to your feet. A idol representing the colossus you just destroyed, lights up with energy, and crumbles. Dormin describes the next colossus, and you start a new trek for the next one. Agro comes trotting in after a few moments, somehow knowing where his master is. But the journey and colossus are not the same as the last. Some live in lakes, long undisturbed. Others live in neglected, secret gardens. There are even those that fly. Soaring high in the sky, dipping and rising up with ease.

They all move with awe inspiring confidence. They are often unaware of your presence. Why should they care? You are nothing more than a fast moving blot darting around their feet. Others, so hungry for sport or destruction, see you as a excuse to wantonly chase or destroy. Each one is so intricately detailed with fur, armor, and mottled skin. The texture capabilities of the PS2 are pushed to the limit on these moving mountains. They're almost XBOX quality. It pushes animation to the brink as well. Every part of their bodies are articulated. They have weight, momentum, and fierce intelligence. Some relentlessly pursue you. Others try their best to avoid you. Just trying to figure out how to get onto them later in the game represents most of the challenge.

After a while, you start to feel bad for them. Such proud and magnificent beings, slain in a matter of moments. But it is for your love you do this. Surely these beings did something to deserve their fate. Why else would they such life draining spots. Perhaps they were cursed with them? Maybe they destroyed this land? Or maybe Dormin is lying to you. Has it some grudge against them? Until the end, you are given no answers. If you do not act, it will not restore the life of your loved one. If you continue, you might be being used for murder. Your lover for her is too strong. You continue.

Greater strength is needed to grasp the later colossi. Each one you defeat gives you greater health and strength, but it can be gained additionally by eating fruit from certain trees scattered across the land and collecting white tailed lizards. Those lizards are only found at save shrines. Small shrines that mimic the central shrine, can restore your health, and save you much backtracking on longer journeys.

The last colossus is the longest journey of all. It seems like a eternity to get there, but at the end, lies the last battle for the soul of your love. Have you forgotten? All these battles, lonely trips and hardships were for her. You are ragged, filthy, and exhausted. Your skin has a strange color to it. No longer the same as you started, but not noticeably darker. You have no time. The final battle is here.

All of the pretty words I've written so far can't possibly describe how epic (Yes, I know how overused that word is.) the final battle is. It truly must be experienced first hand. The ending is unexpected, horrifying, beautiful, and surprising hopeful. That's all I'll say. The game is a experience you have to play to fully understand, no matter how long a review describes it.

It really feels like a living, breathing world, and all the sounds that go with it. Wind rolling across the plains, birds chirping in the forest, soothing water falling over the cliffs, and the stillness of the desert. A Sweeping musical score plays just before, and during battle. Other times, it plays softly for intimate, emotionally charged moments. But for the most part, there is no music. Why would you need it? It would only distract from the natural sounds in the landscape.

I can't come up with anything else without spoiling the game, so I'll tell you about some of the other features of the game. Unlike ICO, there are extras to unlock replaying the game. New items like masks, harder difficulty and new weapons are a few. But the biggest reason is to explore the landscape. Even after defeating all the colossus, there are still huge amounts of land to be explored.

That's about it for the good. Now unfortunately, comes the bad.

The Bad
Like nothing else in the game, the camera really fucks it all up sometimes. Team ICO apparently couldn't decide whether or not to make the camera manual or auto controlled. After moving, in a few seconds, it goes back to the default. It doesn't matter much when you're traveling across the landscape, but in the heat of battle it can get pretty frustrating.

The controls are somewhat erratic too. Just trying to get on Agro sometimes will drive you crazy! And he doesn't keep a steady speed very well, so you have to keep tapping the X button to keep him going.

The music seems like it has a hard time keeping up with what's on screen sometimes. Depending on how far away you are from the colossus, the music gets louder or softer. Sometimes it takes it a few seconds to get up to speed when you're suddenly close to it again.

That pretty much wraps things up.

The Bottom Line
Shadow of the Colossus is a game that has no equal. There's simply been nothing like it before or since. Anybody who considers themselves a gamer should play this game. Period. For somebody who's never played this game, go out and find this game. Period. These closing words may seem too brief, but I mean, come on! I just wrote a huge review trying to describe the game to you! I loved it, and that's all I can say.

The Good
To start with, Shadow of the Colossus awakes a lot of feelings. I've been playing video games for 20 years or so and I can't remember many games that make me feel the things that I feel with this one. I'm talking about melancholy, tenderness and sadness as I've never feel before in any other game the way that Shadow of the Colossus does. The emotional burden of the game is what I really want to remark, over the game itself.

I can spend hours and hours talking about the landscapes in the game or the incredible post production on it, but the feelings that the game awakes are the most important thing and what makes this game unique. The loneliness of an insignificant character in a complete new world where his horse is his only friend. The relation between the character and his horse is so beautiful that I'm sure that many developers would be delighted if they could reach that depth in their games between their (human) characters. We'll spend hours riding our horse looking for the next battle, and we'll love the horse sincerely from the beginning. It's like if we know that we're nothing without the horse in such an enormous land.

Everything's colossal, heroic and epic. If we think about a little description of the game we'll realize how epic is this game: Take your horse and ride to the battle with 16 colossus that you must defeat, to give your beloved her life back, only with a bow and a sword that will guide you shining a light on your way once you aim it to the sun. Isn't it epic enough?

The colossus are the main attractive of the game. Many of the colossus are as you may imagine in your mind when you hear the word "colossus", but many others aren't, because we have many kinds of them. The game would have been a great one if they've featured just enormous creatures to be defeated, but they tried to make unique creatures too, and that's why you'll have to face flying colossus, giant sand worms (Dune!) or some surprises in the deep water.

Each colossus has a different way to be defeated, and that's why the experience of your previous battle will be useless in the next one. Some of them are agile and some aren't, others are harder to be climbed... Yes, that's right, we'll have to climb most of them to find their vital points, and some of them are so big that we'll have to spend some time resting in a platform of their armors. Battles are really long, and we'll have a hint if we spend a lot of time, but sometimes this hint is useless and we'll be frustrated if we don't know how to attack the creature. Shadow of the Colossus is not an action game, it's and adventure game. Drawing your sword and attack the colossus with it is as stupid as enormous are your enemies because you won't even hurt him a little bit.

There are no enemies besides the colossus, which is something that many people don't like about the game. It's certainly a double-edged decision, but I really think that it makes the game more intimate, increasing that loneliness feeling in the whole game and giving the story more depth. There's no justification to start killing minor creatures in that wasted land. Anyway, if you want to make other things rather than fighting against those creatures you can hunt small lizards and collect fruits from the trees, that will help you increasing your parameters.

The game has a monotonous story line but in the ending part everything's epic as the other aspects of the game, with a nice closure leaving a bittersweet feeling for the player that will rest for many time in the player's mind. A perfect combination of sadness and the strange feeling of finishing one of the most incredible games in a long time.

Talking about the gameplay, there are some problems with concrete jumps, but the controls response as they should. Sometimes we may think that they don't work as we try, but it's just because we're fighting against a colossus for 1 hour, and we're tired, and when that happens everything seems to be harder than it really is. Anyway, controls aren't easy, but it's good because it's like feeling the effort of our character climbing the giant creatures to defeat them. It really works fine and improves the epic experience of the game.

Kow Otani is the compositor for the soundtrack of the game which is as epic as all the other things. Kow Otani will intimidate with the music every time that we face the colossus, in those moments that we don't know exactly what to do. Then, when we start to thing about how defeating the colossus, the music changes (that's when we're climbing the colossus for example) to a more heroic and vivid tone. Once we've defeated our foe, the music will harmonize with a sweet melody to accompany our rest of the battle. This cycle is repeated in every colossus (with different compositions, of course). The music will also accompany us in our riding through many different landscapes, like dry deserts, old ruined temples or giant lakes.

The Bad
There are some inadequate things in Shadow of the Colossus. There are not big prize in riding all over the map because the game has no extra things to do. There's not even a special motivation about doing that. I'm one of those players that really need to see everything of a game, visiting each place and taking every single item. I've played Shadow of the Colossus three times, and none of them I feel like I should explore all the map.

Hunting small lizards will increase your parameters, but... some of them are really evasive! You'll need to take your time just for hunting a single small lizard. Some of them are even harder than the colossus! Maybe the game should've been called "Shadow of the Lizards" or something.

If you stop for a moment and think, you'll realize soon that the game is just going from point A to B to defeat a big boss in there and nothing more. There's no important story in between, so the concept is really simple.

We have to use the sword to guide us to our next challenge, but sometimes it's not the best GPS in the world. For example, if the enemy is at the other side of a mountain the sword will guide you directly to it, and it won't avoid the mountain between you and where you must go. It's possible that you get lost because of that, and in such an enormous place it's not something really funny. What's more, in some places you can't see where you must go because you can't see the ray of light. It happens when there's no sun shining, when you're inside a cavern or inside a deep forest, sometimes it's a bit annoying. Anyway, it's still so epic...

Once you've finished the game you won't play it much more times. A game with a concept so simple (unique, but simple) don't need to be played many times. You'll unlock a time attack mode when you've finished the game for the first time, and it's the only new thing to play, which is the same thing that you've been doing before, so, no new feature at all.

Another thing about its low replay value is the fact that every colossus is so unique that you'll remember easy how to defeat it when you play the game again, no matter if it's been months from the last time. There's only one way to kill each colossus and weak points are always in the same place, so you won't have to play again to find new ways of defeating them because there aren't. There are some strange ways to defeating them but they're more like a bug than other thing. When you finish the game you won't feel again the same feelings that the first time, the experience changes a lot, but it's still a good game.

Game's not hard at all, only a bit frustrating sometimes. It's really difficult that a colossus hurts you because they move slow and they need a lot of time to turn around. Don't forget that it's like fighting against mountains! To avoid the attack of a colossus is easy, and one hit of them won't kill you at all. The only limit of the game is your own patience, you have to be really patience because it's possible that you climb a lot of time to reach the weak point of the colossus, which is most of the times on the head and then you may fall from there to the ground and you'll have to start all over again from the beginning, but colossus aren't dangerous at all.

The Bottom Line
Shadow of the Colossus may not be the best game for the PlayStation 2 because some aspects like its replayability, but it's clear that it's one of the most unique games made not only for the Playstation 2 but the whole video game industry. The game design is unforgettable and the concept is revolutionary in every aspect, but the storyline and the emotions that it awakes are even more remarkable, showing us how colossal love could be.

The Good
Too many good things!

First, the gameplay. You ride a horse in this game. I can ride horses in real life, and the way you ride the horse in the game feels very real. It's not like driving a car, but like riding a real animal. Sometimes this animal doesn't listen to you, you'll have to learn how to control it. You can also pet your horse on the neck! So cute! I discovered you can do that if you don't equip your sword and bow.

Now about the most interesting thing. The colossi are absolutely different. There are flying colossi, swimming colossi, and every battle against a colossus is different.

To defeat the colossi, you'll have to think about many different things. It's necessary to think about how to climb on the colossus, how to find his weak point.

There are battles on the earth, in the air, in the water. You'll have to think how to act in different places. Fighting on the ground is not at all the same as in the water.

For example, two totally different battles. There is a colossus who is like a fish, all the time in the water. In the beginning, you can't even understand how you can beat this colossus. You have to watch the fish very carefully, and the timing must be very exact!

Another amazing battle, and very scary, against the sand worm, where you ride your horse and shoot! This colossus also does some silly things.

The colossi themselves are totally different. Some are beautiful, some are ugly. Some are evil, some are cute. There is one beautiful bird, like a phoenix. Some colossi attack you immediately, even if you don't attack. Some attack you only when you attack them. And some don't attack at all! And the final one is really special. Unlike anyone you've seen before. And he wears clothes.

You have feelings to those colossi. I liked some and I disliked some. I like animals, and don't like those who look like humans. You have pity to some when you kill them, or don't have pity. I think those primitive animals are the most poor. The final colossus (even though he can't move) is pretty intelligent. He even takes you into the hand and looks at you. But the animals are not so smart, they don't have such abilities, so it's like hunting.

The moment you meet a colossus, there is great action. In most games, you have levels and bosses, and in this game, levels and the bosses are the same! The levels are moving, and you have to hang... I shouted too much when my husband and I played the game!

The story is short, but very touching. There is one very touching moment in the game, my husband and I both cried! In this story, almost nobody speaks, but there is always so much atmosphere.

Graphics are beautiful. The mountains, the magic bridge... And there is no game that can match "Shadow of the Colossus" in animation. Amazing.

There are so many great details in the game. The face of the hero becomes more ugly the more you play the game. There are some very special save points in the game, you have to kneel and pray in order to save.

The Bad
Nothing bad... maybe the camera. The colossi are so big, and the camera is moving, sometimes you can't see yourself. But actually, it's not bad... it's part of the gameplay. You fight such a big animal, of course sometimes you can only see his back.

Actually, I have nothing bad to say, so I said that just to say something...

The Bottom Line
One of my most favorite games. You beat sixteen amazing creatures to see the ending of the story that is full of surprises.

The Good
Video games are a lot of fun. Hot damn, one thing the modern age has brought us is a never-ending supply of entertainment in the form of internet chatting, web surfing for information, compiling information for an online database as well as just playing video games. In fact, video games are at times so fun that they are difficult to put down and compel the player to not stop. This is called addiction, and there are some gamers who believe a good video game should have this addictive quality; at one time the video game magazine GamePro had it as one of its rating requirements. The assessment is a fair one in this context; fun is what people want and expect in a game, so it makes sense for them to have a game that doesn’t stop being fun. If a game is addictive, then it serves its own purpose very well as a leisure activity or “time-killer”, if you will. That’s what a game is: an activity that you partake in and, win or lose, you enjoy yourself during the time you are doing it.

Videogames are also a burgeoning expressive art form. What once was quick, simple fun has evolved to telling complex stories of ambiguous morality that may resonate deeply with the player’s emotions. From its crude beginnings, videogames have become a billion-dollar industry as a pop-culture sensation and a technological marvel. However, this balance of being both a game and as art has never been resolved. Take for example, this issue: “Do video games make people think? Do videogames challenge people such that they are different people at the end of the experience?”

This “thinking” is actively thinking, thinking to come to a conclusion that hasn’t been thought of before and not just thinking mechanically. Sure, there’s a lot of thinking going on in games. This takes a myriad of forms in the plethora of different videogame genres: action games require fast, reflexive thinking; puzzle games require abstract problem-solving; RPG’s may require moralistic decision-making. The differences are vast as are the heated discussions to which is better, but they are all the same in the as they require the player to operate within the set parameters that the game lays out for you. You are following the game; the player is making decisions only based on what the game asks of you. Once again, this is pretty much just using your brain and not thinking on your own and coming to your own conclusions.

The game play aside, what success video games have achieved somewhat in terms of thinking are games that “make you think”. Games have matured in the recent past by tackling social issues and telling compelling stories that people affect people long after the game is over. One quick example is Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, where despite fighting cute monsters in random battles the main story has themes of child abandonment, sibling rivalry, a death in the family as well as racism (or monsterism, though this is minor). Modern video games are not slow to tackle new and unproven themes that once may have been too edgy for an audience.

However, a video game is still a game, no matter how well a video game tells a story or challenges the player to think outside the box. Besides anything else a game aspires to be, they must be fun to play. The entire experience of having a wonderful story told to you with amazing graphics and wonderful music is compromised by one thing: you are playing a video game with the purpose to win it. Almost every game made has a “game over” screen, and as a gamer you’ll do everything you can not to be staring at it. Whatever thinking you do while playing a video game usually has to do with the video game itself; if it is a smart and good video game then it will shape your thinking to become addicted to the game play. Addiction is not thinking; addiction is doing something without thinking.

And then you have Shadow of the Colossus, a masterpiece of a game that is so good people are usually left sputtering adjectives of praise but not able to describe why it’s so good. The likes of this game, which pits the unknown protagonist against 16 epic boss fights in order to save a dead woman, has never been seen before and likely its kind won’t be seen again. It’s a unique experience that raises the bar as to what a video game can achieve in terms of artistic expression. Lots have been written about the various colossi and the “purity” of boiling a game down to just the boss battles in which a boss is the anthropomorphism of a video game level. Shadow of the Colossus is an unique blend of having action/puzzle game play in an adventure game; it tells a touching story that is very out of place for a video game, and succeeds because of it. It is an extremely immersive game that is emotive without being crass and manipulative. It is the most well-made video game created because you will understand and appreciate exactly what the developers are trying to say and do.

You’ve read it all before in any of the hundreds of reviews that universally praise this game. While the praise is well-deserved, Shadow of the Colossus succeeds as a work of art because it does something that just about no video game ever made does: it lets you think.

That’s right: it lets you think. It doesn’t crowd your brain with superfluous decision making or needless details. You have a set objective, and to achieve that you must best these colossi, whom you can figure out how to beat by just looking at them. This takes place in a set world that is extremely detailed and immersive with no loading times. This is a simple and pure game, and because the set parameters are so few and unexplained—you must kill these colossi in this beautiful world without knowing why—as you play the game it lets you think.

That’s “let you think”, not “make you think”. Shadow of the Colossus isn’t so self-important to take itself so seriously. If it has anything important to say, then it challenges you to figure it out. This game is similar to the brilliance of Bioshock that permits the player to be as immersive in the story if they choose to do so, but in Shadow of the Colossus the details must be filled in by the player themselves because the story is told so sparsely and mysteriously. As in both games, a player can blaze through from beginning to end, enjoy themselves and be witness to a marvelous experience, and not know why.

This concept of “letting you think” is no better exemplified than by the game’s most important characters: the environment and the player’s horse, Agro. It is riding through this “cursed land” on your beloved horse that is the essence of the game, not the novelty of solely fighting epic boss battles where you have to climb on somebody to kill them. Take for instance: it is evident a vast percentage of the resources available for game development where allocated to making the world environment and to making the horse run and operate properly. The gigantic world is beautifully detailed and well designed and runs without any load times whatsoever. Agro is the most realistic depiction of a horse in a video game (compared to Gun, for example), and besides accurate, realistic-type controls Agro features a smooth transition from a walk to a trot to a gallop, no mean feat for an animal with four legs.

If the stars of Shadow of the Colossus are the colossi themselves, then wouldn’t a prudent development decision be to focus just on the colossi themselves? If you devoted the resources making the world environment and the horse (who is only used to as part of the colossi battles for a regretful few) to making the colossi, then we would have a game that could feature twice as many colossi, or ultra-smart colossus A.I. that could quiz you what your favorite color is before you cross a bridge. Wouldn’t more and better colossi make a better Shadow of the Colossus game?

No. If this decision was made and, for example, the game took place in a castle where you walk from room to room (like ICO), all the inspiration and magic would be gone because there isn’t a context for things to happen in. This can be seen in the game itself; after beating it once, the game features a challenge mode where you can walk up to the statue of any one colossus (all located in the same room) to play and replay the boss fights; fun, but not part of the amazing game experience.

Riding through the huge world is the real essence of the game. Just like every other part of the game, the environment is simplified and devoid of any real animals, save some tiny animals—it’s just riding. There are no random battles to encounter to level up your stats, as there are no NPC’s to encounter to take quests and buy weapons. It is a pure element, just like all the elements in this game. After receiving orders as to which colossus to whack next—the fantasy world equivalent of a GTA crime boss you take missions for—the player rides to the next destination with only your magical sword to serve as a compass. For a game that tells its story so subtly and is very stingy with any concrete details, this journey is the best part of the game because even though you are riding to the next colossus the real action takes place in your own damn brain.

That’s right, for this day and age where everyone demands better graphics the best part of Shadow of the Colossus takes place in your own imagination. As the distance grows, so does the anticipation. The mind fills with questions: What will the next colossus look like? If the last one was so tough to beat, how will I beat this one? What is the purpose of these colossi? Who is the mysterious woman I’m trying to save? But most importantly, why? Why am I trying to kill these magnificent creatures? Why do I feel regret even as I inch closer to my objective?

Shadow of the Colossus doesn’t ask you these questions; no, it lets you think for yourself. As you’re riding and thinking about these things your thoughts will drift to other subjects, but since your mind is already in a critical state of mind you are likely to do some more. That’s right, this game fools you into thinking for yourself. Genius, this is nothing short of genius. This game transcends the parameters it sets itself becomes something much more by using the best story teller you know: yourself.

Shadow of the Colossus is a “pure” game where everything is exactly as it should be. It is a perfect blend of technology, art and inspiration. Everything about this game is as it should be: the mysterious story matches every blade of grass on the lush landscape; the tense gripping battles matches the long, silent, contemplative ride through the wilderness. This is a game that will never, ever age. 100 hundred years from now people will still appreciate this game because it couldn’t be any better, not now nor then.

The Bad
No customizable songs available on non-existent horse radio. Can’t stick a sword up a colossus’ ass. Was expecting a final boss so big that a spaceship is required to build and fly to the moon from which you can time a jump to grab onto the colossus’ toe hair.

The Bottom Line
Man, I was a bit disappointed by the difficulty of this game. I breezed through a couple of them and said out loud to the TV, “Wha? But that’s so easy!” I did need to look up a faq for the two smallest “lion” colossi, shamefully, and the last guy I just spoiled it for myself and read it before I started because I was getting “colossi-itis” and just wanted the satisfaction of ending this great game.

I went and read through a faq that tried to explain EVERYTHING about the story, and I just have to say: man, you nerds, stop trying to figure magic out. The game is great because it’s mysterious. As in the cult film “Donnie Darko” (2001), it’s cool and interesting because you have no pin-wheelin’ idea what’s going on; later on in the Director’s Cut release where everything was explained, the movie just wasn’t cool nor interesting anymore. Man, just because you think you know something doesn’t make it better or your enjoyment of it better.

The tagline to this review comes from David Lynch; he replied thusly when asked why he often has very tiny people in his movies (for example, the end of “Mulholland Dr.” (2001)). Dave’s got a point, you know; it’s tough being a giant colossus.

The Good
Before I get started, let’s just consider this scenario.

“Okay guys,I have this new idea! We’ll make a game that’s entirely made out of boss fights!” “Nothing else?” “Yeah! Just really awesome bosses!” “So you just teleport from boss level to boss level and fight them?” “No! You have to ride to each boss for several minutes from the starting point first!” “Ah, I see! Any enemies on the way there?” “Nope.” “Obstacles then! Tough platform challenges?” “No.” “That’s..... nice. Anyway, we’re doing sushi for lunch again?”

I can picture a similar scenario in a lesser studio, where the concept of Shadow Of The Colossus would have been shot down in a heartbeat. However, we’re talking the brainchild of Sony’s (ex) trump card, Fumito Ueda, who came up with this very idea, and Team Ico went through with it.

And made one of the best games in video game history.

The premise itself is quickly told - you, the young hero, travel with your trusty horse to a place virtually at the end of the Earth, trying to appease the divine forces there to resurrect the girl you love.

You are given a chance to win her life back by defeating 16 colossi. And thus begins your adventure.

Following the light reflected off your sword, you head in a direction in the vast barren land until you encounter the next colossus to battle. The actual fight typically involves climbing up the body of the huge colossus, finding a weak spot and plunging your sword into it until the monster is dead.

This is not easy, given that you can only climb on the furry parts of the beast, that you can only hold on for a certain duration, and given that these giants thrash about like crazy when you start getting on their nerves, forcing you to hold on to your dear life.

Let’s go to those colossi - they are the substance of the game, and they are fantastic. Each one is very distinct in look and behavior, each one requires a different approach. The game will give you just enough clues to figure out what to do without being too easy or too cryptic. Most of them are absolutely huge and intimidating, with the camera placed strategically to emphasize their dimensions.

Paired with that is absolutely gorgeous and atmospheric music, great particle effects and visuals. Every single battle is nothing short of epic, and I mean that in the classic sense of the word.

Even the rides to the bosses I made fun of in my intro are great. While they might appear a bit hollow, gameplay-wise, they’re fantastic to set the scene. You get to experience the vast landscape with swamps, mountains, and sheer drops that appear almost endless. They are complemented by a fantastic soundscape - loud winds in the canyons, roaring waterfalls, and the rustling of leaves in the forest. The graphics themselves have a minimalistic sense to them, as you would expect from Ueda, but they’re by no means ugly. While simple in geometry, they are nonetheless enormous - the plains are spacious in side, the mountains are tall, the dangerous cliffs span miles.

The story, while simple, has a fascinating twist to it that slowly unfolds as you progress. There is no sense of repetition, every fight presents you with a new area, a new nemesis, and a new strategy that you need to find. I don’t want to go into the resolution of the narrative, but it works out great.

The Bad
There’s really not much that I didn’t like about the game. At best, I can find some trifles to nitpick about. And just to keep this section wordy, I will.

The controls can be a bit tricky sometimes. One of the silliest exercises is trying to mount your horse - you’ll usually spend some time hopping up and down next to your horse while it looks at you with confusion.

This is more of an issue in the short platform sections right before you get to a boss, the worst one being a long ascending walkway over a big lake that forces you to make two jumps at the top, which you’re likely to miss... causing you to plummet down into the water, where you have to slowly swim back to the beginning of the walkway and try again. I think I ended up with some bite marks on my controller.

You think you’re clever and save the game at the top of said walkway? Nah, you can only save at the end of a boss, or at a few save locations sparsely scattered around the world.

I’ll briefly mention the PS3 version - it’s definitely an improvement over the PS2 version, mostly in terms of framerate (the PS2 can get very laggy during boss fights, which is precisely when you don’t need it), although the graphics themselves haven’t been updated much. The textures could have really benefited from a higher resolution. Overall, you could say that the PS2 version is on the upper spectrum of the console’s capabilities, while the PS3 is on the lower end. If given a choice though, you should obviously go for the PS3 version.

The Bottom Line
Shadow of the Colossus is simply stunning. From the intro sequence down, it oozes atmosphere every second. It doesn’t waste time with gameplay fillers like mini-bosses or waves of enemies. Instead, it tells a story and delivers carefully tuned gameplay where it matters.

If there is any doubt as to whether games are art or not, this game should eliminate any possible doubt. It has everything you could possibly ask - fantastic atmosphere, great visuals, a film-like score, solid gameplay, and a touching story.

The Good
Oooh. If you thought that size doesn't matter, then think again. I think that this is the very first game that really shows that concept. The game is about you battling these over-sized colossal monsters. Underline colossal. It's not big, it's not large, it dang HUGE!

The monsters you face are literally 5 story (more or less) tall buildings! And they're not biological, their mostly rock-covered. The first time you see one, it's like...uh...it's my funeral. It is quite fun the first couple times around, trying to find out "how the hell you defeat a creature that dang big" which is the next question after "how the hell do you get ON that dang creature?"

Each of these over-sized dang monsters are different. Can't explain all but wait to the part when you see a flying 5 story building. Now that'll keep you dumb-folded for several minutes!

You can also ride a horse in this game...and a big horse it is! Three times 3-5 times larger than our hero who looks like a dwarf compared to this horse. The good ol' horse here takes you around the land which is incredibly huge. Again, not big, not large, but huge!

The Bad
Is it me or am I the only one that doesn't like this game? (see other reviews).

My one-line summary is "What a waste..." and after the 8th monster I defeated, I got bored. This is why:

• The land is incredibly huge.
  Beautiful and huge, but the thing is, that's all it is. Big, a lot of landscape, but nothing else. No people, no monsters in the middle, the game is just travelling between Point X to Point Y on your horse. The distance between X and Y (referring to the huge landscape) is just travelling distance that cannot be interacted with one way or another. Point: Eye candy. It's useless, all that graphical capability and it has no use whatsoever, if you take away the huge landscape, it doesn't effect the gameplay. I have a problem with eye-candy graphics when it doesn't do much more than just being eye-candy. Final Fantasy for example has a lot of eye candy, but in that game its function is to "back-up" a plot or story. Here, it doesn't back-up squat.
• Acting.
  Horrible. Well, not horrible, I would go as far to say there isn't any. One-two liner sentences by that strange voice in the temple. The monsters don't talk much either...
• Story.
  There isn't one. Which quite amazes me why anyone would actually put a good review about this game. After many adventures and RPG games with incredible storylines, one would think a game with this much potential would come up with a better plot. Oh, you want to know the story: Girlfriend dead. Bring to temple. Voice in temple says, defeat 18 big guys, maybe we bring her back to life. Hey, I just summed it up in 3 lines! No sub-quests, no interaction with different plots. I've seen linear storylines, but a puzzle game has more plot than this game! Someone was too lazy to hire a good writer. It's just about defeating monsters...period. No style...dang peasants.
• Repetitive tactics.
  As there wasn't so much as any mystery to the game, even after defeating several monsters, I got bored. After the 8th, I got really bored. It's probably just another new monster, get on it, hang on and try to stick that sword in its weak spot. If there were a story to set the mood, maybe I would've finished the game. This game is like a girl that doesn't talk much, not much interaction with a person gets you bored real quick.

The Bottom Line
Maybe I missed something, as many websites all had a lot of good reviews and ratings on this game...I seem to be the only one that finds this game somewhat boring.

Maybe I have high standards for games or the game industry has lowered its gaming standards over these years.

But regardless of how good a game appears to "look". It's useless without a story. A beautiful girl or handsome guy without any brains? Yep. That's this game.

The Good
One of the things that rubbed me up the right way in this game is the main character. Sir, "whatever the fuck his name was" is not your everyday knight that you see in most medieval themed games. He is not on some holy quest, he is not even trying to get by, he is just been a completely pathetic loser. The story goes that this lad's girl dies and he can't for the love of God get over it and move on. Instead he brings her to a forbidden land and makes a deal with a demon, he is to hunt down 16 gigantic monsters and kill them, corrupting his body and soul in the process and throwing away everything he's got. Even the player can likely tell that his quest is going to be fruitless, but he is such an emotional wreck that he doesn't care either way.

Before we get to the meat of this game I'd like to EXPAND on the forbidden land in question (u c what I did thar?). This place is gigantic and very well designed, it is almost completely untouched by civilization and consists entirely out of natural beauty (or pixels). There were waterfalls, mountains, endless deserts, lush forests and even an area that looked like The Shire from Lord of the Rings. The few buildings you do run into make for an interesting change and they are often nicely fit with the area you were in anyway.

The world is not the only aspect that looks rather beautiful though, the characters are nothing different. While you will mostly be looking at "what's his name", that's not really a problem at all because his design is very good. He doesn't wear overly excessive clothing, but he does just enough to rise above standard clothing. Just like with Fi from Skyward Sword I loved the way his clothes moved in the wind.

But who the hell plays this game to look at that loser, we are here for the true stars of this game: The colossi. The best thing about these monsters is that they are actually gigantic monstrosities, not like most other fantasy games where "huge" is about the size of a house. The colossi are hulking giants that, as you might have guessed from the title, look like walking castles in terms of size.

Fighting these creatures feels fittingly epic and is way better than most other games where you just keep firing arrows at something like this or go through some routine to hurt him. Some colossi do require you to stun them and all of them have scripted weak-spots, but you will have to climb your way to them, jumping from ledge to ledge and desperately clinging to their hair as they shake you around. The grip-bar that shows you how much longer you can cling to the monster is a great way to force you to take chances and act riskier than you normally would.

Logically these monsters also pose a huge challenge and you will want to avoid getting hit by them. Even the trembles send out by their footsteps are enough to take a bit of health away, but if they manage to hit you with their attacks they will likely kill you in one or two hits. This is one of the rare games where I was actually sweating while playing it, the last one been the latest Zelda game for less fair reasons.

One thing I can't thank the game enough for though is the fact that it automatically puts up a checkpoint for you whenever you start a boss-fight. There were also some neat optional save-points set up all over the land that could come in handy.

Finally, I should mentioned the soundtrack. It was actually hearing the final boss theme that sold this game to me and there was a lot more where that came from. Overall it's the boss themes that make up the best songs in this game and they always helped keeping me hyped for the next encounter.

The Bad
I am going to get hate-mail for this, but I just hated that damn horse. Agro, as it is apparently called is your companion for this adventure and also your mount. I really tried to like her, but while the story tries its best, it is just held back by how utterly and completely annoying the horse is during gameplay. I think everybody can agree that a mount is supposed to get you from A to B as fast as possible, but Agro has to be arsed every second you are on top of her, to go at a reasonable pace and the slightest bump in the road will make her stagger. You also need to kick her like five times before she even starts moving to begin with. I am sorry, but I simply can't feel sympathy for something that annoys me.

Something that kinda makes me sad is that the Forbidden Land is naturally rather empty and this means that there are no characters. Aside from you, your horse, the imprisoned demon and your girlfriend who is apparently immune to rotting, there are no characters anywhere. This means that there is nobody to interact with and interacting with characters is my favorite part of any video games as it helps flesh out the world and immerse me into the story.

The only negative review I could find on this game on Mobygames mentioned the voice-acting was horrible, but I am not quite sure if "voice-acting" can be actually named here. The reason for this is that I am not even sure what these people are supposed to be speaking, it just sounds like complete gibberish to me and I didn't blame The Sims for bad voice-acting either. The language does annoy me though because it's crap like this that makes this game awkward to play when friends are near, like a family member walking in on you watching Star Trek in the middle of some Alien conversation.

While I mentioned that I liked the grip-mechanics there is one problem with them that just annoyed me. I was told that in order to increase your grip you need to shoot arrows into lizards and while I found a lot of lizards, I was never sure if I was actually getting more grip from them, the bar never seemed to increase. This made it even more difficult for me when I walked into a lizard paradise with over eight of the buggers in the same five square meters of ground.

The Bottom Line
I clocked a short five hours on this game and this was my first playthrough ever, but unlike say... Call of Duty this game actually feels that much longer. Shadow of the Colossus feels like a very rich experience whereas most games are long and stretched, this game is short and stuffed. Fighting the colossi is by far one of the most exciting things I have done in a game for a while and despite some flaws and a weak ending, I am really glad I played this game.

This game is not meant for the people who expect a game to be paced very fast, keeping you in the action at all times. Shadow of the Colossus takes its time to immerse you into the world and you will spend 70% of your time travelling instead. If you like immersive games than you owe it to yourself to check this one out. If you are a fan of platform games or you like the premise of killing colossi than you should be aware of the pacing and try this at your own risk.