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Shadow of the Colossus

aka: NICO, SotC, Wanda to Kyozō, Wangda yu Juxiang
Moby ID: 19875
PlayStation 2 Specs
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In an ancient time long past, a young man travels to the ends of the Earth, a place that is said to be forbidden to enter. He carries a young woman, who died from a terrible curse. He seeks the Dormin, a strange and God-like being that resides there. The Dormin is surprised that the man carries an ancient and magical sword, and speaks to the man. The man pleas for his help in bringing back the woman's cursed soul, however the being says it is the law of mortals that a dead soul cannot be brought back. He does say though, that if the man is willing to accept some heavy consequences, that there might be a way to revive her. But it will not be easy.

The hero must embark on a quest to slay the sixteen colossi, giant creatures that tower hundreds of feet above the Earth. Using his ancient sword and his horse Agro, he must travel across the immense landscape seeking the colossi to save his love. Taking the form of various animals or bipedal human-like creatures, these colossi are tough and fierce. Their skin is tougher than leather, and the armor they wear is literally rock. However, by using his ancient sword, the man can penetrate the weak spot on them and destroy the towering beings and free his love's soul.

Shadow of the Colossus is set in the same universe as ICO, and is a prequel to it. The entire game is dedicated to locating and fighting the sixteen colossi, which must be faced and defeated in a particular order. Finding the giant creatures is not always easy: the hero must mount his horse and ride through the world's vast landscapes, using his glowing sword as an indicator of the colossus' proximity. There are no enemies or hazards in the game world outside of the colossi battles. After a colossus has been found, a large-scale battle begins. Most of the colossi are huge, and much of the challenge in the battles lies in climbing on top of these creatures and staying there, while they are trying to shake the player character off. In a certain way the colossi function as hostile, moving platform stages.

The general goal in every battle is to reach the colossus' weakpoint and repeatedly stab it with the sword until he dies. Since the colossi vary greatly in shape, size, speed, intelligence, and attitude towards the hero, the player will have to adapt to different fighting styles and employ different tactics against them. Most of the battles involve extended platform action sequences, as the hero is trying to climb on the colossus and find its weak spot. Grabbing the creature's fur, timing the jumps, and getting in a good position to use the sword are often essential. Other tactics include fighting on horseback, using ranged attacks with the bow, luring the colossus into specific locations to use the environment against it, taking advantage of the terrain, etc. Environments in which battles take place are also varied, including mountains, deserts, lakes, ancient ruins, and others.

Spellings

  • ワンダと巨像 - Japanese spelling
  • 汪达与巨像 - Chinese spelling (simplified)
  • 완다와 깰상 - Korean spelling (Hangul)

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Credits (PlayStation 2 version)

262 People (225 developers, 37 thanks) · View all

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Average score: 92% (based on 51 ratings)

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Average score: 4.2 out of 5 (based on 149 ratings with 10 reviews)

Desperate love leads a young man to slay the mightiest of giants.

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.

PlayStation 2 · by GAMEBOY COLOR! (1990) · 2011

Incredible, emotional, artistic, and brilliant. Just a few words that describe 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.

PlayStation 2 · by Matt Neuteboom (976) · 2005

Big is not scary; small is scary

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.

PlayStation 2 · by lasttoblame (414) · 2008

[ View all 10 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
Tips for riding Agro Halleck (389) Jan 26, 2011
This is amazing Unicorn Lynx (181780) Jul 31, 2007

Trivia

1001 Video Games

The PS2 version of Shadow of the Colossus appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Character

Throughout the game, the main character's appearance continually gets worse from the physical and mental strain of fighting the colossi and from the strain of the dark spirits possessing him. His hair and clothes will gradually get dirtier, and his clothes will eventually tear in numerous places. Also, his face will scar and get paler as the game continues.

Demake

In September 2008 the game was "demade" for the TIGSource Bootleg Demakes competition as Hold me closer, Giant Dancer.

Development

Shadow of the Colossus is known for pushing the PS2 hardware to its limits. For example, SotC features fake HDR (High Dynamic Range) rendering, even though the PS2 hardware doesn't really support HDR.

Another example for this is the the "fur shader" - the colossi are very hairy and are the fur is rendered quite convincingly. The fur also features some simulated anisotropic lighting, giving the fur realistic highlights. Again, the common way to achieve this is not possible on the PS2, but the game developers managed to approximate this.

The game features many other technological achievements. Some are visible such as self-shadowing, and some are behind the scenes, such as the complex memory management system that allows for the huge game world without loading time or memory fragmentation.

Further details can be found in The Making of "Shadow of the Colossus" (5 MB pdf), which includes explanations from the game's developers, and in an analysis by Jonathan Cooper

Extras

The PAL release comes in a cardboard packaging containing four unique postcards with art work depicting moments from the game. It also includes camera interviews with artistic partners and creative directors Fumito Ueda and Kenjj Kaido to get a look behind the scenes, an image gallery with concept sketches and in-game stills, and the original game trailer to ICO.

References

Various philosophical elements are present in the game. For instance, Dormin is reminiscent of the biblical character Nimrod. Nimrod is a biblical king credited for the creation of the Tower of Babel, whose purpose was to build a stairway into the heavens. Before its completion, the builders tongues are mixed up into different languages (which, according to the Bible, justifies the many languages of the Earth). As well, the Tower of Babel is said to be one of the tallest structures on the Earth, and could be seen from all parts of the Earth.

The shrine of worship is completely symbolic of the Tower of Babel. Dormin is meant to represent Nimrod, the builder of the shrine, and if one notices closely, Dormin is an exact anagram of Nimrod. As well, through a secret method the character is able to climb the tower and reach a paradise, symbolic of a Heaven or other after-life paradise (notice that in the story, Mono and Wander are only able to climb to the top of the tower once they are free of Dormin, who represents Sin and evil). The tower is obviously the hugest structure on the map, and can be seen from all parts of the map (if the view is not obstructed) As well, before Dormin can ascend to total power (as if ascending into Heaven), he is split up into 16 parts, thus completing the image of the builders being divided by their changed languages.

References to the game

  • The basic premise of this game (enormous monsters with light-up self-destruct buttons) is riffed on in a Penny Arcade webcomic strip dated October 21st, 2005.
  • Shadow of the Colossus is referenced in the movie Reign over Me (2007) where actor Adam Sandler is addicted to it.

Savegame import

If the player has a saved game from ICO on the memory card in slot 1, Aggro's diamond shaped mark on his head will be replaced with the logo for ICO; a horn/tooth-like shape.

Awards

  • 4Players
    • 2006 – Best Game of the Year
    • 2006 – Best PlayStation 2 Game of the Year
    • 2006 – Best Action-Adventure of the Year
    • 2006 – Most Impressive Boss of the Year (for Colossus 16)
    • 2006 – Best Original Soundtrack of the Year
  • Electronic Gaming Monthly
    • February 2006 - #192 out of 200 on the "Greatest Games of Their Time" list
  • GameSpy
    • 2005 – #5 PS2 Game of the Year

Information also contributed by Big John WV, Christian Moleman, hribek, Indra was here, Mickey Gabel, Pseudo_Intellectual, Robstein and Sciere

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Terrence Bosky.

PlayStation 3 added by Kabushi.

Additional contributors: Unicorn Lynx, Sciere, Matt Neuteboom, Namaenashi, Zeppin, DreinIX, Arejarn, hribek, Patrick Bregger, Rik Hideto, FatherJack.

Game added November 7, 2005. Last modified February 16, 2024.