![]() No other game packs the same emotional impact, or tries anything quite as thematically complex. In an odd twist, however, the slowdown and overall jerkiness becomes part of the experience, particularly when you’re in close, dangerous quarters to the Colossi – it’ll certainly be interesting to see how the upcoming 60 frames-per-second HD remake will reshape this staple of the Shadow Of The Colossus experience.Įach time Wander jabs his sword into a creature, only for it to fall to the ground and Kow Otani’s astonishing score to kick in, elicits a genuine sadness and causes you to reflect upon the protagonist’s selfish merits. It’s technically amazing, stretching the PS2 to its very limits, often at the expense of the frame rate. The appeal is in the way they look, move and interact with the environment, which varies unexpectedly throughout – highlights include Phalanx, the mighty sand snake that floats over the environment as you try to cling onto its wings Hydra, the aggressive sea dragon that swims deep beneath a hauntingly dark lake and Avion, the bird-like creature that instantly transforms your expectations of the game as you try to take it out of the sky in mid-flight. The goal is to hunt out their weak spots, then find a way of safely approaching them in order to bring them down, yet it’s rarely a straightforward task. The expedition to each Colossus, guided by the light of Wander’s sword, is a perfect pacing mechanic, building up each reveal to fever pitch before you’re finally aware of the challenge that lies ahead of you.Įach Colossus is a carefully crafted puzzle, and it’s only through using the environment to his advantage that Wander is able to get the better of each one. You never quite feel alone – Agro, your trusty steed sees to that – but at the same time you feel lonely. There’s just something really unsettling about the world. The atmosphere is a triumph of art and sound design – the world here is an unending, washed-out labyrinth of echoes, diverse yet almost entirely empty, save for the Colossi, lizards, birds, shrines and a few secret curios for the more ambitious players. ![]() This is a groundbreaking display of interactive storytelling your experience, your struggle with each staggeringly impressive beast is the story, while the mythical journey to each battle is an undoubtedly effective and ominous plot device. As Wander, a man seeking to bring his love back to life by slaying 16 mystical creatures, the entire story of the game is presented through the prism of the character’s selfishness – you, as a player, feel as though you’re doing something terrible by robbing this fascinating land of its mighty native creatures, and that theme is explored so cleverly and maturely through the narrative. Shadow Of The Colossus is about the guilt. Shadow Of The Colossus was released to greater sales than its predecessor, not to mention a rightfully positive reception from critics. Ico had built a dedicated audience in the meantime. While he perceived nothing wrong with this traditional design idea, Shadow Of The Colossus would be as much about the journey as the fight itself, with the environments designed to create a sense of foreboding as the players discover the Colossi for the first time. Ueda aimed to make each Colossus more than a mere boss battle, however. The game’s first public showing came in the form of ‘Nico’, presenting the game as a very different experience, involving multiple protagonists attacking a Colossus as a group – other aspects, such as the specifics of the hero, Wander, came later, yet the idea of a protagonist and his horse companion existed before the setting did. Shadow Of The Colossus defies any specific genre but can be summed up in its structure as 16 boss fights, divided by long stretches of exploration around a desolate land. ![]() Likewise, the Colossi, arguably the stars of the game, were designed using both natural and mechanical source materials, so players would be unable to discern whether they were animals or machines. Designer Fumito Ueda wanted to create a unique world so strange in its construction that it would defy any particular time or place. Like Ico before it, which started life on the PSone before mercifully jumping platforms, Shadow Of The Colossus spent a long time in the conceptual stages before release. The monstrous PS2 epic that pushed the console to breaking point
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