Shadow of the Colossus

9.0
Excellent

Gameplay	9.0	"Shadow of the Colossus is a game you won’t want to miss."
Graphics	8.5
Sound	9.0
Value	8.0

By Sherrin English

In a huge, empty, cathedral-like monolith a young boy dismounts from his horse and walks purposefully towards a strange alter, placing a limp girl tenderly upon it. We don’t know who she is or what her relationship is to the boy. But we get the feeling that the boy cares for this girl a great deal. A disembodied voice begins to speak with the boy, and we learn that the girl was sacrificed by her people for having a cursed fate. The voice says that while it is possible to bring back the souls of the dead, it is strictly forbidden. And black, smokey, figures pull themselves from the floor as if to frighten them into leaving. But when the boy draws his sword another, intermingled male/female, voice begins to speak. This voice says that because the boy has the Ancient Sword it will indeed be possible to bring her back. There are consequences, however, and a price must be paid. The boy declares strongly that it doesn’t matter. So it is explained that he must destroy the sixteen stone Idols that silently line the walls, and to do this he must hunt down the sixteen Colossi that are the incarnation of those Idols. And as the wind howls outside, the most striking and spectacular game you will ever play begins.

Shadow of the Colossus is really a game made up of sixteen Boss fights. There are no other battles - unless you call killing the white-tailed lizards, whose ingestion thereof increases your Stamina Meter, a battle. But I don’t. Once you’ve found your Colossi, the idea is simply to mount it, find its vulnerable spots and kill it, right? Do that sixteen times and it’s game over, right? Short. Sweet. Easy. Wrong! Each Colossi is unique. Some have two legs, some four legs, some six and some none at all. Some have hands, some claws, some wings and some none at all. The only things they all have in common are fur - which is fortunate as it enables you to climb and to cling to them - and a burning desire to be rid of you. And believe me, an angry Colossi that’s a few stories tall is not to be taken lightly.

Your first Colossus, and your journey to it, eases you into the game, teaching you the basics; how to use your sword as a ‘guide’, to dive, to roll, climb, leap and, above all, to hang on. But although it’s the first of sixteen it’s still very much a challenge. One false move and those huge stamping feet will crush you to a pulp. The object, as with all the Colossi, is to scale the monster, locate its ‘marker’ and, while clinging on for your life, use your sword to stab it several times. Most Colossi have several such ‘markers’, and they’re located in very precarious places. A very large bird-like Colossi has one on the tips of its flapping wings. A shambling titan has one on his deltoid. A furry eel has three at the base of electrified spines. An immense lizard’s is on its belly. And another aquatic creature has his one on his chest. A hand, a foot, a tail - the ‘markers’ can be anywhere. But one thing you can be sure of is that it will be difficult to get to.

Once you’ve learned the basics you’re on your own. Your sword, as well as for stabbing and killing, acts as a kind of light-directing ‘compass’; a wide beam means you’re cold and a narrow one that you’re hot. Your horse, Agro, is also more than a convenient way of getting from one place to another. As you gallop along you can shoot arrows from him, stand up on him, hang off the side of him, and you can use him as a ‘launching pad’ to leap onto a fast-moving leg or wing. And if you’re really lucky you can leap off him and hitch a ride on a low-flying bird, which adds nothing to the game but is a lot of fun. Once you’ve found where the Colossi ‘lives’ - a crumbling stadium, an old auditorium, a platform in the middle of a lake, perhaps even the lake itself - you then have to tempt him out and, somehow, get up close and personal. Some, despite their size, move remarkably quickly, while others are slow and ponderous, but no less vicious. While it may be as simple as clambering up a leg, or a dragging wing, or running up the stone sword that’s trying to do you more than a little damage, another might require you to leap onto its back from a ledge as it runs beneath you, and for another you may need to swim in murky water waiting for him to surface. However you do it, once you’ve mounted your Colossi the fun begins. As the beast beneath you shakes and sways, you need to both locate the ‘markers’ and hang on tight, because falling from an angry, moving, six-story building isn’t conducive to maintaining good health. Several of the Colossi have ‘markers’ which are small ‘weak points’ to help get you from one place to another on the mighty moving mammoth. A stab in the back will cause him to reach his hand around so you can jump onto it. A well-placed arrow under a hoof will bring him to his knees so you can swing up onto his leg. An arrow in an eye will make him bury his head in soothing sand allowing you to clamber up onto his back. So wherever these ‘weak points’ are located always make the most of them.

When your final sword stroke has been made and the majestic Colossus slowly crumbles earthwards, strange, twisting ropes of inky blackness reach out octopus-like and connect you to him, giving you his ‘essence’, while back at the cathedral his Idol explodes, leaving nothing but a pile of stones and dust. Over time this ‘essence’ leaves you dirty and ragged, but no less determined to pursue your goal. And as you search for each Colossi, then climb hand over hand on fur, stone or plate, you realise that this is without doubt the most fun you’ve had in a long while.

The visual similarities to the first game made by this talented group, ICO, are obvious; the landscapes, whether dry and desolate, lush, verdant, forest or stark bricked towers, are all rendered in that unmistakable unsaturated colour palette and in soft focus. And the characters have that same ethereal beauty and jolting, unsure, movements. The characters’ speech is, again, minimal, but when used it is in a language in keeping with the feel of the game. Similar, black, smoky beings pull themselves from the floor, but in Shadow of the Colossus there is no air of menace in them. The music is minimal. Soaring strings and an angelic choir introduce and end the game and in between the wind whistles and howls. But when you’re grappling with your Colossi the music cascades, races and tumbles, urging you on and increasing the tension as you’re precariously balanced, high in the air and hanging on for dear life.

Like all games, Shadow of Colossus has its faults, but compared to other games of the same magnitude they are minimal. The frame-rate lags a little in places and sometimes a tumble from a beast may result in you forever falling into a space of total nothingness. The camera angle can be a bit of a nuisance when you’re crawling up and over your hairy beast, but a quick flick of the L1 button will bring the camera back to the centre. Apart from those little things the game mechanics are a dream. And those huge, gorgeous graphics draw you in like a huge silent movie in which you take the smallest, yet most significant, part.

All in all Shadow of the Colossus is a game you won’t want to miss. Excitement, tension, atmosphere, emotion - it’s all there, and in spades. That there’s something of the little guy winning against all odds feel about the game is undeniable, yet there’s more to it than that. The feeling of victory is tinged with sadness at those sixteen wondrous Colossi lying twisted and broken and their Idols reduced to a pile of rubble. Once all the fighting is over, and the price has been exacted, comes the most stunning and moving final movie I have ever seen in a game. Yes, without a doubt, Shadow of the Colossus has a place on your shelf no matter what kind of games you usually play.

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