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Shadow of the Colossus (PS2)
| Overall Customer Rating: |  | | | | Graphics: | (Not Yet Rated) | | Sound: | (Not Yet Rated) | | GamePlay: | (Not Yet Rated) | | Addiction Level: | (Not Yet Rated) |
113 Customer Reviews
RRP: £29.99
Amazon Price: £18.98
You Save: £11.01 (37%)
Availability: In stock soon. Order now to get in line. First come, first served.
Platform: PlayStation2
Publisher: Sony
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Editorial: In a nutshell:
In a world of identikit sequels and licenses this game stands alone. Cast as the mysterious Wanderer you are charged with destroying sixteen colossi – gigantic and apparently invincible stone monsters. Each colossus has a weak point though and by climbing onto them and exploring them like moving castles you may have a chance to save your sweetheart. The lowdown:
This game really does look and plays like nothing else, with a game world as large as the colossi which you can only explore via your trusty horse Argo. The graphics are fantastic, both technically and in terms of artistic design, and the melancholy atmosphere utterly unique. The colossi look particularly amazing, as you reach barely to the toe tops of most of them. The method of killing each one is perhaps not quite as varied as it could be and it’s a shame that there’s not anything to do in the overworld except travel to the next colossi, but the overall gaming experience is unparalleled. Most exciting moment:
Your first sight of a colossus, as you realise the end-of-level boss is the level. Since you ask:
This game is by the same team behind cult hit ICO, although a connection between the two stories is only evident at the very end of the gameâ?¦ The bottom line:
One of the most beautiful and original video games ever made.
HARRISON DENT |
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Shadow of the Colossus (PS2)
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Last Update: 12/09/2009 00:41:45
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"Best game ever - if you're willing to think." - 19 February 2006
Videogames are often diluted by billion - trillion hit combos, stupid non-plausable characters and unneccessarily compicated stories. Shadow of the colossus is a game that gets rid of alot of things that gamers now expect from games, things that gamers believe to be what makes games more 'fun' and 'interesting' and is shadow of the colossus less fun and less interesting than most games? Quite the opposite actually. Some believe that there is very little story to the game but in fact it tells a touching of a young man who's willing to do anything for a loved one, whatever the consequences. Some believe that the journey to the game's incredible colossus is 'boring' but riding on agro through lush and fantastic scenery is a great joy because of how well-animated agro is and invokes a sense of lonliness because hardly anything exists in it. For these and many other reasons (i haven't even said much about the colossus), shadow of the colossus is definately worth trying out - you might not think of it as being game of the year, and to be honest i don't care, but you can't disagree with it being a unique and important game.
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"A Colossul Game!" - 20 February 2006
A young hero with a noble stead travels far and wide to bring a young dead woman to a shrine and places her on an alter.Suddenly dark spirits rise from the ground.The man holds out his sword and the spirits dissapear.A voice from above starts talking to the man and says "That is a powerful sword you wield.What is it that you want from me?" The man replies "I want you to raise this fair young woman from the dead." "Doing that is not an easy task!" replies the voice. "Kill the anchient Collosi and I shall see what I can do!" So the voice gives man a briefing on the first Collosi he most kill.After that the man sets off on his journey through a free roam world to kill all seventeen Collosi.In the game you won't encounter any enemies just Collosi.The collosi are giant half-beast half-robot creatures that roam the world.To find these huge beasts can be a task in such a huge world.luckily you'r equiped with a magic sword.So when you hold your sword out in front of you in sunlight a magic beam shows you where the Collosi you'r looking for is.After traveling for a while I finaly found the first Collosi.It was massive!How was I supposed to kill a beast the size of a skyscraper!I finaly found out how.But I won't spoil how you kill him, that's the best bit(Beside killing it!)After killing it I felt sorry for it!I did'nt seem like it was doing anybody any harm!(Besides me)After killing it I got teleported back to the shrine and givin an option to save,so I did!Great atmosphoric music,fantastic graphics and brilliant box art make this game simply great!One of my favourite games ever!Good Points:
*Graphics
*Collosi
*Fee-Roaming
*Atmospheric Music Bad Points:
*No multiplayer
*Not long enough
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"Shadow of the Colossus" - 19 February 2006
Chances are, if you're interested in this game, you have played Ico and you liked it. If this is the case, and you are looking forward to a similar experience, you won't really be disappointed.
Just like Ico, Shadow of the Colossus is a very unique game. The graphic style (ethereal light surrounding you, vast plains, loneliness of the main character lost in the emptiness) is very close to the one used in Ico, and as such it will feel very familiar if you have played Ico. The scenery is beautiful and the overall feeling is one of calm and awe towards the magnificent nature that surrounds you. While in Ico, you had Yorda by your side, in SotC, you're completely on your own. Apart from your horse, there is no other presence you can rely on. It doesn't mean you are TOTALLY alone... 16 massive colossi roam the land, and it is your task to defeat them, one by one, if you want a chance to raise your female friend from the dead. And this is the core of the game. You have to ride your horse to find the next colossus, find its weak spot and defeat it. Apart from that, there arent many other things to do in the game, which might lead to think that it's a bit simplistic. Well, yes and no...
Yes because the land you travel across is desperately empty. Beautiful and sometimes awe-inspiring, yes, but SO empty... A few lizards, some hawks and a few doves are the only things you'll encounter - apart from the colossi - and a couple of altars scattered here and there will give you the oppotunity to save. Apart from that, well, nothing. You don't HAVE to explore seeing how, apart from the above, there IS nothing to discover.
However, it's not all that simple. Reaching your next target can be a real pain. Yes, you can use the light reflected on your sword to guide you, but you'll frequently find yourself blocked by a cliff or a montain, meaning you'll have to find an alternative route to the same destination. And that, trust me, can take an awful lot of time. You'll mostly rely on your horse during those parts, and he's really well animated. However there are times when I have the feeling he could do with a bit more brain cells, but maybe that's just me. The colossi themselves are gigantic. They are extremely well animated and the way in which they move looks very realistic (at least that's what I expect a colossus would move like if it existed). It's really thrilling to jump onto a colossus' leg, then cling onto its fur and make your way up its back while the giant creature is trying its best to make you lose your grip and fall to the floor. The main character being thrown around by the colossus' moves and trying to somehow hold on to it looks really good. Even though it can take a while to figure out where the weak spot is, you can use your sword, again, to get useful hints. However I think the cameras are TERRIBLE in the game. You can move them manually but even if you do so, they also reposition themselves after a while, and not always where you need them to. It can be extremely frustrating to end up being crushed by a giant foot just because you had no idea the colossus was so close to you in the first place. You can choose to focus the camera on the colossus (but in this case you can't see ahead of your character, which is not very good when you are trying to run away), or you can focus the camera on the character (in which case you end up too often in a situation in which you only have a partial vision of the field ahead of you and behind you - not very good either). The worst thing is when you are clinging onto a colossus' fur, and the creature is trying to get rid of you by "shaking" itself: obviously your character is flying around, and the camera tries to follow him all the time while it obviously can't keep up. The result is an awful mess, and I've ended up, many times, looking at a close up of the colossus' fur because my character was on the other side and the camera couldn't follow it properly, so I had no idea where exactly I was and I had to wait for the camera to SLOWLY find a correct position while my stamina gauge was decreasing rapidly. Very, very frustrating indeed. All in all, SofC is, like I said, a very unique experience. It's not your average game and I don't expect it'll be played and enjoyed by your average gamer. The colossi are really good looking and the fights are epic. However, the sheer frustration caused by the camera angles, the controls that take a bit of time to get used to, and the amount of time required in order to find a way to your next target decrease the grade to a 3/5.
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"... A Truly Colossal Game..." - 19 February 2006
Gaming perfection. Whilst I could berate the ageing PS2 for not technically doing this game justice, I will hold off doing so, the fact this game is on the ps2 is a feat in itself! I have played most formats in the last 20 years, and few games have moved me to write about them. Zelda, Mario and Metroid are legends in videogame lore, there's been few recent games (barring ICO) that offer that immersive experience to the player, that truly capture everything that is good about gaming - this game joins the ranks of the few, IMHO, having waited patiently for the PAL release, I was ready to play the day it hit the shelves. I brought the game home yesterday, and have 'lost' 9 hours in the time since, this game is top-notch in every respect, from the opening scene to the audio, the expansive environment, the mammoth quest, and the jaw-dropping colossi themselves, they really have to be seen to be believed, I will not detail what unravels in the game, just know it is a delight from the moment you pick up the controller, GET THIS GAME, it surpasses ICO in my eyes, well done SONY, give us more like this - it's way way ahead of the industry dross. Wayne
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"A God in games? Gods aren't supposed to have flaws..." - 21 February 2006
Shadow of the Colossus is a really good buy mainly due to its stunning graphics, action packed boss fights and artistic value. You will ride across a beautiful landscape ranging from lush greenfields, titanic cliffs and raging sand deserts. But of course its all about the boss fights? Well the colossi aren't "bosses", they ARE the level, and with their freakishly huge size, you will be amazed while having good action fun. The story is little and the ending is flawed but this is a minor inconvinence and is heavly made up of what YOU THE GAMER thinks. The cameras are horrific to begin with and don't help with bad control of the anolog inverted depending on which way you're facing, but they take little getting used to and eventually you will barely notice. This is a wonderful experience that no one should miss but an experience that is very short lived. Sadly you will get involved and addictted, but before you know it it will all be over and the replay value is less meaning the gameplay is short lived but the matter of the breath taking moments involved is what counts here and should be a sure cult classic. Besides, who doesn't like a good old boss fight?
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"Collosal" - 20 February 2006
This game is beautiful, huge, colossal! After hearing what this game was about, and knowing it was from the developers of ICO, i wanted this game.I was not disappointed. You open by seeing a young man carrying a beautiful lady and placing her carefully on some stone table. She's dead, and you want to bring her back to life. Only one catch, the one(s) who can want you to kill the colossi, 24 GIGANTIC creatures, before they'll return the mysterious lady to life. So off you go, on horseback, following the light to the first giant. The game is huge, and the graphics are amazing. Its like an entire world in one game, set with cliffs, beaches, forests, waterfalls, underground temples etc. It also has the best looking horse in the business. The Colossi are well designed, all very different and unique, but all eerily beautiful in their own right. The gameplay sets this apart, follow light to giant monster thing. Spend an hour working out how to kill it, and kill it. However, the way you kill them requires immense stratergy. With some, you'll need to hide, before it comes in closer to look, and then grab onto whatever is dangling, whether its a beard or what. Now you only have limited grip, (it runs out fast!) so you'll want to get stable quickly, hence you'll always be thinking. With some you'll want to fire arrows until it notices you, then when it flies to attack, grab onto it. Each monster has a weak spot, find it and stab it. Some have more then one, some even have more than two. Killing them creates an incredibly satisfied feeling. Finally, the music adds a pleasent finishing touch to the game, beautiful, moving, uplifting. Drawbacks, you might start feeling sorry for the Colossi, and it can be irritating, after you've spent an hour trying to work out how to kill it, or you finally get to the weak spot and you get thrown off the colossi. However, this is an excellent game and a must-buy for any PS2 fan.
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"Shadow of the Colossus" - 23 February 2006
This is my game of year, in the same way that ICO stopped me from playing MGS2 stone dead, this game has got to me in a very real sense. The story as you've probably read countless time is about our hero's struggle to resurect a girl and standing in his way are the Colossi. These are 16 of the biggest most wonderfully created creatures I've ever seen.I am currently on my 12th colossi and loving every bit from the exploration (look out for the desert). I'am told the ending somthing very special indeed. Well done to sony and team ico this is by far the essential purchase of 2006.
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"Wonderful while it lasts...." - 23 February 2006
I won't go into gameplay specifics as, chances are, you already know about them if you're reading these reviews. However, I was of the same mind as the other reviewers with this game while I played through it...5 star game, sublime, artistic etc. Then I got to the end. All too quickly. 16 colossi sounds like a lot of work, but unlike most RPG games where you have to work towards the boss building up your character, solving puzzles, communicating with other characters and taking part in side quests, all Shadow has is 16 bosses. While you do have to use your brain at times, its only to figure out where to find the colossus and then how to climb it. Beyond that, there really isn't any real reason to think, just stare at the lovely graphics. Here in lies the problem. Once you've completed the game and seen the ending, you already know how to kill the colossi and you also know the twist in the story. Much like Ico, there really isn't much point in going through it twice. The joy in these games is in the progression, and that only lasts through one time. A sublime experience first time round becomes a trying battle with the awful camera, juddering frame rate and, and I'm afraid to say it, the monotony of the quest the second time through. It's pleasing to find a game so singular in its focus, but I am now beginning to feel that this wonderfully created world deserved more. So much care has been put into its craetion that 16 simple boss battles seems to be doing it a disservice. A superb game, but misses out being perfect.
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"Bloody brilliant" - 25 February 2006
This game, is perhaps the best game I have witnessed. It could be the feeling that you are conquering a giant beast or the fact that it is so original but either way it makes you feel as though you are part of something epic, something grand and artistic. The idea of riding around in a baron land with just, you and your horse creates tension as you prepare to fight your next foe. This game is difficult, however the only difficult part isnt beating the beast it is finding its weakness and then exploiting it to your advantage and in that respect i would call this a puzzle game, entagled with a thrilling adventure game. In summary, the graphics are excellent the gameplay is outstanding and the replayability is revived with a time attack mode. This is a ust have addition to your collection.(much like its predecessor ICO)
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"A Colossal Feat Of Gaming Excellence" - 27 February 2006
Describing this game is no easy feat and it is like a work of art. Open to interpetation from everybody.
Some people will love it and other's wont understand what's so special about it.
I brought this game and was awe struck by it's simplicity and the beautifiul graphics. I wont go into details about the story as it may ruin the experience for you, but basically you have to kill 16 colosi and each one has a weakness which you must exploit and then climb up them and stab them in certain points without falling off.
The premisis is simple but finding out the weaknesses of these Colosi is no easy feat. Towards the end of the game it is a real challenge to defeat these colossi as you spend more time figuring out how to get on to them, rather than actually doing damage.
The only other character you interact with throught the game is your horse, Agro, who becomes your friend on this adventure. Agro is one of most brilliantly animated animals I have ever seen in a game. His mane blows in the wind and he reacts to fear of the colossi when you leave him alone, but he is loyal responding to your call. Despite Agro being your only companion or interaction in this world, you never really feel the need to interact with anybody else. Whilst other games really rely on other characters to drive the story this game is simply focused on your character and your struggle to defeat these beasts that roam the land. What drives you is the questions that arent answered the beginning, who are you? Who's the girl your trying to save? Why are these beasts here? Simply. These questions are answered in the ending sequence. One of the greatest ending sequences throught gaming history. Whilst some will not apprieciate the game for it's simplicity, it is a work of art and those who can understand it and apprieciate it's beauty are in for a treat of the highest order with this game. Perhaps the best game on PS2? Possible.
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