Shadow of the
Colossus
Sony Computer
Entertainment
Team Ico
Basic Information

Exclusive for the PS2

Action/Adventure

$19.99
Story




The game opens with the main character Wander
traveling into the forbidden land on his horse Argo.
When he arrives he enters a large shrine in the
middle of the forbidden land and takes a body
wrapped in cloth from Argo's back, revealing a girl.
From an opening in the tall ceiling of the shrine
Wander hears the disembodied voice of a mysterious
entity known as Dormin.
Dormin instructs Wander that he must dispatch 16
Colossi in exchange for the power to resurrect the
girl.
Interface



The user interface
is rather minimal.
The health of the
current Colossus is
displayed at the top
left.
The health, grip
meter, and current
weapon of Wander
are displayed at the
bottom right.
User Role and Gameplay



The player takes the role of Wander as he
travels, defeating the Colossi.
Before fighting a Colossus, Wander must first
find them using his magic sword, which
shines a beam of sunlight in the direction of
the current enemy.
Some fights are done with the help of Argo,
while others must leave him behind.
Gameplay cont.


While each fight is different in some way,
the overall goal is always to climb on top
of the colossus and stab it in its glowing
vital points. The vital points are made
visible by Wander's magic sword.
Colossi will shake and dive and do
anything they can to stop Wander from
being able to stab.

If his grip runs out, he falls.

http://youtu.be/F6iW_0wapwE?t=8s
Scoring

Story - 7/10

Gameplay - 8/10

Music - 10/10

Art - 9/10

Lasting Appeal - 9/10

Overall - 9/10
Music and Sound


The music of the game is comprised of
orchestra pieces and epic scores.
The sound effects are generally well done.
Small things like the way hoof beats and
footsteps change and echo based on
materials and enclosure of the space
create an immersive and complete world.
Art and Animation





Ruins and the Colossi have a grand sense of scale and
really feel large and intricately carved.
The way each Colossus moves whether it be large, small,
bipedal, serpentine, flying, etc. seems natural to its form.
Wander's animations help to reinforce him as a character.
He isn't a hero or well trained but his determination is
seen in his every move.
When a Colossus casts him aside you can see the pain
and overwhelming power that he is up against but he still
tries to get back up.
His sword attacks are sloppy and exaggerated and not
the moves of someone skilled with swords. This helps to
foreshadow that the sword isn't his.
Review





The game brings a very interesting concept to the table with its
boss-only play style. Interesting mixes of puzzles and fighting make
each Colossus interesting and fun to engage.
With all of the Colossi having different strategies and difficulty levels
the game could often become frustrating when a Colossus clashed
with the play style of the character.
Its main competitor was probably the Zelda franchise. I think
Shadow of the Colossus did a fine job of digging out their own part
of the Action/Adventure genre and gave PS2 owners a proper
alternative to the Nintendo exclusive, Zelda.
While I wouldn't say that it is “better” than Zelda, people who don't
like dungeon crawling and backtracking were provided an enjoyable
alternative.
The game was meant to be played by people in their teens and
older interested in Action/Adventure games on the PS2. Due to
blood and a bleak atmosphere it is also possible that the game
creators had males in mind.
Summary
Strengths




Solid and well thought
out animations.
Weaknesses
Navigation system doesn't
work in low/no sunlight
and valleys tend to
Each Colossus requires
double as mazes.
a different strategy to
defeat.
Some of the smaller
Colossi have too short of
Interesting boss fight
a delay between shake
only concept.
off animations. Long
Lasting appeal though
periods where you can't
time attacks,
even get off small stabs.
collectables, and
difficulty modes.