Shadow of the Colossus

[segages]

Hmm the lack of a story is a little disappointing but the rest of the game is astounding. Since my game is still in the post, I've been round to my brothers with my memory card and played around 3 hours worth, taking down the first 5 Collossi.

At first I found the controls fiddly but got used to them after a while. The main problem I had was the camera zooming in way too close when I was crawling on top of a colossus which has happened a few times, causing me to fall off.

So far, each encounter has been top notch. The fifth one was excellent, especially when you first mount it. It does seem like it'll be short though. Fight one, kill it, on to the next. There's a sense of sadness at taking down the big guys but that's forgotten when you're put back in the temple with the girl waiting for you to bring her back to life.

Can't wait for my copy to arrive tomorrow.

[Len]

Been playing this for the last cpl of days and thoroughly enjoying it as others are. I was trying to pin down what it is about the game I like and it's a similar thing that I had with Ico but I feel you get it more with this.

The game is so ethereal imo, very close to becoming dreamlike at times. I find myself playing it and thinking that I've caught something out of the corner of my eye and so trundle over to find, yet again, nothing out of place but it just has that fairytale, for want of a better word, feel to it. I keep think I'm seeing maybe a figure in the far distance or something that may be of significance. Invariably it's usually a diff coloured bush, tree or a lot of the time it's just the ps2, loading the gfx or tearing slightly but it just seems to add to the whole experience for me. Though this may be related to playing very late at night after a smoke with the ss whacked up...lol!

Anyway, absolutely loving it, taking my time and just soaking it all up. I have a few theories building in my head but I'll wait and see what occurs.

The colossi designs are something else, stunning stuff and as mentioned before they feel like gentle giants really, not crazy killing machines which again adds another layer of emotional depth to the game for me. Some are just great fun and it's just enjoyable to hang on and bounce around with them for a while.

Anyway, all good stuff, I shall have a meander back in shortly methinks...

[Bleeders]

I'm on the 14th now, ****ed if I can find it though.

[Kevvy Metal]

I'm currently half way through 16

You guys ain't seen nothing yet

It's also "rock" hard

[Rossco]

God I'm so excited about this now! Tomorrow it should be here! TOMORROW!! THATS LIKE NOT ALOT OF HOURS!!


Ohhhhhh!

But I have uni 10-4 so I'll be playing it by 5pm!

[Kevvy Metal]

It is done, i have finished one of the most outstanding videogames ever created.

Total completion time 11.14

Colossus 16

->Open Spoiler<-

It's SATAN himself!! I have NEVER seen a boss quite as OTT before.

On my initial play, i was disapointed that each colossus was falling so frequently and so easily but the early ones are meerly horderves.

This truely is a strong contender for Game of the Year or even Game of the console generation. A truely outstanding experience that unfortunitly has a few technical issues.

I would already put it into my top 10 Favorite videogames. It truely has surpast my expectations.

and it's better than Ico

[Mr Fujisawa]

just done 6 colossi and thought id better stopd as im churning through it!

but then, why should i stop hmmm?

the game is great, controlls can be a bit fiddly but they just take some getting used to. and i wish this game could have been on a better eqipped machine. the ps2 really cant cope!

awesome game though, realyl enjoying it

[Kevvy Metal]

just done 6 colossi and thought id better stopd as im churning through it!

but then, why should i stop hmmm?

the game is great, controlls can be a bit fiddly but they just take some getting used to. and i wish this game could have been on a better eqipped machine. the ps2 really cant cope!

awesome game though, realyl enjoying it

I agree whole heartedly.

I would worry too much about polishing it off quickly, the last four take about the same amount of time as the first eight, maybe even more.

[Kotatsu Neko]

Just took down number 12. What a battle! I nearly fell off my chair when he climbed on top of the little stone platform I was standing on!

Fantastic cut scene after the battle too. This game truly is a work of art.

One thing which I really notice with the scenery is just how many polys are in it. Most games have pretty chunky, crude geometry, but Shadow has lovely detailed cliff edges and smooth rolling hills. Probably why the frame rate is so poor, but it really makes the world look more realistic.

[segages]

What I love about this and Ico is the way they use light. The shimmering glare when you stand looking out of the starting temple and how it reflects of the sides of the rock is stunning.

[Rossco]

Thats good news don_caballero, So glad you seem amazed by the game!

The use of light in Ico is very very good yeh, so again, good to hear SotC is more of the same!

[Jebus]

Hmm the lack of a story is a little disappointing but the rest of the game is astounding.

Trust me, the farther you get, the less you'll care. Some of the later battles are just so immense you forget it all!

Whoever said the last 4 were tougher than the rest, I'm onto #15 now but I found them ALL easy except 13...

[fuse]

Got far more into this once the battles started getting more and more epic, to the point where not even the smell of my dinner could tempt me away from the PS2 (it's saying something, trust me!). Number 13 especially ranks in as one of the most cinematic, and generally breathtaking boss fights I have ever experienced in a videogame. Just finished the game off though, and I really don't know quite what to say.

Incredible, for starters. Yes there are some quite serious technical issues, and unfortunately they seem to get more rather than less prominent as you progress further through, and yet I can't help but love it endlessly.


Ending stuff:

->Open Spoiler<-

All the way through I kept questionning whether or not you were doing the 'right thing', and yet even still you can't help but empathise with the hero... sigh :{

EDIT:

Dunno if this got posted in the Headline thread, but check it out - seems Sony did some small scale viral marketing of SotC:

Check the video linked in the most recent post

Also links to this...

[Bleeders]

So far, SOTC for me, is THE best PS2 game... maybe even the game of the current generation.

Originally Posted by segages
Hmm the lack of a story is a little disappointing but the rest of the game is astounding.

I actually prefer the idea that the premise is kept very, very simple. It's not bloated with any twists, annoying characters, ridiculous rhetoric; it's just you, your wits, Agro and the Colossi.

My personal favourite so far has been Colossi XII...

->Open Spoiler<-

it took me a good while to figure out what to do, but when I sussed how easy it was to mount him then "guide" him by smacking his rotten teeth to the water-based monuments, leaping off, then waiting for him to step-up and grabbing onto his belly to stab the marker... genius.

[Jebus]

I know its a pointless thing to say but just imagine what this game would be like if were running on an XBOX 360 in say six months time. Seriously, can you just imagine? No so much game of the year, but game of the lifetime...?

An extra long game with 20 colossi, no slowdown etc.