Shadow of the Colossus

[nero1001]

Nice one mate So its worth doing

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Time Attack on both Normal and Hard mode then cos you get different goodies? I guess I could run through the normal mode TA as a warm up to a HARD play through!

Need to get my monies worth

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Yes mate defo do both. I`m playing through hard at the moment and really enjoying it. When I began I thought that it was just gonna be me taking more damage when hit and the colossi taking more hits to kill, but when I saw that they have an extra weak point it is almost like playing a new game... sort of

Do you know what really tore my heart on this masterpiece:

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When the girl awakens, you hear some clunky footsteps to reveal the horse - a big lump formed in my throat - then to see the horse walking slowly to see that the back leg is broken - my heart completely went and I let a small tear roll down my cheek.

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I`ll have to say that I felt a little sad with all the colossi that I killed, then when I thought I couldn`t be any more gutted Agro saves me from certain death by throwing me clear of the collapsing bridge at the 16th colossus and then when I thought that it really couldn`t get any worse Argo lives and arrives with a broken leg just for that extra tug on the heart strings!

What a ****ing game!!

[DSD]

Why, why, why, can't I reverse the controls when firing the bow. stupid oversight makes me feel ill... Argghhh

You can. It's in the options menu.

[Concept]

Do you know what really tore my heart on this masterpiece:

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When the girl awakens, you hear some clunky footsteps to reveal the horse - a big lump formed in my throat - then to see the horse walking slowly to see that the back leg is broken - my heart completely went and I let a small tear roll down my cheek.

Even worse, I knew I was going to expect it the second time round but the emotional effect still hit home.

I don't know why but it was

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when the credits return expectedly back to the narrative that really got to me. You can see Emon and his followers riding back to safety, and you know there and then that Mono is completely trapped and they're going to leave her behind. Just the chereography of returning back to one of the most haunting melodies of the game from a very triumphant climax (after the camera moves over the corpses of the sixteen colossi) seems to contrast superbly and compounds the fact that Mono is left to be forgotten. It also has the most beautiful shot in the game, where Emon says whoever is left behind should seek atonement for what they've done, and there's a full on glimpse of the (now disconnected) temple, with the whole landscape and blooming sky glowing behind. It's just a beautifully scripted shot.

The timing of the music in the 'return' of the end sequence during the credits is brilliantly thought out, and I think that surprise adds an extra emotional impact.

[Concept]

Managed to grab hold of a dove last night - wasn't all that tbh

Anyways, did the first Colossi

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on Time Attack in around 1:30-ish but didn't unlock anything - can somebody in the know list what you have to do to get stuff for the main game and do these items carry across when you play HARD?

Concept? Where you at man???

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You get a new item for every two colossi you defeat in time attack mode. If you complete time attack mode in full on normal, and press square on the title screen before starting, you get a brown horse. Complete time attack mode on in full on hard and press square on the title screen before starting, you get a white horse.

The last item for hard time attack should interest you if you're an ICO fan...

[Concept]

SotC is more than just "look there`s a colossus I`m gonna kill you"! It is the whole experience that makes the game, not just the combat. The parts inbetween colossi can be as enjoyable and rewarding as you want them to be and there is a very diffinate mood set throughout the game that you can feel yourself being affected by. My favourite games all involve killing things and I`ve never given a **** who I`ve ended but SotC is the 1st game I`ve ever played that actually made me think about why I`m doing it.

I agree that it really gets you emotionally involved in proceedings, all the people who have rated it as average always seem to focus on the technical aspects, I think it's just a thing with some people that it doesn't grab their imagination the same way it does for people who love it.

Incidentally I've always felt pangs of guilt for shooting guards in the nuts in MGS (but I still do it). SotC does evoke similar feelings though, I always think of harpooning whales. It just seems wrong.

Well, it has jaggies, and a low framerate at times, and yet it is more beautiful than any Xbox360 game. Go figure.

If you look at Colossus dispassionately, and in terms of component, then there (as been said) lots of problems to consider, mostly on the technical front. A lot of the criticisms I've seen have been from ICO fans who have found Colossus to be less technically solid overall and whose pace has been unfavourably compared. In terms of game design and atmosphere, they're both completely different.

Good summary, nero1001 - I pretty much agree on all your points.

As DSD mentions (for me) Colossus is artistically better than any next-gen game that I've played so far. It has its problems, as well as frame-rate and lack of AA, there's LoD issues, occasional full-scale scenery pop-up, collision detection errors... but still, the magic, atmosphere and artistry of the game shines through, and I'd still say technically it's mind boggling how the team got this working on the PS2 as well as they did (think of

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colossi five and thirteen as obvious examples, and consider the work that must have gone into animation, collision detection of where you're allowed to grip and climb as you're being flung about in the air, how the landscape is moving as fast as it is, the path-finding of the colossi etc. etc.).

For me, people who are heavily criticising Colossus' technical aspects aren't always considering all the things which are going on under the surface to make sure the whole system works as it does.

Again, just to use a Panzer Dragoon Saga comparison... that game arguably pushed the Saturn further than it was ever supposed to go, but I believe in terms of its art design and atmosphere, it's still light years ahead of many modern titles today. Same'll probably with Colossus.

Sometimes (not always) it's better to try and push for ambition than settling back and scaling down your aims. I feel it worked out.

[DSD]

o/\o for you sir.

I read the technical making of from a few pages back, and whilst most of it went over my head it is clear that a ridiculous amount of effort has gone into the game, especially over the superb lighting effects.

When you consider that, plus the sheer artistry that has gone into the design, I feel that to criticise it for such mundane things as pop up, or a low framerate, is a bit churlish.

[Rossco]

Started playing this again last night on Hard Mode, doesnt seem that hard but still great to play it again after all these months!

[nero1001]

Started playing this again last night on Hard Mode, doesnt seem that hard but still great to play it again after all these months!

I`m really enjoying hard mode, I think this is how the game should actually be played.

I`ve been exploring everywhere and feel that I`ve got more out of the experience than I did when I finished it 1st time round. I`ve been admiring the scenery, riding round on a hawk, swam with a fish, looking in every nook and cranny for white tailed lizards and searching for fruit.

I`m now just about to defeat the 15th colossus, my grip meter is the size of a large orange and my health is the full length of the screen (maximum). There are the odd difference on some of the colossi where they may have an extra weak point that you need to attack. Some of the colossi are exactly the same as their "normal" counterparts but the damage they deal is a lot higher.

I can`t remember the last game I played where I was more enthusiastic about playing it the secondtime round than the first, this game is awsome! 8)

[alphatyrant]

I'm really enjoying it on hard, because I know how to get to the Colossi and am generally more familiar with the land, therefore I can get to the battles more quickly.

Glad that some of the beasts have more points to find.....makes the battles that much more interesting.

[nero1001]

I'm really enjoying it on hard, because I know how to get to the Colossi and am generally more familiar with the land, therefore I can get to the battles more quickly.

Glad that some of the beasts have more points to find.....makes the battles that much more interesting.

I finished hard mode yesterday and I enjoyed it more than my first play through on normal. Like you said alphatyrant, I too am now more familiar with the landscape and eventhough I did loads more exploring, swiming with fish, lizard and fruit hunting and also flying with hawks, I managed to finish the game in 7hrs 30mins....... 1 whole hour quicker than on normal.

It just shows you how long those boss battles took 1st time round, now they are over in just a couple of minutes but this didn`t detract from the experience as I enjoyed the exploration equally.

Question:

With hard mode finished, I am now on hard time attack which is going very well. I`ve breezed past 10 colossi with one exception, colossus number 4, the knight. He is probably one of the easiest colossi (well, he`s only the 4th) but I`m really struggling with him on hard TA. The time limit is 5 mins and the quickest I`ve done it is 5 mins 40 secs.

I really can`t see what I`m doing wrong, I`m up there quick

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on his head, on his arm and then his belly but time is most definately the enemy here.

Maybe it is to do with my method of getting onto the colossus but I`ve tried different ways and can`t get it done quicker.

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When the battle starts I stand and wait until the knight gets fairly close, I then run past him to the stone disk. He turns round and swings at me smashing his armour, I step off the disc and he swings again, I then get on the pillar and start my climb. I think it is the 1 min 20 sec mark that I start my climb.

I goto head, arm and then belly. When on the head he goes mental and I have a hard time attacking, I think this is where most of my time is lost.

Are there any of you that have done hard TA that can give me a hand on getting my time down? I can do some of them with 2 or 3 minutes to spare, I don`t understand why number 4 is giving me so much trouble

[Concept]

Are there any of you that have done hard TA that can give me a hand on getting my time down? I can do some of them with 2 or 3 minutes to spare, I don`t understand why number 4 is giving me so much trouble

Sorry, I've not properly started Hard Time Attack yet in the PAL version to offer you much advice.

Hope you beat it soon.

[Concept]

After being inspired by the art cards in the PAL version and being a bit of a SotC fan, just a bit of one, I decided why not tinker about with the beauty of the game and see what happens.

[spagmasterswift]

Concept's a man possessed

I took down 4 colossi in

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Normal Time Attack and was rewarded with a Whistling Arrow and the Cloak of Power! Keen to try them out and get my grip meter up (so I can get climbing round the back of the chamber) I started my second run through on Normal. This time around I kept an eye out for glowing tailed lizards and even climbed some trees to get at fruit - only taken 4 hours and I have just 3 Colossi to go. That Cloak makes some of them 'two stab wonders' o_O Managed to employ the downward jump stab on the bull, started to use the dive button and been riding side saddle from time to time. Been grabbing fish too!

I think once I've completed Normal again and Time Attack its due a rest though, then bring on Hard.

Great start to my new gaming year

[nero1001]

Sorry, I've not properly started Hard Time Attack yet in the PAL version to offer you much advice.

Hope you beat it soon.

Cheers mate!

Gimme a shout if you give it a go and suss it out

[vocoderfreak]

What a stunning game! Made it as far as colossus 11 last night and managed to take it out. One thing that I wondered though. Is there a way of getting back onto your feet more quickly when you get knocked over? Mashing buttons seems to sort of work...