Late to the party as usual...Ico

[Sasuke]

I went home at the weekend expecting to play ICO, but my complete git of a cousin borrowed my PS2 with ICO in it*!! ft: Gah, I so want to complete it. One of my favourite games ever.


*Hopefully he plays it and likes it, but I doubt it since he's like the casual gamer personified and won't play a game without blood.

[D-SG]

Hopefully he plays it and likes it, but I doubt it since he's like the casual gamer personified and won't play a game without blood.

Well, there's blood in Ico. Thinking back it's probably some of the nastiest in-game violence in a good long time.

If only they'd put that on the front of the box. ICO: AN ELEGANT FAIRYTALE BUT DON'T WORRY, THERE ARE STILL KILLINGS

[jimtendo]

Having been meaning to get ICO for a very long time, i've finally bought it...

Very atmospheric in a sense of the vast open spaces you are presented with, and the scale too. In regards to the 'fortress', it reminded me of Vagrant Story's setting - Lea Monde. It just looks very very similar. Not that it's a bad thing of course.

So far i'm really enjoying the therapeutic soundtrack, wonderous fortress environment, Ico's 'responsibility' of Yorda, and most of all the experience.

Just wish there was a damn screen centering option.

[Chadruharazzeb]

[quote="D-SG"]

Well, there's blood in Ico. Thinking back it's probably some of the nastiest in-game violence in a good long time.

Which version is this? I didnt' see any blood in Ico at all, and the violence was all about whacking smoke men with a stick.

[Vaipon]

The kid's horns piss with blood when they are broken off.

Other than that though...

[Moodmon]

If only they'd put that on the front of the box. ICO: AN ELEGANT FAIRYTALE BUT DON'T WORRY, THERE ARE STILL KILLINGS

Are you sure they didn't put that on the dire US cover?

[iloveannie]

Well I've been reading about it for many many months. Edge, GamesTM and ntsc-uk all rave about it. I picked up the card copy a month or so ago but had only had a brief go.

So with MKDD sat on the shelf (almost where it deserves) I sat on the settee and started Ico properly. I've just (a few minutes ago) lit up the first tower. AWESOME is the only word to describe this title. How can it be possible to take a puzzle game and turn it into this?! I never want to let go of her hand!! This is where video games should be! This is pure evolution combined with innovation. Wonderful stuff

iloveannie

PS: This is one of those titles that makes me smile and realise why I fell in love with games in the first place.

[Gr0ver]

<needlessprovocation>**** camera though eh.</needlessprovocation>

[scottcr]

thought Ico was really good, but, had some flaws that really irritated me...

camera and smoke monsters.

The camera resulted in me plummeting to my death on a number of occassions, in one partiuclar occasion, sending quite far back to the nearest save point and really pissing me off...

Also, I felt as thought the spirt guys were a needless addition and an irritant more than anything else.

Other than that, it was beautiful... however, why is it always this and Rez that are used by gamers to show that they appreciate games that most people don't/didn't.... I'm sure there's other, more obscure ones out there.

[superkully]

I gave up on this game a few months back. I just didn't 'get' the puzzles in the way that you all seem to.

The crunch came when I spent an hour or so trying to light a stick from wall torches, only to find that, no, the designers didn't let you do that.

It's a nice game that I've tried hard to like but you're forced to think in the exact same way the designers want you to and that stinks.

[TheForce]

I really loved ICO, it a simple idea but it's brought so beautifully, really amazing, and that you had to look after Yorda was just excellent.

it's a shame though that games like ICO and REZ don't sell in big numbers and that a crap game like Enter the Matrix is the number one for weeks on the charts.

[Ady]

Ico and Rez are commonly name-checked because they're good games, not because they're 'obscure'.

[iloveannie]

Hey, I'm usually pretty crap at most games but am quite perplexed that a few here have found problems with Ico.

The camera? Works better than many other 'arty' examples I can think of (Biohazard, Silent Hill, etc). Never caused me to fall that's for sure.

As for which objects work and which don't? No real issues there either. The puzzles are very linear (don't read that as 'poor') and with so few objects within the game, piecing them together doesn't take too long. As with most puzzles a spell of time away from them usually brings forth the answer, or at least offers a fresh perspective.

Thinking in the same way as the designers? Ahh, like Mario, Tomb Raider (the good ones), Zelda, Biohazard, 'endless list'. This will always be an issue - although designers may include mulitple methods to solve problems. Bit like life really. Only ever so many ways to skin a cat in the end.

And the enemy? Well how much more critical could they be in adding tension to the game? Admittedly we could have seen the girl fall less times, thus creating panic when she did miss her hold. Otherwise I felt it worked well, with the dread of exploring far from her always present.

And finally big sales. Well I listen to music that I really enjoy, but does it sell big? Real tight bands that believe in what they're playing and play it incredibly well (not necessarily the music I listen to)? Hmm, can't remember the last time I saw them appear on a chart listing (please don't bother with a list highlighting my musical missings)

[karlidog]

ico's definitely at the top of my ps2-games-to-buy list... it's a bloody long list, since i've only had the ps2 for two weeks, but still...

the only thing i was wondering was whether the PAL version is squashed and bordered or if there's a 60hz option? if not, i'll wait til the big black box is chipped and hunt down a US copy (and put up with the hideous boxart), i think.

[Molloy]

I found Ico had plenty of replay value. Not because of features or unlockables but because its short. I enjoy starting the entire thing again. The same couldn't be said for most modern games. They're all too bloody long. Full of redundant sections that you wouldn't want to play over and over even if certain parts of the game were outstanding.

I know people seem to be very anti-arcade games now adays but alot of designers would do well to study up on them. Less is often more. Especially when replay comes into the equation.