Shadow of the Colossus

(written mar 4, 2018)

What a chilling sight the unfamiliar is. Foreignness is one of the sturdiest pillars of fear, the stepping stone of anxiety and intimidation, bubbling over into xenophobic hostility. The unknown is the invisible hand that guides all wars, the paradoxical motive for and deterrent of nuclear holocaust.

It would be wrong to call Shadow of the Colossus a horror game, despite the conceptual boogeyman it presents. but “unsettling” is the perfect word to describe director Fumito Ueda’s quasi-prequel of ICO. When taking control of Wander, a warrior(?) saving(??) a girl named Mono from the clutches of doom(???), the player becomes literally unable to settle into the landscape he treks. Half of the game is riding the horse, Agro, in a windy silence, letting the player think while reminding that their thoughts are all they have here. Only until Wander comes across a colossus, incomprehensible beasts born from the earth, does he find purpose, but little presence, within Ueda’s world. He leaves no mark except for the final stab in the colossal craniums; no more than a pesky insect with unrelenting venom.


When the player feels Shadow of the Colossus, they feel emptiness. Stairs and pillars are tripled in size. Feeling the pierce of a sword in mossy flesh is a rough and ugly experience. Everything about Shadow of the Colossus screams “you shouldn’t be here,” but the words fly past Wander and land on player’s ears. Riding horseback across chasms of dirt and scaling coats of colossus fur become one in the same action: a provincial rape far worse than any political pillage. This is Shadow of the Colossus‘ narrative, not meant to center around the player but to invade them. The game wouldn’t continue if not for the inky tendrils that pierce Wander’s heart.

Critics have debated the complicity players have in playing Shadow of the Colossus, but there seems to be little choice for player’s to agree or disagree with the game. I believe Shadow of the Colossus to be a story spoken through play, but spoken nonetheless. It’s a story meant to be felt around, get a sense of it’s scope, not for immersion but to read deeper into the tragedy. Even then, Shadow of the Colossus isn’t afraid to admit that, at the end of the day, it’s pretty damn cool to fight the colossi, and provides extra difficulty and time attack modes post-game; a dissonant design choice, sure, but that appreciation of design is something many games with this bleak of a tone opt out of.

Now for the meat on these once-ancient bones: Bluepoint does a remarkable job in this remake. There’s no question that this is the definitive version of Shadow of the Colossus, it looks and plays more beautifully than ever, but there’s a part of me that can’t help but feel something is lost in translation. I played the PS3 version to prepare for this remake, and I find myself almost missing the bleached muddiness, the emptiness left by a lack of rendering ability of the original. The remake adds meticulous detail to every inch of the world, but sometimes luscious scenery doesn’t quite seem to fit.

There’s much to be said about the preservation of game history, but I digress. What matters is that even when given a brand-new facelift, Shadow of the Colossus can still stand on it’s own monstrous legs as an epic tragedy told like no other.

Shadow of the Colossus is seen as one of the greatest games of all time. When it came out for the PS2 in 2005, it blew many people away. The 2018 remake is no exception.

The story tells of a man dubbed as "Wanderer" going to a place known as "The Forbidden Land" with his horse, Agro, to revive a dead woman named Mono. His connection to her is never made clear. However, a popular theory is that she holds some form of romantic interest in Wanderer. To revive her, he is tasked with exploring The Forbidden Land, finding, and then slaying 16 Giants known as Colossi. The plot is very simple but it contains an out-of-left field ending that blew me away.

The graphics are so beautiful. The PS2 version looked good for its time but it still had its own issues. With the remake, the graphics are stunning. I wouldn't call it as impressive as the original due to the fact that games in 2018 look just as good now. However, it still is very beautiful.

The music is just insane. One of my favorite video game soundtracks now. It gives me literal chills just listening to it.

Now with the controls. The gameplay is centered around your stamina or your "Grip" during fights where you gotta be holding onto the Colossus, you gotta regulate your grip so you don't fall. The Grip can be increased with Lizard Tails and defeating the Colossi. However, it goes up very little which keeps you at your toes. This goes the same for your health. It's also about wind-up. The longer you wind up the more damage you will inflict. But it's also something you gotta regulate with your grip.

The controls on the PS2 version are infamous for being very clunky and weird. Unfortunately, the controls in the remake are no exception. It's definitely better. But getting on your horse, climbing, shooting your bow, and using your sword is still a bit hard to do correctly and it's easily the biggest issue with the experience.

The game is short but it is well worth the playthrough. It's a very sad game because of the fact that these Colossi weren't doing anything wrong, to begin with. It's a story that makes you question if you are the hero or not. It's a story about selfishness (At least that's how I viewed it)

The best part about this game is how fighting the Colossi makes you feel so insignificant and small. The game has issues, sure. But when that triumphant music picks up while you climb on the backs of these creatures... Nothing feels more satisfying than that