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    rsmithca's Shadow of the Colossus (PS2)

    [January 31, 2007 07:17:59 PM]
    Well, I've beaten Shadow of the Colossus, so I can now give a complete analysis of what I think about the game. As I mentioned in my first post, this is a short game. However, it is so engrossing and fun that I can easily see myself playing this title quite a few times. The colossi are a thrill to see and even more of a thrill to climb and defeat. And because reaching and fighting the colossi are the only objectives in this game, you don't have to worry about starting over again and having to complete a multitude of side quests and tedious tasks before getting to the meat of the game. The world of the game is vast and is made up of mountains, forests, valleys, lakes, deserts, and temples. Just exploring the landscape is pleasurable in and of itself. The designers stuck with earthy colors - various shades of brown, green, red, and the occasional blue (for water) permeate the lands. This creates what I consider to be a very tranquil and calming atmosphere during exploration, which is in complete contrast to the invigorating battles with the colossi. In terms of overall difficulty, I'd say this game is fairly challenging. It does get progressively more so (the last battle is especially difficult!!!), but I never got so frustrated that I wanted to stop playing. The number of challenges include:
    1) Controlling the character - the controls are very touchy, and if you aren't careful your character can fall off a ledge or a colossus very easily.
    2) Grip meter - you have a meter that begins to shrink while you are holding on to something, and you must regain your footing before that meter runs out or you will fall off. A colossus will not idly stand there while you climb it; it will try to shake you off, thus testing your ability to find places to rest while your grip meter rebuilds.
    3) Finding a colossus - in the beginning this is not very hard to do, as your sword emits a light that guides you to the next location as long as you remain under sunlight. However, as you progress, it gets harder and harder to locate the next colossus because the paths become more hidden, you can't always use the sword to guide you because there is little sunlight, and sometimes the light from the sword is misleading because the path is not that linear.
    4) Defeating a colossus - again, initially not so hard. All you have to do is scale the colossus, locate its sigil of power (its weak point), and stab it until the colossus dies. However, subsequent colossi are more difficult to scale, get more aggressive, and some have multiple sigils that must each be destroyed.
    There are some things that help make the game less stressful: you slowly regain health when hurt (no need for healing items), your horse allows you to traverse most of the land very fast, you have unlimited arrows, and falling down - even off of a giant colossus - does not do nearly as much damage as you might expect it to. Overall I'd say this game has a good balance of difficulty; not too hard for most players, but challenging enough to make it a very rewarding experience when you complete it. The ending is a bit confusing and leaves some questions to be answered, but it is still a very well done game.

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    [January 30, 2007 09:15:14 PM]
    Shadow of the Colossus for the PS2 is a short game. I got about halfway through the game in less than 5 hours. I believe the curtness was a conscious decision by the developers. This game is described as a strategy/action adventure game. You do not level up, you do not gain new weapons, and there are very few characters introduced as it progresses. I believe this was also not a coincidence. This game was meant to be immediately accessible to players. After a beginning cut scene that partly explains what your goal is and how you are to go about it, you are thrust into this forbidden land with only your horse Agro, a mystical sword, and a bow with arrows. What separates this game from any other is the fact that there are no enemies other than the giant colossi that you must defeat. Here are some specifics about the game so far...

    Gameplay - essentially the game has a very simple formula: locate the next colossus using your sword of light, find a way to reach it, then locate its weak point/s and defeat it. While this description of the gameplay might make it seem too easy or uninteresting, this is definitely not the case. First of all, with the exception of the first couple colossi, they are not easy to find. The paths are deceptively simple, but each subsequent one is harder to locate. And once you find the colossus, you must find a way to scale it. This too gets harder, and it doesn't help that your character, Wander, is extremely susceptible to falling and slipping all over the place. The major thrill for me was climbing these huge creatures and finally managing to stab their mystic sigil (their weak spot).

    Characters - your character, Wander, is brave but somewhat awkward in his movements. I think the developers wanted to challenge the player by making him or her deal with the awkwardness of Wander and make it harder to scale the colossi. The colossi are gigantic creatures composed of a combination of earth, stone, and fur (yes, fur), and they are a sight to behold. Some are passive, while others are aggressive and will attack you as soon as they see you.

    Story: Don't know much right now. The story takes a back seat to the gameplay. All I know is that I'm trying to revive my loved one by defeating the 16 colossi. Hopefully I can say more in my second log.
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    Status

    rsmithca's Shadow of the Colossus (PS2)

    Current Status: Finished playing

    GameLog started on: Tuesday 30 January, 2007

    GameLog closed on: Wednesday 31 January, 2007

    Opinion
    rsmithca's opinion and rating for this game

    A timeless classic that I will return to again and again

    Rating (out of 5):starstarstarstarstar

    Related Links

    See rsmithca's page

    See info on Shadow of the Colossus

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