Poll: Shadow of the Colossus -- Where do you Stand?

[Stabby Joe]

Overall I think it's fantastic, however being the internet we can only hate things so the legitimate flaws for me personally would be:

- Camera on some fights
- Pop-in even on the HD remake
- Extras are useless
- Replaying certain fights NORMALLY requires multiple saves

Some are minor than others of course.

Plot wise I like the minimalism and ambiguity of it UNTIL the director straight up said it was an Ico prequel despite being the former prior to that.

 

[Nazulu]

I agree with you the camera and the controls can be an absolute pain at times (even just getting in that exact spot to get on the horse), as well as the last 2 colossi in particular give me the shits because I don't believe it's fun just trying to reach difficult spots to stab.

However, I still find it an amazing experience that I recommend to everyone. No game is perfect, but this has better atmosphere and offers something interesting that no other game does, and you can get used to the control and camera in this because it isn't too difficult and the punishments aren't really harsh. I mean, you self heal for fucks sake, and the saves are usually close by.

Sorry Scrivener, as in I feel sorry the controls ruined the experience for you. I played this last year for the first time when I finally obtained a copy and me and a friend stayed up all night having a great time. Also, you have to admit the soundtrack is beast, possibly the best.

 

[zarker]

I hated the controls, even worse than Dark Souls on PC. Played it on PS3. Maybe it's because I grew up on keyboard and mouse but I quit and returned the game by the 3rd colossus. I can adapt to bad KB&M, beat Dark Souls with em, but SotC was too much.

 

[xPixelatedx]

I never really had any problems with the controls. Which seems to happen a lot in games with 'poor control', I dunno, maybe I just adapt very quickly, I mean, I have been playing games for more than 20 years, so that might have something to do with it.

You press left, you move left. You press and hold grab, you hold onto things.

I guess people think that is dated since everything now is touch screen and/or motion control gimmick nonsense. haha

 

[rob_simple]

Shadow of the Colossus was one of the first games I ever completed, 100%, including Time Attack mode which was a pain in the arse for a couple of the colossi (especially the third one where, to save time, you had to glitch his club so he'd toss you up in the air).

Anyway, my point: I never had a problem with Agro. When he is running towards you if you hold the grab button as you jump Wander will grab onto the horse just like he latches onto colossi fur. If you were aware of that and still had trouble then I submit that it is error on the user's part, not the game.

That being said, I did struggle with the controls on the HD re-release, but only because they've since been done better in other games and I was used to being able to do things that I couldn't in SotC.

Really, this kind of comes off the same as those 'Half Life ain't so great...' threads that occasionally pop up.

 

[Maledictus010]

I've only played/finished the PS2 PAL version but I thought it was beautiful. The controls did sometimes make me curse the game (the horse-mount thing was indeed annoying) but that was the only thing that frustrated, and it never took away from the overall feel of wonder. The game as a whole is a wonderful experience. The artwork, atmosphere, music, overall sense of sadness, it all came together for me as a perfect experience. If a game allows me to feel like part of it rather than just playing it, it's good. SotC made me want to be there, to live in that world. One of my favorites so far.

 

[The_Echo]

The controls aren't dated. They're different. How exactly do you date a control scheme which has no history barring one game? I'll back that up by saying I played Shadow of the Colossus for the first time last year and never once did I think "oh God, these controls are so 2005."

That aside, I like the controls. They aren't the easiest thing to handle at first, but the world outside of Colossi battlegrounds is completely devoid of opposition, giving you all the time and space you need to get a handle on them.

Never had a problem with the camera. I'm not even sure what you're complaining about. Agro was weird at first, but easily capable of getting used to.

In a game like this, the controls are designed with a very specific intent behind it. You don't say, "I want X to call the horse, instead of jump" without having a reason why.

 

[GoaThief]

I don't actually know, I downloaded SOTC and Ico thanks to PSN+ and attempted to play the former twice and literally fallen asleep both times basically before the game proper starts. Ico I've played to the Crane over a couple of sessions and found it becoming increasingly tedious. Half heartedly running around a bare grey castle like a headless chicken attempting to figure out what I'm supposed to be doing with this chandelier I've eventually knocked down is not something I find appealing nor a good way to spend my time. Not to mention babysitting some zombie AI all the while.

What am I missing with these games? Please tell me I'm doing something wrong as if I'm not these are some of the most overrated titles I've ever had the displeasure of playing.

 

[Zeh Don]

What am I missing with these games? Please tell me I'm doing something wrong as if I'm not these are some of the most overrated titles I've ever had the displeasure of playing.

No, I agree - at least with Ico, and partly with Shadow of the Colossus.

I think a lot of it is the sparseness of the experiences - you're free to inject your own thoughts, feelings and ideas into the experience. In fact, I'd argue that they require it in order to be "complete" experiences. But, it comes across as "boring" and downright "lazy" most of the time.

Ico is a contender for one of the most boring games I've ever played. I figured out every puzzle two seconds after looking at it, but due to the scale of the environment it takes fifteen minutes to actually carry out the solution. And, my good Lord in heaven, the ladder climbing and endless running in that game. Torture.

Shadow of the Colossus is, in my humble opinion, a great game but very over-rated. The sparseness of it's experience works on a thematic level, which isn't everyone's cup of tea to be honest, but the game still has a "game" element and so can be enjoyed on a few different levels. I really liked the atmosphere, the battles and the scale.
The story didn't do much for me, as it was ripped entirely from Golvellius (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golvellius. Yeah, that's right Team Ico, I'm one of the six people who has played Golvellius, you thieving bastards.).

Shadow is easily the better of the two, but I understand totally whenever someone doesn't like it. I hate when people call it a "Masterpiece", when it's really just well made games without any story and the developers hoping the player will invent one for them.

 

[Hazy]

[HEADING=1]ARGO IS FEMALE.[/HEADING]

Sorry. I find it mildly infuriating.

I don't think movies have genders, pal.

Oh, wait, you mean Agro? Yeah, that horse is a female.

 

[Nazulu]

Shadow is easily the better of the two, but I understand totally whenever someone doesn't like it. I hate when people call it a "Masterpiece", when it's really just well made games without any story and the developers hoping the player will invent one for them.

I agree with you it's a little over-rated but that's because of some game play issues. However, games don't need a story to be the best because there are many different elements in which games can excel. I know there are people who need a story to be entertained but that's them. Hell, I find most games with more in depth story's have worse game play so I don't find them as re-playable. Even then, sometimes a good story can fall flat without good characters, pacing, or even delivery.

 

[KOMega]

The game is a bit dated, because well... it is kinda old.
But it's still a good one.

I never had trouble with the controls or the controls when riding Agro, although my brother seemed to have a lot of trouble with her.

My favorite battle was with the flying snake thing with the sandbags. Such a wide open space for running. And jumping from the horse onto another speeding object feels so good.

Shadow is easily the better of the two, but I understand totally whenever someone doesn't like it. I hate when people call it a "Masterpiece", when it's really just well made games without any story and the developers hoping the player will invent one for them.

I agree with you it's a little over-rated but that's because of some game play issues. However, games don't need a story to be the best because there are many different elements in which games can excel. I know there are people who need a story to be entertained but that's them. Hell, I find most games with more in depth story's have worse game play so I don't find them as re-playable. Even then, sometimes a good story can fall flat without good characters, pacing, or even delivery.

Games with minimalistic stories are starting to grow on me.
Shadow of the colossus does have a story imo, but the main reason we were there was for the colossus anyways, so whatever, its all good.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

I wouldn't hop to say dated, but I wasn't going to put the glorious tag on it.

I didn't mind the controls or the camera. The sword beam was kind of stupid. I still think the horse was the best horse controls in any game I've ever played.

But the game felt half-finished. There wasn't any story or dialogue besides the voice of the ancients--which wasn't even voiced. You spent several minutes before each colossus running through lifeless landscapes with nothing to challenge you. The bosses were the only thing the game had, the game's only NPCs and the only thing the gameplay uses, and there was sixteen of them. Really good bosses, mind you. But the game wasn't anything but follow the sword beam, kill this colossus, follow this sword beam, kill this colossus, repeat until sixteen are dead.

 

[Mullac]

The camera is the true boss of the game, nuff said

I gotta agree. I thought the camera was supremely awesome, coping really well with the different angles and heights the playing need to be looking at.

 

[KOMega]

I wouldn't hop to say dated, but I wasn't going to put the glorious tag on it.

I didn't mind the controls or the camera. The sword beam was kind of stupid. I still think the horse was the best horse controls in any game I've ever played.

But the game felt half-finished. There wasn't any story or dialogue besides the voice of the ancients--which wasn't even voiced. You spent several minutes before each colossus running through lifeless landscapes with nothing to challenge you. The bosses were the only thing the game had, the game's only NPCs and the only thing the gameplay uses, and there was sixteen of them. Really good bosses, mind you. But the game wasn't anything but follow the sword beam, kill this colossus, follow this sword beam, kill this colossus, repeat until sixteen are dead.

That is indeed the point of the game

I don't know. I think having random things challenge you between the colossus would have produced a much different experience rather than enhancing what we already have. (Unless you also count hunting the lizards as a challenge. I want your tail, stupid lizard.)

I like the environments. If I can successfully perch myself on top of something, I can probably take a screenshot (if I could) and use that as a wonderful desktop wallpaper. Very scenic.
Still, that's just my personal taste.

 

[Xariat]

I played it for the first time less than a year ago when I got a ps2 emulator to work and I needed some games to play (I didn't play a whole lot of ps2 when I was young so I thought I'd do some catching up). I've gotta say, I didn't have any troubles with the controls at all, sure there were frustrating moments (falling off the final boss for example), but I never started blaming the controller for that.

 

[thesilentman]

The controls worked fine, even for controlling Agro, for which I simply thought that I was controlling Wander riding the horse instead of the horse itself.

*Ahem*

[HEADING=1]ARGO IS FEMALE.[/HEADING]

Sorry. I find it mildly infuriating.

FINE. Herself. ARE YOU HAPPY NOW??! =D

 

[PoolCleaningRobot]

Weird... I just bought and played the hd version of this game yesterday and all I could think was, "da fuck is up with these controls?" that said, I chose dated but still playable. I can tell I'll eventually get used to it

 

[Spiritmaster]

I found the game enjoyable enough, up until the 7th(?) colossus. I was rather young when I played and the idea of going into the water with that giant electric eel thing was a bit too much for me. Shame I never beat it I guess, but still, no one likes eels so...