Shadow of the Colossus

Shadow of the Colossus

                I believe in the last game review, we went over what characteristics made a great video game; and I believe ‘simplicity’ was one of them. With great graphics and subtle background music, Shadow of the Colossus was definitely a simple-story game. You had one objective and one objective only. There were no ‘side quests’ or ‘side missions’ to be completed while you were fixated on the actual story, whereas in many other games you had the option to do so before moving on. Nope. This game has a one track mind and a one road story. This is a great game to play when you don’t want to worry about hidden items that may come handy in the future, extra missions that could answer small questions about the game itself or getting into unwanted fights.

                However, I don’t want to give the impression that the game is in any way easy, because to me, it wasn’t. For starters, the story to the game is quite simple and well known. You, as the main character, trudge up the mountainous stairs to a temple where you set a beautiful girl down on the altar. She was your lover… and she is dead. You pray to the gods for a way to bring her back to life and the gods give you a mission to make it happen: kill the colossal creatures that roam the earth. There are about 16 creatures you must fight and kill, and they are not small beasts. Oooh no. These guys are bigger than whales, and the fights are time consuming. For each colossal, there is a weak spot somewhere on its body. In order to kill it, you have to climb the tuffs of fur on its body and find it. Good luck.

                My thoughts? I love this game. Simple, quiet, beautiful landscapes and a horse (Agro) you can ride to the ends of the earth with, it gave me the feeling that I was exploring a long forgotten land. It’s a nice feeling.