I'm not normally one to enjoy quiet, introspective games like Ico and the like, and that aspect of this game doesn't interest me. Nonetheless, I feel like the appeal of this game is just in the sheer spectacle of fighting these colossi, and everything else if just icing on the cake to frame these cinematic boss fights. Truly, nothing else I have experienced has been able to recreate the scale of these monsters, while also having an engaging gameplay system that meshes with that scale. Too many games throw a big boss at you, but really, you just interact with a hitbox it throws at you every now and then. In this game, those giant bosses are levels unto themselves, ones that you can interact with any way you want; very few scripted moments here. It is all up to you to square up to these skyscrapers, then figure out how to shiv them to death. Nothing else has really captured that same mixture of gameplay blended with cinematic scale.

The roster of colossi can be a bit hit or miss, with not every one of them being very memorable or enjoyable to fight, but on the whole, these bosses are fantastic, and rank among some of the best boss encounters within the medium. They each present a unique puzzle to solve in order to beat them, and then ask you to prove that you can actually execute on that plan. The plot itself also manages to be engaging despite how minimal it is, though it's hardly the main draw of this game, at least for me.

What you come to this game for can vary, but a lot of the things in between the boss fights can be a bit tedious for those, like me, that are unengaged by the quiet moments of exploration and travel between points on the map. This game is all about the colossi, and those fights offer some of the most unique gaming experiences I have ever encountered, and remain some of the most cinematic boss battles I have ever experienced.

I do not remember what my first Fumito Ueda game was. I played the remake of Shadow of the Colossus before the original, and it was the only game I have ever been frustrated at. The controls and some obtuse colossi puzzles made it very frustrating. This is by design, to make the player feel small, weak, and meaningless, and perhaps at the time, I was not ready for this. This combined with the normal, modern visuals did not make for an experience that I was eager to revisit.

I played both Ico and SoTC via the Japanese Ico & Shadow of the Colossus Collection: Limited Box. Upon revisiting this with Ueda's signature art style and lighting, and also being familiar with the colossi, made for a significantly better experience. I do not speak Japanese, and not knowing what is being said improves the atmosphere in my opinion. Similarly, with the Japanese version of Ico, the Runic language is untranslated on the first playthrough, leaving it up to the player to form an idea of what is being said and the story. Upon a second playthrough, the Runic language is translated.

Without going into a lengthy review of a game where everything has already been said, this game is a miracle in all aspects of game development.