I gotta say, after sinking about 4.5-5 hours into ICO, the design and architecture from the environment in The Last Guardian looks to have been inspired from that of the castle areas in this game. I'm getting the same kind of vibe now from ICO as I got when watching TLG trailers.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
The ICO and Shadow of the Colossus Collection |OT| Ueda *bow*
- Thread starter alr1ght
- Start date
Vustadumas
Banned
Such a flood of memories, when I first sat back down on that save couch. God, that music. One of my favorite tracks of all-time. Game is every bit as awesome now, as it was when I first played it.
TheBanditKing
Member
Carl said:
Awesome thanks! Also just found out the track goes to ICO not SotC, guess that means two OST's.
Knux-Future
Banned
Not a big fan of Ico. I cannot stand escort missions at all. Still it's a awesome looking game. I wish the co-op was unlocked from the start that way I could just watch my sister play it...probably still will.
SOTC is worth the purchase alone. So no biggy. Just ICO isn't for me...right now atleast.
Fixed.
SOTC and ICO ( don't have to play the game to know this) have beyond good OST's.
SOTC in particular makes you feel like a man(with grip strength...lol)
SOTC is worth the purchase alone. So no biggy. Just ICO isn't for me...right now atleast.
TheBanditKing said:
Fixed.
SOTC and ICO ( don't have to play the game to know this) have beyond good OST's.
SOTC in particular makes you feel like a man(with grip strength...lol)
hey_it's_that_dog
benevolent sexism
Are there any youtube videos of time trials (normal difficulty) from the HD collection? I watched the one for colossus 3 but it was the original version of the game where you can actually stab him more than once every 20 seconds.
Here's a video of someone doing HTA3:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E_T38gByxw
You'll see that this approach lets you get in 2-3 full stabs on the stomach vital right from the beginning.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E_T38gByxw
You'll see that this approach lets you get in 2-3 full stabs on the stomach vital right from the beginning.
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
It's always possible to eliminate them completely. Sometimes they keep coming for longer, but they will dry up eventually. Note that in places where it seems that they keep coming for long, you can and should always (or in most cases anyway) just run with Yorda towards those doors that she can open. The moment she gets to one of those doors, lightings coming out of them will disperse all the shadow creatures in that area.Angry Fork said:
I started my Castle Guide speed run for Ico last night and got up to the Windmill save point at 23:something, which is an OK time going by the time that people who have got that trophy already have posted.
I'm hoping that just following this guide will make things fairly straightforward. This guy finished in 1:32:54.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0r_oLXql0U&feature=youtu.be
I'm hoping that just following this guide will make things fairly straightforward. This guy finished in 1:32:54.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0r_oLXql0U&feature=youtu.be
Curufinwe said:
There was one listed at >1hr...surely that's the best bet!?
Is saving during the run OK? Seems it'd waste quite a bit of time but at least if you mess up you have a point to return to - in which case, is there a set of times for each save point so you know if you're 'on target'? And do you have to do it in one play-through?
goonergaz said:
The sub 1-hour run on youtube apparently uses the long jump glitch from the PAL version which is not in the HD version. Saving does cost some time but certain sections need to be done perfectly and the odds of screwing up are pretty high. These are the times I'm going by:
http://www.ps3trophies.org/forum/team-ico-collection-ico/126887-speed-run-time-savepoint-marks.html
SAVE 1 - Graveyard (0:16:00)
Skipped the Old Bridge and Crane save points and was unable to save at Trolley 2.
SAVE 2 - Windmill (0:23:00)
This save point is out of the way, but I would recommend it if you are unconfident about the sewer part like I was.
SAVE 3 - Stone Pillar (0:29:00)
Upon arrival
SAVE 4 - East Arena (0:34:45)
Upon arrival
SAVE 5 - East Arena (0:42:45)
Upon departure
SAVE 6 - Waterfall (0:56:45)
I made this save after having gone through the dreadful piston jump and waterwheel. You can easily beat this time if you are good at the jumps. It took me 12 tries for the piston and 2 for the waterwheel.
SAVE 7 - Water Tower (1:02:00)
Skipped the Gondola savepoint.
SAVE 8 - West Idol Stairs (1:10:45)
Upon arrival
SAVE 9 - Main Gate (1:21:00)
Final save point
Final time - 1:52:55
Skipped the Old Bridge and Crane save points and was unable to save at Trolley 2.
SAVE 2 - Windmill (0:23:00)
This save point is out of the way, but I would recommend it if you are unconfident about the sewer part like I was.
SAVE 3 - Stone Pillar (0:29:00)
Upon arrival
SAVE 4 - East Arena (0:34:45)
Upon arrival
SAVE 5 - East Arena (0:42:45)
Upon departure
SAVE 6 - Waterfall (0:56:45)
I made this save after having gone through the dreadful piston jump and waterwheel. You can easily beat this time if you are good at the jumps. It took me 12 tries for the piston and 2 for the waterwheel.
SAVE 7 - Water Tower (1:02:00)
Skipped the Gondola savepoint.
SAVE 8 - West Idol Stairs (1:10:45)
Upon arrival
SAVE 9 - Main Gate (1:21:00)
Final save point
Final time - 1:52:55
Windom Earle
Member
OMG, it's beautiful!
Yesasia delivery finally arrived.
Yesasia delivery finally arrived.
It's partially because of the increased resolution and partially because they used the PAL version as the source for this port.
PAL version pros:
- Hidden ending
- Light saber
- Translated Yorda speech on second playthrough
- Controllable Yorda on second playthrough
PAL version cons:
- Ending has been altered from the superior U.S. version edit
- The shadow creature effects aren't as "soft"
- The Queen's shadow effects have a weird green outline around them that wasn't in the U.S. version
- Some of the added puzzles (piston and waterwheel) detract more than they add to the U.S. version
PAL version pros:
- Hidden ending
- Light saber
- Translated Yorda speech on second playthrough
- Controllable Yorda on second playthrough
PAL version cons:
- Ending has been altered from the superior U.S. version edit
- The shadow creature effects aren't as "soft"
- The Queen's shadow effects have a weird green outline around them that wasn't in the U.S. version
- Some of the added puzzles (piston and waterwheel) detract more than they add to the U.S. version
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
Queen only has green outline while she's materializing, no? After that she looked exactly the same as I remembered her in that first cutscene. In fact, for all I could remember, she might have looked 100% identical considering how long ago I last played US version of Ico. If it wasn't for your post I'd never even know she was any different.ScOULaris said:
Shadow creatures may only look less soft because of the increased display resolution making particles look more defined. Again, they didn't seem anything out of ordinary to me, some are fuzzier looking than others, just as I remember it. They look like this on the emulator.
This goes for jett's comment above as well. I dunno, I find them just as ethereal looking as I remember them, but much of what I remember about the game has been colored by what it looks like on the emulator. Some of the creatures are definitely fuzzier and have more of that smoky look about them.
What I like the most about this version / pal version is that Yorda seems more attentive and smart in this one. She will point out things that will help you if you get stuck, she will voice back at you at times, and generally seems to do more things. This really makes US version seem unfinished, which was basically the case.
Fine Ham Abounds
Member
So I finally finished Ico and SotC this weekend.
Let me start by saying I enjoyed Ico. I can easily see why some people think it is better than SotC. If I had to say which world overall I thought was more memorable, it would be Icos castle over SotCs open world (well, except for the bridge leading into the temple). That said, the fact is I found Ico far less satisfying. If someone wanted to commit what would probably be considered blasphemy and bring the game's controls and camera into the new decade, I think it would allow me to get more immersed in the game. It has one of the best atmospheres I've felt in a long time, but I had to take long breaks to get through it without losing my patience. I know that Im spoiled, and I feel bad thinking that I unfortunately will likely never be able to appreciate this game as much as I probably would have if I had played it when it first came out.
I next moved on to SotC. I've frequently badmouthed this game over the years. Any game that gets raised up as an example that games are art makes me immediately skeptical. I tried it once. The game's performance made me physically ill. It seemed simple, almost unfinished. The world felt unnecessarily large and empty, as functional and interactive as a skybox. I fought the first colossus and wondered what the hype was about. "Epic" is more than just a synonym for big.
This HD collection presented me with the opportunity to maybe give the game a second chance. Like anyone, some of my sensibilities have changed over the years, so maybe Id be pleasantly surprised.
After watching the intro and being so happy about the performance, my journey began as it had several years ago, only this time without a headache. As each colossus fell before me and the seemingly empty world stretched out in front of me, things like Masterpiece or Best game ever made did not really pop into my mind. What did materialize however was an incredible respect for a team who managed to create one of the single most effective minimalist gaming experiences Ive had since 8-bit days. What years ago I saw as an empty lifeless world now made sense to me as an open experience with the fat trimmed away. The inclusion of tiny details only, like some creatures and fruit for increasing the only two important stats, or being able to do a trick while riding your horse, or hanging on to a fish underwater, was icing on the cake.
The game is a triumph of focusing on a few very specific concepts, exploring those concepts alone to the extent that they would apply in the game world, and then editing everything out that doesn't work as a part of the whole. It is an example that every single designer should experience to learn how little is necessary not only to make a good game, but to tell a story, realize a vision, and create an engaging and believable world.
Let me start by saying I enjoyed Ico. I can easily see why some people think it is better than SotC. If I had to say which world overall I thought was more memorable, it would be Icos castle over SotCs open world (well, except for the bridge leading into the temple). That said, the fact is I found Ico far less satisfying. If someone wanted to commit what would probably be considered blasphemy and bring the game's controls and camera into the new decade, I think it would allow me to get more immersed in the game. It has one of the best atmospheres I've felt in a long time, but I had to take long breaks to get through it without losing my patience. I know that Im spoiled, and I feel bad thinking that I unfortunately will likely never be able to appreciate this game as much as I probably would have if I had played it when it first came out.
I next moved on to SotC. I've frequently badmouthed this game over the years. Any game that gets raised up as an example that games are art makes me immediately skeptical. I tried it once. The game's performance made me physically ill. It seemed simple, almost unfinished. The world felt unnecessarily large and empty, as functional and interactive as a skybox. I fought the first colossus and wondered what the hype was about. "Epic" is more than just a synonym for big.
This HD collection presented me with the opportunity to maybe give the game a second chance. Like anyone, some of my sensibilities have changed over the years, so maybe Id be pleasantly surprised.
After watching the intro and being so happy about the performance, my journey began as it had several years ago, only this time without a headache. As each colossus fell before me and the seemingly empty world stretched out in front of me, things like Masterpiece or Best game ever made did not really pop into my mind. What did materialize however was an incredible respect for a team who managed to create one of the single most effective minimalist gaming experiences Ive had since 8-bit days. What years ago I saw as an empty lifeless world now made sense to me as an open experience with the fat trimmed away. The inclusion of tiny details only, like some creatures and fruit for increasing the only two important stats, or being able to do a trick while riding your horse, or hanging on to a fish underwater, was icing on the cake.
The game is a triumph of focusing on a few very specific concepts, exploring those concepts alone to the extent that they would apply in the game world, and then editing everything out that doesn't work as a part of the whole. It is an example that every single designer should experience to learn how little is necessary not only to make a good game, but to tell a story, realize a vision, and create an engaging and believable world.
Finally got mine thanks to the BB 25 deal.
Playing through SotC for the first time.
Based on seven bosses so far:
Pros:
Beautiful game
Music is great when ambient but also during battles it gets intense
Silent protagonist
Puzzle like bosses
Vast game world
Cons:
Default controls were ass but easily rectified
I absolutely hate the bow aiming system though, it is awful especially after TP on Wii with pointer controls.
Game world feels vast but empty. I want to explore everywhere but there doesn't seem to be a real point to so far
The bosses when you figure them out are awesome but one so far puzzled me a bit too much and got a little frustrating.
Combat is super shallow to the point of not really being there.
Loving the game so far but unless the rest of the game really blows me away I'm not sure.
Playing through SotC for the first time.
Based on seven bosses so far:
Pros:
Beautiful game
Music is great when ambient but also during battles it gets intense
Silent protagonist
Puzzle like bosses
Vast game world
Cons:
Default controls were ass but easily rectified
I absolutely hate the bow aiming system though, it is awful especially after TP on Wii with pointer controls.
Game world feels vast but empty. I want to explore everywhere but there doesn't seem to be a real point to so far
The bosses when you figure them out are awesome but one so far puzzled me a bit too much and got a little frustrating.
Combat is super shallow to the point of not really being there.
Loving the game so far but unless the rest of the game really blows me away I'm not sure.
DarknessTear
Banned
I wouldn't really call it combat, honestly. It's more like a violent way of solving the puzzle.
I never owned a PS2. I never played a single Final Fantasy game. The only GTA game I played is Chinatown Wars on the DS. The only Zelda games I played are Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks on the DS. I never played a RPG. I suck at FPS controls (but adored Mirror's Edge). I don't like fighting games. I don't own an Xbox 360. In short, I'm far from the hardcore gamer clichés, but I love videogames. And I'm thrilled I finally got to play ICO after reading so much about it.
It is such a complete, self-contained experience that I don't see myself revisiting it anytime soon, but I enjoyed every minute of it despite the flaws that turn into charms. It even caught my wife's attention, in a good way, which rather uncommon. She was pissed at the ending, but
.
I won't list all that's awesome (as in awe-inspiring) in this game, but I want to mention how much the first part of the game seems to have inspired Enslaved, while the last part looks to have been a big influence on Portal 2's
section. Couldn't get it out of my mind as I played last night.
Now onto Shadow of the Colossus, and bring on The Last Guardian!
It is such a complete, self-contained experience that I don't see myself revisiting it anytime soon, but I enjoyed every minute of it despite the flaws that turn into charms. It even caught my wife's attention, in a good way, which rather uncommon. She was pissed at the ending, but
the post-credits sequence cheered her up
I won't list all that's awesome (as in awe-inspiring) in this game, but I want to mention how much the first part of the game seems to have inspired Enslaved, while the last part looks to have been a big influence on Portal 2's
"back in time"
Now onto Shadow of the Colossus, and bring on The Last Guardian!
Anteater said:
There are some pictures earlier in the thread (note there's no pic of the disks which are also nice);
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=31179478&postcount=541
If it's worth it is totally up to you...personally I think it is a little expensive for what it is, I would have much pref. a similar re-packaging of the PS2 LE, but having said that it is nice and comes in a re-sealable cover (which is a little fiddly, but better than nowt!).
As a collector - well, as I have the PS2 LEs then it was a no-brainer to complete the set.
Windom Earle
Member
Patapwn said:
Impulse buy due to possible rarity in the future. Might bite me back, but making my money back at least shouldn't be a problem in a few months.
schennmu said:Impulse buy due to possible rarity in the future. Might bite me back, but making my money back at least shouldn't be a problem in a few months.
I was tempted to do the same, but I'm not convinced how rare they are, looking at the web you can still buy them now (a couple of weeks after launch) - and looking at initial JP charts there were around 78k (IIRC) sold in the first week, so there'a probably around 100k (or more) out there - around 1/5th the total end sales probably
Anteater said:
It really depends on the person and how much value they put on packaging aesthetics. On a practical level its basically a rip off at almost triple the price. The main thing going for it is that its fucking beautiful. The slip cover is fantastic and even the instruction manuals are nice. The bundled book is good (better if you can read japanese).
You're right. Honestly, I'm fascinated by how the word "combat" has been flung around in this thread.DarknessTear said:
When the games first came out everyone who played them was simply in awe at how different they were and how they stood up to the conventions of modern (at the time) games.
Now they have to be scrutinised and placed painfully alongside any game with a remotely similar mechanic. A mechanic such as, oh I dunno, brandishing a sword.
I'm not saying these games are perfect, but for goodness sake, saying the "combat" in ICO or SotC is shallow is like saying a paddling pool is shallow. It's not meant to be deep.
My Main Gate save was 1:23:35 so I was pretty confident about finishing in under 2 hours and getting the platinum. But when I finally got to save after finishing the game the Castle Guide trophy didn't pop, and then the time showed up as being 2:00:17.
So I had to do the last section again and I managed to cut almost three minutes off and finally get my third platinum.
So I had to do the last section again and I managed to cut almost three minutes off and finally get my third platinum.
leng jai said:
yes, as a package it's great with some fantastic artwork (the manuals are very nice and the art book contains a nice amount of pictorial things to lust over) - WRT price in JP it's surprisingly 'cheap' considering you can only get the game seperately anyway, in fact I think (from fuzzy memory) that this is cheaper than buying the 2 games seperately!
MoonsaultSlayer
Member
Played shadow last night in 3D and said "Whooooaa!"
#5 as it's coming at you? Holy hell was it incredible.
#5 as it's coming at you? Holy hell was it incredible.
SotC has really weird image quality at 1080p. Definitely is a must to set your PS3 to 720p every time you want to play that one.
BTW I'm really impressed by the remastered sound space in both games, just as much as the visuals. I'm hearing stuff I literally didn't hear before. Everything sounds impressively crystal clear.
DF said SotC had all kinds of framerate issues. ICO is silky smooth and even retains 1080p I think.
BTW I'm really impressed by the remastered sound space in both games, just as much as the visuals. I'm hearing stuff I literally didn't hear before. Everything sounds impressively crystal clear.
BrettWeir said:
DF said SotC had all kinds of framerate issues. ICO is silky smooth and even retains 1080p I think.
JLateralus
Member
goonergaz said:
I didn't think it was THAT bad. I played through about the first half before the battery in my 3D glasses died. It wasn't quite as smooth as without 3D, but nowhere near the PS2 version IMO.
MoonsaultSlayer
Member
To me, the 3D in shadow was perfect. Normally, the main menu is so bright, the bridge is blinded from view by the sunlight. Add 3D and the bridge is perfectly visible in the distance and stunning.
As for slowdown... if there was any, I didn't notice.
As for slowdown... if there was any, I didn't notice.
Philanthropist
Banned
goonergaz said:
Digital Foundry has recently nitpicked in an inventive way that there can be (rare) instances where streaming content from PS3's HDD can actually be slower than doing so from the Blu-ray drive (no examples provided though), so don't take them too seriously.
Similar threads
- Locked
- Poll