Shadow of the Colossus Introduction 1/2 - Playstation 2
0Shadow of the Colossus is one of the (often) critically acclaimed action/adventure titles that attempted to redefine how people look at the genre, and is also the spiritual successor to the PS2 title, Ico.
The game centers around the tale of a heroic youth known as Wander, who along with his blessed sword of legend and trusty steed (Agro) must defeat gargantuan colossi in an attempt to save the soul of a maiden known as Mono, so she may once again interact in the world of the living. Guided by few supporting "characters" such as the ancient entity Dormin, you'll "wander" vast landscapes in search of giants to defeat. The game is unusual in that there is little fighting and Colossi are the main focus of the game (they have different characteristics and habits). The game's distinct artistic style and feeling of loneliness, sense of scale, compelling soundtrack and clever bosses make the game enjoyable even in spite of some of its "problems".
Over time, SotC has also grown to have its skeptics for (understandable) reasons. Some things that are commonly addressed is the erratic framerate, sometimes almost impossible to manage camera, and the controls of using Agro (which was noted as adding realism in the game, but not too much as to overshadow playability just for the sake of it). Some other complaints towards the game was its length and lack of replayability. Some found the game to not simply have enough meat on its bones and complained about some of the repetition and great simplicity. Overall however, I think this is a game that's worth playing at least once. There's something awe-inspiring about climbing bosses as large as mountains just to exploit a few weak spots or jumping on a flying colossi and experiencing the turbulence of high speed flight while hanging on for dear life.
This series of videos just goes from the beginning to the end of the first boss. Enjoy.