Video Game Review: 'Shadow of the Colossus'

Film critic Roger Ebert published an entry on his online Chicago Sun-Times journal back on April 16, 2010, titled “Video games can never be art.”

The legendary critic made a lot of enemies in the video game world that day, an outcome he probably anticipated. Now, I’ve never put much stock into his comments, simply because art is such a subjective form of expression. Even Ebert posits that his opinions shouldn’t upset the gaming public, as they are just that: opinions.

“Do they require validation? In defending their gaming against parents, spouses, children, partners, co-workers or other critics, do they want to be able to look up from the screen and explain, ‘I'm studying a great form of art?’ Then let them say it, if it makes them happy,” Ebert writes.

Still, it’s a fun debate to further, and I’d like to add my own entry into the fray: Team ICO’s 2005 Playstation 2 masterpiece, “Shadow of the Colossus.”

I received “The ICO and Shadow of the Colossus Collection” as a birthday gift from my brother a couple of years ago, but only got around to playing it rather recently. I had originally intended to tackle “ICO” first, but “Shadow” proved far too intriguing to wait for.

“Shadow of the Colossus” follows Wander, a young man who travels with his trusty horse, Agro, to the Forbidden Land in order to resurrect a maiden named Mono, presumably his lover. A disembodied voice tells Wander that this can only be accomplished if the hero defeats the 16 colossi that inhabit the Forbidden Land. The voice also warns that a great price may be involved in the resurrection.

Taking control of Wander, the player proceeds to defeat, one by one, each unique colossus. Some are humanoid in nature while others resemble creatures, and all possess distinctly different weaknesses that the player must discern and exploit.

More than any game I have played in recent memory, “Shadow” feels like a retro game in a newer game’s clothing. Aside from a very rudimentary tutorial given just before encountering the first colossus, the game’s controls are left to the player to figure out. The game’s instruction manual provides more insights into the initial story than the actual game does, much like the many NES games of yore.

It proved surprisingly refreshing to be dropped into a world like this one, with very little direction or handholding. Admittedly, in most other games, I’d list this as a fault, but the way “Shadow” comes together as a complete package justifies the lack of direction.

While the Forbidden Land is certainly one of the most beautiful ever conceived for a video game, it is uninhabited by humans. Wander is the only living person in it, and his only companion is Agro. The lack of any extensive tutorial serves to further the feeling of loneliness and, consequently, companionship with Wander’s steed.

The Forbidden Land is a quietly beautiful place, with the ruins and remnants of a civilization long gone peppered throughout the landscape. Small creatures also inhabit the land, including lizards, fish, birds and more.

The only enemies Wander faces, however, are the 16 hulking colossi. Traveling from the Shrine of Worship to each subsequent colossus fight is fun, and allows the player to absorb the wonder and majesty of the forgotten land. But the crux of the game, as its name suggests, is battling the colossi.

Though it took me one or two fights to finally get the hang of the game’s controls, “Shadow”’s battles are simply exhilarating. Each colossus is unique, and most require a great deal of trial and error to figure out just how to go about bringing them down. Frustration sets in rather often, at least it did for me, but the feeling accomplishment that comes along with finally killing each colossus far outweighs the desire to throw the controller. The sense of scale in these battles is unprecedented, and the fact that the HD remaster’s framerate remains mostly constant is very impressive, even on the powerful PS3.

The game’s controls are far from perfect, however. The control scheme employed by “Shadow” is perhaps its biggest misstep. It would be easy to blame the game’s age, but 2005 was not all that long ago. Other games of this type have employed better control schemes, and “Shadow” would’ve done well to look at their influence when crafting its controls.

That said, most players tend to have a moment in which the controls and the game mechanics just “click.” For me, that moment came sometime during the third colossus battle. From then on, the controls didn’t give me many problems, though I had a few frustrating moments here and there during the remainder of the game.

One problem that is never quite remedied is that of the camera. The right thumb stick controls the camera, but for some strange, inexplicable reason, it bounces right back when the thumb stick is released.

Visually and aurally, “Shadow” is a masterpiece, through and through. The visuals appear a little dated today, even on the “ICO and Shadow of the Colossus” HD remaster I played, but that can’t diminish their beauty, power and minimalist simplicity.

Composer Kow Otani composed and arranged the game’s entire score, and it still stands as a monumental triumph in video game music. The score only plays during cutscenes and colossus battles, leaving the rest of the game ambient and silent, save for sound effects. When the fully orchestrated score does kick in, however, it’s utter perfection, and should go down in gaming history as one of the best of all time.

Almost every element in “Shadow of the Colossus” contributes to its status as a modern gaming masterpiece, from its sparse, minimalist and gorgeous landscape to its sweeping score to its simultaneous feelings of loneliness and companionship. The control scheme and camera issues do mar the game, but these problems are easily overlooked when one considers the wonderful heights the game reaches in every other aspect.

“Shadow of the Colossus” is a game that demands to be played. A former host on a Podcast I frequently listen to once said that “Shadow of the Colossus” is part of the “gaming literature.” It’s a must-play for fans of the medium, and aside from that, it’s an immensely satisfying experience on its own. The game is easier to find now than ever, with the HD collection on store shelves and PS2 versions in abundant supply. If you have a PS2 or PS3, then you have no excuse: pick up this game, and see where it takes you.

The big ones

As I tweeted a few days ago, I'm far more excited for 2013's television offerings than its movie ones. However, that isn't to say there aren't some huge movie events on the horizon. Both of these trailers have been out for some time now, but I'm going to post them anyway, because they're two of the best trailers I've seen in quite some time, for the two movies I'm most excited for in 2013. Enjoy the trailers for Man of Steel and Star Trek Into Darkness.

Dovahbear!

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a great game, in a lot of ways. It also drove me a little crazy, in potentially more ways. I have a feeling it would've been better if I could've played as a drunken bear.

I just learned about this over at Kotaku, in an article about an actual mod for the game featuring the Dovahbear.

Book Review: 'Steve Jobs'

Walter Isaacson is a great biographer, but I don't envy him one bit.

The man has written biographies on some of the most recognizable names in our history textbooks: Benjamin Franklin, Albert Einstein, Henry Kissinger. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to do justice to a person's life in a few hundred pages.

I haven't read Isaacson's other biographies, but I'm guessing the late Steve Jobs did. Read a few chapters of Isaacson's 2011 book that attempts to encapsulate the Apple co-founder's life, and it's quickly obvious why Jobs chose Isaacson for the task.

A quick glance at the cover (shown above this post) and it's immediately clear that Jobs had a hand in choosing it. It's aesthetically simple, and yet it conveys the intensity contained within. It's a simple photo, taken by Albert Watson for Fortune Magazine in 2006, topped with the title and Isaacson's name, typed in simple Helvetica.

Jobs had a hand in designing the cover, but he apparently gave Isaacson full license to write what the author saw fit. It definitely shows. The author makes no attempt to sugar-coat what became known as Jobs' "reality distortion field," or the man's penchant for being a complete asshole at times. He writes of Jobs' immense successes and resounding failures, in both his private and professional lives.

Isaacson's account comes from dozens of interviews with Jobs, along with accounts from hundreds of family members, business colleagues, friends, enemies and more. Much of Jobs' story is told in smaller, anecdotal pieces, and it's an elegant, effective method for capturing such an influential man's life in just a few hundred pages.

I'll admit that, as a reader, I was initially far more interested in Jobs' involvement in making the products I use today (I use an iMac at work, I'm typing this review on an iPad and I use my iPhone for more tasks than I care to admit) than I was in his personal life. By expertly interweaving these parts of Jobs' life, Isaacson makes them one, and I was truly intrigued whenever the author brought Jobs' home life into the fold.

I still found Jobs' product creation to be the most interesting aspect, however. It's why we know who he is in the first place, after all. I was especially engrossed later on in the book, after Jobs returned from his hiatus from Apple to revamp the company's personal computer lines and to create such revolutions as the iPod, iPhone and iPad.

The most notable accomplishment of "Steve Jobs" the book is the fact that, by the end, I felt like I had at least a small handle on who Jobs was, as a private person and as an innovator. That's a monumental feat in and of itself, and Isaacson should be commended for achieving it.

"Steve Jobs" is more than worth a read, especially for the Apple faithful. It's an accurate, unflinching portrayal of the man behind Apple, and while I'm sure Isaacson skipped some notable points, he more than makes up for it with the content he did think to put in. To capture anyone's life in a book is monumentally difficult; to capture Steve Jobs' took something spectacular. Bravo, Walter Isaacson, for achieving something of that magnitude.

I'm back.

Hello everyone!

It's been ages since I've blogged anything on here (since March 4, 2011, to be exact), but I've had a hankering to post some stuff for a while now, and some inspiration from a very special someone has prompted me to do so. I'll update this space as often as I can remember to do so. I hope you enjoy what I write.

Where Else to Read My Stuff

Big news for me: last week, I was hired on at the Lynden Tribune as its new sports reporter/editor. I interned with the Tribune back in the summer of 2008 and freelanced for its sister paper, the Ferndale Record-Journal (now the Ferndale Record) last spring. I'll begin job shadowing on Monday and will officially take over on Wednesday. So excited to start! Feel free to check out their Web site, LyndenTribune.com.

Also, since this past October, I've been writing reviews here and there for Reset Games, a mom-and-pops video game store located in Bellingham and Tulalip. Their Web site recently saw a major revamp, which gave it a very IGN-esque vibe. I've reviewed Fallout: New Vegas and Call of Duty: Black Ops so far, and I'll be doing Duke Nukem Forever and Portal 2 this spring. Be sure to surf on over to ResetGames.com, especially if you're into retro gaming.

Video Game Review: 'Mass Effect 2'

When my brother finished Mass Effect 2 for the Xbox 360, he told me it was the best movie he’d experienced in 2010. Me being the Playstation 3 owner, I was quite jealous. Thankfully, BioWare threw me a bone.

The developer’s masterful RPG has finally graced the Playstation 3, and it just might be the best game I've ever played. I don't say that lightly. I've waited years for a game to come along and bring with it the quality needed to dethrone The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and this could be that game.

Mass Effect 2 is the middle entry in BioWare's epic RPG trilogy, which began in 2007 with the original Mass Effect for the Xbox 360 and PC. The sequel begins with the untimely death of Commander Shepard, the player-character and protagonist of the first game. Through some science fiction magic, Shepard is brought back to life to fight the Reapers, a sentient race of machines who come around every 50,000 years or so to wipe out all life in the Milky Way.

Visually, games have been edging closer and closer to films for a long time. Though it is extremely beautiful to look at, Mass Effect 2 stands out for a wholly different reason: it’s the first game I've played that goes past what we see and truly taps into what we feel. I cared for each and every one of these characters and their stories; I didn't want any of them to die. In many respects, Mass Effect 2 uses the gaming medium to go above and beyond the capabilities of Hollywood films. Most movies demand two hours of investment. I spent 30 hours blasting my way through Mass Effect 2 and getting to know the ins and outs of its characters, and that was just my first playthrough.

The fictional cast’s believability is greatly enhanced by the talented actors who lend their voices to each character. Martin Sheen is perhaps the most recognizable in his role as the Illusive Man, the mysterious tycoon who funds Shepard's mission. Seth Green is perfect in his return as Joker, the pilot of Shepard’s ship, the Normandy. Many, many other actors are featured in Mass Effect 2, too many to list in one review. Rest assured, not one of them falls short.

Most importantly, perhaps, is the one common thread that binds all great video games: fun. Mass Effect 2 has no shortage of it. From dialogue to combat to mining for resources, every aspect of this game is refined to be as addictive as possible.

Skills are grouped into three areas: combat, tech and biotics. Players can choose classes at the beginning of their adventures; each class emphasizes one or two of these skills. My Shepard, for example, has been a Vanguard since I played through Mass Effect on my old Xbox 360. This class mixes combat abilities (gunplay) with biotics (Mass Effect's version of the Force). I usually let the other members of my party take up the tech duties, which include hacking and creating drones.

The game’s Power Wheel acts as a central hub for all the powers Shepard and his party possess. Holding R2 during a skirmish (combat is real-time, in third-person) pauses the action, allowing the player to choose a power for each party member to use. The camera can be moved freely during the break in the action so the player can specify which target each party member will attack. Holding L2 lets the player specify which weapon each party member should use. Shortcuts can be assigned to the shoulder and directional pad buttons for easy access to preferred abilities.

The battle system is very easy to adapt to, and feels like a natural evolution of the original. Every player will have a different style, and Mass Effect 2 encourages this. Players can use resources to re-assign powers, and I was actually allowed to choose between learning the assault rifle or sniper rifle skill partway through the game (Vanguards normally utilize primarily pistols and shotguns). This means that players are not necessarily bound to the decisions they make early on. Leveling up is far less complicated than it was in the first Mass Effect, a change I’m very happy with.

The item management system is also less complicated. In the first game, the convoluted, clunky inventory menu was almost a game-breaker for me. Decoding it was a tedious process; using it was perhaps worse. Mass Effect 2 features a streamlined, simplified system that’s simultaneously deep and easy to use. Armor and upgraded can be tweaked in Shepard’s cabin on the Normandy, and weapons can be swapped each time Shepard and his team depart the ship.

The Mass Effect series has one of the best dialogue systems in gaming. Instead of choosing exactly what Shepard says, players get to pick the "gist" of what Shepard will say and then listen to how he says it. It works extremely well, and feels far less clunky than choosing the character's exact dialogue.

All this is complemented heavily by the sheer amount of stuff to do around the Mass Effect 2 universe. Aside from following the lengthy main quest, players can choose to pursue a great many missions and assignments. None of these feel like throwaway material; most (if not all) have specific cinema scenes and dialogue recorded specifically for them. Planets that cannot be landed on can be mined for minerals using a simple mini-game interface. Though the game could survive without it, this system is strangely addictive. It makes something as tedious as mining for resources into a fun diversion from questing.

As for the world itself, BioWare somehow managed to find the perfect balance between open and linear. This is no Fallout; most locations are large but very restricted. This may sound like a complaint, but after playing through Fallout: New Vegas, I can assure you that it isn’t. Restricting player travel allows BioWare to fine-tune specific areas rather than provide an enormous, nondescript sprawl to explore. This leads to less glitches and more focus. Mass Effect 2 may not be a true open-world title, but the sheer amount of planets and missions more than makes up for that.

One of the big draws of the Mass Effect series is the import option. Xbox 360 and PC owners can import their characters from the original game and use them in the sequel. The games and their outcomes are inextricably tied to choices players make along the way, so the past decisions made by each character are imported as well.

PS3 owners didn't get to play the first game, which makes importing a character a bit of an impossibility. However, BioWare, EA and Dark Horse Comics have teamed up to bring the "Mass Effect: Genesis" Interactive Backstory Comic to the game. Early in the game, the comic will pop up and tell much of the first game's story, allowing players to make some of the choices themselves. While this isn't the same as importing a save, it's a gesture that's much-appreciated. Add to that the ability to import a Mass Effect 2 character into Mass Effect 3 when it hits stores this fall, and you’ve got one deep space fable.

It may seem strange that BioWare has the PS3 version of Mass Effect 2 priced at 60 bucks. Read the box carefully, however, and you’ll find that the developer has included the three major Mass Effect 2 downloadable content missions released over the past year. Also included is a Cerberus Network card, which allows access to a great deal of extra content through the Playstation Network.

The DLC includes Kasumi: Stolen Memories, Overlord, and Lair of the Shadow Broker. Kasumi is a master thief who joins your party and asks you to complete a heist in order to gain her loyalty. The heist is a lot of fun, and is a great addition to the already-stellar stable of missions included in the main game.

Overlord, however, was a big disappointment for me. Though the story is great and the cinematics are on par with the rest of the game, driving the Hammerhead hovercraft became tedious very fast. It beats the hell out of the Mako from the original Mass Effect, but driving around just got old after a while. I also experienced some very blocky textures and a great deal of clipping while driving around the Pandora-like environment. This pack is still far better than most of the downloadable content you’ll find for other games, but it falls short when compared to the rest of Mass Effect 2.

Lair of the Shadow Broker, on the other hand, is perhaps the best mission in the entire game. I won’t spoil a single bit of it for you, but this DLC easily stands out as my favorite mission in the entire game. This mission, along with the other extra content packed in with the game, make the $60 more than a fair price.

The Mass Effect series’ presence on the Playstation 3 makes me feel a lot better about owning the console. Mass Effect 2 ranks extremely high on my list of favorite games of all time, and might just occupy the number one spot when all is said and done. The game marks the natural evolution of today’s beautiful video games. It takes the crisp graphics and matches them up with style, substance and fun, a combination that makes for one hell of a gaming experience. PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 gamers take note: not owning this game is doing your consoles a great disservice.

10/10