Retro Reviews: Ico

Ico was released in 2001 developed by Team Ico and published by Sony Computer Entertainment.

Ico is a fairly unique game all things considered. In an era of a game presentation becoming more and more complicated, Ico was presented as something relatively minimalist and spartan while giving those who played it a wholly immersive experience that attains an experience that many story-driven games wish they could reach.

Ico is about a boy born with horns, which is considered a bad omen by the people of his village. As a means of removing the omen from the village he is taken by his people to an ancient castle where he is placed in a sarcophagus as a sacrifice of some sort to the ruler of the castle, The Queen. After a quake causes Ico's tomb to crash to the floor, he manages to escape from it and starts looking for an escape from the castle. Soon after he runs across a mysterious girl locked in a cage and frees her. Unfortunately they do not speak the same language but Ico is determined to help the girl, Yorda, also escape from whatever fate she is to face in the castle.

It won't be an easy task as the castle Ico and Yorda are in is ancient, decrepit and filled with puzzles. Not only that, the Queen's minions, shadows, will try to steal Yorda away from Ico to take her back to the Queen. It will be up to Ico to not only fight off the shadows but to lead Yorda through the hazards of castle as well.

The best way I can describe the gameplay would be a somewhat simplified take on 3D Zelda. While not based around collecting keys or items and generally being more linear the use of block puzzles and pulling switches to alter the environment always give me that Zelda feel. Your basic goal is to guide Yorda from one location as another. Sometimes she can be used as a temporary weight but most of the time you just have to make sure not to get too far way from her for if you do, shadows will come. The biggest problem with Yorda is that Ico has to lead her by the hand up and over obstacles though occasionally her limited path finding abilities will have her climb up things and save you the hassle of leading her. She has a tendency to stray but she won't ever go to far and will usually come back if Ico gives her a call.

The battle system in Ico is also very simple. Since Ico obviously isn't a trained fighter what he has for a fighting style is more or less flailing around with whatever weapon he has at the time. It works for the most part but until you get access to swords later in the game, it takes a long time to kill the shadows with the 2x4 you find all over the place and the enemies can swarm you making it difficult to get to Yorda if she is taken to a location far from you. Though to be fair the fighting is not really a focus of Ico, even it is a common occurrence.

Simplicity is also a fixture of Ico's graphics. While beautiful to look at the surroundings are stark, perfectly fitting a long abandoned castle. This makes for a very atmospheric game that doesn't overload the senses with a ton of graphical effects, outside of generous bit of bloom lighting.

There are some signs of the game's origins as a Playstation title especially in Ico and Yorda's movements. There is something about how their models are built and animated that sometimes feel like they just upgrades from how it was on Playstation. There is a ragdoll style effect that is especially noticeable on Ico. Just makes him weirdly gangly despite not being particularly tall for a kid his age.

The music in the game is also appropriately spartan. The songs that are there are memorable especially the credits theme and the weird music that plays when the shadows attack adds tension to the scene. The rest of the background music is environmental sounds that further add to the atmosphere of the world. The voice acting for the game, the small amount there is, does the job well but since the game isn't in English and features I think two made up languages it is hard to judge.

In the end, Ico is a over-looked but classic early PS2 game. And the reason why I review it now is that the Ico/Shadow of the Colossus Collection comes out for the PS3 next month. It'll not only be in HD but us in North America will get the better version that was released in Europe and Japan with extras. Frankly I can't wait. And this will hopefully lead up to Team Ico's next game, The Last Guardian finally getting its release next year. And hopefully like its predecessors will provide an engrossing story through its gameplay rather than overabundance of cut scenes.

Pros/Cons
+ Very immersive atmosphere
+ Great puzzle design
+ Sparse and gorgeous environments
+ Lack of interrupting cut scenes keep things immersive
+ Beautiful credit theme
- Very short
- Some remnants of Playstation origins evident.

Hidden Gems of the PS2 Era

The Playstation 2 was the longest lasting console of the previous generation. Lasting far into the next generation even as the Gamecube and XBox were left behind, the Playstation 2 had, and still has, the most solid library of any console. Everybody knows about the big titles that had graced the system, SOCOM, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, Sly Cooper... But there were also a few games that slipped under the radar and can be found for way less than it'd cost to get a new game.

1. Dark Cloud
Expected Price: $6 (The price I bought it at. This may vary wildly depending on where you buy)
This game is fairly unique. It's an action-RPG in the vein of Legend of Zelda combined with the city-building mechanics of Act Raiser. The story and setting are fairly original, but takes a backseat to the gameplay and mechanics. The game is essentially a dungeon crawler for the action segments, as you try to recover lost pieces of the world to bring it back into order, but you should be careful, as your weapon will eventually wear down and break, or you can run out of water and become dehydrated. A very unique blend of two genres that takes a while to get into, but is ultimately rewarding.

2. God Hand
Expected Price: $13
Okay, so this one's a bit more well-known than the others, with the cult following it has, but still. God Hand is an incredible beat-em-up game by the now-defunct Clover Studios. Beat up bad guys with a customizable moveset (you can even customize your own combos!) featuring many, many styles of martial arts. Many complaints are leveled at the camera, but it's not too bad. The decidedly Wild West environments are incredibly sparse, but that gives it the plus of not getting in the way while you play, a must for this game. This game is hard. Unless if you learn the mechanics, you're going to be stuck on the first level for a while.

Fun fact: IGN gave this game a 3. Don't let this dissuade you though!

3. Okage: Shadow King
Expected Price: $5
So you've finished Earthbound and Mother 3, and possibly loads of other quirky games? If not, give this game a try. This is the silliest RPG you can get for the Playstation 2. The setting is reminiscent of a Tim Burton film, with catchy melodies and designs that look like they were taken from The Nightmare Before Christmas. The story doesn't exactly take itself seriously, with the protagonist becoming the avatar for the pompous Lord Stanley Hihat Trinidad XIV (Or just Evil King Stan), becoming a pawn for him to defeat all the other evil kings and reign as the supreme evil king. The only downside of this game is the battle system. It's not that great, but if you can tolerate it, you're looking at a great RPG that's as memorable as Earthbound.

4. Seek and Destroy
Expected Price: $3
The cover looks like it's a very bad shovelware game, doesn't it? Don't believe its lies, though. Seek and Destroy is a tank combat game. It is the cutest tank combat game. Several real-world tanks have been transformed into tiny, adorable killing machines, and you get to customize the hell outta them with engines, turrets, anti-aircraft guns, rocket launchers, jet boosters, and chainsaws. The story may be simplistic and the graphics may be sub-par, but you have a tank wielding a chainsaw, and that's all that matters.

5. Sky Odyssey
Expected Price: $4
Looking for something a bit more relaxing? Maybe a flight simulator where you just go around, drifting lazily through air currents? Tough. Sky Odyssey is probably the most intense non-combat flight simulator I've played. You have to navigate your plane through harsh weather conditions, heavy winds, and even rockslides in order to get your plane safely to its destination. There's no combat in this game, so no dogfighting. The music is fantastic, done by Kow Otani, composer for Shadow of the Colossus.

6. Shinobi
Expected Price: $8
In a world where the length of your scarf determines how much of a ninja you are... Shinobi is an incredibly arcade-like experience. With only six levels to play through, you can blast through it in an afternoon. However, the difficulty's pretty high in this title. Dying sends you back to the last checkpoint, or worse, to the start of the level. This is definitely a game you need to get good at fast, as later levels have you dashing from enemy to enemy in order to cross bottomless pits. There is a timer in the form of your sword, Akujiki. It feeds on the souls of your enemies, and not killing any enemies means that it will feed on your life instead, so killing enemies rather than running away from them is heavily encouraged. It's a short, yet really fun experience that can be played multiple times.

7. Soul Reaver 2
Expected Price: $5
No, I'm not going to go with a Twilight joke in this one. This is an action-adventure game with smooth combat mechanics and thought-provoking puzzles. The story is told through the eyes of Raziel, a vampire who had his body destroyed, but his soul had been saved by the octopus representation of the late Tony Jay. Don't worry if you hadn't played the first, as there is a recap of the story at the beginning. A very satisfying game with a great setting and atmosphere.

Estimated Price for All Seven Games: $44
Average Price for a New PS3/360 Game: $60
Other obscure titles worth checking out: Rogue Galaxy, Robotech: Battlecry, XIII, Graffiti Kingdom

So pick up that old PS2 you've got lying in the closet somewhere, dust it off, and get to gaming. If you don't care about achievements and online play, the Playstation 2 can get you hours of entertainment with very little money.

Top Ten Games You Probably Never Heard Of

So in celebration of 10/10/10, our malevolent admin Paleo is making us do top ten lists.
I'm doing mine on awesome games you've probably never even heard of, in absolutely no particular order.

10. Giants: Citizen Kabuto (PC)
Giants: Citizen Kabuto is a third-person shooter with strategy elements. Doesn't sound too exciting, but the humor is great and the plot is engaging. Each race is diverse and plays differently from the others, and becomes a new experience for each faction you control. Sadly, the game gets a tad monotonous during the later stages.

9. MDK (PC)
Murder Death Kill, one of Shiny Entertainment's best games. It's a first person shooter, but your character, Kurt, has the ability to snipe from very long ranges. The graphics are unique in the fact that most objects are just 2D sprites rendered from 3D models, like in Donkey Kong Country. This also made the game less taxing on slower computers, due to the reduced requirements. The humor was great and the weapons were zany. Who wouldn't want the World's Smallest Nuke?

8. Sky Odyssey (PS2)
The cover art looks pretty intense, huh? Well you're right, but not intense in the way you'd think. Sky Odyssey is a flight simulator. No combat ever plays out during the game. It's mainly about going from point A to point B, while flying across treacherous hazards such as rock slides. Sky Odyssey isn't the prettiest game; It was an early Playstation 2 title and there's a fairly short draw distance. The best part? The music is composed by Kow Otani, of Shadow of the Colossus fame, and it's just as beautiful here as it is in SotC.

7. Okage: Shadow King (PS2)
Alright. This game can really only be described as "Earthbound meets Nightmare Before Christmas". It's an incredibly quirky RPG about a boy whose shadow becomes the avatar for Evil King Stan. Yes, Stan. You have to set out and destroy the other evil kings who have usurped Stan's position, taking the title of evil king for themselves. The music is very nice, and the art style is actually inspired by the Nightmare Before Christmas. The only really bad part about this game is the awful battle system, but if you can tolerate that, it's a fun play.

6. Seek and Destroy (PS2)
Originally released as a budget title, it soon became a favorite of mine. It's a game about adorable tanks. Fighting other equally adorable tanks. Everybody is a tank in this game, including the priests and civilians. The best part of the game is the customization, allowing you to modify any real-world tank and giving it insane weapons. Is that a chainsaw on your M1A1? Why yes. Yes it is.

5. Opoona (Wii)
Opoona is developed by ArtePiazza, known for having helped develop many of the Dragon Quest games, and it shows. The game is an RPG that can be played one-handed with the nunchuck. It's a very casual, fun sort of game, where you take jobs and perform them. The game has alright pacing, but it's easy to get lost, even with a map. Also, no waggling for all of you anti-waggling Wii owners out there.

4. Prey the Stars (DS)
Also known as OM NOM NOM - The Game. It's a very quirky party game about four space dogs who go to earth to devour everything in sight. Each item they devour makes them larger, and the object is to become the largest. People liken it to Katamari Damacy without the rolling.

3. Lugaru HD (PC)
This is a game about ninja bunnies. That's the basic premise, and yet it works so well. Lugaru HD is a 3D combat game where you control a rabbit capable of performing insane acrobatic moves and attacks with just three buttons. Each button does many things depending on context, and you're free to create your own fighting style. The graphics might turn off some, but then they'd be missing out on a game where you can drop-kick a wolf into the stratosphere.

2. The Neverhood (PC)
The Neverhood is a classic in of itself. It's an adventure game sort of in the vein of Myst, but with Doug TenNapel's artistic flair. The entire world is made of clay, giving it a quirky, alien feeling as you control Klaymen and explore the various places in The Neverhood. The puzzles are Myst-inspired, but the smooth animation and funky music are definitely something unique that only the creator of Earthworm Jim could do.

1. Messiah (PC)
Messiah is a very zany game. You play as a cherub named Bob, sent to earth by God to cleanse the sins of mankind. The game has a distinct cyberpunk theme, contrasting the happy, cheery angel you play as. Bob can possess people and animals to infiltrate areas or to take out a target. The levels are very open and it's very easy to get lost in them, but it's a very amusing game nonetheless.