ICO

"A real beauty!"

The Playstation 2 is not what I would consider "my" console, so it is very rare for me to sit down and play a PS2 game. When I say Ico is my favorite Playstation game, you have to understand that I don't have much else to compare it to. I'll take it a bit further, then. Ico is one of the best games I've ever played, period.

Graphics:
Ico has been described on numerous occasions as "art in motion." Since I can't come up with anything better, I'll simply agree. This is a beautiful game. The general feel of Ico reminds me of a continuous oil painting. The animation is even more impressive. The main character, Ico, will have to continually pull his friend, Yorda, around, and it looks so believable, it's amazing. Unfortunately, you soon realize Ico and Yorda have a limited supply of animations, but it doesn't matter. It still looks wonderful. Is it okay for me to say "wonderful?"

Sound:
Music has become a must in video games in order to "set the mood" and "fill the void." In fact, I really appreciate game music, but I've always felt that if you truly want to create a realistic world, you can't have music playing everywhere you go. The beauty of Ico's music comes from the lack thereof. There is little to no music in this game. What is present is "ambience." Birds chirping. Water dripping. Chains clinging. It creates such a sense of being there that I think having a complete score would have ruined the magical feel. But I did mention that there was some music. Whenever enemies are present, this really weird, strange song, which isn't even much of a song, starts playing that just gives you the creeps. However, the opening and ending songs of the game are very powerful and moving. If you're only going to have a handful of tunes, they might as well be superb.

Gameplay:
The entire game takes place within a spooky, seemingly uninhabited castle. You play as Ico, a boy lost in the middle of this fortress. Near the start of the game, you come across a girl, Yorda, who becomes your companion for the remainder of the adventure. Together, the two of you must find a way to escape. From here on, the game becomes a series of puzzles and platforms. What's great about this is that it all feels so real. Forget what you've come to expect from playing too much Legend of Zelda and similar. The puzzles in Ico are more "get to point A to point B" or "find a way to help Yorda cross this chasm." Some of it clicks instantly, but other areas require serious thought about the objects at hand. The best part, though, is discovering how intricate, yet connected, this castle really is.

All the while, you have to keep a lookout for shadow monsters. These are disturbing beasts that come out of nowhere to try and steal Yorda from you. Though they can knock you down, they cannot kill you, since you have no "life meter." Whew, isn't that a relief. But if they manage to take Yorda into one of their portals, you instantly die. So it's your job to fend off these beasts with either a wooden beam or a sword, depending on where you are in the game. These moments of combat do a nice job of breaking up the puzzle platforming, but they happen so frequently, and require nothing more than ten minutes of button mashing, that they soon become annoying and you spend a lot of the game living in fear of another pointless attack.

Controls:
Ico can perform only a few moves, but because this game is so bent on feeling real, it doesn't matter. He can jump, pick things up, climb chains, push boxes, and swing his weapon. I'd like to see you do anything more. You will have to continually call Yorda to follow you, or even grab her hand and tote her around. It can be a bit irritating having to work with this girl, though. I think she's spent too many years in this castle. The combat, as I mentioned earlier, is very drab and only allows for, oh, two different ways of hitting an enemy. If the combat had been more involving, then I wouldn't have minded fighting so many monsters. The camera feels a little strange, on top of this. It's always positioned in a place where you can see what you need to see in each room, which is fine, but if you have the urge to explore any unknown crevasses, the camera swings rather haphazardly. Better to leave it alone.

Frustration:
Some of the shadow attacks are a pain in the neck. There will be times where you'll have to fight off about twelve at once while still trying to keep tabs on Yorda. Other times, the game takes cheap shots at you and has the shadow monsters crop up in the most inconvenient places. If you aren't prepared for the onslaught, you won't make it back to Yorda in time to save her and have to start the puzzle for that area again. The rest of the game is fairly casual, but there will be a few moments where Ico will have to perform some near impossible jumps, which, if he fails, may result in his death and having to start the process all over. A few solutions to certain puzzles can be kind of vague, too, but they make sense once you know the secret.

Lasting Appeal:
This game will have you hooked. It's too bad this engrossment doesn't last long. Not that the game gets boring. It just ends too quickly. I beat it in eight hours, and I wasn't even in any hurry. Nowadays, a good adventure game has got to last at least 12 or 14 hours. It makes me wonder, though, that if Ico were longer, would it still be so much fun? In any case, while it's a great experience, it's not one worth having again. You saw it all the first time.

Overall:
Ico is a beautiful game, hands down. It's as real an experience as you'll ever have with a game... for now, anyway. It's beautiful in just about every aspect, and is involving to the very end. Too bad that ending comes so quickly. Oh well. As Ranch Wilder says, "Less is more." The only thing that keeps this from being a perfect game is its weak, boring, and annoying combat. Other than this, Ico is a wonderful game and must be played. I mean it!

Points:
+ Beautifully made
+ Engrossing
+ Realistic puzzle platforming
-- Short
-- Annoying combat

Score: 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 08/22/04, Updated 11/07/04