Who would have thought that a game full of boss battles would be this much fun?
A young boy and his horse set off for an adventure to save his one and only love. There seems to be no hope for her, but this warrior manages to take her to a sanctuary to bring here back to life. The only thing that stands in his way is sixteen unforgettable colossi. The unique thing is that the game is only made up of these sixteen bosses, so get ready for one classic adventure.
The game play is really where this game shines. You are in, what seems like, a far away land full of mountains, lakes, and deserts. The basis for finding the colossi around the land is quite simple. You are equipped with a magical sword that will guide you in the right direction when you point it in the sunlight. Once you reach the specific location you may have to do a little platforming in order to get to the colossus. For the most part it isn’t anything to difficult. Fighting colossi is an experience that you will not forget. The fun part is trying to figure out how you are going to take the huge beasts down. It can be as simple as grabbing on to their fur and then just stabbing them in the sensitive part of their body. Or it can be as difficult as trying to break their armor in order to find a way to get on climb onto them to take them out. When you finally make it on to the colossi it truly feels like you are in a battle. You only have a certain amount of time that you can hold on to the colossi’s fur before you lose your grip and fall off. I think this was a good idea because it makes things more realistic. You will find yourself holding on for dear life, especially when it comes to the colossi that fly or the ones that are based in the water.
It’s hard to believe that the PS2 is about five years old and they are pulling off these types of graphics. Don’t expect to find picture perfect realistic graphics in this game. However you will find that the graphics are quite artistic and simple. The graphics seemed washed out and faded a little and this is a good effect because it adds to the mood of the game. The colossi are very detailed and there are times when some colossi look scary when you are close to them.
The sound adds to the whole experience of the game. It’s a feeling of accomplishment once you finally get onto a colossus and the music starts to kick in. The whole feeling of the music going and trying to hold onto the fur while searching for the weak spot is an experience in itself.
There are some faults in the game and the big issues are the camera and the controls. At times it is very difficult to control the camera while you are on the horse in the middle of a battle. I also found the camera frustrating when climbing pillars and things of that nature where involved. Another issue I had was the fact that the game is way too short. Even though there are sixteen colossi throughout the game it will take you less then 10 hours to beat.
When it comes to value, to be honest, there isn’t much to it. Once you beat the game you are given the opportunity to play the ‘time attack’ mode. This is where you have to beat a colossus within a certain amount of time. Other than that there isn’t too much to look forward to after you beat the game.
If you can get past a few minor flaws then there should be no reason why you won’t enjoy this game. This is the only game on the Playstation 2 that makes you feel like you are in the middle of an epic adventure.