Hands-onICO

The first thing you notice about Sony's upcoming ICO is its subtle, hazy atmosphere. During the game's opening cinematic, words are scarce.The story is instead expertly conveyed through the soft interplay of tangible atmospherics and smooth moving images. And unlike the narrative sequences found in most games, ICO's seldom seem superfluous or obtrusive in any way. Perhaps this is due to the game's coherent visual design, which facilitates the tight shifts in focus and perspective that the game's in-game cutscenes require. At any rate, ICO is a smooth, touching story that's told in soft hues and dynamic pictures. It revolves around a young horned boy--Ico--who's exiled by superstitious members of his village because of his horns. As is the case with all of his horn-headed line, the boy is cast away to a dark, remote tower, where he'll be sacrificed to appease some sort of unknown power. As it happens, Ico manages to escape from his captors, only to find and rescue a mysterious, almost ethereal young woman. With her in tow, Ico must find his way out of the citadel and ultimately confront its dark mistress.

Much of the gameplay in ICO is puzzle-based, albeit with a twist--since Ico must constantly travel with the young girl, most of the puzzles you'll encounter will revolve around creating a path that she can traverse. One sequence, for example, had us first take an extremely long fall to a lower platform in order to access another wing in the larger chamber, within which lay a lever that we needed to pull in order to have the door at the top of the original chamber open so the girl can pass. So far as we've seen, the game is full of such sequences, but--at least at this point--they haven't gotten tiresome in the least. It should also be noted that combat seems to be in no short supply. It seems as if hordes of shadowy demons are stalking the young girl, and they take every opportunity to attack you both. You fight them off with a heavy stick you pick up early on in the game, but using the stick is only part of the game's simple control scheme. It allows you to attack and jump, and it also features a sort of action button, which you use to access ladders, pull levers, and the like. The R1 button plays a vital role in the game--it's the command you use to link up with, separate from, and call the girl. You'll also use it to help her up ledges and such. The subtle interaction between your own character and the girl is astounding, and it's a wonder that the concept seems to work so well in ICO. We've barely scratched the surface on the system, however, so further comment on it will have to wait till the full preview.

ICO is, in many ways, the most beautiful PS2 game we've seen to date. While it doesn't benefit from the hearty engine of Twisted Metal: Black or the pristine models and geometry of MGS2, the game's sultry ambience is something that has to be seen in motion to appreciate. A soft haze permeates everything in the game, lending it a dreamy tone. And the character models--while simple in construction--animate evocatively and interact with one another in a most touching way. When you encounter one of the save points, for instance--which take the form of spectral love seats--the characters will sit next to each other, hand in hand, and eventually drift into slumber. Little touches like these seem to permeate the game, adding a dimension of personality seldom touched upon in our medium.

As you've probably noted, ICO has us very excited. We'll have a full preview of the game for you very soon. Till then, enjoy these screens and movies.