10 / 10
04 Jan 2006 at 21:37
Review by: Theweehighlander
This is a gaming Masterpiece.
If there is one game to buy and keep for your PS2, or if you need a reason to hang onto your PS2, then this game is it.
Ico, is a legend-like story. Ico, a young boy, was born into a nightmare. Little is known of it, except that a village has been cursed. A child born with two horns on his head, is a sign of this, and will bring with it plagues and failed harvests. Ico, was born with two horns.
On Ico’s twelfth birthday he is taken to a Fortress by the "faceless horsemen", locked away there, and just...left. He soon realises that this Fortress is in fact a prison, and he is to spend his eternity there. However, he manages to escape his 'cell' , and thus creates the setting for the game to begin. You soon find a mysterious girl, Yorda, who is also imprisoned, and you must escape the fortress together.
Navigating around the fortress is simple, however, there are many puzzles to work out and to get past. Some can even keep you there for quite a while. What makes this different from any other puzzler however, is Yorda. You need to lead her around by holding her hand and looking after her, but on top of that, use her to help you with some puzzles, by leaving her standing on switches etc. Most of the pride you get from playing Ico is working out the puzzles for yourself, so I won’t dive into telling you about them! Some of the puzzles are just simply amazing, and it always puts a smile on your face when you solve the one you have been stuck on for hours! It is also set aside from other games due to the fact that you don’t need to run around looking for bullets, health packs, keys etc, its just you, the girl, and your stick! (to hit the occasional enemy with that comes along)
Its an interesting new approach to a game, and may sound almost empty with nobody around or items to collect, but that’s in fact the beauty of it! It is a Fortress prison after all which would be pretty lonely! And you really do feel alone and abandoned. This makes you more determined to escape this prison and see what is on the outside world. The Fortress is indeed huge, and this is not apparent, until you first venture outside and see it for yourself. In one part of the game you are on the roof of one of the parts of the fortress and you can see the entire surrounding area. This is where you can see the fortress is an island, but not only that, you can check out the visuals of this game. The graphics, in short, are beautiful. When I first saw the fortress in its full glory I stared with amazement, mainly because the attention to detail is outstanding! You also feel like you can see for miles, looking across the water to the main land.
There is so much to say about this game and I really could go on, but reading about it does not do it justice at all. You really need to play this game and experience everything for yourself. It’s the experience of it, that stays in your mind, its very original and different to your standard game.
It really is an all time favourite for me, and to rate it 10/10 would not surprise you im sure!
Its something Sony have indeed spent a lot of time creating, and perfecting, and it should really be noticed. If Sony did more 1st party games like this, they would certainly shift many units on the pro-ness of the games, rather than with their name.
If you missed this game, you really need to find it, NOW!! Check ebay, your newspaper, steal from your mates you MUST get a copy of this game!
Overview
User Reviews
Prices
Reviews
Change Country
RSS
