In “Shadow of the Colossus,” Long Stretches of Contemplative Solitude Are Broken Up by Battles With Giant Beasts

Players defeat them in David vs. Goliath duels in which the Colossi themselves are a puzzle, gauntlet and foe wrapped into one.

By Nolan Good

Play This: Shadow of the Colossus (SIE Japan Studio and Team Ico)

For all the majesty of modern gaming's "living" worlds, with their bustling streets and spontaneity, contemplative solitude is a much rarer pleasure. Rather than a dense landscape of towns and quest-givers, Fumito Ueda's Shadow of the Colossus is a game filled with quiet reflection and punctuated by exhilarating combat. The result is one of the form's great critical successes, at once a masterwork of open-world design devoid of the fluff that pervades modern gaming and a boss rush with some of the best puzzle-combat encounters this side of The Legend of Zelda. Originally released in 2005 but remade in 2018, Shadow tasks players with hunting down and killing 16 primordial Colossi—enormous beasts resembling mythological guardians long since overtaken by moss and decay. Players defeat them in David vs. Goliath duels in which the Colossi themselves are a puzzle, gauntlet and foe wrapped into one. Fight on their backs, climb their limbs, and take them down with improvised strategies. The space in between each battle is for finding the monsters. A beam of light cast by the protagonist's sword points the way, but only as the crow flies. Actually traversing the landscape is more complex and requires some old-fashioned navigation on the player's part. The enjoyment is akin to hiking the backcountry and carving your own path through the wilderness. With the 2018 remaster, the graphics are as astounding and painterly as battling the godlike Colossi is exciting and triumphant. A cocktail of artistry and mechanical confidence, Shadow is one of gaming's early works of literary power, and one you should absolutely be playing.

BUY: Shadow of the Colossus is available for PS4. See store.playstation.com to download.

Willamette Week’s reporting has concrete impacts that change laws, force action from civic leaders, and drive compromised politicians from public office. Support WW's journalism today.