🕹 Shadow of the Colossus and Controls

Hey you,

Today's Listening: fight fight fight

Do you ever feel, like a paper bag, being thrashed around, like your bones dead?

Well if you would like to see, might I recommend...

Physics.

I have not yet decided if Shadow of the Colossus has the greatest physics system, or the worst. And adjacent to that, the controls.

The way you do things in this game is very unique. Climbing is a core element, but it feels very sluggish. Stabbing things with your sword is also very sluggish. And don't even talk to me about the archery. Which leads to one conclusion.

The controls suck on purpose. And it is genius.

Let us be honest for a moment and think. If it was simple to get up a colossus and stab it, the game would not feel as intense or dramatic. So when you manage to climb up and do the thing, it feels incredible, the colossus swings around and you barely hold on for dear life, and maybe you do fall.

But it is that adversity you overcome.

And generally speaking, the game is not super buggy, it just feels off because it is different from every other snappy control game. If you fall, it is by design or because you goofed. And for the record, most of the bosses don't have very powerful attacks. The true difficulty is control.

Controls are supposed to be intuitive, supposed to make it easy for the player to interact with the world and get straight into the action. Generally, people prefer to be in control of their experience on some level, especially in games. But Shadow of the Colossus takes that assumption and makes you work for it.

I know this is a weird way to end a three part series, but I think this is one of the game's greatest legacies. It made handling your character a game mechanic. Is it meant to reflect our protagonist's weak little body? Maybe. Is it meant to frustrate the player? Maybe. Is it good? ...Maybe.

If nothing else, Shadow of the Colossus is...itself. It takes elements from adjacent games, but ultimately creates an experience that I think every "intellectual gamer" should hazard at least once...

And you know what else is a good gamer experience?

Dark Souls.