'Colossus' masterfully recrafted

The game itself is brilliantly made, and the whole premise is very interesting. Photo: supplied

Lately there’s been a rush of games being remastered and rushed out the door. Shadow of the Colossus is not one of these — it’s a title lovingly rebuilt from the ground up.

Shadow of the Colossus was originally a hit the PS2 back in 2005. It reached cult status almost immediately, loved by those who played it, but dismissed as a Japanese curiosity by most.

Bluepoint Games has masterfully crafted this game, and this is no surprise, given its previous track record with the Uncharted Collection and Titanfall games.

You play as Wander, a boy trying to bring a girl back to life. To do so, he enters a forbidden land in search of an entity named Dormin, who has the power to revive the dead. Wander finds Dormin who agrees to help him, but only if he can defeat the 16 hulking colossi that wander the lands. They’re minding their own business until you come along and attempt to slaughter them, which is an interesting premise, illustrating how far we will go for the ones we love and the damage that can cause.

It’s definitely a game that you should give a go —there’s a reason why it was so revered when it came out initially and why people were so looking forward to this game’s re­-release. Photo: supplied

As I haven’t played the original, I can’t really comment on how it compares. There are some elements of the game that ‘‘feel old’’ — the camera is a bit iffy, the controls have apparently been remapped but still feel a bit unwieldy — but graphically it has been built for PS4.

The soundtrack and cinematography are also terrific, as you traverse sprawling vistas and climb some of the colossi.

Ultimately, I found it hard to review this as it didn’t really sit all that well with me, but I think that’s a me thing. The game itself is brilliantly made, and the whole premise is very interesting. Something just didn’t click.

It’s definitely a game that you should give a go —there’s a reason why it was so revered when it came out initially and why people were so looking forward to this game’s re­release.

It’s definitely worth a pick up in these slow gaming-release months.

Shadow of the Colossus cover. Photo: supplied

Shadow of the Colossus (2018)
For: PS4

From: Sony

Rating: (M) ★★★+

Part of the prize pack. Photos: supplied

FREEBIES

Our good friends at Sony are giving Signal readers the chance to win a Shadow of the Colossus prize pack, containing a copy of the game, themed jumper and keyring.

To enter the draw, simply email your name, address and contact number to to signal@odt.co.nz. Please put ‘‘Shadow of the Colossus’’ in the subject line.

Entries close on Friday 23 at noon.

- by Simon Bishop