Finished ICO....a long time ago

I finished ICO a long time ago, but I look back on it very fondly. It didn't sell well and that is a real shame because it is one of my favorite games! I loved it from start to finish; and when it was done I started playing it again from the beginning.

I won't go into much detail about the plot, because it doesn't matter. This game was built as an experience, not a story. You're not given any back story, you're just dropped into the game with the vague sense that you're being offered as a human sacrifice. All you're sure of is that you're in danger and that you must get out of the castle in which you've been imprisoned.

There's a powerful sense of being alone while playing the game. The castle is huge and filled with crumbling bridges and huge ledges that threaten to send you tumbling to your doom. The enemies are composed of nothing but black smoke and evil magic. When ICO faces them he is armed only with a wooden stick. A very real measure of bravery is required to face them every time they appear. But ICO must face them, not for his sake, but for hers.

ICO's companion on this journey is Yorda; a girl who has been imprisoned in the castle, just like ICO. The relationship between Yorda and ICO is what places this game near the top of my all time favorites list. There's very little said between the two; they don't even speak the same language. Yorda is frail and weak and must be guided and helped along the entire journey. I, as the player, started to become very protective of Yorda. Both she and ICO are in danger, but when the black shadows appear they go for her and try to take her with them. They drag her and pull her down into the shadows. They pick her up and fly away with her. The danger to her feels very real, and her patience and frailty are so endearing, that I was in love with her by the end of the game, and very protective.

The ending of the game is perfect, and it's one of the few times I've cried after playing a game. The story is truly touching, and just writing about it makes me want to play it again. I'm sure my kids wouldn't mind watching me play. Perhaps I'll start it again tomorrow.



P.S. I hate, HATE, the box art for this game. They got the look, feel, characters, sensibility, and EVERYTHING completely and totally WRONG! I'm actually angry when I see this cover. ICO is wrong. The windmill is wrong. Yorda is wrong. The logo is wrong. EVERYTHING IS WRONG. I debated whether or not I should include it in this post, but if you must see it then click below.