Cast your mind back to 2001. The PS2 was the best system on the market hands down and it had some of the best games from every genre on it including some cracking exclusives. So Sony had a trick up their sleeves to really show off how good their big black box was and that trick was the puzzle-platformer Ico.
When I say puzzle-platformer what I really mean is escort quest. Ico is a 4-5 hour escort quest through a complex castle where you (Ico) are trying to escape with a glowing girl named Yorda. Ico, a young boy has been imprisoned by the people of his village because he has horns and horns are a bad omen. When his prison cell collapses and he escapes he finds a young girl named Yorda who has the ability to open Idol's which are the games version of locked doors. However the castle's Queen needs Yorda for her own purposes and so sends Shadows to steal her away from Ico.
The story is extremely simple, yet so spellbinding. Ico and Yorda speak different languages so the characters interact through actions, the majority of the game will be spent holding Yorda's hand and making her follow you round the castle, however you can also assist each other up ledges and across large jumps. This gives you a feeling of that they truly need each other to escape this labyrinth of a castle they have both been imprisoned in. Facial expressions also play a key part in telling the emotions of the characters, mainly Yorda because even we cannot understand what she is saying.
The game plays like a 3D platformer. Left stick to move, right stick for camera, then buttons for jump, interact and then a button for interacting with Yorda. To progress through the areas of the castle puzzles must be completed, this could be as simple as pushing a block over to a wall so that both you and Yorda can reach a window to climb out of or it could be as complex as positioning light refractors through a series of rooms to open a gate on the other side of the castle. The puzzles are never fiendishly difficult however Ico never gives you any inclination of where you are going or what you are supposed to do in a certain area. The game is split into 6 distinct chapters, you can tell this through the change in the environment design or that the pattern of puzzles changes, my biggest gripe with the game lies in this area. Nearly half of the game is spent repeating the largest puzzle in the game in a different part of the castle, and because the game (if you know what you are doing) can be completed in just under 2 hours it is just such a waste of time and potential.
When you aren't platforming or puzzling you are normally battling the shadows, it is a 1 button combat system with no combos that you have to remember however there are 4 weapons to use during the course of the game (you can only equip 1 at a time). You cannot die by being attacked by the shadows and they are focussed on stealing Yorda away from you and dragging her down into the black holes they appear from, if they succeed its game over, the shadows are never difficult to fight however if you don't take advantage of the weapon upgrades the latter stages of the game will become near impossible with the starting weapon due to the sheer amount of enemies you will have to battle. The fighting is simple and not the main focus of the game though, luckily because its the worst part of the game, mainly because it is hindered by a problematic camera that was obviously designed for platforming rather than fighting.
The games visuals are mind blowing...this was on a PS2 for goodness sake! The environments are richly coloured and highly detailed, the game has no loading screens but instead camera traditions that between areas that act as loading screens. The environment is also huge, I mean it feels like a proper castle, it takes forever to get from one place to another even if you are only walking along the castle's battlements. How it manages with a smooth framerate that barely ever judders or drops is beyond my understanding.
The soundtrack is also superb, it is extremely minimalistic much like the game, but it gives the game atmosphere. Imagine walking along the castle walls to a soft flute playing in the background...it is simply tear-jerking how utterly beautiful this game is.
Ico appeals to a very very niche audience, people who like platformers probably wont like it and people who like puzzlers probably wont like it. But if you think yourself as a gamer who plays a large variety of games you owe it to yourself to play Ico, and if you have go back and play it again. Ico is a prime example of gaming as an art form, it pushes the boundaries of what a 'game' is and ultimately gives us one of the best 'games' on the PS2.
Now I actually played Ico on the PS3 as it comes in the Team Ico Collection alongside another PS2 gem, Shadow of the Colossus. It hasn't aged at all...how often can you say that about a game. Ico is a masterpiece, there is no other word for it, a game that everyone should play but a game that nobody will play, however for real gamers it is a sign that there are developers out there who care and that will provide a completely unique and magical experience much like Ico.
Ico: 10/10
+The Story
+The Platforming
+The Standard of Presentation
+The Ending
-The Combat
-Puzzle Repetition
