Ico is a game that defies expectations and delivers and experience that is unique in the video game world. Instead of placing action over substance or graphical glory beyond the core of the game, Ico blends both beauty with substance in one beautiful package. Ico tells a simple and elegant tale through the eyes of a young boy, Ico. You see, you were born with horns and for that you were feared and finally sentenced to death in a tomb in a dark tower. Of course, fate has a different plan for you and soon you are free to explore the amazing world around you. Before long you find a young strange girl who is in need of your help, and that’s when the game really begins.
From here you must lead her through the dangers and puzzles you’ll encounter – most of the time by holding her hand. It’s such a simple sounding game, and for the most part it is. At its core it’s a 3D puzzle game, but one in which the puzzles are so satisfyingly completed by using the two companions to help each other throughout the dangers you’ll face.
The real joy of the game, though, is the absolutely stunning environments you’ll encounter. The game constantly amazes with its stellar use of light and shadow, it’s fantastic architecture, its amazing animation that makes the young boy’s actions eerily realistic. The audio matches the graphics with its ability to create environments that sound good even though much of the game is silent. The echo of footsteps or the sound of flickering torches is accompanied by small sounds that match the environment you’re in – like the distant roar of the powerful ocean.
Ico isn’t for everyone. There is no blistering action or intense time-dependant puzzles. Instead, Ico moves at a fairly slow pace and is over quite soon (around six hours or so).
Still, Ico is one of the few games that I’d say could stand by itself as a work of art. The level of immersion and sense of wonder is unmatched – many times you’ll feel the same sense of awe the protagonist must feel as he explores the strange and magical world around him.
Ico is sure to be remembered for many years and collect its share of fans. It has what it takes to become a true classic, and it deserves to be ranked among the best PS2 games so far.
-Jerred
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