The music rises along with the player as they climb a swinging arm, grasping for any handhold as the colossus bucks and whips at them. Yes, killing these beasts is sad, but thatвЂ™s forgotten in the thrill of the fight. The music, carried over (but obviously re-recorded/cleaned up) from the original that accompanies these battles is stirring, carrying Shadow of the ColossusвЂ™ emotional resonance to incredible heights. Looking at these giant bodies like puzzles to solve, then navigating them with limited grip strength is exciting and compelling, and the variety of creatures makes for endless fun. Players who know the original well can apply old tactics to take these creatures down, and new players will be struck by the thrill of climbing up a creature the size of a skyscraper. Tackling the colossi is no less thrilling than it was before, with the colossi preserved exactly how they acted before. One look tells the player who the monster is. All of this is felt by watching any of these creatures focus their soft gaze on the player, and the effect is emotionally staggering. They simply wish to exist, possessing little malice in them, and certainly none worth killing them over. Even when some get angry, their eyes glowing red, it only lasts until the player stops bothering them. The creatures of Shadow of the Colossus possess that same empty, gentle look in those glassy orbs, at most curious or indifferent to the player. This is made abundantly clear with a single look in their eyes. TheyвЂ™re docile creatures despite their size and power. Many only turn violent when the player is stabbing them, and even then, the most many of them do is just try to shake him off.

Most of them have no interest in the playerвЂ™s presence, and will, at most, try to shoo them away. Shadow of the Colossus isnвЂ™t filled with giant monsters bent on killing the player, but colossal creatures that simply wish to continue existing. Nowhere was this visual detail more powerful than in the colossiвЂ™s eyes. It was a nice touch and helped strengthen a powerful thematic element of the game. ItвЂ™s the sort of detail that might seem out of place given the age hinted at by the armour, but it indicates a gentleness in these giant creatures that theyвЂ™re trying to protect. Their hair no longer looks coarse but seems fine and soft. The stone armour seems harder and more unforgiving in its new detail, the cracks and breaks in the plates hinting at ages of life. Shadow of the ColossusвЂ™ colossi were given a similar treatment in this remake: their details enhanced to make their beauty all the sadder.

All of these places existed in the original, but the finer details of the new visuals make the land seem to breathe new life into Shadow of the Colossus, even as it is dying.

Players can see for miles, looking out onto broken bridges and remnants of lost civilizations tucked into hidden alcoves. Striking mountain ranges tower above the player, all while grasses sway beneath their feet or sand whirls up around AgroвЂ™s hooves. Somehow, though it has been made prettier, the team managed to preserve that sense of being dried out, abandoned, and barren. Shadow of the Colossus Remake (images for this review courtesy of Sony Interactive Entertainment).

Shadow of the colossus remake