It’s a strange game. I mean that in the best way. No HUD, no score system, no juicy effects, no tutorial. It can be defined more by what it doesn’t have. Games back then and even now are bloated with features. Extensive UX goes into making sure that players are never frustrated and optimal engagement is in constant supply. Ico is extremely quiet in comparison. This can be an alienating experience if you’re used to the language of games. What is presented is a meditative challenge of exploration sparked by pure curiosity.

The game wants you to figure out its systems on your own. In doing so, I often ended up taking the least optimal path to completing a task, regularly going in circles, and attempting puzzles in a way a focus group tester would probably scream internally at. One puzzle wanted me to time a jump on a pumping system to propel the character high in the air. I automatically assumed that there was no way this is what the game wanted since there were no hints to suggest I do this and no onboarding tutorial earlier hinting at the mechanic.

Examples of this exist everywhere in the game. Ueda has said in many interviews that he doesn’t care for typical game design trends. I respect that decision a lot. The game will introduce mechanics without you even knowing they exist. The enemy in this game is the castle. It’s indifferent to your success or failure. It’s minions are the patterns that go against game design 101.

So mechanically, I was admittedly slightly frustrated. I was often lost and confused on what to do and where to go. But I’m extremely patient when something else shines. What shines extremely bright is its atmosphere. Atmosphere, that thing I like to talk about a lot. This is why I stayed for the full 10 hours. That quiet atmosphere mentioned earlier is abundant throughout the experience. The music is sparse, instead letting the howling winds and sea heighten the tone of isolation.

A story exists, but its told so subtlety that a whole world of imagination exists in your head instead. Often I’d place the controller down and sit still in scenes just to watch the world move. The flowing cloth on the characters, fluttering birds, heavy rain storms. The world breaths. When I wasn’t frustrated with my 20th failed jump, I was in the presence of the world, breathing with it, bathed in its golden light. I was regularly in awe.

This games existence is a surprise to me. It resembles almost nothing released during that time and was funded by Sony Computer Entertainment. Sony continues to fund these types of games, with the recent release of Sword of the Sea. Maybe breaking even is enough. Maybe financial success doesn’t need to be the goal. Funding the salaries of extremely talented artists so they can bring unique, transformative cultural artifacts to the world is success to me. Government arts funding does this. I want more of this. Give a group of artists even a fraction of a AAA budget, allow them to make something outside the confines of consumer trends. You’ll see things you never even knew you could experience in a game. Games that influence future artists, create new audiences, and new types of play.

Side rant aside, I recommend the game if you haven’t played it yet. The popular mode of consumption now is lightning fast constant content. If anything, playing this game will be a welcome reminder of a quieter world.

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More Links

• https://shmuplations.com/ueda/ (Interview - The Story of Fumito Ueda)
• https://shmuplations.com/ico/ (Ico 2002 Developer Interview)