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 About the Game Shadow of the Colossus is a game of incredible fame, the original, releasing in 2005 on Playstation 2 courtesy of the legendary developers from Team Ico garnered near universal praise, with reviewers highlighting an incredible plot and atmosphere as key highlights of the game. The game received a rerelease on PS3 alongside Ico, in 2011 with HD graphics alongside content that had previously been missing from the North American version of the game. Again, praise was high, the quality of the original game shone through, but real care had been made with the transition to HD and a new console. However, this was not to be the last release of the game. In 2018 Sony released a full remake of the original, using ultra-high definition art assets, releasing on the Playstation 4. The remake was fronted by Bluepoint, the same developer that was behind the 2011 remake and once again, the game received high praise from critics who felt that the remake preserved the spirit of the original whilst bringing some much-needed modern improvements. And this is the game we'll be playing. The game presents itself as a third person action game, with the protagonist engaging in duels with the titular Colossi. The player needs to identify weak points on his enemies, dodge their attacks and slowly find a way to exploit openings to their fullest advantage. Climbing is the activity of the day here as ultimately Colossi aren’t going to fall just from someone the size of an ant ineffectively flailing at their feet! About the LP I will be playing alongside my erstwhile colleague and best friend, the incredible Yorkshire Tea. Both of us are running into the LP completely blind! I’ll be piloting our hero whilst Tea provides me with advice and moral support. Our hope is that our combined and unique skillsets will see us through and win us the day, our worry is that we’ll compound each other’s terrible thoughts and get ourselves killed in the stupidest ways. I expect, given our prior LPs that we’re going to be fairly strongly focused on the topic at hand, trying to solve problems and presenting what hopefully seems like a reasoned critique of the game as it begins to play out. Art such as it is, like the title image and the episode banners will be handled by the wonderful Bifauxnen. (Who is long overdue for a credit in these OPs) Episodes                      
Natural 20 fucked around with this message at 15:05 on Apr 5, 2020 |
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Sep 11, 2019 23:02
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Natural 20 posted:Art such as it is, like the title image and the episode banners will be handled by the wonderful Bifauxnen. (Who is long overdue for a credit in these OPs) Disclaimer: "such as it is" can be translated as "usually all she does is crop stuff and put some text on it", and hell, I'm not even keepin up too well with the schedule this time...  But man, I'm looking forward to seeing what you think of this game!
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Sep 11, 2019 23:11
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This should be interesting. I somehow managed to skip over this game myself, despite having played the "prequel" Ico.
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Sep 12, 2019 01:28
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Usual reminder that the New LP thread exists and you should post on it. Looking forward to this, I know just enough about the game to be curious how well it achieves all the things it tries to do. And of course it's very pretty.
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Sep 12, 2019 09:09
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Black Robe posted:Usual reminder that the New LP thread exists and you should post on it. Thanks! It'll definitely go up in the thread tomorrow, I usually like to have a couple of episodes up before I do though so anyone browsing in from there can get a bit more of a sample.
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Sep 12, 2019 12:33
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Well this should be a delight. I have a few minor squabbles with Shadow of the Colossus' reputation, but it's still a very special game to me and a lot of people.
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Sep 12, 2019 14:20
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Episode 02 - Videogame Senses Correct
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Sep 13, 2019 23:00
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This is a good game to see a blind LP on. Controls tip: unlike games such as Zelda, you never actually control Agro. You always control Wander (the protagonist). When you're on Agro, you only control the reins. And if you pull the reins hard the horse will just get stressed and make a hard turn. Always be gentle with the reins.
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Sep 14, 2019 08:11
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Carbon dioxide posted:This is a good game to see a blind LP on. Okay that's fantastic. I like game horses that act like horses. Even if they're frustrating to actually control.
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Sep 14, 2019 08:15
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The title clearly should have been. "On the shoulders of giants."
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Sep 14, 2019 12:44
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cant cook creole bream posted:The title clearly should have been. "On the shoulders of giants." I hate you so much for how right you are.
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Sep 15, 2019 22:33
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Shadow of the Colossus is easily one of my favorite games of its generation, and if I had to try to make an all-time top ten list it'd probably end up on there. It should be fun to see the game through some fresh eyes! 
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Sep 15, 2019 23:22
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Episode 03 - I Had No Idea
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Sep 16, 2019 23:12
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Great. I can post this now https://gifsound.com/?gif=youtu.be%2FIZ9Q34MZkRw&v=c4COfl8DMB8&gs=688&ge=729&s=343
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Sep 17, 2019 02:17
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If you see one of those lizards again you might want to try shooting it with an arrow.
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Sep 17, 2019 02:45
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Great to be on the ground floor for this. You are doing pretty well so far. and don't be afraid to look around and such... the place is beautiful as hell.
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Sep 17, 2019 02:56
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Sep 18, 2019 23:43
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I'm glad you've reached the fourth colossus since I think this is the fight which most strongly embodies my feelings towards the game itself and I wonder if both of your thoughts on the game will be similar by the time you're done with it. I love the experience as a whole and I think it excels thematically, aesthetically, and conceptually (and the climbing is pretty good too). However, sometimes the puzzle elements are so finicky that being even ever so slightly off the mark from whatever precise solution Shadow of the Colossus wants results in fumbling around for minutes on end, second guessing yourself as a voice periodically repeats the same vague hint over and over.
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Sep 19, 2019 00:35
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Honestly, even after knowing how it's supposed to be taken down, it can still take way too long to get it to do its "inspection". It probably is the most boring, annoying fight in the game so far as I'm concerned. Incidentally, it is possible to forego running around to climb its back--if you are fast enough when it looks into the barrow, you can run back up to it and jump onto the dangling ornaments, and climb them directly up onto the face and head. Good job, though, and keep up the good work! The next colossus is one of my favorites.
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Sep 19, 2019 03:29
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Tea and I have wildly varying views on this encounter. I'll explain in detail after next episode.
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Sep 19, 2019 10:35
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This is one of my least favourite colossi just due to how finiky the timing is on getting it to follow you into the tunnels. Oh and just in case it didn't click, the glowing bits that just look like cracks indicate a spot that will cause a colossus to change their positioning (e.g. craning their neck down in this instance) rather than an actual weak point
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Sep 19, 2019 22:01
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Sep 20, 2019 23:52
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 at outhinking yourselves for a bit at firstNow that you've experienced falling off of a colossus but catching yourself on another part of it, what do you imagine speedruns of this game look like? Tea posted:he keeps his hand on his scabbard at all times. Like he's afraid it's gonna fall off.
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Sep 21, 2019 03:54
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Sep 23, 2019 23:08
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So, incidentally, that thing where you were grabbing the back of his hand is part of the speedrun strat for that Colossus. It is in fact intended, but it's also at least ten times harder than the beard method. You can, in fact, defeat the horse by a faster speedrun method as well that does not involve using the barrows. It's REALLY hard, but doable if you know of (or think of) the trick. Partial spoiler for the method: You can jump off Agro. In fact, ALL of the Colossi have speedrun strats that are, as far as I can tell, intended despite being difficult as gently caress. The knight, for instance, has a REALLY awesome one. The knight can launch you hundreds of feet into the air when it lifts its sword out of the dirt, and you can then land on his head. Iunnrais fucked around with this message at 12:40 on Sep 24, 2019 |
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Sep 24, 2019 12:35
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I feel like Tea and I will want highlights of SotC speedruns later. I might even do a bonus at the end of the LP where we watch them and just see all the crazy stuff that's being suggested here for the first time.
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Sep 24, 2019 23:53
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Natural 20 posted:I feel like Tea and I will want highlights of SotC speedruns later. I might even do a bonus at the end of the LP where we watch them and just see all the crazy stuff that's being suggested here for the first time. There are some insane tricks that rely on exact positioning, timing and intimate knowledge with the games physics system and how Wander tumbles. Shits crazy yo
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Sep 25, 2019 00:41
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Natural 20 posted:I feel like Tea and I will want highlights of SotC speedruns later. There’s a speed run category for individual colossi runs without having to travel to them first, so you can just watch those videos, no need for editing. I look forward to your reactions. Seriously!
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Sep 25, 2019 04:18
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Episode 07 - Lost Okay, so this was an editing decision I'm uncertain of. We spend most of this episode completely lost, but I felt that in doing so we were at least exploring the world and engaging in what seems to be an important part of the experience. If people want me to cut this stuff down in the future, please chime in.
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Sep 25, 2019 23:06
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Natural 20 posted:Episode 07 - Lost Oh dear.  Easiest way to get to this colossus was to go all the way north along The Bridge, then straight west. But I don't mind seeing the whole "getting lost" experience; that's part of the game. If it happens again, I say keep it in. And remember how to navigate that canyon--you'll be back through that way getting to future fights. Also: lizards. Assuming it works the same way it did in the original, only lizards with white tails increase your stamina. None of the ones you killed had those. You monster. (try looking around on some of the save shrines you pass by)
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Sep 25, 2019 23:43
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Natural 20 posted:Episode 07 - Lost You forgot your banner image, I whipped one up for you. 
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Sep 26, 2019 02:55
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Meaty Ore posted:Also: lizards. Assuming it works the same way it did in the original, only lizards with white tails increase your stamina. None of the ones you killed had those. You monster. (try looking around on some of the save shrines you pass by) As the "random voice" that mentioned hunting lizards... I may have forgotten to mention that part...
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Sep 26, 2019 04:07
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Wa11y posted:You forgot your banner image, I whipped one up for you. I can't think which will be a better title for next episode: "Water Temple" or "Nantucket Slay Ride".
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Sep 26, 2019 04:29
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I say keep it in future episodes as well. Not that I don't have every confidence in your navigation skills. Honestly. You and Tea in an open world distracting each other will obviously never get lost again. Ahem. More seriously, I can't speak for everyone but I think generally we're watching you LP this to see you LP this. If I want to see someone do it perfectly I'll go look that up.
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Sep 26, 2019 07:26
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Even when you're lost, as long as there's something indicating the gears are still turning, it can still be pretty entertaining. All part of the experience!Natural 20 posted:I am merely a servant of the voices, alright?
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Sep 26, 2019 09:57
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Black Robe posted:More seriously, I can't speak for everyone but I think generally we're watching you LP this to see you LP this. If I want to see someone do it perfectly I'll go look that up. Yep. This is one of my favorite games of all time. I'm vicariously enjoying it for the first time again through you two. Getting lost is part of that. In fact, getting lost is the only other mechanic in the game besides fighting the colossi. The first couple are easy to find, but they deliberately made the light beam steer you into false cul-de-sacs and loops and paths that don't quite lead to your destination in some of the later ones, just to make the exploration of the world a thing you have to do.
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Sep 26, 2019 23:45
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Fish Noise posted:oooOOOooo teeellllll meeee your credit card number and its expiration date and security code on the back OOOoooOOO Thy next foe is... In lecture halls it knows no fears, a fierce student debt loan awaits.
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Sep 27, 2019 03:33
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Without getting into any deep spoilers, I will say that the developers put such an immense amount of effort in fleshing out the space between the Colossi and hid so many neat little things, the original release of this game actually spawned a devote group of players who collectively spent years and years searching for what they referred to as "The final secret". Their devotion in exploring the world moved the developers so much that they added in something for these specific players in THIS re-release of the game, but told nobody about it except for one tiny minor thing they changed from the original game that only these obsessed secret-hunters might notice...and we did notice it, and it's excellent and a love letter written by the developers to the superfans of this game. I'll say no more, except that you've completed one step to finding "The Final Secret", but you likely don't even know how.
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Sep 27, 2019 07:58
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Episode 08 - Shadow of the Colosseel
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Sep 27, 2019 23:19
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This one really looks a hell of a lot better in HD than the original, drat.
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Sep 28, 2019 00:16
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