In 2006, Team Ico’s Shadow of the Colossus became one of the most acclaimed games ever and helped raise the question, “Are video games art?” Two decades later, creator Fumito Ueda and the rest of his talented team presented a new project during the massive Game Awards.
While brief, this trailer teases a game that could become a new classic that gives gamers everything they loved about the team’s previous work. Here is a breakdown of this spiritual successor to the iconic Shadow of the Colossus.
Shadow of the Colossus Successor Announced
During the Game Awards, many massive announcements for new titles were made. While many arrived with fanfare, others were more mysterious. One was a new project from Fumito Ueda, creator of Shadow of the Colossus and Ico. He prepared a short but intriguing trailer for the new project. Furthermore, it would be their first project published by Epic Games.
It began with a distorted, mechanical voice announcing a minute before an ominous black “shockwave” arrived. Then, a man in a mechanical suit with similar patterns to Shadow of the Colossus’ wander quickly scaled a deactivated mecha. Just before the black wave arrived, he detached the mech’s head as it flew off. Immediately, one can presume some devastating apocalypse occurred within the game’s ominous world. Given the trailer’s brevity, it was meant to sell the game’s tone rather than any plot or gameplay mechanics.
Immediately, fans learned the game would be science fiction, a huge departure from the previous three fantasy games. Given that the project is currently untitled, it could be long before fans receive a closer look. However, the game was at least given the codename “Project: Robot,” implying that mechas would be a significant part of the game’s world. Furthermore, one can expect its predecessor’s “colossus climbing” to return as a major feature.
The Original Classics
For those who forgot, Shadow of the Colossus was one of the most critically acclaimed games of the PS2 era. The game followed the lone swordsman Wander as he tracked down and slew 16 colossi to resurrect his dead girlfriend. The game was praised for its awe-inspiring battles and melancholic story.
Team Ico’s other two projects were Ico and The Last Guardian, often considered spiritual siblings. Ico was critically acclaimed for its clever minimalism and is credited for inspiring many other masterpieces, such as Dark Souls and Hollow Knight. While acclaimed, The Last Guardian did not achieve the same universal acclaim.
Afterward, Japan Studio, the original publisher of their games, dissolved. Therefore, Ueda and his other cocreators formed “GenDesign” from former Team Ico members. As shown by the radical departure of Project: Robot, the team can swiftly use their formula’s core “essence” to tell new stories.
