The dream is what's real, for us anyways. I wonder if a thousand years from now, if people will look at this game and feel what we feel? I love that somehow someone managed to capture that space I to art so that everyone can see it. I dream of the same kinds of spaces sometimes.
Great video, as always. I've got to be honest and admit I'm a sucker for happy endings, so I do believe Yorda managed to get out of the castle in the end. I am also fond of the loopholes that allow heroes to win, and thinking back to Queen's words "Yorda will never be able to escape this castle" and that Yorda is bound to it, I figured she would be free, once the castle is in shambles. Perhaps I took too much copium, but I am happier believing in that 🤷
I’m reminded of The Dark Crystal and how it was filmed to be almost entirely in a made up language until test audiences sent it into a tailspin. What a disappointment.
It's interesting we have two lineages of people possessing magical energy. The semi abundant horned children and the queen and Yorta seemingly made out of the turquoise white energy. (The magical energy seems to be split between black magic and turquoise white magic. I.e. the tentacles that stab you in shadow of the colossus, the spirits black shrouded bodies, their glowing eyes.) And I also think those markings on the boy from the Last gaurdian can mark him as a potential third lineage. Potentially. I wonder if there's any meaning to be had hear and I wonder if this castle was originally ran by the horned family. Ofc this is all just aspects of the world building and not over the themes of the story but it may loop back around to those.
I'm just guessing but maybe the statue of the horned man was of the Queen's husband? Yorda had to come from somewhere? Either way it's weird how the queen looks down on horned children as peasants meant to be sacrificed, but there are horned statues that don't symbolize that since it was an adult and seemed to be a noble person. I didn't notice that till I saw this video either
Just binged like 30 ICO vids on youtube after finishing the game. This was by far the best video on the platform. Your genuine interest on the topic that shined through in your thorough research, detail oriented consideration, and interesting interpretations made this highly engaging. Instant subscribe, and the rest of this comment is overstepping but you have crazy potential in lore videos, but glancing at your channel, I feel like you haven't quite found your niche and the polish in your scripts pacing, and overall presentation (mainly asset design & usage) is just shy of being tight enough to reach mass appeal. You have a great voice for this too, I swear you're 'this' close to breaking in, hitting that impression threashhold that the algorithm loves to see and finding your audience. Anyway main point is, if a strangers opinion is any consolation, I think this is worth pursuing for you. I'd watch 100 videos like this.
I can't help but feel Ueda's a bit too hard on himself. Yeah, it would have been interesting to see some of this cut dialogue or have things expanded upon, but the way ICO ultimately turned out was honestly amazing. A true artist is never satisfied I suppose.
Funny thing. I played Shadow of the Colossus and got far, but didn't finish it. I have absolutely no idea why, even though I enjoyed it each time I played; I couldn't finish SotC. ICO on the other hand I had a purpose. I was fully invested in the characters and the goal of making it out of the castle. I played through the end, loved every moment, and cried. I wonder what are the extras Ueda wishes he could add. Although the final design may have cut down on the expansiveness of additional things, the Design by Subtraction philosophy made the experience much more poetic for me.
I really wish the Queen's Sword runes could somehow be deciphered! This was an awesome video by the way, exactly the kind of thing I was searching for!
Also I never saw anyone mention how the beach in the ending is glowing etherrally. It could mean it's a dream because Ico was sleeping on the boat, but Yorda and her powers have an ethereal glow that is used to help them sleep on a glowing couch relics throughout the entire game. Maybe the magic has something to do with dreams in the first place? Ico does actually dream in the beginning of the game, but it's of what happens in reality next. And in You Were There who I interpret as Ico sings about 'visions they haunt me in my sleep.' Darkness and light magic...sleep comes in dreams in the dark. I have no idea just wondering outloud really. It's a very spiritual game the ending feels a lot more than what can be explained with words. When you strip away the plot to what is essential literal meanings don't matter so much either which is what makes Ico so great. Whatever happened I think Yorda is free now in most ways people interpret the ending. And I love that it's up for us to interpret too.
My theory is the Horned Children, the Queen, and Yorta are are related to Mono, Wander/Dormin. That in order to revive Mono, Dormin had to give her some power. He was sealed inside of Wander and somehow years later the power of Mono and of Dormin through their lineage was discovered. The Queen had inherited most of Dormins power and that's why she had that shadow cloak. and for fun I like the think the horn children are servants as Wander was used by Dormin and then turned into a horned child.
Joined the discord and I am very excited to have found this channel! Personally, I think the game is more impactful, and even more meaningful, without the cut dialogue, but I’m glad it remains preserved in this translation. It provides a lot of insight for people interested in the wider world of Ueda, and the development of his first title.
I beat this game for the first time a few weeks ago and have been scouring youtube looking for people talking about it so I'm really happy I found your channel and can't wait for SotC videos. I had no idea the queen had a human shaped body or that the concept art existed and it blew my mind lol. I don't think the beach is a reused asset. There are people who compared the two using camera clipping tools here on youtube that proved it. But that means they are different beaches. I still think there's still some weight to the theory that it's the forbidden lands I'm not sure what to think myself.
First I've ever heard of these lost lines, certainly interesting that Yorda would have said more than just a few words as she does in the finished game. On one hand, it does keep her and the Dark Queen more mysterious, as well as keeping the lines about Yorda not being able to leave a bit more vague compared to these lines really hammering the point home. The fact that the horned children were considered servants is certainly interesting, and really paints the history made for the novelization in a whole new light. A personal theory I've had regarding the statues that block Ico and Yorda's path has been that they are what remains of the sacrificed children, their bodies turned to stone from the removal of their souls, now made into a kind of ghastly decoration to litter the castle and impede passage of any who would try to enter. As for the ending, I do like how it is kept vague in regards to whether it is the afterlife, Ico's dream, or reality. On one hand, Yorda does seem to have a healthier look to her, not appearing nearly as pale, which could mean she has become fully human and is now free. On the other hand, it being just a dream or even the afterlife could simply mean the pair are now appearing in their purest forms. I have enjoyed seeing the few rare art pieces that suggest the pair sharing a life after the castle, including a doujinshi that depicted Yorda once again shrouded in shadow, rejecting Ico's apparent attempts to show Yorda the outside world, before finally helping her break free of whatever was clouding her mind and she returns to normal once more. It's fun seeing what could possibly await the two if their journey were to continue after the castle, possibly living together in peace, free of their respective curses. It is interesting that Ueda isn't quite as satisfied with the game as he would like to be, which makes me wonder if he would ever want to remake the game to expand on things that he previously couldn't, given the game's rather rocky development and final rush that led to the original American release on PS2 suffering from Yorda's buggy AI and the lack of the goodies later seen in the Japanese and PAL releases. While I personally wouldn't exactly want a remake, I did have to wonder back when the remake of Shadow of the Colossus was on the horizon if Ico were possibly going to get the same treatment, to essentially "complete the trilogy" for PS4 users. It certainly would have been interesting to see, even if that would have been Bluepoint and not Ueda, unless he were to interject and help out as he once had with the PS3 remasters of Ico and Sotc. As I recall, Ueda was greatly tempted to use the remaster collection to restore some of the removed colossi for Sotc, but ultimately decided against it, which was quite a shame, especially when the remake later opted to not add anything other than the coins and the new sword. All that aside, I'm definitely excited to see what the next game will be like, since the new art seem radically different from the mysterious "Beauty and the Beast" piece that was first shown.
So blessed I found this, I just finished playing ico and was really hungry for someone's interpretation of the story and "lore", and even better than that I got some extra bits that added to the story ^^ that part about the post credits scene possibly just being a dream is particularly heart breaking, but as you said I can hold onto it being a real thing so think o will lol. haven't watched any others yet but I can't wait to check out your other vids! Also I wanted to say about the beach being reused in the forbidden lands, it has been said by the creator that the ending of shadow is supposed to be the "first horned baby" and directly states that the two games take place in the same world, and so what if this place was some sort of precursor to the already defunct dynasty from ico. Not sure how exactly, but the blue magic, the ancient sword being powered by sunlight much like how the gates from ico, the horns being a motif on the Colossi and dormin, it's as if the destruction/transfering of that power into the sword at the end of the game, thus creating the "first horned baby" is what created the possibility for that lineage yorda and the queen are a part of... This is a massive reach but the girl who is brought back by the slaying of the Colossi might even be the creator of that lineage somehow, she is stuck there after all, and maybe after being brought back she has some deep connection to the light dark energy/space we see after killing each Colossi, not to mention I'm sure it's her voice we hear in those moments. it would be sad because it means that over time the relationship with the horned boys* and the lightdark lineage became a sacrificial one, and I always imagined her caring for baby horned boy in the forbidden lands, but who knows, it's just them two and an ancient temple tied to great unknowable power so maybe it's quickly turned into her using horned boy a some sort of vessel to gain more power. God only knows but yeah all that being said, maybe the beach really is the one from ico after eons have passed which explains it being surrounded by such different land masses, the ocean has erroded the forbidden lands long after this Imagined dark queen dynasty migrated to the castle in the mist and ico finds himself washed up at the place where it all began. Or it's a dream so it doesn't matter either way
So I just started watching your "bad shadow of the Colossus theory" video 😂 can't believe I just stumbled onto a version of what you were talking about, I swear I didn't even know this was a theory already 😅 but yeah as I said I don't actually think the woman from 'sotc' IS the dark queen but I still think it could be her and the horned baby that are somehow the origins of that dynasty, something that became corrupted over time. I'll finish your video before I speculate more because it honestly was something that just came to me while watching this video, but yeah I was so shocked to see what I typed in this comment was so close to what your talking about in your other vid that I had to come back and mention it lol
Okay so this is the last one, I finished both your shadow of the Colossus videos, I loved colossal miss-understandings especially, and while I totally agree Mono being the queen herself is silly, I actually do think Fumito was absolutely drawing the direct connection between mono, the dark queen and yorda, especially based on that cut ending you discussed. As I said before it's like she is the begining of a lineage that stretches on for centuries if not longer, and over time this evolved and soured, much like what apparently happened to the forbidden lands. Mono is given back her soul but this in turn this gives her some beyond human quality that grants her long life. I also thought it connects the shield Mono gets in the cut ending and the dark queens shield. What if dormin granted mono protection for Wanders sake as he genuinely wanted to hold up his end of the bargain. And then that somehow was passed down to her descends? I know I know it's not cannon because it didn't happen but I've now got head cannon dormin did it In the real ending too just incase bull headed shaman man did try and kill her but it never ended up being needed Then there is wander, who was reborn as a horned baby, Dormin's essence remains but it is trapped but the light of the ancient sword. mirroring the ritual that trapped dormin in the Colossi eons ago, which it's implied is done using this "light essence" stuff that shows up as turquoise. Soooooo assuming mono and wander grow up, have kids, and bam! you've got an semi- immortal blood line on Mono's side which was granted as a protection by dormin (or maybe is simply a by product of her soul being returned) and on Wander's he's introduced a sort of physical essence of dormin his children and then after many, many, many years it's becomes this sort of recessive gene that can show up in children. Meanwhile Monos descendents are becoming aware of their connection to the horned children and how their essence can be harvested to give them super powers, thus sealing there fate to become reliant on sacrifice to keep up what they made themselves with the "dormin juice™" What really struck me is how similar the black shroud that takes over wander is to the one that shrouds yorda at the end of ico, as if dormin's essence is what lives on in the dark queen and what she is passing onto yorda, or more likely, since they requires the horned children for the ritual, dormin's essence has to be extracted from the horned children to "recharge" their tainted-immortality. Okay I'm done now, I'm so sorry if you actually read all this I know it's allot, but I don't have a forum I can post this on and I thought it would help with your analytics lol.
Great video!! I love ICO didn't realize how old the game was. I bought the book based off the game and I enjoyed it but I felt like it didn't capture the same narrative of the game tho still a fun read. Also this may be a spoiler but in the books final battle all the shadowy figures aid ICO in his fight against the queen 👑
Nice analysis. This game needs a remake & I'd certainly be okay if some of the unused assets were put back for the remake. I'd also like the remake to use the same beach as it appears in the remake of S.O.T.C. I know an expanded soundtrack has been released to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the game. It contains a new recording of "You Were There". The new version is okay, but should we get a remake, I wouldn't want it to replace the version sung by Steven Geraghty.
From this video and the series I’ve had my own speculations and my questions of the series as I honestly believe that ico is wander and the horned child might be the main character of the upcoming and new Fumito ueda game though not having his horns they might be still underdeveloped as he styles a cap (I think?) on his head though this character brings a lot of things to the table as he might and possibly is the horned child/as I like to call him the outlaw as the giant mechanical being that he touch also can be a building of this story of his this new game might take place in new regions of the forbidden lands as he probably might of learned of his father (which is wander/ico) where he might have a coming of age arc and is able to build his own character and find his own journey in the universe though this is only a theory I hope that this might be the case and actually could be the case NOTE:this came out alot less smart then it was in my head
I honestly consider castle in the mist to be cannon to the series I’m just waiting for more books. I’m also wondering if the book’s author got some of the lore information from the creator directly. I still consider the three games Ico, SOTC and The Last Guardian to be true examples of video games as an art form. I personally would love to see how these games would be like had he made them with current technology.
I liked to think "Monos cursed fate" was to become "the queen" and was sacrificed to prevent it - it makes a self fulfilling prophecy and then in Ico the children with horns are considered calamatous because of Wanders decisions being calamatous. Parallel to each other: SotC and Ico: whilst all the collosi create a dormin, all the sacrificed in Ico bring a new life to Yorda. The destruction of icos horns i attribute to the full circle coming to an end: wanders predecessors being free and Mono being freed via Yordas reawakening.
10:47 they’re not praying. if you look closely, you can see that the figure on the left is more masculine and the one on the right feminine. his hands are making a giving gesture and she is making a receiving one. what he’s offering her looks like his penis. above them is what appears to be a uterus with a baby growing inside of it, the symbols being chromosomes. there’s a reason why Ico has horns and wields a stick, sword, spiked mace, and a lightsaber that grows when he holds Yorda’s hand. all phallic objects. you open gates all throughout the game, leading to the main gate, a vaginal metaphor, which you must open by lighting two rows of torches symbolising the vaginal canal, then activating spheres on either side that bear a resemblance to ovaries. the boy is brought to the castle to be sacrificed by men with downturned horns whilst Ico’s are upturned; they are impotent to the Queen’s wishes whilst Ico is virile. the small gates that Ico and Yorda open throughout the game are shaped like figures with, again, downturned horns which have horned boys trapped inside them looking defeated. Ico fights against what remains of the boys who succumbed to the wishes of their elders, becoming pawns for the Queen. he is struggling against a society that wants him to devote himself to a Queen who wants only to live on through her daughter instead of letting her be her own person. ultimately, Ico saves Yorda from her controlling mother, and in turn Yorda saves Ico from the (literal, even) shackles of a domineering society, through the power of coming together. the entire game is about sex and love.
an ICO analysis with only 7.6k views?? I have been BLESSED by the algorithm, I'm so excited to watch this
The dream is what's real, for us anyways. I wonder if a thousand years from now, if people will look at this game and feel what we feel? I love that somehow someone managed to capture that space I to art so that everyone can see it. I dream of the same kinds of spaces sometimes.
Great video, as always. I've got to be honest and admit I'm a sucker for happy endings, so I do believe Yorda managed to get out of the castle in the end. I am also fond of the loopholes that allow heroes to win, and thinking back to Queen's words "Yorda will never be able to escape this castle" and that Yorda is bound to it, I figured she would be free, once the castle is in shambles.
Perhaps I took too much copium, but I am happier believing in that 🤷
Ueda is well aware people prefer this interpretation so he states his take as simply another one
I felt the same way when I beat the game lol.
I’m reminded of The Dark Crystal and how it was filmed to be almost entirely in a made up language until test audiences sent it into a tailspin. What a disappointment.
It's interesting we have two lineages of people possessing magical energy. The semi abundant horned children and the queen and Yorta seemingly made out of the turquoise white energy. (The magical energy seems to be split between black magic and turquoise white magic. I.e. the tentacles that stab you in shadow of the colossus, the spirits black shrouded bodies, their glowing eyes.) And I also think those markings on the boy from the Last gaurdian can mark him as a potential third lineage. Potentially. I wonder if there's any meaning to be had hear and I wonder if this castle was originally ran by the horned family. Ofc this is all just aspects of the world building and not over the themes of the story but it may loop back around to those.
I'm just guessing but maybe the statue of the horned man was of the Queen's husband? Yorda had to come from somewhere? Either way it's weird how the queen looks down on horned children as peasants meant to be sacrificed, but there are horned statues that don't symbolize that since it was an adult and seemed to be a noble person. I didn't notice that till I saw this video either
Just binged like 30 ICO vids on youtube after finishing the game. This was by far the best video on the platform. Your genuine interest on the topic that shined through in your thorough research, detail oriented consideration, and interesting interpretations made this highly engaging. Instant subscribe, and the rest of this comment is overstepping but you have crazy potential in lore videos, but glancing at your channel, I feel like you haven't quite found your niche and the polish in your scripts pacing, and overall presentation (mainly asset design & usage) is just shy of being tight enough to reach mass appeal. You have a great voice for this too, I swear you're 'this' close to breaking in, hitting that impression threashhold that the algorithm loves to see and finding your audience.
Anyway main point is, if a strangers opinion is any consolation, I think this is worth pursuing for you. I'd watch 100 videos like this.
I really do wish for more content from fumito Ueda! You really seem to dig and even research alot about your content, and thats real dedication here!
Your content is so good! I wish you could get the recognition you wholeheartedly deserve.
I can't help but feel Ueda's a bit too hard on himself. Yeah, it would have been interesting to see some of this cut dialogue or have things expanded upon, but the way ICO ultimately turned out was honestly amazing.
A true artist is never satisfied I suppose.
Funny thing. I played Shadow of the Colossus and got far, but didn't finish it. I have absolutely no idea why, even though I enjoyed it each time I played; I couldn't finish SotC.
ICO on the other hand I had a purpose. I was fully invested in the characters and the goal of making it out of the castle. I played through the end, loved every moment, and cried.
I wonder what are the extras Ueda wishes he could add. Although the final design may have cut down on the expansiveness of additional things, the Design by Subtraction philosophy made the experience much more poetic for me.
I really wish the Queen's Sword runes could somehow be deciphered! This was an awesome video by the way, exactly the kind of thing I was searching for!
Also I never saw anyone mention how the beach in the ending is glowing etherrally. It could mean it's a dream because Ico was sleeping on the boat, but Yorda and her powers have an ethereal glow that is used to help them sleep on a glowing couch relics throughout the entire game. Maybe the magic has something to do with dreams in the first place? Ico does actually dream in the beginning of the game, but it's of what happens in reality next. And in You Were There who I interpret as Ico sings about 'visions they haunt me in my sleep.' Darkness and light magic...sleep comes in dreams in the dark. I have no idea just wondering outloud really.
It's a very spiritual game the ending feels a lot more than what can be explained with words. When you strip away the plot to what is essential literal meanings don't matter so much either which is what makes Ico so great. Whatever happened I think Yorda is free now in most ways people interpret the ending. And I love that it's up for us to interpret too.
My theory is the Horned Children, the Queen, and Yorta are are related to Mono, Wander/Dormin. That in order to revive Mono, Dormin had to give her some power. He was sealed inside of Wander and somehow years later the power of Mono and of Dormin through their lineage was discovered. The Queen had inherited most of Dormins power and that's why she had that shadow cloak. and for fun I like the think the horn children are servants as Wander was used by Dormin and then turned into a horned child.
A women's perspective is always a treat for my gamer interests. More please. We're taking over this place.
Joined the discord and I am very excited to have found this channel! Personally, I think the game is more impactful, and even more meaningful, without the cut dialogue, but I’m glad it remains preserved in this translation. It provides a lot of insight for people interested in the wider world of Ueda, and the development of his first title.
I beat this game for the first time a few weeks ago and have been scouring youtube looking for people talking about it so I'm really happy I found your channel and can't wait for SotC videos. I had no idea the queen had a human shaped body or that the concept art existed and it blew my mind lol.
I don't think the beach is a reused asset. There are people who compared the two using camera clipping tools here on youtube that proved it. But that means they are different beaches. I still think there's still some weight to the theory that it's the forbidden lands I'm not sure what to think myself.
First I've ever heard of these lost lines, certainly interesting that Yorda would have said more than just a few words as she does in the finished game. On one hand, it does keep her and the Dark Queen more mysterious, as well as keeping the lines about Yorda not being able to leave a bit more vague compared to these lines really hammering the point home. The fact that the horned children were considered servants is certainly interesting, and really paints the history made for the novelization in a whole new light. A personal theory I've had regarding the statues that block Ico and Yorda's path has been that they are what remains of the sacrificed children, their bodies turned to stone from the removal of their souls, now made into a kind of ghastly decoration to litter the castle and impede passage of any who would try to enter.
As for the ending, I do like how it is kept vague in regards to whether it is the afterlife, Ico's dream, or reality. On one hand, Yorda does seem to have a healthier look to her, not appearing nearly as pale, which could mean she has become fully human and is now free. On the other hand, it being just a dream or even the afterlife could simply mean the pair are now appearing in their purest forms. I have enjoyed seeing the few rare art pieces that suggest the pair sharing a life after the castle, including a doujinshi that depicted Yorda once again shrouded in shadow, rejecting Ico's apparent attempts to show Yorda the outside world, before finally helping her break free of whatever was clouding her mind and she returns to normal once more. It's fun seeing what could possibly await the two if their journey were to continue after the castle, possibly living together in peace, free of their respective curses.
It is interesting that Ueda isn't quite as satisfied with the game as he would like to be, which makes me wonder if he would ever want to remake the game to expand on things that he previously couldn't, given the game's rather rocky development and final rush that led to the original American release on PS2 suffering from Yorda's buggy AI and the lack of the goodies later seen in the Japanese and PAL releases. While I personally wouldn't exactly want a remake, I did have to wonder back when the remake of Shadow of the Colossus was on the horizon if Ico were possibly going to get the same treatment, to essentially "complete the trilogy" for PS4 users. It certainly would have been interesting to see, even if that would have been Bluepoint and not Ueda, unless he were to interject and help out as he once had with the PS3 remasters of Ico and Sotc. As I recall, Ueda was greatly tempted to use the remaster collection to restore some of the removed colossi for Sotc, but ultimately decided against it, which was quite a shame, especially when the remake later opted to not add anything other than the coins and the new sword. All that aside, I'm definitely excited to see what the next game will be like, since the new art seem radically different from the mysterious "Beauty and the Beast" piece that was first shown.
You became my favourite Team ICO RUclipsr x
So blessed I found this, I just finished playing ico and was really hungry for someone's interpretation of the story and "lore", and even better than that I got some extra bits that added to the story ^^ that part about the post credits scene possibly just being a dream is particularly heart breaking, but as you said I can hold onto it being a real thing so think o will lol.
haven't watched any others yet but I can't wait to check out your other vids!
Also I wanted to say about the beach being reused in the forbidden lands, it has been said by the creator that the ending of shadow is supposed to be the "first horned baby" and directly states that the two games take place in the same world, and so what if this place was some sort of precursor to the already defunct dynasty from ico.
Not sure how exactly, but the blue magic, the ancient sword being powered by sunlight much like how the gates from ico, the horns being a motif on the Colossi and dormin, it's as if the destruction/transfering of that power into the sword at the end of the game, thus creating the "first horned baby" is what created the possibility for that lineage yorda and the queen are a part of... This is a massive reach but the girl who is brought back by the slaying of the Colossi might even be the creator of that lineage somehow, she is stuck there after all, and maybe after being brought back she has some deep connection to the light dark energy/space we see after killing each Colossi, not to mention I'm sure it's her voice we hear in those moments.
it would be sad because it means that over time the relationship with the horned boys* and the lightdark lineage became a sacrificial one, and I always imagined her caring for baby horned boy in the forbidden lands, but who knows, it's just them two and an ancient temple tied to great unknowable power so maybe it's quickly turned into her using horned boy a some sort of vessel to gain more power. God only knows but yeah all that being said, maybe the beach really is the one from ico after eons have passed which explains it being surrounded by such different land masses, the ocean has erroded the forbidden lands long after this Imagined dark queen dynasty migrated to the castle in the mist and ico finds himself washed up at the place where it all began.
Or it's a dream so it doesn't matter either way
So I just started watching your "bad shadow of the Colossus theory" video 😂 can't believe I just stumbled onto a version of what you were talking about, I swear I didn't even know this was a theory already 😅 but yeah as I said I don't actually think the woman from 'sotc' IS the dark queen but I still think it could be her and the horned baby that are somehow the origins of that dynasty, something that became corrupted over time. I'll finish your video before I speculate more because it honestly was something that just came to me while watching this video, but yeah I was so shocked to see what I typed in this comment was so close to what your talking about in your other vid that I had to come back and mention it lol
Okay so this is the last one, I finished both your shadow of the Colossus videos, I loved colossal miss-understandings especially, and while I totally agree Mono being the queen herself is silly, I actually do think Fumito was absolutely drawing the direct connection between mono, the dark queen and yorda, especially based on that cut ending you discussed. As I said before it's like she is the begining of a lineage that stretches on for centuries if not longer, and over time this evolved and soured, much like what apparently happened to the forbidden lands.
Mono is given back her soul but this in turn this gives her some beyond human quality that grants her long life.
I also thought it connects the shield Mono gets in the cut ending and the dark queens shield. What if dormin granted mono protection for Wanders sake as he genuinely wanted to hold up his end of the bargain. And then that somehow was passed down to her descends? I know I know it's not cannon because it didn't happen but I've now got head cannon dormin did it In the real ending too just incase bull headed shaman man did try and kill her but it never ended up being needed
Then there is wander, who was reborn as a horned baby, Dormin's essence remains but it is trapped but the light of the ancient sword. mirroring the ritual that trapped dormin in the Colossi eons ago, which it's implied is done using this "light essence" stuff that shows up as turquoise.
Soooooo assuming mono and wander grow up, have kids, and bam! you've got an semi- immortal blood line on Mono's side which was granted as a protection by dormin (or maybe is simply a by product of her soul being returned) and on Wander's he's introduced a sort of physical essence of dormin his children and then after many, many, many years it's becomes this sort of recessive gene that can show up in children.
Meanwhile Monos descendents are becoming aware of their connection to the horned children and how their essence can be harvested to give them super powers, thus sealing there fate to become reliant on sacrifice to keep up what they made themselves with the "dormin juice™"
What really struck me is how similar the black shroud that takes over wander is to the one that shrouds yorda at the end of ico, as if dormin's essence is what lives on in the dark queen and what she is passing onto yorda, or more likely, since they requires the horned children for the ritual, dormin's essence has to be extracted from the horned children to "recharge" their tainted-immortality.
Okay I'm done now, I'm so sorry if you actually read all this I know it's allot, but I don't have a forum I can post this on and I thought it would help with your analytics lol.
very underrated
This video was fantastic you did great! I wish they would have given us more than 30% of a game
Great video!! I love ICO didn't realize how old the game was. I bought the book based off the game and I enjoyed it but I felt like it didn't capture the same narrative of the game tho still a fun read. Also this may be a spoiler but in the books final battle all the shadowy figures aid ICO in his fight against the queen 👑
Nice channel, the doll bit is uncanny though.
Sad ending.
You are awesome!
Nice analysis. This game needs a remake & I'd certainly be okay if some of the unused assets were put back for the remake. I'd also like the remake to use the same beach as it appears in the remake of S.O.T.C. I know an expanded soundtrack has been released to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the game. It contains a new recording of "You Were There". The new version is okay, but should we get a remake, I wouldn't want it to replace the version sung by Steven Geraghty.
From this video and the series I’ve had my own speculations and my questions of the series as I honestly believe that ico is wander and the horned child might be the main character of the upcoming and new Fumito ueda game though not having his horns they might be still underdeveloped as he styles a cap (I think?) on his head though this character brings a lot of things to the table as he might and possibly is the horned child/as I like to call him the outlaw as the giant mechanical being that he touch also can be a building of this story of his this new game might take place in new regions of the forbidden lands as he probably might of learned of his father (which is wander/ico) where he might have a coming of age arc and is able to build his own character and find his own journey in the universe though this is only a theory I hope that this might be the case and actually could be the case NOTE:this came out alot less smart then it was in my head
I honestly consider castle in the mist to be cannon to the series I’m just waiting for more books. I’m also wondering if the book’s author got some of the lore information from the creator directly. I still consider the three games Ico, SOTC and The Last Guardian to be true examples of video games as an art form. I personally would love to see how these games would be like had he made them with current technology.
I need more:,(
I liked to think "Monos cursed fate" was to become "the queen" and was sacrificed to prevent it - it makes a self fulfilling prophecy and then in Ico the children with horns are considered calamatous because of Wanders decisions being calamatous.
Parallel to each other: SotC and Ico: whilst all the collosi create a dormin, all the sacrificed in Ico bring a new life to Yorda.
The destruction of icos horns i attribute to the full circle coming to an end: wanders predecessors being free and Mono being freed via Yordas reawakening.
I miss your voice. I hope you are doing well. Where are you? 😢
Would you do a video of Last Guardian?
10:47 they’re not praying. if you look closely, you can see that the figure on the left is more masculine and the one on the right feminine. his hands are making a giving gesture and she is making a receiving one. what he’s offering her looks like his penis. above them is what appears to be a uterus with a baby growing inside of it, the symbols being chromosomes.
there’s a reason why Ico has horns and wields a stick, sword, spiked mace, and a lightsaber that grows when he holds Yorda’s hand. all phallic objects.
you open gates all throughout the game, leading to the main gate, a vaginal metaphor, which you must open by lighting two rows of torches symbolising the vaginal canal, then activating spheres on either side that bear a resemblance to ovaries.
the boy is brought to the castle to be sacrificed by men with downturned horns whilst Ico’s are upturned; they are impotent to the Queen’s wishes whilst Ico is virile.
the small gates that Ico and Yorda open throughout the game are shaped like figures with, again, downturned horns which have horned boys trapped inside them looking defeated.
Ico fights against what remains of the boys who succumbed to the wishes of their elders, becoming pawns for the Queen. he is struggling against a society that wants him to devote himself to a Queen who wants only to live on through her daughter instead of letting her be her own person.
ultimately, Ico saves Yorda from her controlling mother, and in turn Yorda saves Ico from the (literal, even) shackles of a domineering society, through the power of coming together.
the entire game is about sex and love.
Touch some grass.
@@nyvekwinchester deal with it.
Paleontologists: "it was for mating"
Archeologists: "for ritualistic purposes"
Gamers:
Amazing video!