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March 10, 2018 May 3, 2018 / Red Metal
Though Ico became a critical favorite when it was released in 2001, it failed to become a bestseller. Only 700,000 copies were sold worldwide by the end of the decade. Fumito Ueda, the game's lead designer, speculated that his "design by subtraction" ethos may have hurt its commercial success. In the early 2000s, games were typically promoted through still images rather than with gameplay footage. An uninitiated person would take one look at screenshots of Ico and see a game without a heads-up display, being led to wrongly believe that it was either incomplete or overly simplistic. Not helping matters was Ico being released in the face of fierce competition such as Halo, Metal Gear Solid 2, and Grand Theft Auto III. It wouldn't be until much later that Ico received attention from the gaming sphere for being one of the first mainstream console releases to use the medium as an artistic expression rather than just to entertain.
Nonetheless, Mr. Ueda didn't let this setback deter him and, along with thirty-four other staff members, began developing a new game in 2002. With the tentative title Nico, a portmanteau of Next and Ico, this team set out to create a sequel to their debut title. An early technology demo for their project surfaced in 2003 at the DICE Summit, an annual multi-day gathering of video game executives which is held in Las Vegas, Nevada. This clip depicted a group of masked boys with horns on their heads riding horses. Together, they were able to fell a gigantic, intimidating foe. Mr. Ueda later explained that it was easier to reuse the character models of their previous work's title character until they had fully established the world they were about to create. Indeed, the biggest turning point for this new game's development cycle came about from their decision to sever any overt connections with Ico. As Mr. Ueda judged that the ending of Ico was too final, he felt it unnecessary to produce a sequel.
Though Nico appeared on internal schedules for upcoming Sony releases, no official announcement was made. It wasn't until late 2004 that a new title dubbed Wander and the Colossus emerged. The particularly astute observed several similarities to the concept presented at the DICE Summit, but gone were any connections to Ico. This was the game Mr. Ueda and his team had been working on, and a year later in October of 2005, it would see the light of day. Sony noticeably put far more effort into promoting this team's sophomore effort than they did with Ico, advertising it in gaming publications, on television, and on the internet in what was one of the industry's earliest viral marketing campaigns. It was even featured in the 2007 American comedy-drama film Reign Over Me. Adam Sandler, who became a fan when it was demoed to him, requested it to be put in a scene involving his character playing games to cope with the loss of his family. The scene in question wherein he played through it alongside Don Cheadle wasn't scripted – they were fully immersed into the experience.
As a result of this publicity, Wander and the Colossus was a commercial success, domestically selling over 100,000 copies in its first week alone. Nearly 80% of the first Japanese shipment was sold within two days. While Ico fell into obscurity overseas, it didn't take long for Western fans to embrace this game where it was renamed Shadow of the Colossus. Like Ico, Shadow of the Colossus deeply resonated with critics, who would praise it for giving the medium much needed artistic credence. Did this game five years in the making live up to its grand fanfare upon release?
WARNING: Due to the nature of this work, spoilers are unavoidable. Proceed with caution if you are at all interested in playing this game.
The name of this story's protagonist is Wander. He and his sole companion, his horse, Agro, ferry the body of a dead woman named Mono. The final leg of their journey takes them to an enormous bridge spanning above an expansive landscape cut off from the rest of the world. This domain is simply called the Forbidden Lands. Crossing the bridge leads them to a large building that dominates the center of the realm called the Shrine of Worship.
Entering the building, Wander places the lifeless Mono on an altar. As he does so, creatures spawned from the very shadows themselves draw near. When Wander unsheathes a sword, it emits an otherworldly energy, and the creatures dissipate into nothingness. A mysterious pair of voices belonging to a mysterious, unseen entity express surprise that Wander possesses the Ancient Sword. The young warrior deduces that the voices belong to a being named Dormin. He had come to the shrine on the end of the world having learned there exists an entity capable of controlling the souls of the dead. Mono had been sacrificed by his villagers, for they believed hers was a cursed fate.
Though expressing indifference toward the matter, pointing out that it's every mortal's fate to die one day, Dormin is unable to hide interest in the sword Wander carries. Believing that it might not be impossible to revive Mono, Dormin makes a deal with Wander. There are sixteen idols that line the halls of the shrine. If Wander is able to destroy every single one, Dormin will bring life back to Mono. These intimidatingly monumental statues are, in reality, effigies for creatures that roam the land known as the colossi. Killing them will cause their own idol to shatter. Before he sets out on his journey, Dormin warns Wander that the price for seeing this quest to the end may be heavy. With an unwavering resolve, Wander's reply is laconic: "It doesn't matter".
Dormin sends Wander off on his journey with a piece of advice. Should he stand in a sunlit area and hold the Ancient Sword aloft, he will know where to go. Wander's fate is now in your hands. As you press the appropriate button to make Wander raise his sword, eight beams of light emit from the blade's tip – one for each primary compass direction. The beams converge and become their brightest when Wander faces the direction of a colossus.
As you use the sword's compass feature, you may notice that this game has a heads-up display. The red meter on the bottom of the screen represents Wander's health. Being that there is no inventory management in Shadow of the Colossus, you do not have to great lengths to restore it. If he takes damage, whether it's due to an enemy attack or fall damage, all you have to do is get him to a safe place. If you wait a long enough time, his health will replenish on its own. There is also a rectangle with a sword icon in the center. This is Wander's currently equipped weapon. He has two at his disposal – the Ancient Sword and a bow. The bow obviously has better range, but arrows generally do less damage to enemies. Fortunately, arrows come in an infinite supply, obviating the need to conserve ammunition.
The Forbidden Lands form a sprawling region through which a journey on foot would prove tedious. Riding on the back of his horse makes traversing across the land much faster for Wander. However, you will soon discover that you cannot bring Agro to some areas as you follow the beams of light to a rocky cliff face on the other side of the valley south of the shrine. Wander can grab onto ledges to reach otherwise inaccessible locations. This is where the third feature of the interface, the pink circle, comes into play. As Wander holds onto something, the pink circle begins to shrink. If it vanishes completely, he will lose his grip, causing him to fall. In other words, this graphic is a stamina gauge.
For those of you particularly versed in the medium, you may be familiar with how a basic game functions – particularly ones that provide role-playing experiences. The beginning portions such titles have a propensity of pitting you against incredibly simple foes. Rats are an inexplicably popular standby – especially for Western RPGs. It's to the point where most games that use them tend to joke about it – even as the trope is played straight. Despite being subject to parody, it does make sense on a fundamental level. It brings to mind the saying that everyone has to start somewhere. Without relying exclusively on the game mechanics, it's one method of demonstrating how much the protagonist has grown throughout their journey. This person for whom rats once posed a problem can now stand toe-to-toe with demigods and other beings from a higher plane.
"Some mountains are scaled. Others are slain."
Shadow of the Colossus dispenses with this notion entirely. When Wander makes it to the top of the cliff the first of the sixteen colossi is there to greet him. With only the bare minimum of context and likely before you've grown accustomed to the controls, you are immediately pit against a foe with the stature a typical late-game boss would possess. One could be forgiven for believing this to be an impossible task, as running up to the colossus and attacking randomly would prove futile. As it turns out, this colossus, Valus, is far less intimidating than it appears.
As Wander approaches his enemy, Dormin instructs him to shine the light of the Ancient Sword onto the colossus. If he does, a glowing sigil should appear on its forehead. This is the colossus's weak point. Don't think you can do any lasting harm to the creature by shooting at it from afar with your arrows. You may inflict some damage, but it will eventually prove futile; only the sword can slay it. Throwing the sword is out of the question, and because there is no higher ground from which you can jump onto the creature, there is only one way to reach the sigil: by climbing the colossus itself.
Wander can latch onto any part of a colossus's fur and parts of its stone armor are effectively cliff ledges, allowing him to negotiate those as well. Valus has a weakness in its knees. Once Wander forcefully stabs it with the sword, the colossus will fall down, allowing him to make his way to its head more easily. When he makes it there, he must then stab the sigil with the sword. Holding down the sword button before stabbing will charge the attack. The further Wander's sword arm is away from the sigil, the more damage he will inflict. The average player would be astounded when the attack proceeds to drain a significant portion of the colossus's life meter. In no time at all, you will have won the battle.
At that moment, the creature collapses, shaking the very earth itself. Black shadows cover the colossus's corpse. Several black tendrils emerge from the body and embed themselves into Wander, rendering him unconscious. When he comes to, he finds himself back in the Shrine of Worship. The voices of Dormin tell Wander of the next creature he must slay on his quest.
By this point, I'm sure most people would observe the silent, empty nature of the Forbidden Lands and question if there are any enemies to fight other than the colossi. If nothing else, some might wonder if there are any elaborate puzzles to solve like in Ico. The answers to these hypothetical inquiries are exactly the same: no. The colossi are the only living creatures in the game that pose a threat to Wander's life, and the only puzzles to be solved universally involve finding the most efficient way to uncover then reach their weak points.
Keeping this in mind, the only way for Shadow of the Colossus to be salvageable, let alone good, would be if the developers put so much effort into the boss fights that the average player would be glad they constitute practically the entire experience. Thankfully, on that front, I can safely say they exceeded expectations. After a relatively easy victory against Valus, the player would likely hit a brick wall in the form of the second colossus, Quadratus. Attempting to use similar tactics a second time will prove futile as you will likely overestimate Wander's grip strength. Due to the colossus's slow speed, the battle is rather easy once you learn how to best time Wander's attacks, but it's a wake-up call for beginners.
The biggest strength Shadow of the Colossus has from a gameplay standpoint lies in its unpredictability. It's to the point where even similar looking colossi will require vastly different tactics to defeat. With every new one, you will need to study their patterns carefully. Some of the colossi have multiple spots on their body where the sigils could appear. Occasionally, you'll need to use the environment itself to gain an advantage. After spending most of the game battling colossi the size of skyscrapers, you might be taken aback later on when you discover one the size of a large ox. Then you'll learn it's the most dangerous foe you've encountered so far by a significant margin thanks to its blindingly fast speed.
It is from this development that though Shadow of the Colossus may lack traditional puzzles, they are very much present in how you choose to approach battling the colossi. The act of flipping switches and moving blocks wasn't untoward in Ico, but they had the unintended effect of jarringly accenting the video game aspects in an experience that otherwise didn't rely heavily on them. The colossus fights go a long way in making the problems presented to you feel more organic, allowing the story and gameplay to integrate more naturally than in Ico.
Around the third or fourth colossus battle, one could have difficulties fighting them. Either they inflict enough damage to fell Wander in one or two blows or he will fall off the colossi trying to climb them. Even if Shadow of the Colossus was an RPG, you couldn't have Wander grind levels, as the colossi are the only monsters to be found. Luckily, all hope is not lost. On the way to the next boss fight, Wander may find fruit-bearing trees littered throughout the land. By knocking down a fruit with a well-aimed arrow and eating them, Wander's life meter will increase.
Though the colossi are the only creatures capable of hurting Wander, they are not the only living beings to be found in the Forbidden Lands. Hawks continuously circle around Valus's head. Ambient sound effects suggest the presence of more wildlife even if you can't directly observe it. More importantly, many small lizards call this ecosystem home. By shooting one with an arrow and eating it, Wander will recover a few units of health. This is of an admittedly dubious utility, for Wander can only take damage outside of battle by falling from too great of a height. However, if you're particularly perceptive, you will notice some lizards with white tails crawling around. If Wander successfully shoots these with an arrow and consumes them, his grip strength will improve.
One could get the impression that scouring the land for these small, fast-moving targets wouldn't be a worthwhile task – even if it could prove valuable in the long run. The good news is that it's not as difficult as it sounds. Progress is automatically recorded whenever Wander successfully fells a colossus, but there are also many shrines in the Forbidden Lands that act as save points. The areas around these shrines tend to be nests for white-tailed lizards – they sometimes reside on the edifices themselves. If battling the colossi constituted the entire experience, players would only ever set a direct course toward their destination. With these fruit trees and white-tailed lizards, the player is encouraged to actually explore the environment Mr. Ueda and his team so lovingly sculpted. Admittedly, hitting the lizards with the arrows can be irritating, but it's not a terribly time-consuming task and the consequence for failure is minimal. What I like about this is that it gives players the option to make Wander more survivable in combat without actively forcing them to partake in it. Like the colossus fights themselves, how you wish to fulfill the task is up to you. Exploring the entire world in search of as many fruits and lizards as possible at the start of the game is as much of a viable strategy as doing so in increments between fights. However you decide to play the game, don't be surprised if you find yourself taking the scenic route on the way to the next battlefield.
Shadow of the Colossus saw is original release in 2005. Though it wouldn't become apparent until a few years later, gaming was in the middle of a paradigm shift. The pioneering titles of the mid-nineties 3D revolution took after the final days of the fourth console generation wherein the story typically did not exist for a higher purpose than giving the protagonist a reason to be a hero, and by extension, the player a motivation to guide them to success. Role-playing games, particularly of Japanese origin such as Final Fantasy IV, provided a notable exception to this rule. In those games, it wasn't uncommon to see stories with beats more advanced than "save the world from the evil overlord".
Going into the twenty-first century, this began to change. Suddenly, the surprisingly powerful, introspective narratives that allowed JRPGs to go through a golden age began appearing in other genres as well. With The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Nintendo's famed action-adventure franchise began establishing an engrossing lore that continued into the following decades. The success of Metal Gear Solid did a lot to popularize cinematics while proving that three-dimensional protagonists had a place in action titles as well. Ico itself demonstrated how much one can accomplish using only the bare minimum of context.
However, between all of these radically different approaches, the one that caught on in the AAA industry was desire to follow in the steps of Hollywood. These non-interactive vignettes were spliced in between rounds of fighting enemy soldiers, crafting experiences comparable to interactive films. While this approach worked for some time, its overuse led to a host of problems. Specifically, these narratives didn't account for the implicit story told through gameplay. A character could be described by the narrative as benevolent and easygoing even as they commit multiple acts of murder as part of the game. Though the conflicting implications that arise from this technique wouldn't be fully explored until a few years later, what Mr. Ueda and his team created comes across as a defiance of the path in which the rest of AAA industry was traveling.
While contemporaries usually made it clear who was good and who was evil, Shadow of the Colossus opts for complete ambiguity. The narrative never makes the relationship between Wander and Mono clear. The lengths Wander must go through in order to complete this quest implies Mono is very important to him, yet for all we know, she doesn't even know who he is. Roughly halfway through the game, we're introduced to a character named Lord Emon. He and his men are pursuing Wander to the Forbidden Lands for reasons that will be expanded upon in the final scenes.
If this ambiguity was limited to the cutscenes, it would be impressive in of itself. What elevates it from being a novelty to one of the medium's most memorable narratives lies in how it manifests in gameplay. Though killing a colossus should give the player a sense of accomplishment, the melancholy musical cues render the feat surprisingly hollow. During the fights themselves, many scream in agony when stabbed and at least one actively backs away from Wander as he draws near. Only the odd exception actively tries to attack Wander, strongly implying the colossi are nothing more than exceptionally large animals acting on instinct. This by itself casts even more doubt on the entire situation. Are the colossi evil creatures or does Wander lack empathy as he systematically eradicates them all?
In a game with such minimalistic storytelling, it's fitting that a lot of the best aspects are in the small details a lot of people would either overlook or take for granted. Wander's running animation is noticeably hindered likely as the result of the weapons he carries with him. Furthermore, if you make him swing his sword at the air outside of combat, he stumbles slightly. Meanwhile, he has no similar problems using his bow, as he's able to hit distant targets without making a mistake expected of a real-life novice. Despite never running out of ammunition, there is nothing to suggest Wander's secondary weapon is anything other than an ordinary bow, hinting that it's his own and he had a lot of practice with it. Conversely, as it is later revealed he did not obtain the sword legitimately, it stands to reason that he was never formally learned how to use one. Indeed, the only reason he is able to successfully use the sword against the colossi is because he doesn't use it in an orthodox fashion, merely using it to stab the surface he is clinging onto. Therefore, one might draw the conclusion that he wouldn't stand a chance against a skilled fencer.
Quite a lot of thought went into programming Agro's behavior as well. To realistically represent a horse's behavior, Agro will occasionally ignore commands, not turning even when you input the correct commands among other possible actions. In the words of Mr. Ueda himself, "a real horse […] doesn't always obey. It's not like a car or a motorcycle; it won't always turn when you say 'turn!'" On the surface, this would sound particularly annoying to deal with, but it doesn't weigh down the experience in practice. It occurs so infrequently that most players would be led to believe they pressed the wrong button by accident. The most important thing is that Mr. Ueda and his team relented slightly so this aspect wouldn't actively harm the gameplay. Considering Agro's presence is required for a few colossus fights, this is highly appreciated. In fact, as a true testament to how much the developers succeeded in implementing Agro, the horse is considered by many to be the best character in the game. Every other character whether it's Wander, Emon, the colossi, or even Mono are subject to any number of different interpretations, Agro's role is unambiguous: a faithful steed to her master. There's something endearing leaving Agro alone for a while only for her wander off to find a place to graze or a spring from which to drink.
Though there are many admirable things about this game's narrative, the ending is when all of its brilliance is tied together. Emon and his envoy arrive at the Shrine of Worship as the final idol crumbles. Wander appears shortly thereafter, his skin and eyes taking on an unnatural, pallid color and two small horns protruding from his head. Emon declares that Wander has been possessed by the dead, and orders his cohorts to kill him. As Wander struggles to reach Mono, one warrior strikes Wander in the leg with a crossbow while another stabs him in the chest with a sword. A strange black substance gushes out of the wound in place of blood as his body becomes covered in darkness – mirroring the manner in which the slain colossi perish.
Before he dies, Dormin possesses Wander's body, transforming it into a gargantuan shadow. Speaking through the shadow, Dormin explains that Emon's ancestors separated their essence into sixteen segments to seal their power away for all of eternity. You actually play as the shadow colossus for a brief period, but no matter what you do, you cannot reach Emon or his men. The temple itself is far too cramped for the behemoth to maneuver around in. Compounded by the leg injury Wander suffered, he and Dormin are trapped in an unwinnable battle. As his men flee, Emon casts the Ancient Sword into a small pool in the back of the shrine's hallway, creating a whirlwind of light that consumes Dormin. Wander returns to his normal form, but he too is unable to escape. As the bridge to the Forbidden Lands collapses, Emon hopes that if Wander survived, he will be able to atone for his sins.
It's difficult to pull off an ending – especially in a video game – where an antagonistic force triumphs over the player-controlled protagonist. Being a video game, the antagonist winning signifies that player has lost and must start over. If the game can only end in the villain's victory, a player would have every right to be irritated. Fortunately, Shadow of the Colossus avoids this problem. Everything that occurs in this game along with every character who makes up the small cast is up for debate. Though Emon would appear to be an insane person who sacrificed an innocent woman, he could have committed the act for entirely justifiable reasons rather than out of religious zealotry. Moreover, his dialogue suggests that Wander stole the Ancient Sword in order to revive Mono. With Dormin so quick to possess Wander's body once he slew all of the colossi, one can reasonably believe Emon's ancestors sealed them away for a very good reason. Perhaps you were playing as the villain the whole time. It is not uncommon for fans to interpret characters in any work radically different than how the authors pictured them, but in Shadow of the Colossus, doing so is outright expected.
What is particularly remarkable about all of this is how well it's foreshadowed. With every colossus slain, Wander's appearance begins to change as strange markings appear all over his face. Nearing the end of the game, the pattern they form is not unlike that of one of the many colossi he fights. He spent the entire story slaying them, and in a karmic twist, he ended up becoming one himself shortly before falling victim to the exact same weapon that he used to kill them. From the very beginning, Dormin warned Wander that the price for seeing his quest through to its end could prove dire, but he marched onward, unafraid or possibly uncaring about the potential consequences. It's an interesting take on the typical plot involving someone making a deal with the devil in that the latter actually tries to talk the former out of it before realizing the extent of his determination.
The other aspect that prevents the ending from coming across as anticlimactic is how it doesn't nullify your accomplishments. Despite Dormin's own ambiguous morality, they did indeed bring Mono back to life. Following an injured Agro to a pool of water, she finds a baby boy with tiny horns on his head. She and Agro then head for a secret garden within the shrine as the screen fades to black. It's heavily implied that this infant is a transformed Wander and because the eponymous character of Ico also has horns on his head, Shadow of the Colossus was potentially a disguised prequel all along.
Drawing a Conclusion
Incredible presentation
Creative boss fights
Great world design
Simple, yet effective gameplay
Excellent music
Intriguing premise built on minimalistic context
Organically integrates story and gameplay
Artistic without a hint of pretentiousness
Strong finish
Very little to game outside of boss fights
Somewhat short
Though everyone walks away from a non-interactive work with wildly different stances owing to personal viewpoints, timing, and a litany of other factors, they are still, technically speaking, static experiences. With the exception of extended rereleases, films retain all the same shots, books retain all the same words, and albums retain all of the same tracks. There is often value in revisiting these works, but because you have no influence on the proceedings, you know how they will end. Meanwhile, one of the greatest appeals of video games is that everyone who plays one has their own story to tell when all is said and done. Even in linear games that only have one ending, the steps you take to get there are might vary slightly on subsequent playthroughs, leading you to discover new aspects each time. It is therefore fitting that while everyone who plays Shadow of the Colossus has their own story to tell, everyone who attempts to interpret the narrative of Shadow of the Colossus also has their own story to tell.
Mr. Ueda's work has the honor of being one of the most influential titles of its time, popularizing the art game as a genre with its mainstream success. In a way, Shadow of the Colossus reminds me a lot of Dragon Quest V in that it manages to grasp a certain something a lot of other artists attempting to follow in its footsteps didn't fully comprehend. While Dragon Quest V remains one of the best pathos-heavy narratives in the medium, only a select few can claim to have done justice to the brand of ambiguous storytelling Shadow of the Colossus pioneered. This is primarily because Mr. Ueda gave just enough context to give his audience a strong foundation on which they could form theories regarding its characters. All too often, I've seen a lot of people attempting this kind of story string random ideas together, hoping the fans would come up with the context for them. The key is that, staying true to his "design by subtraction" approach, Mr. Ueda knew full well which elements to keep, allowing them to play their part before letting the audience take care of the rest.
I can imagine some people not versed in the medium being impressed with the artistic merits of Shadow of the Colossus only to claim it's a good effort for a video game. As a counterargument, I propose that Shadow of the Colossus is a profound artistic statement entirely because it has no qualms about being what it is. While the rest of the AAA industry attempted to follow Hollywood's lead, Mr. Ueda clearly crafted this game believing in the medium's own potential, carving out a path that had not been fully explored by 2005. Though it would take everyone else some time to catch up, and I feel it has indeed been surpassed in the years since its release, Shadow of the Colossus remains an essential experience for any enthusiast. When you decide to give it a chance, know that the narrative you experience truly is your own.
Final Score: 8/10
2000s Games, Fumito Ueda, PlayStation 2, Shadow of the Colossus, Team Ico
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23 thoughts on "Shadow of the Colossus"
The thing that's most impressive to me about Shadow of the Colossus is the amount of attention to detail that went into the game. The developers seem so careful with every single piece put in there, from the grand ones such as the designs and arenas of the colossi to the simple ones like, just as you mentioned, Wander's movement and attacks when holding the sword. There is so much in there that just speaks in such subtle ways. It's not a game that will beat the player over their head with it's content, making every thing in your face and easily apparent, its strength works in its subtleties.
And that attention to detail really makes the forbidden land work as a setting, too. I can not think of a single other game that could have pulled off an open world with such little content, but because of the way it's designed, Shadow of the Colossus's works. Exploration pays off, more in just finding new things to see than anything else.
Ah, I still need to go back and finish it. Played it once before, but my save file corrupted and I wasn't inclined to start over from the beginning. I need to do that, finally get the full experience under my belt.
It's a refreshing change of pace from Square's storytelling at the time wherein, as you said, it treated the craft as a hammer and their audience as nails. For that matter, it's a more masterful implementation of the minimalism approach than Limbo because it retains all of the important elements to make a cohesive experience. With the way it's set up in Shadow of the Colossus, I find myself contemplating why the designers decided to put certain features in that spot or how the development process went for details not expanded upon in interviews. Despite being mostly empty, I found myself wanting to see everything the world had to offer, going as far as saving at every shrine – even though some aren't really on the way to anything.
Ah man, your memory card fried for this game too? That's painful – even when the game in question is good. I haven't had it happen to me yet. There was one close call when I thought my Super Mario 64 data was erased, but when I started a new game, it froze during my playthrough. When I reset the game, my save files were restored; it was the weirdest thing. There was also one time in which my GameCube memory card got fried, but I wasn't in the middle of any playthroughs, so it wasn't too painful of a loss.
adawson990
Great assessment. I really like how you start these off by giving a bit of history on the game. Shadow of the Colossus is one of my all-time favorites, but I had no idea it was originally being developed as an Ico sequel.
I agree with pretty much everything you say here, especially the creativity of the boss fights. I love how each colossus is essentially a new puzzle for you to solve. I also agree that the world design is fantastic despite there not being much to do in it, and that the score is phenomenal. The game would be a 10/10 for me if there was more to do within the environment, and if there were a few more colossi to fight.
Honestly, I'm a bit disappointed that these issues weren't addressed in the PS4 reboot. I'm hoping there will be some DLC, but I highly doubt it.
Thanks! I have a lot of fun researching how these games came into being. Granted, some aren't extensively documented, and in those cases, I tend to make references to the scene surrounding its inception. With Isle of the Dead, I made a reference to the release of Wolfenstein 3D and went from there. In any case, this was a fun one to research. I had heard that Adam Sandler was a fan of the game, but I had no idea it was featured in one of his films. I think I caught on to the fact that it was intended to be a sequel to Ico, but having researched it, I know it for a fact now.
Yeah, that is the main reason why I ended up awarding it an 8/10. If there was just a little bit more to do in between fights, I probably would've broken out a 9/10 or 10/10 for it. As it stands, it's a bit one-note. It's quite a majestic note to be sure, though, which is why I think it reigns supreme over many games that have the opposite problem wherein the developers hand us way too much content to the point where it devolves into white noise.
At the same time, I also think the game is fine the way it is. There's a good chance that any attempts to improve it would come across as unnecessary or fly in the face of the original vision.
themancalledscott
Shadow of the Colossus is still probably my favorite PS2 game (maybe Okami, but I'll have to replay it and see). It's certainly the one I've beat the most. I beat it four times already on PS4 alone to get the platinum trophy. It strangely never gets old.
I think the only thing the PS4 could have/should have changed were some of the control/camera quirks. Otherwise, the game doesn't need to be changed. It astounds me how many people I see claiming they wanted an alternative ending added. Although video games are probably the only medium where alternative endings can actually make sense, that doesn't mean they all need to include them. And Shadow of the Colossus is a great example of a game sticking to its guns at all costs. No matter how much you improve your skills, no matter how much you boost Wander's abilities, no matter how many times you replay it, the ending is still the same. There's not a damn thing you can do about it. And it's quite the thrilling (and beautiful) conclusion, which only feels all the more refreshing today. With the "Hollywood-style" AAA game, and a good number of indie titles, going the cynical route of almost promoting nihilism with their endings, Shadow of the Colossus boasts an ending that, although tragic, ends up well enough for those who were truly innocent (Mono and Agro). Of course the deaths of the Colossi are tragic, but Wander – though starting his quest with noble intentions – ends up paying for what he's done (while his original, noble intent still comes to fruition), and Dormin ends up in the same place he started. Meanwhile, Mono is allowed to live and start anew, and Agro – being the game's personification of companionship and loyalty – ends up alive and well. It's not a happy ending by any means, but it is one in which the innocent are (at least relatively) rewarded while selfishness brings about its own ruin. And again, that's a concept that only feels more original in this day and age.
I may have to leave more comments soon (it's really late right now). Although its blemishes are obvious, I absolutely love Shadow of the Colossus, and how its one of the finer examples of a video game embracing video games themselves as art, instead of either A) trying to be a movie to prove its artistry or B) feeling like a total vanity project that passes off a lack of depth as minimalism and throws on a quirky visual/tone to pass itself off as art (AKA Limbo). I said before that playing through SotC again has me wanting to make a list of my 10 best "Flawed Games," and well, I'm having trouble thinking of another "flawed" game that manages to be so beautiful in so many ways.
For me, that would be Persona 4, though this game is definitely among the highlights of that console. Then again, I haven't really played that many PS2 games, so my knowledge of the console is pretty limited.
It's surprisingly reasonable for a game with those weird camera controls, but I can see why somebody would have a problem with it. And you're right; adding an alternate ending to the game would completely defeat the purpose of those character arcs. It's difficult to pull off a dark ending without coming across as overly cynical, but Team Ico found a way to accomplish that. As I said, though Shadow of the Colossus remains one of the most influential titles of its day, it falls under that very specific category of game-changing works that somehow allows it to stand above roughly 90% of artists who take inspiration from it. I was indeed thinking of Limbo when I typed it up. Ordinarily, I find dissertations detailing wildly different character interpretations to be, at best, dubious, but with Shadow of the Colossus, I find it's one of the best parts about engaging with the material. Limbo fails because it was minimalistic to the extent that it lacked substance and cohesion. As such, the theories surrounding what it could all mean generally aren't that interesting to read, running the gamut from "everyone's dead" to "it's a metaphor for life" or any other stock theses you've heard a million times.
Indeed, the reason I find Undertale such an inspiring game is because it doesn't overtly draw inspiration from other mediums. It manages to be one of the medium's greatest narrative experiences entirely because it was inspired from other video games. The reason I mention this is because I think Shadow of the Colossus falls in the same category. The cinematography (so to speak) only exists to push the important details and the rest is up to you; this was not something that could've been created following AAA gaming's Hollywood-style model.
My own theory as to why AAA gaming makes their games so nihilistic is because they're trying to capture the essence of classic films – particularly that of New Hollywood. Among other examples, both Haze and Spec Ops: The Line took cues from Apocalypse Now and The Last of Us clearly wore its Night of the Living Dead influences as a badge of honor. In that era of films, leads were often complex – they were deeply flawed, yet still interesting to watch. You wanted to see where the director would go with their arcs. Unfortunately, this was a case where the newer artists failed to grasp what made those films work. The anti-heroes that plague AAA gaming don't come across as analogues from that New Hollywood era; they come across as analogues from the Dark Age of Comic Books (i.e. the nineties anti-hero no one takes seriously anymore). Like the latter, it was probably meant to make video games seem more mature, but in practice, it makes them feel woefully behind the times. Funnily enough, that era too was the result of newer artists missing the point of defining classics (e.g. Watchmen) and only copying superficial elements without understanding what made them work. Either way, I'm glad AAA gaming is slowly moving away from their Hollywood influences because it really was a dead-end revolution.
Excellent article! It's been a while since I played SotC and this was a great walk through the experience with some insightful commentary.
Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed reading this. It's been awhile since I played it myself, though even just one playthrough was enough to leave a profound impact on me.
It's sad there are not more games directly inspired by Shadow of the Colossus. Maybe we'll see more of them in the future? I certainly hope so.
I think Shadow of the Colossus could be said to have influenced many artists in very subtle ways. Whether it was purposeful or not, I could definitely see traces of it as I played through Breath of the Wild.
halsdoll
Oddly, when this came out back then, I remember my brother, who is more of a gaming enthusiast than I am, did not have the patience to play this game. The whole atmosphere was very quiet to him, but for me, I like that. The monster designs are beautiful and I love the soundtrack as well.
I have to admit it took me more than one try to fully get into it myself, but when I did, I was really impressed. What I like about the soundtrack is how it dynamically changes to reflect the action sequences.
I can understand that. I think the best way to approach any game is to have an open mind and of course play the game more than once to fully appreciate it. I say this, because once upon a time, my literature teacher got mad at me because I wrote an essay on a play I did not finish. Ever since, I think it's really important to complete games and books before critiquing. Hehe
Yeah, that's a problem gaming critics have had as of late; I could tell few of them couldn't actually be bothered to finish the games they play before reviewing them. That method was serviceable in the eighties and nineties when games focused primarily on gameplay because you could count on a good game to remain good. Most games have some levels that aren't so great, so if the last few were bad, that's just where they ended up; they don't actively sabotage the experience as a whole. It's when the story is at all important that this approach stops working. Indeed, one could get the impression Metal Gear Solid V was one of the greatest games ever made taking their reviews at face value. Actually seeing it through to the end reveals it clearly wasn't finished, making its status as the best the medium has to offer tenuous. Indie titles tend to be shorter, so one would expect critics to have a better track record reviewing them, but no, they're just as hit-or-miss with those games as well for some reason. I think it's because they were helped by the unsaid "it's good for a solo effort" connotation rather than being genuinely good. A lot of people praised the late 2000s/early 2010s indie scene, but I would argue they didn't regularly start issuing titles capable of standing toe-to-toe with AAA efforts until 2015 or so.
I can only speculate that the gaming industry like every other industry is driven by the number of sales and not so much about the creative aspect of the medium and that is a huge concern for me as a consumer. I don't like wasting money and my precious time. And sometimes, I believe the critics themselves are personally bias–which is why I don't even bother reading anything they have to say. In fact, when they give a mediocre review, that is when my curious self decided to pick up the game and play it for myself. From my own personal experience, I have found the mediocre games to be decent games. But then again, I tend to play games with a clean slate.
As for my thoughts on indie games, someone once said to me, if you play an indie game, you play every other indie game out there. I don't know if that statement is true, since I don't play many of them to make such a bold statement. I do believe though, like art, videogame goes out of fashion. If I miss playing games such as the earlier Resident Evil, then I will go back and play it. No need to play an indie game that is created to reflect that time. That's pretty scary.
Correct me if I am wrong, but I think the way you critique game is analyzing every components it has to offer (story, music, style, gameplay etc), which of course makes it more difficult to critique than any other forms of media.. As you mentioned that games in the 80s-90s were critiqued based on the gameplay so it wasn't hard to tell whether a game was good or bad. When story is introduced, things just get a bit more complicated. The medium itself is quite ambitious to incorporate all of those components, and thus making the whole package hard to critique because people seek for different things in a game nowadays. We are not an expert at everything. I remember Brother told me a reviewer complained about Nier Gestalt. The person made a big deal about the fishing part and I laughed so hard because that part was towards the beginning of the game. You can't just say a game is bad because you have no patience. But then again, I dislike FPS games, so it would be hard for me to give that type of game a fair review.
On a side note, I think the medium is strangely growing and trying to become a mature adult and be accepted into the mainstream society. However it is forgetting its roots.. I noticed that games these day are missing something important and I can't pinpoint it yet. I begin to ask myself what makes a videogame a game in the first place? If game is about strategy and achievement, how then can we classify it as art? Those are the questions I have been pondering myself. So with games like Shadow of Colossus, it's pretty impressive that a game can be artistic without jeopardizing gameplay. Since all of the components ( music, story, atmosphere, gameplay) seem to intertwine very well. Anyway, I just want to mention I don't know much about the industry as you do, I am just speaking from my honest thoughts.
Athena | AmbiGaming
I'm definitely a fan and have blathered on about this game elsewhere haha. You've really nailed what makes this game so special, I think. Everything about it just seems so lovingly done and carefully crafted that the player can't help but be drawn in, despite its apparently "simple" premise. Are you going to go for the remake?
That's strange, I don't remember you mentioning this game on your site. I think it would make for a good, standalone post.
I think Shadow of the Colossus manages to capture that certain something I've only seen a very small number of art game creators really get. To wit, I think the creators of Limbo tried to go for something similar, but the problem was that they took that minimalism approach way, way too far and thus the fan theories are effectively reacting to things that weren't there. Team Ico, on the other hand, knew which elements to keep, and it's a richer experience for it.
Maybe at some point I'll try out the remake, but for now, I'll just appreciate the PS3 version I played.
Oops, you're right. I rambled all over someone else's site across a few comments, I think. How embarrassing. I've got a post questioning whether Wander is actually the shining hero some claim he is to be, but otherwise I appear to have kept my thoughts to myself. Maybe I'll take your advice and revisit….
I've heard that about Limbo, the sort of "if you liked… then you'll like…" I never played it; honestly the inclusion of huge shadow spiders that can kill you is far, far outside of my wheelhouse. But I get what you mean. The breadcrumb trail left by Team Ico tells a definite story, with elements up for interpretation, where it seems like Limbo is up for interpretation and has a few breadcrumbs.
Fair enough! With all the new games coming out, I'm pretty happy with my PS3 copy, as well.
I look forward to hearing what you have to say about this game!
You know, it's interesting you say that because after playing Limbo, I figured that there had to be more to it I wasn't getting, so I tried looking up theories to what it could mean. Unfortunately, like the game itself, they weren't compelling in the slightest. They just run the gamut of stock interpretations you've seen applied toward other works a million times (i.e. "everyone's in purgatory", "it's a metaphor for life", "it's a metaphor for the atomic bomb", etc.). That's the problem with providing your audience with so little context; the context they provide themselves ends up lacking focus. It ends up accenting what a shallow experience the original work is. Shadow of the Colossus has more concrete details, meaning the theories themselves tend to be a lot more meaningful, coherent, and defensible. Shadow of the Colossus provides audience with just enough breadcrumbs for them to piece together a plot. By that analogy, I don't think Limbo even considered touching a slice of bread let alone making crumbs from it.
The Otaku Judge
Now I feel bad for bashing Sandler's latest movies.
That was an interesting tidbit to read. I knew he was a fan of the game, but I had no idea it featured in one of his films.
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In order for our Plan to succeed, it will take the work and cooperation of all. The importance of each parishioner's involvement has already been set forth on page 5 of this document.
How will you make this happen? Where do you begin? There are supporting roles to help lead and guide the parish as it brings the Plan to fruition.
The Team will help the parish to link the plan to its Eucharistic celebration. They will build momentum towards implementation.
The Pastoral Staff will work to encourage collaboration and cooperation among the various ministries, so that the Plan flows seamlessly in bringing about the change needed to transform the community into the envisioned missionary disciples. The pastoral staff will ensure success by seeing that each entity regularly reviews their action plan and affirms, adapts, or revises it as necessary.
The Parish Pastoral Council, in conjunction with the pastoral staff and commissions, will oversee the continued execution of this Plan. They encourage all parishioners to be actively involved as, together, we all put the Plan into action. It will be the task of the PPC to review the Plan annually and revise accordingly.
To fully and intentionally engage in prayer, worship, and sacramental life that flow from baptism and reverential participation in the Eucharist—the source and summit of our faith.
To help each person better prepare for and actively participate in Liturgy, so that each of us can grow in the mysteries we celebrate and help others experience these mysteries.
To deepen, as a parish, our liturgical prayer by devoting ourselves to each component—song, spoken word, ritual gesture, attentive stillness, and the sacred beauty of the worship environment.
To practice radical hospitality and welcome as Jesus did, seeking out the disenfranchised and vulnerable and creating a sense of fellowship and belonging that is grounded in love for each other and humble gratitude to God.
To create a community characterized by infectious joy and love, where all come together to praise God and support each other.
To continually experience our own conversion and bring others to experience the same through evangelization, revealing the truth of the Gospel and witnessing to others how we ourselves have encountered Christ.
To help each of us recognize our hunger for a deeper personal relationship with Jesus Christ and other people.
To create a culture that enables experiencing God and promotes faith sharing and discipleship in Jesus Christ.
To grow as disciples of Christ and nurture growth in others as we study, share, and live out the teachings of Christ and his Church through education, faith formation, and discipleship endeavors.
To commit to helping each other learn about, share, and live out our lives in the Trinity through ever-deepening relationships.
To cultivate the identity of the family as the domestic church—the foundation of spirituality and faith.
To bring Christ to the world, practicing discipleship and encouraging each other through friendship and service as we support the work of the Church, provide for the material and pastoral care of the poor and suffering and advocate for the discernment of vocations in life, especially priestly vocations for those who feel called in this way.
To build a community of disciples yearning to bring Christ to the marginalized and those in most need of God's mercy.
To enact wise stewardship of the gifts God has granted us, the legacy entrusted to us by those who have preceded us in the faith, and the hope that lies in future generations of the faithful, so that our resources may be channeled to support the mission of disciple-making first and foremost.
To focus our financial, facility, and administrative decisions on the primary mission of our parish.


text:
Rig Veda – First Verse
Today I spent time studying the first verse of the over 1,200 verses in the first of our four Vedas, commonly known as the Rig Veda. When in doubt, wise men have told me to try and go to the source of the doubt. So I sought out the most ancient chant in our tradition. What could an ancient verse that survived many millennia in a spoken tradition, chanted by priests and their families, till writing was invented, tell me? Ancient Sanskrit has changed and one has a problem understanding it, but the message of the verse; is a bedrock of Hinduism and clarity shines brightly through in an intensity, that shows the clear thinking, of the ancient mystic who wrote it.
Agnimile purohitam, yagyasya devamrtvijam, I hotaram ratnadhatamam II
A learned mystic Sri Aurobindo translated it as, "I adore the Flame, the vicar, the divine Ritwik of the Sacrifice, the summoner who most founds the ecstasy."
One of he most ancient of Mantras to survive in human existence is also translated as: "I venerate Agni, the priest (lit. who is placed on the seat of honour/in the East), divine ministrant of the sacrifice, bestower of treasure, par excellence."
ॐ अ॒ग्निमी॑ळे पु॒रोहि॑तं य॒ज्ञस्य॑ दे॒वमृत्विज॑म्। होता॑रं रत्न॒धात॑मम्॥१॥
Well any of us who have invoked Vedic Mantras while lighting Agni in the Havan kund know the ritual well. We start with (water, samagri, ghee and samidha) dry wood kindling and special mixture of natural items found in nature, to purify the air and raise the sacred flame of Agni within and without. We know that its a homage to the fire of creation, which burns in each and every one of us. It is only now when I have had the pleasure of reading the first verse of (our strutis) or knowledge passed down, by the invokers of the devas. The ancient sounds have not changed much from when they were first spoken, to express human ecstasy, while conducting the fire sacrifice (Havan or Homa). It is we who have forgotten them, and the ancient rishis still lead us to the righteous path.
It is rumored that when Edison asked his friend Max Muller to do his first recording for human history. Max recorded this first verse for posterity. This first recorded sound kept up an ancient Indian spoken tradition, unbroken in recorded time, and still alive as originally spoken. So the ancient seer spoke these words and passed them on to his progeny, generation after generation, from the time the Arya arrived in India, and made it their own home. I am a product of these settlers in the rich valleys of the five rivers in the northern plains of Hindustan, in a region now known as Punjab. The Indo-Aryan migrations started in approximately 1800 BCE, after the invention of the war chariot, and also brought Indo-Aryan languages into India.
In the Epic Mahabharata Arjun rides a war chariot and Krishna is his charioteer who drives and protects him and pulls the chariot up in between the warring cousins on the ancient battlefield of Kurukshetra. The sun reflects off of the bronze protective plates of the war ready warrior, as he throws down his great bow and questions why he must bring death on his near and dear ones. The chariot stops and we hear the Bhagavad Gita from the mouths of Arjun and Krishna (as described to the blind king many miles away by the seer Sanjay). The Gita is considered a condensation of the Vedas in some ways, as it lays out men's duty to society, religion and knowledge. So while the first verse of the Vedas spoke so much about internal ecstasy, the Gita gave us a whole new religious philosophy, showing many paths.
We in the Arya Samaj strongly believe, that the Vedic tradition is one of the most noble ways of life, and those who follow it will become Arya, or the enjoyers of inner peace and contentment . We will always strive to become learned, and do this by hearing from others and also passing on what we learn, to teach others. We study the ancient texts and my mother used to do a daily Havan for man years, even in the worst of times, when she became a refugee in India, after the partition. The internal light in her lived on through life's ups and downs, as it did in my father who was also a karma yogi. Their joint reciting of the Sanskrit verses during festivals and social occasions was a reminder to us that the pursuit of knowledge, would bring its own rewards.
My translation, "Oh Agni! Thou does' light my inner being and I adore thee and the one (male\female) who sits on the East and hosts this great ceremony. By this great yagya flame we do the divine Ritwik of our traditions, for conducting this sacrifice. This sacrifice brings us closer to the Devas and the priests who have invoked them for millennia. As we raise our voices to the divine it is you Agni who causes the flame of our efforts to rise and lead us to greater ecstasy. We discover a treasure from the fruits of our Havan, a treasure so exquisite that we consider it par excellence. Finally we call out the summoner who is within us this day, who has mystified these words, and has invoked the eternal ecstasy, by his recitation of the ancient texts as they should be read He is the bestower of the greatest treasure called life, as we gather here to sing this hymn to its glory."
We have lost our way in the current age of Kalyug or dark times,and Satyug or Truthful times will come again in our future, when we are free from Maya. Till then we can recite the verse and have faith that the promised treasure awaits us, and it is we who are wanting. Our ancients gave us such a powerful message of hope in the opening verse itself, that if none other had followed, Hinduism would have still lived to its modern form. The power of the tradition where an ordinary conductor of the ceremony becomes the raiser of our inner faith is so powerful a construct, that it needs no other external support. Hence Hinduism has lived through the ages largely unchanged, often reformed; yet the work, never quite completed.
We return in the end to the funeral pyre, where the body is disposed off by Agni, but the soul is not burnt; and it rises to either live forever in its ecstasy, or try again in a rebirth. So life begins and ebbs, rises and falls, in the rhythms, of these ancient verses. We have to just stop and breathe evenly, recite the ancient and sacred words, pour the ghee and samgaree on the kindling and pray. If we look hard enough at the fire burning outside and say the right words, our inner fire flames up, and the rest of the day is full of an awareness of love for nature and our universe.Imagine yourself as the Purohit and say the words that will bring you to your personalized ecstatic treasure. Life does not become more intense than this verse in its simplicity and power, so enjoy!.
This entry was posted in Happiness, Hope, Life is valuable, Nature, Self actualization by Rajiv Kapoor. Bookmark the permalink.
2 thoughts on "Rig Veda – First Verse"
Vijai Singh on October 27, 2017 at 1:44 am said:
The huge efforts of philanthropy, religion, science and political governance have failed to find a solution for global warming, population explosion, wars and famine, poverty and destitution, diseases, natural calamities, greed, corruption and the worst of all miseries – BOREDOM.
The answer is right here – the return to the practice of the one true religion."But there is another prejudice which is cherished by many scholars evidently under the impression of its being a well-recognized scientific doctrine. It is that in the ruder stages of civilization, when the laws of nature are little known and but little understood, when mankind has not enough of the experience of the world, strict methods of correct reasoning are very seldom observed." Swami Dayanand
vjsingh.info/homa
Elizabeth Anne Hin on April 3, 2020 at 5:19 am said:
Deepest gratitude.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Marilyn Constable must be an incurable optimist. The suburban Pittsburgh woman in late September was indicted by a federal grand jury on 15 counts of embezzlement. Ms. Constable, 45, allegedly wrote out a dozen illegal checks totaling more than $7,500 from a death-benefits fund for members of Local 12 of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers union. She has pleaded not guilty. The union, which represented employees at a now-closed Nabisco plant and elsewhere, since has merged into BC&T Local 19 in Cleveland.
The indictment charged that Constable, as the fund administrator, diverted local funds for rent, cable TV, and other personal expenses. Additionally, she was named last year in an ongoing Labor Department civil complaint seeking restitution. The suit also named as defendants Local 19, two banks and several union and bakery industry officials who acted as trustees. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 10/26).


Folks, I had every intention of punching out the news features this morning, but I'm down with the flu. I'm on the mend, but flu waxes and wanes on its way out and this morning it is waxing…or waning…or something that involves all manner of messy bodily processes that I am sure you all would rather skip the detail on. So how about this: my head is too muzzy and I'm too weak/disoriented to hold my head up long enough to do more than write a paragraph like this.
2 thoughts on "Apologies for No News Features Today"
Sorry you're sick, Steve. Hope you and your Mom are on the mend now!


A great piece of article from the technological perspective.The information is so interesting and useful.
A animal skin jacket may be a wardrobe essential at any time of year. We've picked 2 of the foremost wanted designer labels, UN agency square measure conveyance a beautiful softness and magnificence to the classic animal skin jacket.


text:
Analysis Reveals Key Facebook Ad Strategies of Trump Campaign
Earlier this month, an internal memo from Facebook's former mobile ads chief Andrew Bosworth was leaked to The New York Times, in which Bosworth discussed the platform's role in the 2016 US Presidential Election.
In the memo, Bosworth largely dismissed the various controversies around Cambridge Analytica, fake news, Russian interference, etc. Instead, Bosworth attributed Donald Trump's 2016 election victory to one thing:
"So was Facebook responsible for Donald Trump getting elected? I think the answer is yes, but not for the reasons anyone thinks.[...] He got elected because he ran the single best digital ad campaign I've ever seen from any advertiser. Period."
High praise, from the key person who would know about Facebook ad performance.
So what did the Trump campaign do that was so spectacular, what's the key trick that Trump's team uses to maximize Facebook ads.
This week, we've been given a glimpse into Trump's Facebook ads machine via a report conducted by The Guardian, which found that "over the course of 2019, the Trump campaign spent nearly $20m on more than 218,000 different Facebook ads".
The Guardian's full report is essential reading for anyone interested in Facebook ad strategies, but here are some of the highlights which the report identifies as key elements of the Trump Facebook ad blitz.
First off, according to Trump's current campaign chief, Brad Parscale - who was also in charge of Trump's digital campaign in 2016 - their approach to Facebook ads is primarily focused on collecting audience info.
"The campaign is all about data collection - if we touch you digitally, we want to know who you are and how you think and get you into our databases so that we can model off it and relearn and understand what's happening."
Essentially, gathering email addresses, and building its own data banks, is essential to its effort.
To do this, the Trump campaign runs a lot of Facebook ads which refer users to interactive polls, which also ask them to enter their email address.
This ad, and the many variations of it (The Guardian says that they ran more than 3,500 variations of the same ad) was the best performing among Trump's campaign push over the last year.
When a user taps on the 'Sign Up' CTA button, they're taken to this landing page, which asks for an email address at the bottom of the basic survey.
Through this, the Trump campaign has been able to collect millions of names, location markers and email addresses, which it can then use to add into its data banks for future ad targeting and email call-outs, independent of Facebook campaigns.
And as you might expect, many of the Trump ads also use divisive, sensitive topics, which spark furious debate on social platforms, and arguably lead to more intense societal divides.
As per The Guardian:
"Ads about immigration use especially dark rhetoric and imagery, stoking fear of "caravan after caravan" of migrants or urging voters to vote yes or no on whether to "deport illegals". An ad that ran after the impeachment inquiry began used images of Joseph Stalin, Fidel Castro and members of the fringe group the Revolutionary Communist party burning an American flag to suggest that Democratic candidates were "destroying American values". "Only one man can stop this chaos," the ad announces, before Trump appears under blue skies."
These types of ads play into people's fears, in order to generate more support for the Trump campaign, while the added interactive element also prompts engagement, and action, by pushing Facebook users to have their say, and subsequently add their thoughts and join the broader movement.
These types of ads fuel a sense of tribalism, a 'with us or against us' push, which, again, stokes divides, but ultimately helps to spread the campaign's key messaging. If you're with us, you're voting for Trump. If you're against us, you're against national security.
It's easy to see why such an approach is effective on Facebook.
Aside from this, The Guardian's analysis also shows that the campaign uses many basic Facebook ad approaches, including BuzzFeed style quizzes (which require email and/or phone number sign-up) and even competitions to win Trump campaign merchandise, all designed to gather personal information to expand the campaigns reach.
It's worth taking a look at the full report - it includes a range of interesting insights and considerations which provide insight into the Trump campaigns complex, Facebook-focussed strategy, and may provide additional pointers as to what works best on the platform, which could add to your own Facebook ad understanding.
Will Facebook ads be the deciding factor in 2020? It's impossible to predict - but it's also impossible to deny the potential reach and impact of Facebook in influencing voter action.
There's clearly a reason why the Trump campaign spent $20 million on Facebook ads over the last year.


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Feel free to look around our website and contact us when you are ready to get started with one of our maids! We will be looking forward to speaking with you.


Little bits of art and branding.
The old guy and the brand's evolution have a long history. Here's a post about the Cranky mascot.
Logo for a Cleveland, Ohio area band that plays a mix of blues, soul, country, reggae and rock & roll music.
Black & white spot illustration of a Chandler & Price 'Old Series' platen letterpress printing machine.
Logo mark done for an English landscape designer who specialized in flowering perennial plants.
Photographic logo and typography for a professional sports photographer. Included in the Logo Lounge book.
Logo for Cleveland, Ohio area band whose members are not young but still know how to rock!
Spot illustration of the new Cranky Pressman letterpress printing shop and studio in Salem, Ohio.
Began as a personal project, but with intention to experiment mixing the wood cut with digital artwork for a spot illustration style.
Compiled this page a little differently than others often do. It showcases a few spot illustrations along with some logos we've created. Spot illustrations are little designs and artwork intended for use in small spaces. They've always been important in print media but now are often needed as digital images. Spot illustration is an area we hope to expand upon.


Alex is recovering from the flu, he's back to his normal self only with a little cabin fever. He's been cooped up since Thursday and needs to run around sooooo bad. Unfortunately, the rest of us have come down with it. What a JOKE. We all just want to lay in bed and rest, and Alex is bouncing off the walls. Poor guy. He's ready to get back to normal and we'd like to have that lazy boy back for just a little bit longer. If we could we'd ship him off for a few days so we can sleep, but unfortunately, he still has a low grade fever, which means he's still contagious. We really need to get some Tamiflu in us since it only works if you start it within the first 48 hours, but it's Sunday and the only place we can go is either the Urgent Care Center, or the ER. Urgent Care would be $50 each, plus the prescription, which was $40 for Alex. That would put us out $270 for the three of us! We just can't do that right now. I will probably call in a script for Ash first thing in the morning and hope we get her started on the meds soon enough to catch it. I wonder if getting the flu shot would have prevented this. Who knows. Next year we're definitely getting them.


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The VG Resource › Main Content › Site Discussion
No Ads Subscription
Poll: If there was a No Ads Membership option for $5 a month, would you subscribe?
Yes, I think $5 is very reasonable
I'm not really sure
No, $5 is too expensive
No, I have absolutely no interest in this
It has come to my attention that a number of users are looking to help contribute financially to this site, but with the lack of rewards, aren't seeing it as a good investment. They get nothing out of it but that warm fuzzy feeling, and to be honest, I can't blame them - I'd be exactly the same way.
As such, I'm wondering if you guys would be interested in a no-ads subscription service. This isn't a solid, definite thing yet, but I want to try and explore other options when it comes to how this site can be run.
If there was a "No Ads" membership you could purchase, would you?
$5/month, for example. With maybe a small discount for a year of membership.
Let me know what you think and any other ideas you might have.
Tsunami Bomb - The Simple Truth
We could run away
Leave behind anything paper
Not knowing where we're going to stay
When there's no Mondays
You're part of me, it's so easy to see the simple truth
When I'm in your arms, I feel safe from harm and sorrow too
But most of all, nothing couldn't be solved when I'm with you
Thanked by: puggsoy
Deathbringer
DWN-060: Clownman
Just 5 or will it have tax added?
Doofenshmirtz: This is a little bit awkward but have you seen my escape jet keys? (Perry nods) What, you have? Well that's great! So where are they? (Perry looks away) You won't tell me? Is this because you don't speak or are you just being a jerk?
~Phineas and Ferb, "One Good Scare Ought to Do It!" (2008)
Thanked by:
Just $5 - I pay tax on all revenue earned through the site as is, I would do the same with all subscriptions.
I wouldn't have a problem with it.
[robo9]
An ill-ass Lemony Snicket in this bitch
I just don't see people (unless they were extremely honest) paying $5 for something they can do for free
The main reason is because it gives people a legitimate means of removing ads, while also not making the site suffer. The use of adblock makes certain parts of the site not function correctly, but more than that, it reduces the revenue earned from ads.
Consider a contribution to the continued running of the site, rather than "I want to buy something" - we will also be looking to introduce measures to make adblock not entirely effective. We don't want to prevent the site from being used by people with adblock, but we cannot allow the site to be abused in this manner. We try to never allow intrusive advertising to run on the site, so if you do use adblock, I'm implore you to white-list the site regardless, as ads are always off to a side filling empty space as is.
Frario
;) I already donate $5 on the patreon every month so I obviously agree with this. I owe half of my career to this website, and it continues to be an archive for artistic references, research and videogame history.
TSR is like my favourite "library"
Everyone needs a good library where they can sit down, read, share and learn. <3
Those $5 are the equivalent of a library card.
Thanked by: Dazz, Petie, puggsoy, redblueyellow, G-Haven, recme
(08-29-2014, 11:50 AM)Dazz Wrote: The main reason is because it gives people a legitimate means of removing ads, while also not making the site suffer. The use of adblock makes certain parts of the site not function correctly, but more than that, it reduces the revenue earned from ads.
I mean, the ads don't bother me because I use TSR exclusively on my iPhone, and there's no Adblock there. But realistically, most people that would be bothered enough by ads would probably use a free program over paying $5 a month. I mean, it's what I would personally do if the ads bothered me if given the choice between the two (and as I said before, I don't plan on doing)
I mean, if there were extra incentives for the $5 a month, (you could take an extremely hard stance against Adblock or offer the VGR Network for only $4.99 a month, brother.)
Although on the other hand, I don't see where doing something like this would do any harm. An extra $5 from an honest person who hates ads would always be welcomed, I guess
puggsoy
I'm warning you, I'm unstable!
I think the main point is, rather than "to remove the ads, pay $5" it's more like "willing to donate $5 a month? Awesome, we'll remove the ads too". So for people who are already willing to donate it gives them a little bonus, and they'll feel good about it. And people who are considering it, it gives them a bit more incentive.
There will always be people using AdBlock, but there are plenty who don't and $5 is a good deal for removal of ads while still supporting the site. It's like pirating games, there will always be people who do that, but those who actually pay can play the game while knowing that they're supporting the developers. It's all a matter of principle and honesty, and I think that most people who regularly use the site are willing to pay $5 instead of use AdBlock.
I think this is a fine offer. For people who have been members for a year a discount to maybe $4.50 or $4 would be cool (or alternatively, $5 is a discount from $5.50 or $6). Removal of ads would certainly be a nice perk for helping support the site.
[img=0x0]http://phazepages.net/code/dilbert/dilbert.gif[/img]
Sprites ~ Sounds
You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call "failure" is not the falling down, but the staying down. -Mary Pickford
Thanked by: Shade, Mystie, Petie, psychospacecow, Frario, recme
G-Haven
「BAITO-ZA-DASUTO」
I'm already using the patreon route too, and I do owe this place for being a good web-home back when I was in Highschool still, nearly 7-8 years ago.
I'd say 5 bucks a month is a pretty decent donation.
Thanked by: Petie
Kosheh
ⓦⓗⓞⓐ
(08-29-2014, 12:52 PM)Sportoise Wrote: But realistically, most people that would be bothered enough by ads would probably use a free program over paying $5 a month. I mean, it's what I would personally do if the ads bothered me if given the choice between the two (and as I said before, I don't plan on doing)
And most people who have AdBlock installed just leave it active usually. I feel like for more people to fork out the cash (because face it, a $5 monthly subscription is a bit to ask of a majority of our users, especially the ones under 18) just make a cool perks program, like "VG Resource Gold" with additional features:
- Upload multiple sheets to the Resource sites at once (up to 5)
- Allow these users to tag sheets on the main site
- Get a cool icon displayed in your profile on the forum and main site
- Enable profile display customization on the forums for these users
- Allow an extra 100px for their signatures
- Post in a super-secret forum where u can kill others dudez and have bumsex wit dey mums
(I just made those up for the sake of cool examples, but you should get the idea)
Skeptical Gamers Wrote: But Kosheh, won't that create elitism among the userbase?
Maybe? But if those members are paying $60/yr for no ads and cool perks, I'd say they'd be getting their money's worth for their contributions to off-site and server costs. :V
I'd honestly make this more like, $1 a month for no ads ("Silver") and $5 for "Gold" (Silver with perks) but I don't run a website what would I know Hee Hee Haw *pulls horse reins and waves to everyone, and tips his 10 gallon cowboy hat to the mods before rideing off quietly into sunset*
! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! refs
shoutouts to cutesu for the new av!
Thanked by: Shade, recme
Petie
Kosheh, you're missing the point. We're not selling something here. This isn't a service you're buying or perks that can only be unlocked with real money. Not everyone wants to directly contribute to the site's costs, and that's fine. These sites have always been free and will continue to be free regardless of donations, AdBlock use, or anything else.
There are, however, people who do want to help out and have already done so without the promise of anything. The purpose here is to reward those people with a better experience, not lock away features behind a paywall and coerce money out of visitors. People who are willing to donate any amount of money on a regular basis will do so without perks - this is just a way to to show our appreciation for those people. The only reason these two concepts are even related are because donations are used to supplement income from ads and if people are paying directly, there is no reason to also show them ads.
(08-30-2014, 11:09 AM)Petie Wrote: Kosheh, you're missing the point. We're not selling something here. This isn't a service you're buying or perks that can only be unlocked with real money.
I mean, that wouldn't be the worst idea. I'm sure the MachoBot and Kosh Kogan would be the perfect mascots for the VGR network, which is available for only 4.99 a month.
Drop the Bass, ZZZ
08-30-2014, 04:01 PM (This post was last modified: 08-30-2014, 04:05 PM by Shade.)
(08-30-2014, 03:50 PM)Sportoise Wrote: I mean, that wouldn't be the worst idea. I'm sure the MachoBot and Kosh Kogan would be the perfect mascots for the VGR network, which is available for only 4.99 a month.
I would definitely pay.
If the Nii Nii Zone Show was available.
IT'S LOVE
http://imgur.com/a/0APKR
Probably overlooked some things while making the album. Let me know if I did.
Thanked by: recme
Superjustinbros
08-31-2014, 09:44 AM (This post was last modified: 08-31-2014, 09:47 AM by Superjustinbros.)
Well I'm up for anything to avoid the dangers of LowerMyBills (seriously I'm surprised no one ever brought them to justice for their very misleading and disturbing advertisements, including the horrible reputation as shown in internet reviews) and that new "Please Recycle" add that's been floating around lately and is starting to get really repetitive.
I don't have adds on my computer because I have AdBlock, but on mobile every add is in full effect.
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