Loyal to the end

Shadow Of The Colossus’ final emotional surprise

FORMAT PS4 / PUB SONY / DEV BLUEPOINT GAMES / RELEASED 2018 / SCORE 9/10

How could it have ended any other way? There’s an uncomfortable melancholy to everything that happens in Shadow Of The Colossus, and with every Colossus we kill a little voice inside says ‘You really shouldn’t have done that.’ Who’s the real monster now as you put an end to bearded giant Barba and inch closer to the game’s end credits and mysterious Mono’s cure and awakening?

When every Colossus is dead and buried and Wander returns to the temple to see Mono come back to life, the vile acts he’s performed overtake him. He becomes an actual monster, a physical manifestation of the brutality of his actions over the previous eight hours and the deaths of so many elegantly designed creatures (which were simply minding their own business until you showed up).

Yet this stage of the ending isn’t the real moment we remember, it’s what comes next that hits the feels in all the right places: Wander struggling against the drag of his own deathly actions, unable to finally be with Mono, instead being sucked into a darkness of his own making. She awakens seemingly unaware of Wander’s actions, and at this moment our horse Agro, our loyal companion, hobbles onto the screen… she’s alive! The sun frames Mono as Agro struggles mournfully towards her from the darkness. Mono reaches out a hand and accepts our presumeddeceased horse’s friendship. Yes, we’re blubbering like a Liverpool fan celebrating their team winning the league after 27 years of hurt.

Agro’s last act is to lead Mono to where baby Wander has appeared; the three are finally together. We dry our eyes long enough to ask: what does the future hold?