Empty.
Both its greatest strength and weakness.

Ueda’s philosophy of design by subtraction is a double edged sword in Shadow of the Colossus. Its vast and empty landscapes blanketed in fog evoke such a powerful feeling of isolation and melancholy. Its desolate ruins that are void of inhabitants feel so incredibly lonely. The world is beautiful and evocative.

And yet I found that to be what held back the experience most. With the game doing little to separate each fight, the first four colossi faded together in my mind. The world is empty. There are no dungeons or quests to build up to each climactic colossus battle. They’re turned into a list to check off one immediately after the other. A chore. The game never re-captures the awe inspiring feeing of approaching the first colossus because there is no build up to each encounter. Coupled with the lack of distinct mechanics to kill each colossi, they quickly blended together.

These mechanically indistinct bosses are further hampered by clunky controls. The colossi AI is poor and often frustrating to influence. The methods to defeat them are extremely contrived.

I criticize the game a lot, but its atmosphere was entirely fascinating. The ancient architecture and painterly landscapes are gorgeous to immerse yourself in. It simply fails to provide engaging gameplay to go with it. And it’s not like those have to conflict. I’ve felt similar feelings exploring the Chozo Ruins of Metroid Prime, a game that manages to be deeply isolating and melancholic while still providing expansive and engaging gameplay.
In the end, I find Shadow of the Colossus fails to provide strong enough gameplay to justify continuing through its world.