The creators behind cult PS2 classic Ico have marked the game’s 20th anniversary with a look at its earliest iteration.
- READ MORE: 20 years later, ‘Ico’ remains a minimalist masterclass in cinematic and emotional storytelling
Developed by Team ICO – an offshoot of Sony Japan Studios – and originally released in 2001, Ico saw the eponymous protagonist, a young man born with horns, trying to guide his companion Yorda out of a labyrinthine castle where both had been trapped. A masterpiece of minimalist design, the game inspired successors in Shadow of the Colossus and The Last Guardian.
Now, genDESIGN – the studio set up by Ico director Fumito Ueda in 2014, after leaving Sony – has revealed a look back at the game in its earliest form (thanks, Gematsu). While the core of the game players would come to love is clear to see, it’s also noteworthy how different some parts of the game are.
The video’s description (translated) says the footage dates from 1998, and was an initial development video to convey the idea of the game and its themes with the development team. It’s also pointed out that the footage is a combination of CG and the game running on the original PlayStation, an indication of how long the game had been in the works.
There are also some fascinating animation tests to be seen, along with some alternate designs for Ico himself. It’s also possible that at some stage, Ico was planned to be even younger than he was in the finished game – some of the CG scenes in the video have him looking like a very young child.
Perhaps the biggest difference though is the giant Yorda that Ico can be seen guiding around, rather than the ethereal girl who appeared in the final game. While it’s likely this was just a placeholder model for this early proof-of-concept build, that could have drastically changed the tone and feel of the game if the idea had stuck around.
