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Super Hang-On
Clearing the ruined temple, Wander pulls himself over the last ledge and comes face to face (or face to foot) with the first colossus, a grizzly-looking thing the size of a hotel. You heard about it, you read about it, but still you're not prepared for this sheer volume and mass, not only of the colossus, but also of the achievement you're about to pull off.
 First, the colossus's weak points must be uncovered: jags of teal light tattooed somewhere on its body that have to be stabbed with the sword. And each colossus must be scaled to get to them. By holding the R1 button, Wander grabs on to whatever he can on the enormous body, usually its hair or the edge of its armor. Holding down the R1 button drains a stamina gauge, which refills when Wander stands at ease. Mountaineering the giants is an exhilarating mix of actions: holding on for dear life and balancing on a tenuous warm ground.
As they try to swat and shake him off, the screen blurs and I jam down on the R1 button. There's no way that the camera can follow this much action, so for a tense seconds, I wonder if I pressed it in time. When everything settles again, there's Wander, barely distinguishable nestled deep in the hairs of the giant, still hanging on and ready to climb, and every time this is such an transcendental victory. The animation of the colossi and Wander are so fluid and varied and weirdly gorgeous, that it's through motion alone we perceive their determination to live over one another. I'm barely pressing any buttons.
 But getting even to the point where Wander lifts his sword high to stab into the weak point is a challenge. Past the first two, each colossus is like a really big living Rubik's Cube with teeth, demanding observation, patience, and logic. Yes, it's frustrating being stuck in a fight for half-hour, or when trying out possible solutions takes so bloody long because you can't get them to move where and how you want them to. But when you finally figure it out and attach Wander to the boss's body, the music switches to one that's all sweeps and swells and so does your mood. There is little more satisfying than granting each one its release of a grand majestic death.
Shadow Dancer
This is so good, so out of league with everything else that the five orange-colored stars below aren't enough. It utterly obscures everything out there, even stuff it's not in direct competition with. How about this: every other review read from here on out, you lower the grade a little bit? You know, to compensate.
So here we are. End of the review. Now I can say what I've wanted to say this whole time. I'm serious. Very, very serious. See? Here it is:
Shadow of the Colossus is the best game ever made.
O Lord, does this not please you?
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