Shadow of the Colossus PS4 Remake Introduces New Control Schemes
The PlayStation 4 version of Shadow of the Colossus will be a remake, not a remaster, according to Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida. The content will be the same as in the original, but with remade assets. It will also offer new control schemes to fit modern gaming preferences.
Sony announced Shadow of the Colossus for the PlayStation 4 during their E3 2017 panel. The remake will come out some time next year. However, one question remained: how different will the PS4 version be from the original, or the PS3 remaster? Well, Famitsu sat down with Shuhei Yoshida, president of Sony Worldwide Studios. During the interview, Yoshida-san answered the question for us (translated by Siliconera):
It is a remake. The game content is the same as the original version, but all the assets are being remade. I figured we could use such tech to make if we’re going to make Shadow of the Colossus in the PS4 era. Bluepoint is the development company behind the PS3 remaster versions of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. So we know them rather well.
The remake has another surprising change up its sleeve. In the same interview, Yoshida-san said that they’ll be introducing new, optional control schemes. The goal behind the decision is that the developers want to modernize Shadow of the Colossus to better fit modern gaming audiences. Of course, players can decide to stick to the original controls.
It’s the same, but player preferences for controls and such change over time, so we’re working on implementing a more modernized way to play. And of course you can play with a feel of the original version, but what we’re doing is showing how great the original work is, using today’s technology. Ueda-san (Fumito Ueda, lead designer of ICO, Shadow of the Colossus, and The Last Guardian) wasn’t that involved much this time.
This is a very interesting move on the part of the developers. Anybody that has played Shadow of the Colossus before knows that the unusual (admittedly, sometimes clunky) controls were a huge part of the game’s appeal. However, considering how awkward the controls in The Last Guardian could be, modernizing them in the SOTC remake could be a good move. After all, if you want to experience the game as it played when it came out, you can always opt to use the original scheme.
