SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS
WALKTHROUGH

By JMG114  (jmg114@gmail.com)

(Shadow of the Colossus copyright SCEI)



Welcome to my Shadow of the Colossus walkthrough, my very first.  Woo yes.  
Giving directions in a game like this is a little difficult, as I can't very
well tell you to "turn right" here or "turn left" there.  Follow the beam of
light from your sword and you'll find your way.  Heck, finding your way in this
game is the EASY part.



TO SAVE YOUR GAME:

Much like the couches in ICO, there are, scattered about the land, save points
for your convenience.  These are altars at which Wanda (the main character) 
prays.  There is one right in the back of the temple, so give it a shot and 
save.  Your first battle is closer than you may think.


FATIGUE:

When grappling onto a colossus, Wanda can become fatigued (as indicated by the 
ebbing pink meter).  Be sure to find a safe place on the colossus to rest for 
a few moments and release the R1 button.  If you run out of energy, Wanda 
will let go, and you'll have to start your battle again from the ground up.


DIRECTIONS TO THE COLOSSI:

Your sword, when reflected in a sunny place, will point a straight line between
you and your next adversary.  Sometimes, it can be a little difficult to find 
your way from point A to point B.  Ride Agro around various physical features,
especially ravines, as there's always a place to cross them, even if it isn't 
always apparent.  For the sake of ease, I've included directions to each of the
colossi listed below, just to be sure that you're heading in the right 
direction.

Also, the colossi must be defeated in the sequence given to you by Dormin, 
which makes finding them a bit easier, as you're only expected to do battle 
with one at a time.



COLOSSUS #1: LION-HEADED MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Due south of the central temple.  On the top of a cliff that 
needs to be climbed.

As you climb the southern cliffs, you'll find a series of helpful tutorials.
Once you've reached the top of the cliff, you'll find your very first 
Colossus.

This guy's first weak spot is behind his left ankle.  Run behind him, jump 
and grab it, climb, stab it, and he'll buckle.  When he kneels, leap up 
(still holding on.  He'll try to shake you off!) to the platforms on his 
back.  Mount them, and jump to the monster's upper back.  Finally, climb to 
the top of his head.  Three or four stabs to the head will send him crashing 
to the ground.  Congratulations!  You've beaten your first colossus!


COLOSSUS #2: SEASIDE MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Due north and very close to the central temple.  You'll 
need to descend a natural ramp into a lake bed.

This guy's a slow mover but his weaknesses are a little trickier than the 
last fellow you bested.  Wait in front of him until he pulls his two front 
feet off of the ground to crush you.  His first weak spot is under his feet, 
so aim your bow and fire.  He'll collapse onto his front right arm, which is 
what you need to climb up to make it to the rest of him.

Climb up until you reach his head, then stab away.  He'll shake, rattle, and 
roll, but keep at it.  About half of his life can be stabbed away from the 
head, but soon that spot disappears.  When it does, make your way to the 
creature's rear end.  Stab away at the glowing spot you find there, and he's 
history.



COLOSSUS #3: SLEEPING MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Northwest of the temple, you'll find a path through the 
cliffs.  Make your way through and you'll find a large platform that looks
like an arena, coming out of a lake.  You'll have to leave Agro behind,
but there is a ramp you can swim to.  Climb it, and you've found colossus 
#3.

This guy requires some attention to the surrounding landscape.  Specifically, 
there's a round platform in the middle of the arena.  Your job is to make it 
so that the big fella hits it while trying to hit you.  Once he does, the 
armor cuff on his right arm will shatter.  When he smashes the ground again,
run up his giant mace and grab onto his right arm.  Jump from his right arm 
to his midsection, where you're going to find a glowing target on his stomach.
Take it out.

After that, jump back to his arm and climb all the way up to his head.  This
guy likes to shake a lot, so take care.  Once you've stabbed him a few times 
in the head, it's all over.



COLOSSUS #4: MONSTER OF THE WOODED PLAINS

LOCATED WHERE? - Far northwest of the temple, through a cliff pass an in an area
with a grove of trees.

This guy also requires some familiarity with the landscape.  You're going to 
want to goad him towards the underground ruin area (which you should have 
encountered before you made it to him and, like me, wondered what it was 
there for).  Pick any entrance and he'll follow you.  While he's busy at 
the entrance you chose, go out the opposite side and sneak up on him from 
the back.  You should be able to climb up his tail when he squats down, 
trying to find you.  After that, he's cake.  Climb to the back of his neck, 
take care of the target there, then go to the top of his head and end it.


COLOSSUS #5: FLYING LAKE MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Due east of the temple, over a land bridge and through a 
cliff pass.  To make it to this guy, you need to dismount from Agro and
swim under the ruined castle.  

Find a good, clear shot of this colossus and shoot him with an arrow.  
That'll attract his attention.  Stand on one of the lake platforms and 
wait.  When he dives for you, jump and hit R1, which should enable you to
grab onto him.

His first weak spot is at the top of his tail.  Go for it, then make your 
way to the target towards the end of his right wing, then left wing.  Once
you've done that, he's toast.



COLOSSUS #6: TEMPLE MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Due southwest.  You'll find a temple structure set 
into the walls of a cliff.  You'll have to leave Agro behind as you enter.
When you make it to the edge at the far end of the main hall, climb down.
It's the colossus itself!

This colossus will come to life right after climbing down his body.  Run 
all the way to the other side of the room.  The colossus should be right 
on your tail.  Stay hidden under the stone awning and fire arrows to keep
his attention.  He will eventually crouch down to try and spot you.  That's
when you jump onto his beard and climb up to the top of his head.  That's his
first weak spot.  His second weak spot is on the lower left-hand side of his 
back.  This one's a thrasher, so hold on tight.


COLOSSUS #7: UNDERWATER MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - This guy's due west of the temple, about as far as you can
go without hitting the edge of the map.  You'll find a ravine with a lake at 
the bottom.  Again, leave Agro behind and descend carefully down the spiral 
stone path.

Once you locate this fellow, swim near the surface to attract him.  You'll 
likely latch onto his tail, so grab hold and make your way up to its first 
spine.  Be warned, the spines electrify one by one starting from the front,
so you're going to want to take care of them quickly.  At the rear of each 
spine, you'll find a target.  The beast may dive deep underwater after you
take care of each, so just swim near the surface and he'll turn up again.

After you finish with each of the three spines, make your way to his head,
and stab him until he is no more.


COLOSSUS #8: SHADOW FOREST ARENA MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - This guy is south-by-southeast, beyond the location of the
first colossus.  Following the sword, you'll come across a ruined area that
opens into a cylindrical pit.  The colossus awaits you at the bottom.

This guy's a little tricky.  His weak spot is on his underbelly, which 
you'll find to be inconveniently situated beneath him.  He can also shoot 
projectile energy blasts, so keep on your toes.

The best strategy for this fellow is to goad him up onto the walls by 
remaining inside the cylindrical structure.  Tempt him to one side, then 
run to the other.  While he's focusing on trying to flush you out of the
other side, fire two arrows into two of his ankles.  He'll fall on his
back onto the ground, giving you a limited time to jump down, run to him, 
and finish him off.  He has two target spots.


COLOSSUS #9: LAKE BED MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - East-by-southeast of the temple.  You can take Agro with 
you as you find your way into a dry lake bed with active geysers.

This guy is rather annoying, as you need to goad him onto a geyser.  A 
lot of the time, he either just stands there and shoots at you, or he
overshoots the geysers when you're trying to make him follow you.  You
might want to try zig-zagging about with Agro, so as to avoid the 
monster's blasts and to make him move around.  Once he's on the geyser
and the geyser shoots, he will tilt onto his side and two of his legs 
will be up in the air.  That's your cue to run under him and shoot arrows 
into the soles of his two feet that are supporting him on the ground.

He'll keel over after that, which means that it's time to climb up his belly.
He'll right himself quickly, so hurry.  Once you're made it past his hair, 
you'll find a few bony ridges to grab onto, so do that, and by the time you're 
as high as you can go, he'll right himself and you can go for the target on
his head.


COLOSSUS #10: SAND DUNE MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - West-by-northwest of the temple.  He's in a cave, so bring 
Agro with you as you go on the hunt.

This guy is way too fast to grab on to, so jump onto Agro and make him chase 
you.  While on horseback, turn around and fire arrows into the creature's 
eyes.  This will blind him temporarily so that he will crash into the side 
of the cavern, giving you enough time to mount him and take out his two 
targets.


COLOSSUS #11: FLAMING ALTAR MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Head north from the temple.  He's in a ravine down a 
zig-zaggy path that leads to a small temple structure.  It's directly
under one of the giant bridge pillars.

This guy's small and quick.  Run to a flaming altar and climb it.  He'll 
knock into it and a stick will come loose.  Run next to the stick while 
you're holding nothing else and pick it up.  If you need to re-light the 
stick, re-climb and altar and hit the flames with the stick.  As it turns 
out, this colossus despises fire, so he'll back away from you (though he'll 
still take swipes at you if you're too close).  Force him to the end of the 
temple where there's a gap in the pillars.  He'll fall down and his armor 
will shatter.  

After that, his back hair will be low enough to the ground for you to 
simply jump onto.  Do that, and hold on tight as you stab three or four 
times between his shoulder blades.  


COLOSSUS #12: THUNDER LAKE MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - It's a little tricky, but go northeast from the castle.  
Take a land bridge into a grove, make a right in the grove, and another 
right.  You'll end up at another exit from the grove.  Make a left and 
down an embankment to a double archway through which flows a waterfall.
Leave Agro behind, use the near pillar to move your way into the lake 
area.  

Once you reach the center island, the colossus will reveal himself from 
under the water.  He can shoot projectiles, so be careful.  Swim your way
to his tail and climb it.  Seems too easy?  It is.  Make your way to his 
head.  The "teeth" up there control his direction.  Hit them with your 
sword until you're in jumping distance of one of the stone pagodas that
are in the lake.  Leap to the pagoda and hide behind the little altar on
top of it.  The creature will jump up and put its front paws onto the
pagoda.  That's your cue to jump to its stomach where a big, shining
target is waiting for you.  After a few times, he'll break a pagoda.
Simply direct him towards another one once you're back on top of him.




COLOSSUS #13: SOARING DESERT MONSTER

LOCATED WHERE? - Southwest of the temple.  Through the woods, into the
desert.  Go to the ruin in the middle of the sands, and he'll reveal 
himself.

Agro is indispensable in this battle.  For starters, this colossus has
three weak spots beneath itself.  One is by the tail, one is at its
midsection, and the third is closer to its head.    Use your arrows 
and take out all three.  This will cause the beast to fly lower and 
dip its four front "fins" into the ground.  Run at him with Agro and 
jump from the horse onto any fin.  Climb up and you're ready for 
action.  It has three big sails on its back.  Behind each is a target.
Take them out, and he's history.



COLOSSUS #14: MONSTER OF THE LOST CITY

LOCATED WHERE? - Find a pass in the cliffs northwest of the temple.  
You'll find your way through some gray mountain passes.  Follow the 
sword's light down a path lined in pillars.  You'll need to dismount 
from Agro to make your way across an underground lake.  The cavern 
leads to a moss-covered city.  Make your way down to the ground level.
Once there, go through the only door in the complex, leap onto the broken
pillar, and follow the path to the colossus.

This fellow is fast and furious.  Facing the temple from which he jumped,
find your way to the climbable tower on the right-hand side.  You'll have
to do some platform jumping to make it there.  Climb the tower and shoot
at the creature with your arrows.  He'll knock the tower down after hitting 
it twice.  Then, follow the platforms to the towers on the other side of 
the complex, which you'll also climb one by one and he'll knock down one 
by one.  Finally, the last tower will take out a good part of the main 
city structure.  Climb up the wall from the main courtyard and shoot an
arrow at him from the broken pillar on the overlooking balcony.  In his
zeal, he'll attack the supporting pillar and the structure will collapse 
on top of him.  His armor will be no more, leaving you free to jump onto
his back and begin your assault.  A good strategy is to stand on top
of a fallen pillar and wait for him to attack it as before.  Without
his armor, he'll wind up dazed, giving you enough time for a good hit
or two.

Be warned, though.  This colossus is very agile and won't take kindly to 
you hanging onto his back for long.  Hold on tight!



COLOSSUS #15: SENTRY OF THE VALLEY CASTLE

LOCATED WHERE? - North-by-northwest of the temple.  Above where you
fought the thunder lake monster on the map.  You'll find a castle
that's fairly straightforward to navigate.  Once you walk to the end
of the main courtyard, the guardian emerges.

You need to land on this guy from above, so here's how to do it:
Lining the arena are platforms that are raised a bit from the ground.
Find any one of them that is against a low wall (there are four of 
them).  Stand on the edge closest to the wall and the colossus will
step on it, elevating the end on which you're standing.  Leap to the 
ledge and pull yourself onto the second level.

Now, on the second level, you'll find fallen/broken stones already 
there.  You want to stay near any of them, goading the colossus into
striking at you.  He will, and another stone will land on top of the
one already there.  Leap onto the stones and grab onto the ledge on
the wall.  Slide your way over to the end of the wall, where you can 
pull yourself up to the third level.  Find your way above to either 
of the stone bridges.  They are high enough to enable you to jump 
onto this guy's head.  Be careful though, as he can take out the 
bridges with his club.  If he does, you can still jump onto him
from what's left.

He has three targets: one is the top of his head, the second is down 
his right arm, and the last is the palm of his right hand.  It's hard 
to make it to, but if you time your jumps properly, you shouldn't 
have that hard a time.


COLOSSUS #16: FINAL COLOSSUS

LOCATED WHERE? - This guy is due south, in fact at the southernmost 
point of the realm.  You'll find an immense doorway set into a cliff
and you'll need to reflect the sword's light into the shining hole.
The doors will open and you'll make your way over a bridge and 
finally to a wall that you'll have to climb.  Once you've made it to
a doorway, enter and climb the steps to an apparent dead end.
However, you can climb the nearby greenish pillars, so climb them
up until you reach the top of the temple, where you'll find your
final adversary.

He shoots projectiles very rapidly, so you're going to want to make 
it behind that first pillar and quick.  Jump to the right and make
your way into the first underground path.  Climb out of it and jump 
your way to the next underground path using the stone slabs as cover.
When you exit the underground path, you'll find yourself navigating a
cliff face.  Be careful to not let any of the projectiles hit you, and
make your way over to the last underground chamber, which will lead you 
directly under the colossus.  Now, it's time to climb.

Make your way up the first set of stone curbs, then run around towards
the front until you find a jump.  Jump across and continue climbing up 
the beast.  Eventually, you'll find yourself at its midsection.  Run to 
the back and you'll find a hairy patch with a target.  Hit it, and he'll
reach for you with his left hand.  Jump to his hand and wait for his arm
to stabilize.  Run up and stab his upper arm.  He'll then reach for you 
with his right hand.  Jump to it and grab on.  Climb to the back of his 
hand and stab it.  He'll bring it up to near his face.  Stand and fire 
an arrow into his left shoulder.  He'll moan and bring his hand to his
shoulder area, allowing you to jump off and gain access to his upper 
body.  There's only one target left, the one at the top of his head.  
Stab him there a few times, and it'll all be over.







VERSION HISTORY

10/19/2005
Ver. 0.1 - Colossi 1-2 strategies added.
Ver. 0.2 - Colossi 3 strategy added.
Ver. 0.3 - Colossi 4-5 strategy added.
10/20/2005
Ver. 0.6 - Colossi 6-10 strategy added.
Ver. 0.7 - Colossus 11 strategy added.
Ver. 0.9 - Colossus 12-15 strategy added.
10/21/2005
Ver. 1.0 - Colossus 16 strategy added.
10/29/2005
Ver. 1.1 - Colossus 13 correction.


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jmg114@gmail.com.  Thank you.