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GDC09: Team ICO's new game is 'close to ICO' in essense
During this morning's GDC 2009 panel on Eastern vs. Western development philosophies, Team ICO head Fumito Ueda was asked -- by Grasshopper Manufacture boss, Goichi "Suda51" Suda -- what the deal is with his crew's next game. You know, the follow-up to Shadow of the Colossus that everyone (even other Japanese devs!) are eager to know anything new about. Ueda couldn't say much, but we found his comments interesting.After joking (or was he?) that his bosses were in the room listening, Ueda said that his next game -- widely referred to by the nickname "Trico" -- will be "something in-between" ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. "It will be similar to those past games, the essense is close to ICO," he added.Suda51 then excitedly asked if he'd brought screenshots -- anything -- of or about the game. Ueda laughed slightly and conveyed the non-verbal equivalent of "next!" with his face.
Fumito Ueda, Suda 51, Fallout 3's Pagliarulo together in GDC panel
This year's Game Developers Conference will feature a presentation by two Japanese game designers who even Atsushi Inaba probably finds noteworthy: Team Ico's Fumito Ueda and Grasshopper Manufacture's Goichi Suda, aka Suda 51. The Shadow of the Colossus creator and the man behind No More Heroes will join Fallout 3 lead designer Emil Pagliarulo and localization company 8-4's Mark MacDonald for the panel discussion "Evolving Game Design: Today and Tomorrow, East and West Game Design."The one-hour talk will discuss "recent trends in modern game design" as well as upcoming trends in games, as they relate to both the Japanese and Western game industries. Of course, the short-sighted hope is that everyone involved will reveal a new game, or at least that Suda will let out a bunch of details about No More Heroes: Desperate Struggle.[Via VG247]
Rumor: Team ICO reveals The Queen, all bow down
The third project from the "Olympic Team" behind both Shadow of the Colossus and Ico looks like it might make its long anticipated reveal next month at the 2008 Tokyo Game Show. What appears to be a newly launched TGS teaser website calls the game ICO 3 The Queen, adding that Japanese PS3 owners will be able to yank the title off store shelves on October 9, 2009.Given the name, as well as the site's reuse of the original game's logo, it remains unclear if the title will be any sort of direct follow up to the original Ico or another stand alone project, but whatever the case we cannot wait to find out more once TGS gets underway.Note: As some have pointed out, the site's validity is suspect, meaning we now wait until next month's TGS to see if in fact the next game from Team ICO will make an appearance or simply break our hearts.[Thanks pico!]
Team ICO's next game may be shown soon
It's been a long time coming, but VG247 quotes Sony Worldwide Studio head Shuhei Yoshida as saying Team ICO's next project may be revealed "soon." The anticipated next project by the team behind Shadow of the Colossus and Ico has merely been teased with some nondescript screenshots.Yoshida tells the site that plans for the Tokyo Game Show have not been finalized -- presumably, the show would be the last major opportunity this year to reveal the project. It's about time this game made its public appearance, don't you think?
Fan's Labyrinth: del Toro approves of Team ICO
In an interview with Edge, Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy director Guillermo del Toro establishes two very interesting facts: del Toro, who has been enamored with gaming's charming beeps and boops since the days of Pong, lavishes a considerable amount of praise on Sony's Team ICO. "There are only two games I consider masterpieces," he says. "Ico and Shadow of the Colossus." The popular filmmaker has excellent taste in games. Those are far from the only titles he appreciates, however, as he tells Edge that he "absolutely loved BioShock." In addition, he approves of Resident Evil, Devil May Cry and Silent Hill, which he likens in particular to a "Lynch, Polanski or Romero type of horror experience." It seems our only point of disagreement can be found in his "happy" working experience with Konami's Hellboy: The Science of Evil. Nobody's perfect, eh?[Via PS3 Fanboy]
Team ICO has a fan in Pan's Labyrinth director
You know you've got an iconic piece of artistry when an Academy Award winning filmmaker has nothing but praise, respect, and admiration to show. "There are only two games I consider masterpieces: Ico and Shadow of the Colossus," said Guillermo del Toro in an interview with Edge magazine. Both titles are creations of SCEJ's Team ICO, who are currently working on an unnamed title.Guillermo, director of the widely acclaimed Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy movies, is himself a gamer since the Pong era. He's even a video game director, having worked with Konami on adapting the Hellboy series ... which unfortunately didn't do too well. With such a prominent figure giving the thumbs up to Team ICO, we're sure they're happy to hear that their hard work is getting noticed outside the realm of gaming. We're also sure, whatever they have in store next would probably be pleasing del Toro -- and us for that matter.
Team ICO boss not feeling pressured to show new title
The early stages of development mean a lot of different things for a lot of different developers. Speaking with UK magazine gamesTM and brought to our attention by videogaming247, Fumito Ueda said "production has not reached the critical stage. The company is very reasonable thanks to my achievements in the past. So, although I do get pressurised, that's not happened yet [on the current project], and that's something I feel gratitude for, that the company gives us the opportunity to focus by giving us time."What does this mean? Simply put, Ueda isn't getting pressured to show off his game yet because Sony knows brilliance takes time. The game is too young, too early in production stages, to really show off. We're willing to wait because we're sure when Ueda is ready to show the world, the world will watch.
New Team ICO game impresses Shuhei Yoshida
While there's no real news regarding Fumito Ueda and Team ICO's new game, Shuhei Yoshida made a few comments on it in a recent interview with the Official PlayStation Magazine UK. First off, yes, they are working on a game (this has only been confirmed from one arbitrary, assumed screenshot on their official site), but it's going to be a while until we see anything. Yoshida started work on ICO before moving to the United States, so he's seen how Ueda works -- uncompromising was the word used. Four years is the general time to wait for each game, Yoshida concludes, but this game will be worth it because "they have something really, really good on the way." We look forward to hearing more!
ICO and Siren creators speaking at Nordic conference
With all the excitement going on with PlayStation Day in Europe, we're going to turn your attention to another conference coming up soon. The Nordic Game 2008 conference. It's a little more technical of a conference, but it's still got some great developers giving speeches. Sony's own Fumito Ueda, creator of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus will be taking part in the "Game Creation and Technology" program. This program focuses on new game niches and continuing to innovate creatively.Other celebrated panelists in the discussion include the creator of Silent Hill and Siren, Keiichiro Toyama, Rock Band's Roby Kay and Ninja Theory co-founder, Tameem Antoniades. We don't really expect any announcements out of these folk, but they might bring something new to the table when giving their presentation. Like whatever direction Ueda is taking with his third game. We'll keep you posted.
The Giants are coming, but is it new Team ICO info? [Update]
There's a cryptic message over at Team ICO Gamers -- "The Giants are coming" with a tab in the upper-right of the website indicating only "February 10th". Does this have something to do with the next game by the developer? Or is it something much less exciting, like, say, a site redesign? They left it cryptic and vague, so we'll do the same by letting your imaginations run wild. Tomorrow we'll find out, we guess.[Update 11:34AM: Their site's been down for a few hours now. We figured it might be a site redesign since it is just a fansite -- but the most important fansite. We'll keep checking and updating, so you guys keep your eyes peeled and let us know if you see anything first!]
EGM's Rumor Mill: Dead Rising 2, Team ICO sequel coming soon
We're not ones to pounce on rumors as readily as the tiger pounces on the lone platypus separated from its herd on their journey to the potato tree, but EGM has a pretty good track record at tossing a few hints into the fray. Their latest mag, hitting subscribers any day now, gives PS3 fans a few things to look forward to in the coming months.First off, they claim they've caught wind that Capcom is developing Dead Rising 2 right now. Not big news in itself, sure, but they claim the title is being developed for multiple consoles. Their strategy for releasing games on all systems might actually begin to hold water. The other interesting tidbit comes in the form of Sony's Team ICO. Their new project will be unveiled soon. We smell something at GDC. If not, well, it'll just be announced at random. It's up to you guys to make your own judgment calls here, though.
New artwork depicting third Team ICO game released
Initially coming from Sony's website seeking applicants for Team ICO's new project, and getting spread across the interwebs by TeamICOGamers, we've been teased with a strange piece of CG artwork for what appears to be the next game from Team ICO. What is it? It seems to be a giant hole. With a big chain going down it. It seems we can expect another insanely clever concept from the group that brought us ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. Perhaps the worlds the games take place in will somehow make sense in relation to one another after this new title. Perhaps not. Forgive our giddiness over such an abstract, vague piece of artwork -- but we'll look forward to new information!
First screen of possible Team ICO project: the chain
Sony has replaced muddled sketches with what appears to be an actual screenshot of the next Team ICO project. The image accompanies several job postings (for planners, animators, artists, etc.) and has been affectionately dubbed "ICO 3" by Team ICO Gamers, referring to Team ICO's mysterious third game, which may be a sequel to Ico or Shadow of the Colossus, or maybe both.While the chain presently does little more than excite our continued curiosity, the appearance of the screenshot gives credence to hopes for a surprise visit from Team ICO at GDC next month. At the end of 2007, ICO lead designer Fumito Ueda teased, "We're looking forward to the day we can reveal our current title(s) in production. Hopefully it will be very soon."[Via Team ICO Gamers]
Rumor: Team ICO project explores The Last Canyon
Though we haven't been able to obtain a copy and confirm, the latest issue of Game Informer is rumored to have a feature piece on Shadow of the Colossus developer Team Ico's latest PS3 title. The game, reportedly called The Last Canyon, will have you exploring a desert similar to Death Valley, searching for "something" (that part not revealed yet). The protagonist's method of transportation will consist of a simple, non-motorized glider that you can mount and dismount. From the alleged excerpt: "From what we've seen there's never before been that feeling of flying around in the sky, combined with this scale of environment."Clever rumor or legitimate clipping? We won't know until the next GI hits newsstands.Update: The original source of the rumor doesn't lend it much credibility. We'll just go back to begging Ueda to hurry up then.
Sony exec on Team ICO: 'pretty sure they're doing the sequel'
This less-than-a-confirmation statement from a Sony executive is shaky evidence at best, but fans of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus will grasp at any new information on the team's current project. OPM UK grilled Kaz Hirai and friends for as much as they could, but that's apparently the best they could unearth.Shadow of the Colossus was set in the same mythos as ICO, but played very differently. Whatever Team ICO has ready for PS3 is undoubtedly going to impress -- but couldn't they at least tease us with even the tiniest preview of what they're working on?[Via Joystiq]
ICO or Shadow of the Colossus sequel may be in the works
The rabid fanbase of Team ICO (Ico, Shadow of the Colossus) reportedly sent in "a couple hundreds of e-mails" to Official PlayStation Magazine last month, hoping the outlet could glean some new information on their current project. This month, OPM published one of those letters and provided some promising statements.When asking Kaz Hirai about Team ICO's current happenings, another executive in the room reportedly blurted out "I'm pretty sure they're doing the sequel." No other information was discerned, given that Ico and Shadow of the Colossus are based on, erm, "similar" worlds and art styles, we're interested in what direction Fumitu Ueda and company will take in terms of game play.
Ebert admits games can be art, but not 'high art'
In an editorial published last weekend, film critic Roger Ebert seems to renege somewhat on his previous insistence that video games, a medium he finds to be "inherently inferior to film and literature," cannot be considered a form of art. "Anything can be art," admits Ebert. "Even a can of Campbell's soup. What I should have said is that games could not be high art, as I understand it." The "high art" label is almost as old and heavy as most of the works one would apply it to, and expecting a medium as young as video games (never mind the superior class of film) to hold it up would surely be met with crushing disappointment. While it's not impossible for video games to eventually reach such a lofty status in our culture, Ebert's clarification is far more agreeable than his previous statements. Of course, since we can beat down the status of art with a can of soup before allowing video games (and seemingly any old thing) entry, it's not much of a change. The same problems Ebert has always had with the medium are reflected in the rest of his response to Clive Barker's recent comments on the subject.
Rumor: Team ICO working on not one, but two PS3 games
So Team ICO's working on a new game for the PlayStation 3. Not altogether surprising considering that ICO and Shadow of the Colossus remain two of the most well respected and well received video games on the PlayStation 2. But what if we told you that one internet forum rumor had them working on not one, but two games for Sony's high-def colossus? One is even rumored to be "close to ICO and Shadow of the Colossus in terms of atmosphere and setting."Though we didn't hear anything at Sony's Gamer's Day event, a source deep within Sony's corporate bowels brushed himself off and revealed this exclusive screenshot to us, seen above (note: we're not serious, but we wish we were). Would two more masterpieces from Fumito Ueda's team brighten Sony's spirits (and sales figures)?[Via PS3F]
Rumor: Team Ico might be developing two PS3 titles
There hasn't been a whole lot on the news front about Team Ico's next offering for the PS3, at least until now. The PS3 forums are alive with whispers of not one, but two new games from the team that first brought the critical darling Ico our way, back in 2001. At the recent Motorstorm event in Germany, a source claims to have, "talked to a product manager of Sony PlayStation Germany" who advised, "Team Ico is actually developing two games at once with one being close to Ico and Shadow of the Colossus in terms of atmosphere and setting." The claim is pretty rich, but if it bears fruit, we'll have two more PS3 games to get excited about. No official word on such claims from the Sony front yet, but if we wish hard enough, maybe we'll hear something during E3 in July. [Via hiddenawaygames]
Team Ico making plans for PS3 development
Team Ico wants you! Provided, that is, you're an ace programmer or a crack network engineer (for example) and keen to work on an exciting new PS3 project. There's a recruitment ad to this effect on Sony's Japanese website, while Sony has also bought a double-page spread in the latest issue of Weekly Famitsu to get the word out. So is this confirmation of a PS3 sequel to Wanda, or -- considering the specific requirement for networking staff -- can we expect an altogether different kind of beast? For now, we're just content to stare at the sketches and calculations scrawled by Team Ico staff on Sony's site.
