Ueda “flattered” Shadow of the Colossus is considered art by many

When speaking with the US PS Blog, head developer at Team Ico, and the man behind the titles Ico, Shadow of the Colossus and the upcoming The Last Guardian, Fumito Ueda, voiced his appreciation at people referring to his games as art. But despite being flattered, he's somewhat skeptical, and mentions that he thinks that there are others games out there that are more like art than Shadow of the Colossus.

[alphakennybody]

art is something that has no purpose or use other than been looked at... that is what most expert says but I disagree with them.

[MrAwesome]

In my opinion videogames are art but I gotta give props to Ueda for making one of the "artiest"games out there.

[ExplosionSauce]

His games get the point around without the need of much dialog at all or flashy characters, yet they manage to get some emotion out of you :)

[rockleex]

Most games are very shallow although they have plenty of content.

SotC is a game that has very few content, but has a huge world with deep histories.

Everything you learn about the game is merely implied through the desolate piece of land you travel through. Its an experience, it is not told.

SotC is more art than most sculptures and paintings you can find in museums.

[rockleex]

Fumito Ueda is an artist himself.

He's not an abstract artist like the Katamari Damacy guy though.

He's an artist that focuses on replicating the "feel" of things.

His first project he showed off to Sony was of a dog running across a field.

He got the "feel" of the dog down so well that Sony instantly got him to work on a game. The game came to be Ico. ^_^

If you look at Ico, SotC, and The Last Guardian... you'll notice how everything "feels" authentic.

Notice how Agro the horse feels so real that you'd cry for him if anything happened to him.

He's even able to create believability in unbelievable situations such as the Collosi, or the Trico animal.

He gets the "feel" of things. And that's why his games are always focused around that kind of relationship.

[SaberEdge]

Videogames ARE art and Ico and Shadow of the Colossus are two of the true masterpieces of the medium.

[NecrumSlavery]

When something in a game gives you an emotional experience from a visually stunning image, i'd call that art.

[All_4_One]

However you view his games, one thing remains the same. They are masterpieces, and Ueda is a masterclass visionary and designer amongst the best.

SOTC is very artistic in my opinion. The lack of words, the solemness, the openness, the loneliness conveyed by the colossi, they are all artistic aspects of the game that I have yet to find anywhere else.

[jack_burt0n]

Loads of games can be classed as art, Ueda just makes AAA art.

[Rrobba]

Agreed :)

[RageAgainstTheMShine]

Fumito Ueda is Sony's next generation Shigeru Miyamoto?

[Neckbear]

Also, I might have finished Shadow of The Colossus if it wasn't for the horrible framerate...

Hopefully the PS3 version will be better.

[Natsu X FairyTail]

I was just about to say that. To make a game you have to go through a process using alot of art.

[Focker-420]

You couldn't finish it because of the frame rate?? Shame on you.

[LeonSKennedy4Life]

You couldn't finish Shadow of the Colossus because of the frame-rate...

Wow.

That's a new one.

[redDevil87]

This art is now going to be in HD :)

[LeonSKennedy4Life]

Very few people in this world can lay claim to such masterful work.

Thank you, Mr. Ueda.

[Lombax]

Some Devs are just better artists.

[rezzah]

Art brings out your inner emotions and personal thoughts on the subject.

[jessupj]

I believe anything creative is art. If it invovles a creative process it's art.

Very much looking forward to SotC in HD with my X10 headphones.

[coolbeans]

When you look at art in musuems, you never have the artist try to vary things that he originally did. With that said, since certain HD collections coming are just upping it to HD it would certainly seem fair to call ones like SotC art. I don't know, does anyone else feel that the business side of things is harming the artistic integrity of certain games and movies (with things like 3-D releases, editing original content, etc.)?

[SexyPrawns]

True artists will stay true to their work.

SotC may be getting an upgrade, but I can assure you the art will remain unscathed.

Look at The Sistine Chapel. Do you think Michelangelo ever wanted to "fix" it? No. Because painting doesn't "evolve" like video games. You may be able to do more complex techniques with computers now, but the greater part of painting has stayed the same.

I still maintain that video games can be art. ANYTHING can be art. "Art" is subjective.

[Picnic]

Lots of games could be called art for different reasons.

The first Sonic the hedgehog game on the Megadrive was arguably art (although it didn't come entirely out of the blue - Sega had tried other mascots with some similar level themes, such as Kid Chameleon). Still, Sonic the hedgehog arguably had more novel and complex ideas than perhaps it has been since given credit for. It comes across as representative of the Japanese way of life- the contrasting nature of that culture. The likes of Marble Zone with its temples, and Labyrinth Zone, represent the old, ordered, slower way of ancient Japanese life. The likes of Springyard Zone (and, in the sequels Casino themed levels) represent the fast, flashy, modern Japanese way of life wih its pinball machine arcades and rollercoaster loops. It is that second aspect that Sonic the hedgehog is most remembered for.

Donkey Kong Country was art to me - the music was scene setting and the quality of the 3D modelled sprites and graphics meant that you could identify with the characters situation.

A game doesn't have to be like The Legend of Zelda to be art. It doesn't have to have much character interaction at all. Sometimes it's the brilliance of its level design that makes it art e.g. the first Metroid Prime game.

[djslapdash]

Yeah but didn't he refute those claims when the were made about Ico (which in my opionion is more beautiful). I think he said all games he makes were never meant to be artistic.