ICO - An Interview with Fumito Ueda of Sony Computer Entertainment America
The Japanese producer, developer and designer of ICO speaks...

We recently had the opportunity to ask some questions of Fumito Ueda, Japanese producer, developer and designer of SCEA's newest rpg title, ICO. Here's what he had to say.
PSi: Why is the 'mood' of ICO so different from most other games on the market? The closest I've seen are some Artdink titles like 'Tail of the Sun', although they generally had much weaker goal designs. What prompted the more contemplative style that ICO entails?
FUMITO: It's often said that ICO appears to be influenced by movies, but we rather feel its style is more documentary and non-fictional. Though some plots and in-between explanations are prepared in the game, they are not the main things; we'd like players to enjoy the environment where they are in. This attitude would prove the significance as to why ICO uses real-time graphical expressions. It may be contemplative, but at the same time ICO entails the solid goal; escaping from the castle, which is the player's motive.
PSi: Although ICO looks to be more about mood and gameplay than anything else, it definitely does a few things that push the PS2 farther than most games. Can you give some examples that we may not know about yet?
ICO FUMITO: One example would be the expressions of light and shadow. ICO describes not only lights themselves - lens reflection and flare, but also their reactions towards the objects in the atmosphere. An example would be a stage floor gradually is filled with light or shadow, sometimes a combination. Adjusting sets of lighting is not good enough to depict the realistic Light and Shadow.
PSi: Just how big is the gameworld (centered around the castle) in ICO? How much play-time, roughly, will most gamers get out of it?
FUMITO: It usually takes at least 10 hours for the first trial, but an average player could expect to play for 25-30 hours. The environment is quite huge and gamers could easily get caught up up in the beauty of the landscape.
PSi: How about the 'pick up and play' qualities of the game? Is this one that people are going to have to decipher, or will most be able to jump into the game and do well without outside instruction?
ICOFUMITO: We would say the latter.
PSi: The game's graphical style and world design is as unique as its mood. Where did the inspiration come from, other than the obvious European influences?
FUMITO: We aimed at fusion between European scenery and that of Japanese rural or surbarban town. Design-wise, we laid stress upon ICO's picturesque quality in colors and density.
PSi: What prompted the 'language barrier' in the game, where Yorda and Ico speak entirely different languages? Was it done for gameplay reasons or more because of the style?
FUMITO: The main character never understands what Yorda speaks. We set up the language barrier because we felt we would not be able to express Yorda's AI (artificial intelligence) naturally. If she speaks eloquently with so much ready-text, the player can't help but feel that it sounds cheap. Also, we wanted to fill the gap between the cinematic scenes and the gameplay in the characters' "acting," so we concluded that subtle expressions such as holding hands and calling for name are more natural ways of communication. It somehow added philosophical meanings.
PSi: What sort of added bonuses, if any, will there be in the game for the hardcore 'completist' gamer?
FUMITO: We want gamers to play for themselves to discover if there are bonuses.
PSi: What kinds of people are you hoping to entice with ICO? It's definitely a low-key title compared to other Sony releases; just who is it angled at?
FUMITO: Those who feel hesitated or bewildered with complicated games. This is a game that will appeal to a wide variety of gamers, males, females, teens, adults, etc. It's not a difficult game to pick up, and the mix of puzzle-solving, action and RPG elements will appeal to many.
PSi: Does the difficulty of the game adapt to the player's skill level, or is it at a set level (or levels)?
FUMITO: It is at a set level.
PSi: Finally, any chance of some news on upcoming projects from the same folks?
FUMITO: Nothing to report at the moment, but if we were to work on something in the future, we'd like to create games with more interactive and human touch.
Interview by Sunfall to-Ennien
(AKA Phil Bordelon )