Team Ico
| Division | |
| Industry | Video game industry |
| Founded | 1997 |
| Defunct | 2011 |
| Headquarters | Japan |
|
Key people
|
Fumito Ueda |
| Products | Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, The Last Guardian |
| Owner | Sony |
| Parent | SIE Japan Studio |
Team Ico (stylized as Team ICO) was a Japanese video game development team led by game designer Fumito Ueda. It was part of SCE Japan Studio's Product Development Department #1, and had developed the games Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, both for the PlayStation 2. The team was also initially responsible for The Last Guardian before Ueda's departure in 2011 and the formation of a new company taking over development in 2014. Their games are characterized by a very small but endearing and memorable cast, minimalist storytelling, atmospheric use of bloom and HDR lighting, careful attention to the soundtrack and the utilisation of sound in general, fictional spoken languages, a distinct art style, and strong animation. Their games are frequently cited as examples of art in video games.
In February 2007, Team Ico took out a full page advertisement in the Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu. The advertisement featured some early concept sketches on note paper, suggesting that the team's new game was then in the early phases of design.
In January 2008, Sony updated its careers section with the first screenshot of Team Ico's third game headed to PlayStation 3. Posts available were for planners, animators, artists and effect designers.
In March 2009, Fumito Ueda, the lead designer of Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, said the new game, "might be something similar to what's been done.... The essence of the game is rather close to Ico."
A video released in the weeks before E3 2009 shows early footage of the game with its working title, Project Trico. The video shows a young boy befriending a griffin-like creature, which appears to combine the functionality of Yorda from Ico with that of Agro and the colossi from Shadow of the Colossus, acting both as a companion and as a form of transportation which can be freely climbed upon.E3 2009 revealed the project's release title as The Last Guardian.Eurogamer reported that The Last Guardian had been posted for release for October 7, 2011 by UK retailers Asda, Tesco, Zavvi, The Hut, and Woolworths. Sony had stated that the game would make its release in the fall of 2011. After the first two God of War games were ported for the PlayStation 3, Ueda mentioned in an interview at the Tokyo Games Show of an interest to do the same with both Ico and Shadow of the Colossus.The Ico & Shadow of the Colossus Collection was confirmed at the 2010 Tokyo Game Show, and was released worldwide in September 2011.
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