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This grid of 12 gif images, in black, transparent, and white alterations, depict tiny pixelated Icose-koʊs and Yordasyorudas. These are from the now defunct ICO-CHI site, which hosted these lovely bits of art for the ICOe-koʊ fan community of 2003 to spread and use on their sites.

This is from Electronic Gaming Monthly's 145th Issue (August 2001), Page 94. The issue itself is covering information from that year's E3, focusing on what was shown by each of the major players at the expo.

These screenshots are very interesting. Each one is at an angle you can't recreate in the game, so I have to assume they were taken via a debug freecamera.

• The first picture features Icoe-koʊ and Yordayoruda in the area known as Sunbeams, which is much brighter than in the final game, because a large patch of shade is usually covering the back wall (sign of a structure change in the area above?).

  The window holes in said wall, which lead to Stone Pillar, may or may not be present in this build, but we can't know, as their location is just out of the frame's view. But, a sign that the boxes meant to be dropped from the windows might not be involved yet is that the sewer holes lining this area aren't raised up at all.

  So you could just drag a box right over an open hole and softlock yourself. This is exactly why that strip of grates is slightly raised in the final release.



• The second picture sees Icoe-koʊ standing by the lowered East Arena Stairs.

  This area has a ladder going up to the switch, which is not in the final game. Though given the bent state of the model's top, it seems to have been planned as a broken ladder that doesn't reach all the way down, as can be seen with some other puzzles in the game, namely at Waterwheel.

  But if that's the case, how is Icoe-koʊ standing at the top while the stairs aren't up and the door is closed? More developer trickery to get a good screenshot? Most likely.



• The third picture is Icoe-koʊ and Yordayoruda standing in the Proto/Stairs Room, which looks the same from this angle.



• And at the Old Bridge, in the fourth picture, the devs apparently still liked to position Icoe-koʊ up on the left perch, even before the accompanying horned statue was placed on the right perch.

  Also weirdly enough, the exit from Proto/Stairs Room, if it does exist, isn't visible here, though in every playable build I've seen it's bright enough to be plainly seen from this spot.

The review next to the images reads:

ICOe-koʊ

Publisher: Sony CEA Developer: Sony CEI Release: August 2001
Combining the best elements of Heart of Darkness, Panzer Dragoon, Where the Wild Things Are and the Chronicles of Narnia, ICOe-koʊ is a simple tale of a boy (ICOe-koʊ) and a princess (Yordayoruda). What's not so simple is the extravagantly huge environments ICO (pronounced "ee-koe-koʊ") must navigate to guide the princess to freedom. While you lead her by the hand for the majority of the game, you'll face puzzles that actually make sense—as opposed to the usual find-the-crest/gem/key quests found in other adventure games. ICOe-koʊ will, for example, encounter a chasm that he cannot cross, so off he goes to build a bridge. The novel gameplay and striking visuals built quite a lot of buzz on the show floor. Even Sony is shocked by all the attention this title is getting.

The text next to the small image reads:
Quote: "Don't Judge This Game By Its Cover. We have to admit that in spite of—or perhaps because of—our appreciation for the game, we were a bit taken aback when we saw the disappointingly ordinary box art. The style is jarringly different from the art in the game itself; frankly, we think they could have just run a screenshot on the box and been better off." End Quote.

I think it's very funny to see that even before release, reviewers were aware the poor American box art was going to deter sales. That observation aside, the picture used here shows an early version of the aforementioned cover where Ico'se-koʊs horns are still part of a helmet.

This was a design choice that actually lasted for some time. A number of b-roll clips from late stage builds were shown at E3 2001, and most of them still featured the helmed model.

I think its reasonable to assume Gregory Harsh was basing his custom 3D model off of that footage. But at some point he had to rework the cover once Sony realized Ico'se-koʊs appearance had changed late in development.

A very intricate maze puzzle, built into a two-page spread magazine ad for the game. I have confirmed that it appeared in the following magazines:

GamePro Magazine - Issues 158 and 159
Electronic Gaming Monthly - Issue 150
Expert Gamer Magazine - Issue 88
NextGen Magazine - Issue 83
PSM - Issue 51
Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine - Issue 52

I really like the unique art-style. It doesn't quite match the game's aesthetic, but remains adjacent to it in a really fun way.

From left to right and top to bottom there are 5 screenshots littered throughout the maze.

• The first screenshot appears to be a of the East Crag, which acts as the path to East Arena, a bird flies overhead in the top left foreground as Icoe-koʊ walks casually across, with Yordayoruda nowhere in sight.


• The second screenshot is of Icoe-koʊ holding Yorda'syorudas hand and running past the Windmill's pond.


• The third screenshot shows a moment from the first Main Gate cutscene, in which Icoe-koʊ offers to lift Yordayoruda off the ground after The Queen has vanished.


• The fourth screenshot depicts Icoe-koʊ grabbing onto, and moving along the side of, the Windmill's fanblade.


• The final screenshot is of Icoe-koʊ at the very start of the game, absorbing his surroundings just before the player takes control.

In the bottom right corner, alongside the game's logo there is text that reads:

Enter a world of enchantment. You are ICOe-koʊ, a mystertious boy on a quest. Expelled from your village to an isolated castle. You have eerie dreams of rescuing a princess from the evil spirits. Your wits are your only weapon in your crusade. Can you outsmart the evil queen and lead the enchanted princess to freedom?

Solve the puzzles or join the tormented souls forever.

The same description I gave in the previous caption applies here, with the exception that the maze only fits on one page and thus has a different structure. Also, there are only four screenshots, with the one of Icoe-koʊ on East Crag having been removed. I was only able to find this ad in one magazine, that being GameNOW Magazine - Issue 2.

The scan of this page isn't the most crisp, but I feel lucky to have found it at all. To think Sony provided an alternate, compact version of this very frequently used ad, and only one publication bothered to use it!

Similar to the Western ad, but far more immersed in the atmosphere, is this German ad for the game that I could only find in the 04/2002 Issue of PlayZone Magazine, 20 pages after their 3 page review of ICOe-koʊ itself (they gave it an 85%).

The sunset on the horizon drenching the top of the long labyrinth in golden light contrasting with the dark shadows of the crevices with Icoe-koʊ and Yordayoruda presented as silhouettes cast by torchlight... It's such a beautiful visual. This painted piece is incredible. I am shocked this ad didn't find its way to more gaming publications, and I'm curious as to who the artist was behind this. It's a lovely take on the setting.

English Translation: "A boy and a girl captured in an endless dark castle. They don't know each other. They don't even speak the same language. And still their fates are inseperably linked. Only together they have a chance to see daylight again. A mysterious story. Oppressively real graphics. Breathtaking effects. Near unsolvable puzzles. And only one weapon: friendship."

This ad, rather than focusing on the structure of the castle, highlights the relationship between the player and Yordayoruda with this depiction of one child jumping across a massive gap to another child extending his arms, their poses mimicking those of Icoe-koʊ and Yorda.yoruda. The environment around them is surrealist in nature, with either side of the image dominated by black towering blocks, the girl, originally on the leftmost platform, has jumped off towards where the boy stands at the edge of the rightmost block, which is slightly lower. Text along the gap reads: "Trust is the key."

Along the base of the ad is a black bar which shows the game's cover and adds the following info: Quote."As ICO,e-koʊ, you are an outcast, banished forever to the ancient Fortress of Stone. You must free Princess Yordayoruda from the clutches of her evil queen mother. Along the way, you will face many obstacles and mysterious enemies. Only together, by embracing friendship and trust, will you find the path to freedom."End Quote.

There is also a variant of this ad with the exact same image but a different caption that reads: "If we believe in each other, we can do anything." Though I have not found where the variant originates from, it was likely from a publication Official Playstation 2 Magazine in an english speaking European country, sometime in 2002.

A two-page spread screenshot taken from the edge of the East Reflector's platform. Icoe-koʊ and Yordayoruda look out over the vast ocean while holding hands. The cliffs of the mainland in the distance and the bright green grass they stand upon in the foreground.

Along the base of the ad is a black and blue bar which shows the game's cover and adds the following info: "If you die, she dies. If she dies, you die. You are Ico,e-koʊ, banished inside the evil Queen's castle alongside the beautiful princess. Her fate is in your hands. If you are to find magical portals, escape routes and evade enslaved spirits you must work together. Trust is the key."

This is a Japanese Rhinocerous Beetle that you can find in the game. :)

On August 14th, 2024, Reddit user GutereuxMarde made a post titled "The inspiration for Ico's cover art" and showed a picture from a temporary art exhibit in Paris they had attended (titled: "Arab Presences [Modern Art and Decolonisation: Paris 1908-1988]").

The post had a picture of a triptych painting, depicting a trio of nude models on the far left, painted canvases in the center, and a landscape of architecture matching ICO'se-koʊs Japanese and European cover art to the far right. This was how it was discovered that the 1945 painting "Tropique du Cancer" by Ramsès Younan is the painting that deserves the most credit for inspiring the final cover art for the game.

This photo was taken on November 5th, 2001. It depicts two artists painting two canvases, brought together. The paintings were created as part of a live event celebrating Team ICO'se-koʊs final day of development for the Japanese copy of the game. The event was in Shibuya at a resteraunt that still exists today called 'Museum 1999 Leau a la bouche'.

This and a few other photos of the event are the only proof of the two paintings's shared existence.
As far as I know, no one recorded where they went. What might have happened to them is something I can't help but think about every so often...

This is a screenshot from the Team Icoe-koʊ Fandom Wiki Page for Yorda'syorudas Runic Language. The first chart displays how the 26 symbols of the Runic Language match up to the 26 letters of the English alphabet.

That information is well comfirmed as the means to manually translate Yorda's dialogue and is corroborated by the Official Japanese Guidebook. But it is important to share this image in this gallery specifically because of the second chart, which explains what each symbol is meant to represent visually.

The text below the first symbol chart reads:

"The symbols in this language each resemble a word in real-world languages; the first letter of the word is the letter the symbol translates to (with one exception where the word "eye" is used to represent I). The symbols are:

Ant for Aeigh, Bird for B, Cage for C, Daughter for D, East for E, Fall for F, Giant for G, Hide for H, Eye for I, Jiisan for J, Kneel for K, Larva for L, Moon and Mountain for M, North for N, Octopus for O, Pigeon for P, Queen for Q,, River for R, Shower for S, Tree for T, Union for U, Victim for V, Wing for W, Xoanon for X, / Yoke for Y, and Zipper for Z."

What makes this chart significant is that we do not know where this information is sourced from. And everyone else seems to source this info from the wiki. I have searched for any leads to another origin point, but found nothing apparent. The user who added this to the Fandom Wiki has long disappeared from their account and left no clue as to where this information was gathered.

Normally, that would make the information untrustworthy and easily dismissable. But what English speaking fan of the early 2000's would determine J to be Jiisan and X to be Xoanon?

Many of the associations are so specific and nuanced in their understanding of the symbols, the potential thought process of the team, and Japanese culture, that it begs me to believe this information came from a developer of the game (potentially Kei Kuwabara, the creator of the Runic Language). But still, we cannot say that with any certainty.

If you can find a proper source for this information, please contact me, because I'd love to know more.

Throughout the game there are a few objects and background features that contain symbols/written characters. These writings do not correspond to Yorda'syorudas Runic Language, but maintain some consistency between each other.

• The first image is a texture of a rectangular crate that can be seen in some early game areas. It's in a very low resolution, but there's a slightly ripped label glued diagonally to one side of the crate. This label is repurposed for the siding of barrels in the game as well. The text on the label isn't very clear, but it is still obvious that the language isn't Japanese or English. This is a custom written language.




• The second image is a rare picture of some original 3D object renders for the game, which were revealed by one of the ICOe-koʊ developers. Luckily, the crate with the label is featured in one of these images which display the writing at a higher resolution than the compressed textures would ever allow. When the image is zoomed in, one can make out many of the letters and their composite features. The letter shapes are combinations of straight horizontal/vertical lines, dots, squares, and triangles. But no one 'letter' is repeated. Only the visual motifs of dots, lines, and triangles get repeated actively throughout the written phrase.




• For this third image, I have traced the runes that glow across the magic sword that Icoe-koʊ recieves near the game's end. I have highlighted the runes in different hues to show what parts glow and in what order. The glow sections off some parts in very distinct ways. For instance, the rune at the very top, the one with the tally marks and the 'Y' shape, has the leftmost tally mark colored the same as the sideways 'E' underneath. That's because when the sideways 'E' glows at its brightest, that leftmost tally is just as bright. But the tallies and 'Y' marking to the right of it glow at a different light level, consistent only to each other. So the glow distinguishes these markings as a pair separate from their neighbors.

  Looking at the whole, we can see this writing also mostly features vertical and horizontal lines, but curves and hooks are present here, where there were only tight 45/90 degree angles on the crate's writing. Diagonal lines in both writings seem to be reserved for depicting triangles. There are no closed squares on the sword like we see on the crate's label, but we can spot a circle near the base. This circle with a dot at the center (here I've colored it in red-orange) is actually a pictogram. It is seen on the coffins in the altar room (see Image 7), and is used to depict the head of a person or creature. We can also see it in Yorda'syorudas Runic Language for the letters B, D, G, H, J, K, O, P, Q, R, U, V, and W.




• The fourth image, like the first, is a low resoultion texture taken directly from the game files. But this time it's the texture for an Idol Door, which features a mess of runes along its sides. Some letters seem more rough in their writing than other examples, and feature many more triangles in close proximity to each other.




• The fifth image has two high resolution 3D renders of the Idol at different angles. In the first, we can see an angle focusing on the front of the Idol where the depiction of a horned child hiding their face in their knees is carved into the stone.

  In this high quality render we can actually see that tattoos cover the child's arms and legs. These markings also bear similarities to those on the sword, though no one etching matches exactly. And even if we could find a connection, the etchings wrap around the entire body of the statue, disappearing into areas we can't hope to see from just two camera angles. The second angle shows the side of the Idol, though it too is very zoomed in and ultimately focused on the child statue within the Idol. Here we can see more of the tattoos from the left side of the child's form, and so very large runes from the side of the door that flow out of the frame. I hope these images help us to glean something but I am not certain.




• The sixth image is a texture of the elevator floor from the start of the game. The diagonal symbol is highlighted when ascending and the horizontal symbol is highlighted when descending. It should also be noted that the connector piece in the top left corner of the texture image is meant to fit into both symbols, extending them with the two parallel lines.




• The seventh image shows the texture image for the coffins that sacrifices are placed into at the altar room. Many of the symbols on its face appear more artisitic than communicative, with some pictrogram depictions of two people kneeling before an unknown object.

  An important note is that, according to one developer who played a large role in designing the coffins, the symbol atop the lids (which we know as the 'Y' symbol in Yorda'syorudas language) actually originated here on this object. It was originally made to exclusively feature on these coffins, but Kei Kuwabara liked it so much that he asked for permission to use it in the Runic Language. The developer who was designing the symbols on the coffins agreed, but only on the condition that the symbol was used as the 'Y' letter in Runic. Why they requested this, we do not know for sure. But its clear they had their own intent for the symbol before it was incorporated into Runic.*




• The eighth image is the texture at the top of each barrel found in the game. They are all are stamped with the same red ink we see on the label of the crate, though this stamp only depicts a single symbol, possibly denoting approval. It might also describe the contents intended for the barrels, though crushing them with boxes reveals nothing within.