Thank you all so much for the comments or just taking the time to look! This is my first time sharing something, so I was a bit anxious. I didn't really know what to expect, but it was certainly not this! I had to actually tab out to chill a bit and recover from all the feedback. Seriously, thank you all!
Robin wrote:Oh WOW! Side-scrolling layout, well-organized content, minimalistic color scheme, lots of graphics blended seamlessly into the design, AND easy to read? No wonder you're a bit burned out--I think you pulled out all the stops with this one. I'm no expert, but I think this qualifies as both shrine and fanlisting, because you have so much detailed information. In ways, it feels like a shrine with a fanlisting attachment now!
(I also like the touch of opening the smallest content sections in a modal window--REALLY neat!!)
O-Oh my goodness, thank you so much for the kind words, Robin!
I never really looked at the site as a shrine before your comment, but I'm certainly wondering about it now, haha. Honestly, it's just—GAH—it's just super flattering to have it even be considered one, so thank you!
Also... ahahaha... yes. The modules. Uh, well. To be honest, I wanted to fit all that content onto either the info page or a separate page all together, but it was hard to control or even determine the length of what I was writing, so I thought it'd be easier to present it this way. I'm glad you thought it was cool, though! It means a lot. (SERIOUSLY. I-I clearly need to think things through more when I'm making a new layout.)
nyxmidnight wrote:Thank you so much for making this! I was physically unable to play that game but now I know what happens :D Everything about this site is incredibly gorgeous and well-made. Kudos!
D'aw, thank you Nyx! I adore the game, so it was a blast to make, even though it's nothing like how I thought it'd turn out, haha. I'm glad it sated your curiosity, and, if it's something you'd still like to do, I hope you're able to play the game someday! (And if you do, pleeeassseee consider telling me your reactions to it or what you think, hehe.) :DD
Sarah wrote:This is awesome! I always like side-scrolling layouts, and yours is done beautifully. The information is very well-written and easy to understand for someone not familiar with this game. (Such as myself.) I like the section with all the Colossi on it, but everything is wonderful, really.
Nice work!
Thank you so much, Sarah! I'm glad you liked the Colossi page. That one was, uh, specifically a pain to code, haha, so I'm really happy there's someone out there who enjoyed it. :3
Lethe wrote:I saw the layout for this a while ago when everyone drooled over it in your introduction topic - since I
didn't drool over it then, let me make up for it now: *¬* The site title and section header insertion kills me. *¬*
I am sooooo echoing what Robin said here - this is totally a shrine to me, and it's already much more than just an introduction! (Let me know whether you want me to move it to shrine plugs... or add it to the directoy hint hint.)
I know I should be ashamed of myself but I still haven't ever played Ico or Shadow of the Colossus yet omg. I have heard a lot about their mood and scenery being of unspeakable beauty though, and I think you've managed to capture that splendidly on the site, especially due to the black/white drawing out the detail and contrast of the images! The way everything flows into each other seamlessly while reflecting the aesthetics and mood of the game really makes one think of the gorgeous and highly detailed game manuals from back then. ;_;
I love that your information pages are so visually elaborate; each section - not just page - has its own aesthetics. I'd be burnt out after all those details in the CSS too. (Also omg the dedication in the inline-CSS to create the left margin on the Colossi page wtf.)
It's lovely that you're using the Colossi page not just to give an overview of them, but also of the game's gameplay, and that you included fan theory/names and unused data as well - it's exactly the kind of thing I'd love to see as an established fan!
Similarly, those image and video walkthroughs for the long climbing of the wall on the Info page is very... impressive, what the hell. Thanks for linking to that interesting tidbit!
That essay section though - I know it's not complete yet, but I can't wait for the rest! It's such careful examination of the game's themes and details, especially linguistically (the pronouns in 2-3 places, name meaning). I particularly liked the part about the fruit!
Reading all of this and seeing the info in such aesthetically pleasing context makes me even more excited for the day I finally sit down and play this (or watch this)! *_* Well-done!!!! <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3
Here's a passage with a missing word on the Colossi page by the way:
The MAJOR SIGIL, a glowing pattern of light similar to the design on Wander's tabard, is the [one] used to slay the colossus.
no 88x31 button to link to this on my wall of favourite shrines /cries and links with a filler button
O-OMG. LETHE. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY OR WHERE TO START. Just—thank you SO MUCH for taking the time to look around and read everything (!!!!!). I haven't written this type of content (info, essays) in a long time, so I was definitely anxious about... basically everything, haha. I'm still not sure how to feel about it, but your feedback definitely helps, and it seriously means a lot that you're looking forward to the other pages (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). AHHHH, I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY, OK.
ALKSDJFLJSDF;; Thank you for everything you had to say about the layout, omg. I was going for a "game manual" kind of style and, ugh, I'm really glad that came through for at least one person! I'd really like to add more images to "fill" up some empty spaces on the layout in the future, ufufufu. (Gah, that left-margin still gives me nightmares, ok; there was a lot of trial-and-error and refreshing involved and content revision and alkdjflakjdf;;)
I'm so happy you enjoyed the information on the Colossi page! It was definitely one of the sections that kept expanding and expanding until I didn't really know where it would go or how it would end. At first it was supposed to be on the info page alongside everything else. Then it was going to be on its own page, but only with basic information about the colossi and some gameplay mechanics—
maybe a section naming all the different colossi? But then I stumbled upon the 48 colossi trivia and the unused colossi and I just—I had to put it in. Like, FORTY-EIGHT COLOSSI, WTF, UEDA. If you ever play or watch the game (WHICH YOU SHOULD DO WHEN YOU HAVE THE TIME. BOTH
SOTC AND
ICO, TBH, OMGGG. AND THEN TELL ME ABOUT IT AFTERWARDS MAYBE???), like, the very idea of it is just so insane but so AWESOME, ahahahaha.
(Also, yeah, the wall-climbing, omg. That guy who made the video made it look so much easier than it really is! When I first attempted it, I tended to panic mid-way and get confused where to jump, so it definitely took me a lot of tries to get it right, lol.)
Thank you for pointing out the typo! I snagged the passage from the Team Ico Wikia (since it summed up the magic sigils quite well already), and blindly trusted it to be typo-less, hahaha. Thank you again! <33333
Also, as with Robin, thank you for even considering this jumble of images and text to be a SHRINE of all things, omggg. Honestly, just the idea of it, I just—I can't comprehend! It makes me look at the site more differently now, though, and makes me wonder how to improve it so it's more shrine-worthy or something, IDK.
So I REALLY wanted to make at least ONE satisfying 88x31 button before replying to the topic, but turns out that I'm still in BUTTON HELL (WHY DO I HAVE SUCH A LONG NAME FOR THE SITE /SOBS). I-I'll let you know when I have something that's even worthy enough to add to your wall, ok, because it's seriously an honor, Lethe, like why. ; o;
More importantly, though... WHERE IS THIS WALL I MUST SEE IT!!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN FOR THE LENGTHY FEEDBACK AND COMMENTS, I really, really appreciate it, aaahhhasdlkf;; <3333333333333333333333
Megan wrote:Hey Andrea! The layout looks awesome! I really like the style of it~ Not familiar with the game! But congrats on the new fanlisting!
Thank you so much, Megan! I'm thankful you took the time to check out the site despite not knowing the game, hehe. It means a lot!
Crystal wrote:I haven't read anything yet as I'm not familiar with Shadow of the Colossus, but the arrangement of the layout and the amount of information you have is incredible! I love the side scrolling format and the black and white colors. I think the body text could be a tiny bit bigger but feel free to ignore me haha. All of it is simply amazing! Awesome job!
Oh man, yes. To be honest, the body text is something I want to try to play around with as well!
When I was making and coding the layout, I didn't forsee the amount of content I'd end up dealing with. It didn't start out as much, so the size as it was back then was passable. But I know it might be a bit harder on the eyes, especially since there's so much reading to do now. The font also appears to be thinner or of a lighter weight on different browsers, too. I'd like to increase the size or do something with it if it weren't so layout-breaking, with the positioning/width/height and all that. It's actually something I really regret, haha. Hopefully I'll find some time to sit down and re-code everything.
In any case, thank you so much for the suggestion and the comments! I'm happy you took the time to check the site out even though you aren't familiar with the game. It means a ton!