Shadow of the Colossus HD - Hard Time Attack #15 (6:33:64)

[@EKOddLink]

Oh thank the heavens I found this video because without it I would have never beaten Argus, by far the worst colossus to fight. The combination of "switching between hand and sword" stabs and rapid stabs truly made this a MUCH easier ordeal

[@Dargonsouls]

I'm glad it helped. I was so clueless when I was trying to get the trophy, so when I found out how to win against this one and #3, I had to share it.

[@Curgensid]

Dude this guide helped me alot to get the platinum. Thanks bruh.

[@federicosechi7292]

Weapon switch is really a game changer, thank you so much

[@JadeSabre]

Thank you so much for this! I ended up not doing the sword switch, but learning to watch for the shoulder movement was immensely helpful! I got this done tonight in 9:58:81 after playing for about 2 hours, so not bad at all lol. Only #3 left now! Thanks again.

[@Dargonsouls]

Good luck with #3! That was the hardest one for me.

[@JadeSabre]

Thanks! I came pretty close yesterday, but panicked a bit and forgot to bait the right arm when I was trying to finish off the stomach. I'm about to go try again, so fingers crossed lol

[@JadeSabre]

Happy to report back that I got #3 tonight with a time of 4:00:14! I am beyond thrilled right now, haha. Thanks for so cleanly demonstrating how to get on its leg -- I knew that was an option, but couldn't consistently do it, so I had been doing the sword jump to the arm with very limited success. Now just the NG+ replays and collectibles to go!

[@JohnBeaversYT]

Thanks a lot for the explanation. Thanks to you I have been able to beat him. The shorts strikes on the head and the shoulder animation cycle when you stab the heart were key advises.

[@musicvideoenhancer]

Thanks man, it really helped, though, even with the swap trick and colossi movement animation cue, it still very hard, you need a perfect run (grab the chest and the head in the really right spot, where Wander manage for a split second to hold his grip) to kill Argus. I spent 2 whole days trying before I saw this video and read your tips, after this video, it took me like 10 attempts until I managed to kill him.

[@BeaZtar]

Thank you so so so much!

[@LivstevMotherEarth]

This is probably the best guide for this colossi in hard time attack. The sword switch thing is a very useful tip. I seem to remember, when playing through hard mode, having little to no trouble with him...I don't think it took me longer than 10 minutes to defeat him if that, but on time attack, it's a completely different story! I used to go for his head first, but maybe doing the chest first would be better. I've only got two Colossi to do now on hard time attack, #15 and #13. I never thought I'd get through #3 but I somehow did it, so I know I'll get there eventually! Going to attempt Argus tomorrow.

[@Dargonsouls]

Thank you for the kind words! Phalanx gives you plenty of time, so Argus will be the one to beat. If you need any other tips I'll do my best to explain.

[@LivstevMotherEarth]

You're welcome! Thank you for replying so quickly. Yeah, I'm not too worried about Phalanx. Which is why I'd like to get Argus out of the way first. I will definitely let you know if I need any other tips if I struggle with him tomorrow. That will be very much appreciated. :) Ok, so I attempted Argus in two sessions. Came real close a couple of times but then made stupid mistakes and panicked. One time, I did the head first, got in the right position and took it out pretty quickly. Then, I did the arm, which is easy enough. And I even did the chest without having to do the sword switch. And I still had about 3 minutes left to do the hand. But for the life of me, I couldn't get on the hand, he wouldn't do the animation and I panicked. And I ran out of time. I was so close, I almost cried lol. Another time I did the head and chest quickly enough, dropped down to do the hand, and I realised I had forgotten to do the arm! I was so mad at myself lol. So I don't think it's the trouble of getting the sigils down, it's just getting the job done and not panicking. Any tips for playing it cool? I feel like I'm getting myself more frustrated at Argus than I was for Gaius!

[@LivstevMotherEarth]

I....give up on this one. I just can't do it. :(

[@Dargonsouls]

Which part is the hardest? I can offer more specific advice, although it has been a while since I've played the game.

[@LivstevMotherEarth]

Well, sometimes I can get the head and chest done and I just have trouble getting to his hand in time without him crushing me. Other times I can get the head done, but have real trouble doing the chest, I just can't get the timing right, and I have tried to do the sword switch trick. The head is the easiest part whenever I can get in the right position and time it just right, which doesn't happen all the time. I have noticed the colossi acts differently each time I attempt it and I get lucky with one part but then have difficulty with the other. I think the real problem is that I hate the pressure of the time limit, even though there is plenty of time with this one. I defeated this guy on hard mode without too much trouble, but I feel like with time attack, if I mess up big, I have to restart. It's all about timing and luck, and so far it's not happening for me. Is there anything you can suggest?

[@rorymcnamara1]

Another nice vid. After the 3rd one this is the only one that's got me stumped, I've flown through the others (I've been going in order). This guy though just never seems to stop shaking. I have a few queries and was wondering if you could help. 1- at 3:00 on you keep switching from sword to hand. Is that because Wanda grips longer when he's just hands ? If so, is there a particular animation you're looking for so that you know when to switch ? 2 - from about 4:30 when you start stabbing the head, again is there an animation you're looking for that's letting you know when to stab ? The level of power you're using varies so I'm assuming you're basing your stab time on something the colossus is doing. 3 - finally, was there a reason you jumped onto his head after he drops his sword ? I've gotten this far a few times and I normally just drop off and wait for him to slam, though I've gone over by the time I kill him. Any advice would be great - cheers

[@Dargonsouls]

+rorymcnamara1 I'm glad you're asking these questions, because I neglected to explain these strategies in video annotations like I did for the 3rd Colossus. 1 - It's a technique I read about on some SotC forums. If you switch to your hands on this boss (works on some others too), you will be more stable when you need to charge up your stab. You don't need to switch to the sword, you just need to hold the button to charge and he will automatically switch. If you do it right, it's a 100% reliable opportunity to stab. The animation you're looking for is the brief pause in between the Colossus' animations. At 3:06 you see him take a few steps while rotating his body, then he pauses at about 3:08. It's even easier to notice his pause after he does his walking animation because he always takes the same number of steps: three large steps, and the fourth step will put him in his natural standing position. He does this several times between 3:10 and 3:40. Another cue for the timing is when Wander stabilizes his hands and feet; he does the same exact movement at 3:17, 3:27 and 3:37, though it's hard to see due to the smoke obscuring the screen. 2 - I may not be very helpful on this part, since this is the part I more or less improvised. In general, the best way to stab a Colossus is when they move their head forward or down, so that's the animation I'm looking for. In this video I'm trying to stab once when he moves his head forward, and another time when he's receding. Then, when he moves his head forward again I repeat. There are certain frames at the beginning of Wander's stab animation that prevent him from stumbling, and I'm trying to take advantage of those as they happen to overlap with the boss's movement, especially when the boss is moving his head forward. If I'm varying the level of my power too much, it's because I'm honestly not practiced enough at the boss to know how to loop him perfectly, so I'm trying to sneak short stabs in here and there while I wait for a better opportunity to stab. 3 - I jumped to his head so I could provoke his shoulder shaking animation at 6:35. Towards the end of this animation, he leaves his hand low enough to the ground that you can simply jump to it. Among all the other tricks for this boss, I found this one the easiest to learn, and much quicker than baiting the slam. For someone like me who struggles to get on his hand when he does the slam attack, it saves me minutes of time. Even if you only master one or two of these tricks, don't fret as there's plenty of extra time to make mistakes and recover from them. This Colossus was the second hardest for me, but once I figured him out he is no trouble even when I'm playing sloppily. I'm sorry I took so long to respond, but I had a lot to say. :)

[@rorymcnamara1]

+Dargonsouls No worries at all. Great advice, managed to do it with a good 3+ minutes to spare. Once you see the walk cycle it becomes easy, the stabs prevent him from doing that mad shake that saps you're strength.

[@Dargonsouls]

rorymcnamara1 Exactly! Noticing the walk cycle is crucial. I'm glad you were able to defeat him. Since you said you were doing these in order, the final one will be a piece of cake.

[@rorymcnamara1]

+Dargonsouls Just did it, about 5 mins 30. At first I did it in about 8 then I watched your video. That straight ahead dash was awesome so I practiced and did it that way. I was gunna try the arrow technique but I just love the small scene where he reaches behind him. Thanks for these videos though, they really have been a huge help.

[@franklourandes6794]

Hey, I know I'm late, but I just wanted to say thanks to both of you for being such a huge help. This was the final Colossus that I needed to beat for the platinum, and I'm sure it would take a LOT of time if you weren't there. Thanks.

[@KisukeOboro]

I'm looking to beat this guy and I would appreciate any additional tips to beat this guy. I understand the strategy you use to get his heart, although it's really difficult for me to pull off, it's a better strategy than just praying that you'll get a shot in. What exactly is the strategy you used for hitting his head? Do you have to be in a specific place on his head like where you were in this video? Also how exactly do you know when to hit? Also is there a specific action that the colossus needs to do in order for you to get the first hit in? The hand is easy, it gives you enough time to hit him there, so that isn't a problem. This video is probably much more comprehensive than all of the other videos on how to beat this guy on hard time attack. I humbly thank you for this video!

[@Dargonsouls]

+KisukeOboro Yeah, the key to his heart is to switch to your hand and charge up at the start of his movements, but as simple as that is, it's even hard for me to pull it off right. You don't have to be too specific on his head. The most crucial part is your positioning: Your character's feet should be just above the spines on his head, on the left side as in the video. You can get full stabs, light stabs, medium stabs, whatever. You just need to get an initial stab off in between any of his animations, which will trigger him to dip his head down. Then, when he dips his head down you can charge up a stab and release it before he lifts his head back up, and even when he keeps walking you can get stabs in during the noticeable "dips" in his movements. It's relatively easy to loop him this way, but unfortunately I don't think this video demonstrates it well. You can even get this initial stab at the beginning of the fight when you first jump on him, but in this video I wanted to get to the heart first since that's usually the biggest trouble for me. If he manages to shake your character when you're on his head, it's basically impossible to get any stabs in. So, count your losses and get on his shoulders to provoke his shoulder shaking animation, which has a much longer recovery animation that allows you to get a decent stab in.

[@KisukeOboro]

Great! Thanks for the tips!

[@vinimarianob]

I heard that the time attack trophy has a glitch and you need to kill the 16 colossi in one playthrough. Is that true?

[@Dargonsouls]

Yes, that's what I've heard too. Even if you collect some items in a previous playthrough, you have to kill all 16 if you want to get the remaining items.

[@vinimarianob]

Damn, I'll have to start again then... :( thanks for the answer

[@JackTheBeast88]

please I need help!! I can't get a single stab neither on the hearth or the head :( I think I understood the recovering animations you talk about in the comments, but the problem is that during these animations Wander just tries to stabilize itself and by the time I'm able to start charging the stab it starts moving again and I'm fucked. how can I do?

[@Dargonsouls]

+JackTheBeast88 For the heart, try timing your stabs slightly earlier. He gives you very narrow opportunities to charge up, but your character is automatically more stable while you charge up your stab. If you charge your stab at the right moment, it will force Wander to stabilize himself so that you don't have to wait for him regain his footing. So, if Wander is stumbling, you're probably charging up slightly too late. Also, I can't stress enough that you have to be switched to the hand before you try to stab him. For the head, you just have to be as quick as you can possibly be: Look at 4:18 and onward to see what I mean. If you are on his head while he's thrashing around, you will never get an opportunity to stab him. You have to be on his shoulders and run up to his head as fast as possible. There's no precise timing to it, you just have to be very fast. My wording is not very good through typing, but I hope this helps more.

[@henriquebernardo5910]

Eu quase nunca conseguigo derrotar ele no time atack

[@weirdmiester4063]

MOO!!

[@sparda461]

How do you make this fast attack?

[@edlingja1]

gustavo nagato Like Hard mode? Just beat the game on regular first, it lets you do regular time trials or whatever to get the capes and stuff.

[@sparda461]

I'm not referring to the time attack game mode. How does he give that quick blow to the giant? I try but it does not take away any life.

[@Dargonsouls]

Holding square charges faster than tapping square. Sometimes it seems that low stamina attacks deal significantly less damage than you expect, so it doesn't seem like it's a gradual difference, but a threshold in which anything below a certain stamina usage does almost nothing.

[@OutOfTheGameLetsPlay]

god this guy is the 2nd worst one! The 3rd guy being the most infuriating! But thanks to this vid i can finally put this game to rest, i neeeeeever wanna play it again ever.