Ico was imprisoned to his fate for reasons of speculative superstition. During his meandering attempt to escape the massive crumbling castle he was entombed within, he encounters a young girl whom he learns is called Yorda. Upon liberating her from her iron prison she is shortly abducted by dark magical creatures which attempt to sink Yorda into the castles very composition.
At the sight of such monstrous magic I myself would surely be afraid, but Ico, himself a boy with horns whom appears no older than a pre-teen shows no fear in his attempts to rescue Yorda from the beast with nothing more than a stick of wood. This selfless act of courage is quite surprising and as it turns out is essential to his survival and subsequent escape from the mysterious castle.
The motivations of Ico are unclear, perhaps he felt an affinity with Yorda as she too has been entombed beyond her will. Or perhaps Ico felt an attraction to Yorda, or even a sense of companionship in the few moments they have together before the attempted abduction. Whatever his motivations, they clearly help them both to tackle the adversity they find themselves in, because without Yordas’ help Ico would not be able to escape, and vice versa.
Despite the apparent lack of character development the player immediately feels compelled to help the avatar escape with the mildly distracted Yorda in tow. The abduction is a brilliant moment which is dealt with sensitively and with a true sense of emotion, impelling both characters into the hearts of the player to assist in their extradition. It’s one of my favourite moments in any game and one which I play with frivolous empathy.
