The moment you encounter the third colossus (also called Gaius) is breathtaking, terrifying, and indelibly memorable.

Imagine this: You have killed two creatures that are roughly the size of mountains and made your way through a desolate landscape on your way to do battle with the third colossal brute. Coming across an architecturally unbelievable spiral staircase leading up to the top of a large pillar rising from a lake, you are forced to leave your horse behind. Clambering to the top of the structure, you lay eyes on a giant pile of rubble. “That’s funny,” you think to yourself. “The beast should be up here….” Suddenly, the rubble stirs and begins to rise. Just when you think it is about to stop its nonsensical upward direction, it continues its way toward the overcast sky. You realize it is the third colossus.

So begins the third battle in Shadow of the Colossus, and the struggle to bring this monster down is awe-inspiring. It involves running up its giant stone sword, leaping onto its stomach, and making the treacherous journey skyward to its vulnerable cranium. While the battle is amazing, along with many other parts of SotC, the moment that stands out is when you realize: “I have to fight this thing.”