Ico/Fanfic Recs

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
< Ico


General Fics

Piaculum by Griselda Banks

  • Recommended by Orpheum Zero
  • Synopsis: A novelization of the hauntingly classic game about a boy with horns, left to die in a castle. By a stroke of fate he is able to free himself from his prison, and together with a mysterious girl named Yorda, the two embark on a journey to escape the castle, and the menacing shadows that seek to stop them. It's a story of courage, friendship, and how it takes action to change one's own destiny.
  • Comments: Though there exist an official novelization of the game, it's unfortunately never gonna be released outside Japan. But Griselda's tale is, in this Troper's opinion, the next best thing, if not the closest thing to a novelization we could ever hope for. From the way she captures the atmosphere of the story, to the attention for detail she uses to describe the story, Griselda manages to present the story in a fresh new way that still remains faithful to the original.
    • The official novel is now coming Stateside. However, this shouldn't dissauade people from checking out Griselda's amazing take.

Legion by Negative Creep

  • Recommended by Nano Moose
  • Synopsis: Our name is Legion, and we are many.
  • Comments: The fic uses a fairy-tale narration to convey one very stark fact: what happened to each and every last one of the horned children before Ico. A short, beautiful and haunting story with a powerful ending.

Distant Hills by Blue Flaming Wings

  • Recommended by Kazeno Klonoa
  • Synopsis: Happiness truly does follow sorrow. But no one said that such a path would be a easy one. Only hours have passed since the Castle has fallen and its dark shadow can already be felt, on them and on the world.
  • Comments: A positively enchanting story written in a fluid, descriptive fashion that not only captures the feeling of the game, but creates an interesting and believable backstory to Ico and Yorda. Their personalities are expanded upon and the nature of their relationship is delved into in a truly great way.