The Forbidden Lands (Japanese: 禁断の地 kindan no ji; also 古えの地 inishie no ji, lit. "land of the ancient times") are a vast expanse of open plains, narrow passages, large deserts, and thick forests. It is the setting for Shadow of the Colossus, and almost all of it is open to explore right at the beginning of the game. The sixteen colossi, the physical manifestations of the sixteen pieces of Dormin, are dispersed throughout; the Ancient Sword is used as a compass in sunlit areas to point the way to the next colossus.

Lord Emon says the following about the Forbidden Lands:

That place...began from the resonance of intersecting points... They are memories replaced by ens and naught and etched into stone. Blood, young sprouts, sky - and the one with the ability to control beings created from light... In that world, it is said that if one should wish it, one can bring back the souls of the dead. But to trespass upon that land is strictly forbidden...

MapsEdit

See also: Blank map of the Forbidden Lands

Location ChartEdit

1		Umbral Glade x 2 x 1	Hydrus	Dried Marsh x 1	Celosia x 1 x 1	Argus Desert Fortress x 1
2		Cenobia	Stone Arch Gorge x 2	Gaius	Northern Span x 2	Pelagia Misty Falls x 1
3	x 1	x 1 x 1	Basaran	Ravine Entrance Round Stone Hill x 2 x 2	Quadratus	Half-moon Canyon x 1
4	Dirge Lair to the West Lair on the Mesa x 1	Western Plain x 2 x 3	x 2 x 2	Stone Bridge Cliff x 3	Shrine of Worship x 1 x 2	Cliff Path x 1 x 1	Avion
5	Western Cape x 2 x 2	Arch Bridge Plain x 1	Blasted Lands x 3	Autumn Forest x 3 x 2	Valus	Phaedra
6		x 2 x 1	Barba x 2 x 2	Phalanx	x 1	Kuromori Valley Plain x 2 x 3	Eastern Bluff x 2 x 4
7			Southwestern Cape x 2 x 2	x 2 x 3	Southern Plain x 6	Green Cape x 2 x 3	x 2
8				x 1	Malus The Broken Seal x 1	x 1
A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H

Shrines and locations in the Forbidden Lands

The Shrine of Worship
Umbral Glade • Stone Arch Gorge • Dried Marsh • Northern Span • Desert Fortress • Misty Falls • Ravine Entrance • Half-moon Canyon •
Western Plain • Round Stone Hill • Lair to the West • Stone Bridge Cliff • Cliff Path • Lair on the Mesa • Western Cape • Arch Bridge Plain •
Blasted Lands • Autumn Forest • Eastern Bluff • Valley Plain • Southwestern Cape • Southern Plain • Green Cape • The Broken Seal

v • d • e
Characters	Wander (Kenji Nojima) • Agro • Mono (Hitomi Nabatame) • Dormin (Kazuhiro Nakata, Kyōko Hikami) • Emon (Naoki Bandō)
The Colossi	( I • II • III • IV • V • VI • VII • VIII • IX • X • XI • XII • XIII • XIV • XV • XVI ) • Magic Sigil • Time Attack • Unused Colossi • Hard Mode
The Forbidden Lands	Shrine of Worship • Shadow creatures • Save shrines • Fruit trees • White-tailed lizards and other animals
Production & Staff	Fumito Ueda • Kenji Kaido • Kō Ōtani (Roar of the Earth) • Sony Computer Entertainment • [Full Credits...]
Giantology campaign	(Fake discoveries of Phalanx, Valus, Hydrus, Quadratus, Gaius) • Eric Belson (podcasts 1, 2, 3, 4) • IPICP memo
Other media	Demo • "Nico" bonus DVD • Official artbook/guidebook • Collectible figurines • Upcoming film adaptation by Sony Pictures