I cannot stand this answer because it shows that whoever uses it didnt get the ending at all

I will xxplain in simple and short:

Wander enters the forbiddin land with the goal of asking  Dormin to ressurect Mono who was sacrificed for reasons not mentioned. A deal happens: you destroy 16 collossi each holding  a piece of my soul/body/essence whatever you want to call it and I will bring her back for a price..

wander defeats the 16 colossiand  he returns morphed by containing all the essence  of dormin. Wander did not know that the price was for mono's ressurection he would give his own body as a vessal for dormin( its hinted by dormin it was only temporary though). at the end the tribe of people that wander also belongs too reach the temple after figuring out wander took the sword and mono's body to the temple with intention of completing the ritual to free dormin. They come see him all shadow like and attemp to kill him but Dormin takes control and tries to return tthe favor but his injury slows him down( when wander was hit in the leg with a arrow) before the emon escapes he cast a banishing  spell that destroys/reseals dormin. Now  by accident or choice dormin decides to let wander keeps his body but degraded to an infant but with his essence  in his bloodline. he also keeps his promise to revive mono.

It was a win win situation, wander keeps his life mono is revived and Agro lives.. they live in the secret and takes to ICO we know they eventually xxscape... why is it sad?

This post made me laugh. Not the picture, just the first line.

Reminded me of a Silent Hill 3 discussion where I said that the ending made absolutely no sense and that the game isn't all that great, but rather quite meh. I got told that I just didn't understand it and when I asked for clarification the answer was that nobody really knows what it was all about.

First of all ICO is a sequal to Shadow of the Colosus. The baby in the end is the kid in ICO.

Secondly, the purpose of SotC was to kill 16 giants to give life back to your love. However you're in a forbidden kingdom, there is a reason why it's forbidden. You become cursed when you slay all the giants, but because of your innocence, you're spared, and your love is revived.

Been a while since I beat it, I remember it being really amazing and sad. Never beat ICO though.