Prince versus Jason
Publisher: Ubisoft
Tue, 21 February 2006
by: Jason
Ahh yes, the Prince is back. Not the short, stubbled, falsetto voiced, purple fancying bloke who can't decide what his name is, or that fresh bloke from bel-air with his...well, whatever it was that made Will Smith a celebrity (certainly wasn't his singing). No, I am referring to THE Prince, well the one from Persia anyway. He is back and still trying to fix the constantly evolving cock-up that is his life.
There would be several among us Buttonholers, wise old sages, who actually played the original Prince of Persia on such mighty machines as the Amiga 500, the Commodore 64 or even the ever humble beige box that was a mid 90's PC. This was a good game, nothing truly earth shattering, aside from it probably being one of if not the first games to use an animation technique called rotoscoping (early motion capture for you young 'uns). Rotoscoping allowed the character to actually move something like a human being (side note: the only other game that springs to mind to use this technology was an absolute classic called Flashback - find it, play it, do it now. Ok, finish reading this review first). Fast forward a few years, game consoles now have some serious grunt, some bright spark thinks "why don't we do this again with new graphics?". Luckily, he was on a winner.
 | | 'Till he gets your daughter, he won't leave this town |
Anyway, on to this installment of the series. By this stage in a series the characters have been established, the gameplay mechanics have been nutted out and a developer has 3 options: 1. to turn out a carbon copy of the previous game with a slight tarting up of graphics. 2. To really rip the game apart, decide what works and what doesn't, thus reinventing the series or dooming it to failure. And, finally, option 3. Something in between. Ubisoft seem to have taken the third option, as the gameplay is instantly familiar to anyone with even a passing familiarity with the series, with just enough new features to silence anyone who pipes up with a "this is the same as the last one" type comment.
For the 3 people on the planet who are gamers but haven't experienced the Prince of Persia series, here's a brief explanation: lots of large elaborate levels with no obvious path from one place to the next. The Prince is not a man who just walks along the hallway to the next room (mainly because this isn't usually possible). No, the name of the game here is lots of long leaps of faith. In fact, hurling yourself at a chasm becomes almost second nature after a while. Using a series of ledges, platforms, walls, pipes and almost anything else you leap, crawl, climb and swing your way across the level, occasionally finding an open area for a good old fashioned fight. A mention must be made of the fighting mechanics, as they are a joy to watch (though slightly more difficult to control) the Prince fights with a large curved sword and the dagger of time; leaping and spinning in a ballet-like orgy of death.
This time around the Prince returns from the Island of Time (for more play Prince of Persia 2: Warrior Within) to his home, the City of Babylon, to find it under attack from all manner of nasties. As you would expect, the Prince then sets out to save his town, right wrongs and look cool doing it.
New features in this installment include the ability to pick up the weapons of dead enemies. No longer is the Prince limited to swinging his scimitar, various swords and axes can be picked up used and then lobbed at others when you get sick of them. "Plates on walls" are another cool addition; certain points of the levels have a plate attached to walls, allowing the Prince to leap up said wall and drive in the dagger of time, increasing his already impressive acrobatic abilities. The other notable inclusion is the "speed kills" - instantly familiar to anybody who has played the Tenchu series; if you manage to sneak up on an enemy without being seen, the screen will blur and allow you to ambush your chosen victim. With a few well timed button presses you can dispatch them quietly, without alerting anybody nearby.
However, the biggest drawcard this time would have to be the promise of another playable character i.e. "the Dark Prince" (no, not that dark prince, a different one) complete with brooding appearance, flames and a dirty great long chain-whip thing. Gameplay with the Dark Prince changes little, other than a larger emphasis on fighting and small differences to negotiating the platforms and walls that make up the game. For instance, the Dark Prince can use his chain-whip thing to pull objects (levers, boxes etc) closer to himself.
 | | When it comes to funk, he is the junky |
All the best features of the "dagger of time" are still present, such as the ablility to rewind or slowing down time. Reviewers note: if you happen to find yourself using the rewind in a fight you're probably already stuffed, it rewinds time: it doesn't refill your life gauge!!
Overall, this is not a huge departure from what we've already seen from the series, but it is still an above average action game. I hate to use the cliché "one for the fans", but it applies quite well here. Although, in this case, if you've never taken the Prince for a spin, this title would provide a perfect opportunity to find out what you've been missing.
*Jason played the PlayStation 2 version for this review. The Xbox and Gamecube versions are basically identical, from what we've seen. The game is also available for PC and Sony PSP.*
by: Jason
More articles by Jason
A perfect example of the old adage "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". Diehard fans will buy it anyway, but Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones is well worth a look for noobs too. | |
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