A blast from the past with a modern flair.
User Rating: 9.5 | Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time XBOX
Recently, there has been a heavy flux of updates to classic games. Some, like Spy Hunter for example, get an “A” for effort but don’t quite make the final cut. Others are blatant abuse of the nostalgia bug that’s going around. Then there are those that have almost none of the elements of the original (Defender, anyone?). And last but not least are those games that walk the fine line between innovation and consistency. You know the games that are fresh, take advantage of modern console capabilities but still give the player the feeling that they’ve played this game before (for an example see Metroid Prime). Prince of Persia falls in that last category. It is almost if Ubisoft brought the original developers of Prince of Persia to the modern day and briefed them on what is possible with today’s console. For those who never had the pleasure, the original Prince appeared on the SNES and PC and was a side-scrolling platform puzzler. You start out in the lowest dungeon and must climb, run, jump, and fight your way to the highest tower to a showdown with the royal vizier, Jaffar (there is a lot similar between him and the villain of the same name from the Disney movie Alladin). There were two sequels, POP 2, and POP 3D (cute play on words). POP 3D was definitely one of the “A” for effort games. Jump forward four years and you are now able to play what POP 3D should have been. There are many series that didn’t make the transition to 3D on the first try successfully, see Castlevania. The real measure of a series is if it bounces back from the first stumble. So what’s so great about Sands of Time? Everything! Graphically, the game will immerse you in a land of sand, horses, scimitars, and towering castles. The prince’s animations are amazing as he performs various acrobatic feats and fights his foes (or his foe if you want to be technical) the sands of time. The game begins with the prince telling you a story about his encounter with the reality of time. He rides with his father to conquer a nearby city. During the conquest, the prince acquires the Dagger of Time. The treacherous vizier of the conquered city who betrayed his king, Maharajah to the Sultan states that he wants his reward, the Dagger of Time. Needless to say he is not pleased when the prince refuses to hand it over. Eventually the sultan sets in motion a set of events that leads to the release of the Sands of Time, a plague that takes over all it touches with the exception of the Prince, the Vizier, and the Maharajah’s daughter. It is now up to the prince and his reluctant companion, the Maharajah’s daughter to navigate the enormous palace, reaching the highest tower where he can seal the sands of time. Throughout the game you are reminded that a story is being told (for instance, if you happen to perish the prince will say “No, no, no, that’s not how it happened” or something similar). The story is progressed by conversations between the prince and his companion. The most important part of course is the gameplay. To put it quite simply, Sands of Time plays like the original Prince of Persia, in 3d. There are challenging puzzles that involve you jumping swinging, climbing, and bouncing your way through the palace. The prince has a few new tricks up his sleeve. First is the dagger of time itself. Using the dagger, the Prince can reverse time to that critical point before he made a mistake and correct it. Did you miss the timing for that jump? Back up and do it right. Needless to say this feature gives the player leeway for mistakes, lapses in judgment, and/or “controller problems.” The prince has an array of moves for problem solving. In addition to his long jump abilities, and climbing up and down ledges, he can also run up walls, run across walls (think Matrix), jump off walls, and swing like a gymnast on bars. The very exciting points in the game involve the prince using several of those skills in tangent (for example, run up a wall, jump off to a bar, swing and jump to a crumbling platform, run along another wall, and jump off to safety). Of course if you make a mistake you can use the dagger to back up to that critical point and fix it. In the fighting arena, the prince’s moves are extraordinary. The block and parry system returns here, but it is much more difficult to perform a parry (however it is never necessary to use it to defeat an enemy). He can roll around to get a better angle of attack on an enemy (think of Link’s evasion maneuver in the Wind Waker). He can vault over an enemy, turning in midair to strike him. Also, the Prince can rebound off the wall to make a vault over his enemy or to dive at him with an attack. Of course the dagger plays an important role in combat. After an enemy is knocked down, the Prince must use the dagger to dispatch the enemy or it will regenerate. The dispatch also provides more sand to the dagger that allows the prince to use its time manipulation abilities. In addition to the rewind (which is useful in combat), the prince can use the dagger offensively in combat. Stabbing an opponent with the dagger freezes it for a short time, during which you can dispatch it. It is also possible to activate slow motion, letting you attack and avoid attacks more easily. Finally, the dagger’s ultimate power freezes all enemies for a limited time. During this time you move in very high speeds to finish as many as possible. It is indeed a gorgeous sight to behold. The game is very rewarding and can be completed with about 10 hours of playing. And if that’s not enough for you, completing the game unlocks the original POP (in addition by careful exploration you can unlock POP 2). Sands of Time manages to keep the elements that defined the original, while giving us an experience that expands and immerses you into the world of the Prince. Review: - Story: 10 Sands of time tells the story of a spoiled prince who manages to bring doom to the world, fall in love, and avert said doom within one day. In the process he grows before our very eyes, becoming wiser and a more likeable person. Story is definitely a driving force in this game. - Graphics: 9 I can’t describe how beautiful this game is. The prince’s animations, the scenery, characters, fog effects, lighting and so much more, immerse you in the game world. - Audio/Music: 9 From the clash of steel against steel, the various noises from the sand creatures, to the ambient sounds from trickling water and special power ups, the game presents a believable audio environment. The music is a Middle East/Techno blend that sets the mood of the game very well. - Controls: 10 Even with all that the prince can do, it is very easy to pull off amazing feats. - Fun Factor: 10 Who would have thought platforming could be so much fun? - Gameplay: 9 Sands of Time provides an engaging, thrilling joyride. If it were any closer to a roller coaster, you’d have a harness over you. - Overall: 9.5 
