The original Prince of Persia is undoubtedly a classic in gaming. Released in 1989, Prince of Persia was a breakthrough in its day, with rotoscoping used to full and impressive effect, featuring a fluid and acrobatic prince dodging traps and swordsmen in an hour-long quest to save his love. Subsequently released on nearly every console up to the mid ‘90s – Amiga, DOS PC, NES, SNES, Game Boy, Sega Genesis, Game Gear, Sega CD, etc. – the series hit a bit of a snag as it progressed and eventually took the leap (har) into 3D on the PC and Sega Dreamcast.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time reinvigorated the series by faithfully translating the 2D platforming puzzles into a 3D environment, with a refined combat system similar to by slightly improved over the original. Since the emphasis is and has always been on exploration and problem solving, combat has always been secondary to the series, and Sands of Time implemented a feature to slow down time that allowed those without sharp reflexes to progress through the difficult environments and through waves of foes. The graphics, a hallmark of the original, also impressed in Sands of Time, with great lighting, fluid animation, and rich colors.
Now, both hallmarks of the series have merged to form Prince of Persia Classic. The design of the original and the motif of Sands of Time have formed what will be a strange nostalgic trip for some and a source of frustration for many others. Among the additional puzzles and enemies are checkpoints and a guide to see you along your way, the latter two additions being important but ultimately insufficient. The original Prince of Persia, and therefore this upgrade, harkens back to an era in gaming that was decidedly less gamer-friendly than it is today; or some might say it was an era that wasn’t afraid to challenge. Whichever camp you are in – games are either too hard or easy – the flow of game design has moved into an era that is far more inviting than before, and the inclusion of checkpoints and a guide point to that. The rest of the game, however, is steeped in its past.
The original’s style was never extremely popular, but it was far more familiar to gamers of a previous generation than it is today. Those of you who remember Out of This World, Blizzard’s Blackthorne, or the niche genre’s last hoorah Oddworld: Abe's Exodus for the PlayStation will be familiar with the style. The game is played out on a 2D plane that often has multiple height levels within that plane, allowing the prince to jump up or go down; if he goes up or down beyond the current screen, and there is another above or below him, the perspective shifts to the new screen as he enters it. He will be able to leap over decaying tiles, hang onto ledges, side flip off of walls to reach higher levels, and sword fight whenever an enemy blocks his path. The levels are laden with booby traps – spikes, weak floors, large drops, dead-ends, and pressure-sensitive door pads – that will require him to do all of the leaping, flipping, and hanging that he can manage.
What makes the experience so difficult are the controls and level design. For all of the fluid acrobatics the prince pulls off, it can be extremely difficult to do something as simple as hang onto a ledge before dropping down, which is often needed so that the fall isn’t far down enough to result in injury. It is entirely possible to have him do so, but to have him do so on a consistent basis is very difficult and often tedious. The animations also take away from the precision of the controls, making them a little stiff, which makes navigating some of the tighter spots a pain. The guide that was added, a source of displeasure for many, is, I found, not that obtrusive – it doesn’t come around all that much and doesn’t stick around for long when it does. I would say it is a necessary addition because, unless you know the score, you’re going to be in for some serious teeth gritting. I knew what the game was all about going in, and it’s certainly going to be old hat for many others, but for newcomers, or those that just haven’t played it in a while, the style will be a mixture of unforgiving and downright archaic that might not be the best way to spend their $10.
Purchase: Give the trial a go to test your mettle: five hundred deaths later, you might not be too keen to continue the adventure.
