A wrong turn

I have loved Prince of Persia (P-of-P) since its first incarnation in the 8-Bit days. I played all of the "Remake" games on the PS2 and waited this one with baited breath. Boy was I disappointed! Visually the new P-of-P is beautiful, with lush cel-shaded artwork that has the feel of a high-quality animated movie, however that is about all the good I have to say about it.

The gameplay, which has always been a combination of challenging platforming and intense combat before, has been totally destroyed. Gone is the time-controlling of the old games and in return they have given us a companion who automatically saves you from death if you make a mistake. This results in a platforming game where you cannot fall off a platform...which is pointless since it means there is no skill what-so-ever needed to get where you are going.

The combat is much the same. For the fist thirty seconds it looks amazing and then you realise that it is just a series of button presses that animate certain special moves. There is no real skill needed (Not even button mashing!) and you can complete most fights with a blindfold on.

In addition, gone is the strongly story-driven game and instead you spend most of your time running about collecting items that are not far off the gold rings in a game like Sonic the Hedgehog. If you want to find something to totally break any suspension of disbeief and immersion you have then that is perhaps it.

Had this game come out seven or eight years ago it could have been good fun but it is impossible to ignore the other additions to the genera since and so sadly it fails. It is perhaps a good purchase for you kids if they are five to eight years old and looking for an easy cartoony game, but if like me you are a gaming vetteren steer well clear!