Prince of Persia is a series that has had a bumpy ride, seeing both triumphant ups, and dejected downs. In the franchise’s latest reset, Ubisoft has managed to craft a beautiful game with a few clever ideas. Unfortunately, the new Prince falls just short of some of his predecessors, due to some glaring control and polish issues.
But let’s start with the upside. The game’s graphics sparkle in screenshots, with lush vistas full of bright greens, deep reds, and sky blues that floor the jaw. Jim did a great job of describing the game’s art in his review, so I won’t linger long on the point; I just wanted to mention how rarely I set down my controller and awe at a game world. A problem arises, however, when moving through said world at any decent speed. Quite often, the frame-rate drops below 30 clicks, and the sound just stops. These moments only last for a few seconds, but when you’re immersed in the Prince’s elegant dance along ruined rooftops, a few seconds make the spell break – hard.
The control mechanics can be grouped into the same category. When they work, the Prince is running on air, barely hitting a ledge or touching a flagpole. This experience is marred, again, by how infrequent it is. There are times when I know exactly what I should do, but the Prince won’t comply. Beyond that, there are cheap deaths that require much trial and error before getting a certain sequence right. I know other reviewers have claimed that this game is too “easy,” but I argue that it is far from easy, for its annoyances caused me to yell angrily at the television on more than one occasion.
What might make it seem easy is the brilliant use of Elika, the princess with magical powers who accompanies the Prince throughout the game. The Prince never actually dies, but is instead saved by the princess’ divine abilities, which reset him to the last surface on which he was standing. This is an incredible mechanic – not only does it keep the story going, but it doesn’t break the flow of gameplay. It has been argued that this ruins the fun, but I could not disagree more. Why would you want harsh punishment for mistakes, to be forced to repeat sections that you’ve already completed? This is an archaic way to add difficulty and length to a game, one that was inspired by the quarter-sucking machines of yesteryear. Elika’s powers not only save the Prince, they save the game; were it not for them, the frustration induced by some of the more awkward sections would have made me stop playing long before the ending credits.
I don’t need to score Prince of Persia, which is fortunate for me, as I’m not sure what I would give it. On the one hand, the game looks amazing and introduces a great new death mechanic; on the other, the game lacks its deserved animation polish, and some sections of gameplay are infuriating. I suppose I should conclude by admitting that, even with its downsides, Prince of Persia is one of the few games I have come back to play after completing. That alone should say something about the quality of this beautifully flawed adventure.
