Prince of Persia 2008 revisited

Last night, I found myself venturing back into Ubisoft’s 2008 attempt at rebooting the Prince of Persia franchise, which, while being well-received across the board by critics, seems to elicit nothing but angry stares whenever I mention it around the office. Perhaps this is a reaction to my grotesque appearance; perhaps they didn’t give it a proper go.

The game suffers from repetition. The isolated, simple combat and QTE-like platforming enables few variables in the game, but when either is executed successfully, it’s always extremely rewarding. To be honest, I think PoP suffers when each feature is examined separately – together, however, they convey a feeling of adventure that few games match.

Prince of Persia always imbues me with the sense that I’m seeing something new, whether that’s air balloons hanging gently in the horizon, a stone tower surrounded by beautiful overgrowth or vast plains blackened by shadows – it’s something that’s unique to this game. I can’t think of another title that offers such varied, beautiful sights, and traveling through them, magical companion Elika in tow, really gives it an adventure movie feel.

The technology at work in the game is still staggering, but it’s really a one-two punch when combined with the art direction. I am confident this is one of the best-looking, unique games on 360 – the argument that it ‘isn’t Sands of Time’ doesn’t exactly register as criticism. Prince of Persia is a unique beast. If you bought it, played it for two hours and gave up, pick it up again. You’re just a short stretch away from some of the best sights the 360 can show you.