New idea doesn't work as well as hoped (Prince of Persia (PS3))

Member Name: Midnight_Walker

Product:	Prince of Persia (PS3)
Date:	08/06/09 (5 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent graphics, excellent mechanics

Disadvantages: No sense of progression

This was the first Prince Of Persia game, save the 1990-ish original, that I've played to completion. I dabbled with the PS2 version, which I enjoyed, but I got distracted by other things and never managed to finish it.

With this new entry to the series, I really didn't know what to think. The graphics are great, the game mechanics are great, the controls are great, but I felt it was still lacking... something. After pondering it for some time I think I've nailed it. The biggest problem with Prince of Persia is that there is simply no sense of progression. You have the entire world available to you as soon as you start the game, and are given a choice of which path you wish to take. When you complete that path you return to the start and can choose another. Whilst freedom like this is certainly very welcome, it also means that the enemies and puzzles in each path must be killable and solvable if you had chosen that path as your first. Consequently, the game never gets harder, and it feels like you're just doing the same thing over and over until you reach the game's conclusion.

Still, it's a game that's certainly worth playing - if you liked the PS2 iterations then this will be right up your street, it's just a shame that its biggest innovation is also its biggest downfall.

Summary: Worth a rental, but not a keeper.