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Change is not always good

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 7 / 12
Date: October 29, 2004
Author: Amazon User

These opinions are strictly based on the demo.

Ubi's version of Prince of Persia came as a surprise last year, because this franchise had so many bad sequels that nobody really thought it still has a future. But, Ubi managed to create an excellent game, with a distinct look and excellent controls and level design. They also brought and implemented perfectly the concept of 'controlling time', thus avoiding the main complaints about the POP games (most of them dealt with frustrating jumping puzzles and instant death).

Unfortunately though, even if it was a critic darling, Sands of Time (SoT) did not sell as expected - mostly the effect of having so many bad sequels. So, for the second installment on XBox, Ubi was forced to listen to the 'complaints' and change the game. This though is the main problem with this sequel. While changes tend to be good in general, these ones do not apply.

The main change is the fighting system. Warrior Within (WW) made the transition from a Tomb Raider type of gameplay to a Ninja Gaiden one. For some, this may be a blessing and especially early magazine reviewers seem to enjoy it. To me though, this pretty much ruined the game. From an intelligent and interesting game, this became nothing else than random button pressing, trying to get the 'perfect' combo. I would have preffered to have more exploration, not a Mortal Kombat fighting. In fact, PoP always seemed to be more about avoiding traps and solving puzzles, than about doing combos. And while the fighting system in SoT was indeed flawed, at least it was not a big part of the game. Now - like it or not - you will have to either learn these combos or avoid the game entirely.

The second change is with the graphics. What made SoT so special was its distinct look and gorgeous graphics. WW should have improved on this, but instead this is a step back. The 'blur' effect and vivid colors are gone, replaced by two colors: black and brown. The game looks common and uninteresting and the lack of 'blur' makes the textures look very poor. Why would Ubi change - again - something that was working, still a mystery to me. Especially now, when the 'blur' effect is copied in all games (Fable being the latest).

In the end, it looks like a group of players and reviewers changed the direction this game was following and WW is the end product. While some may enjoy this changes, for the fans of exploration and solving puzzles, this is a major step back. To me, this game was dumbed down to appeal to the masses and in the process, it lost its identity.

I will not buy this game, but I hope the sequel - if there will be any - will return to its roots, as captured in SoT.

Prince of Persia should be an excellent platformer at heart

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 1 / 7
Date: October 29, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I agree with the earlier review. They changed prince of persia from an excellent platformer to a ninja gaiden look alike with much more fighting.

Played the demo

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 6
Date: November 01, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I get the xbox magazine and recently played the demo and it looks great. Just as described, they "grew the prince up" and now he is a fairly formidible character. The sand and rewind ability is still there but you don't have to use the dagger to collect it. As stated, you can weild two sowrds and this just makes the game more intresting seing as you can control each individually. With the addition of the extra soward, there is a myriad of combos that one can perform. on the down side though, the game took a type of dark-gothic like turn overall it is a very promising game.

Wrong Direction

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 6 / 22
Date: November 02, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I just got finished playing the demo of this game and I have to say that it feels like the developers are pandering to the 13 year old grundge beat 'em up gamers out there. What was once a charming and enthralling experience is now a Mountain Dew commercial. Worst of all- there's far more fighting- and rediculously hard bosses- so you can just forget about completing this one until the cheats come out. Why do developers do things like this?

It is just a demo, not the real game.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 9
Date: November 05, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Games turn out completely different. It is just a demo, the game has not come out yet. Xbox Magazine gave this game a 9.6, and OXM has the best reviews out there.

P.S. Don't watch X play, they don't review games right.

A preview of a worthy sequel...(rating based on first-look)

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: November 23, 2004
Author: Amazon User

If you enjoyed playing Prince of Persia - The Sands of Time, then you will be spellbound by its sequel "Warrior Within". This game no doubt, ups the ante of the previous rendition by a huge scale. Since I am not in a position to review it yet, let me state my first impressions of the game in the context of the videos and files I've gone through.

Firstly, the protagonist. The Prince in the first game was an up-and-coming warrior of immense skill and heart. Though naive, he had the courage to set things right . But he had no clear idea of what to do except restore the order of time.
In Warrior Within though, the Prince is 10 yrs older. And more mysterious. He is the ultimate warrior, having experienced countless battles since restoring the Sands of Time. He is dark, broody, independent and utterly dangerous to the point of being manic. And he knows exactly what to do now.

Sands of Time has a very brightly-lit atmosphere to it. All the surroundings are visually breathtaking and there is a soft aura of appearance to it, probably showcasing the transient beauty of the Arabian landscape.
POP-Warrior Within is the exact opposite in appearance. It has vivid and awe-inspiring landscapes, no doubt, but it is creepy, foreboding and unforgiving. It rather showcases the effect of the Sands of Time's disastrous effect on the world. It also has a completely re-worked graphics engine which looks terrific. The terrain and the characters looks extremely realistic and fluid in movement.
I wish to state that if there is any reason POP:WW might have a fallout with you, it could only be the environment itself. Take it for granted that the game will have a very dark, menacing look to it, all through. It will be gorgeous to look at, no doubt, but somehwere down the line, we might start asking "Why is it SO dark in concept?". This could turn us off quite a bit coz' we would want to relate this game to the fantastic feel of Sands of Time. Let's face it. Sands of Time had the most uplifting level design to date. I surely hope Ubisoft has not taken the word 'bleakness' to the extreme.
I also noticed that the Prince is not the same naive, likeable guy we know off. Hopefully he doesn't have a total makeover in his personality.

Neverthless, POP:WW has a lot more to offer.....

Sands of Time had the bubbly Farah as your companion. In Warrior Within, you seek no one's aid in combat. But a few new mysterious characters do help you at times, in achieving your objective. Variety is one thing you can expect.

In Sands of Time, the Prince has only a few but effective combat moves to his repertoire. In one hand he held the Dagger of Time and in the other, he had a Scimitar to deal primary damage and he could piece together a few combos to deal some effective damage.
In Warrior Within, the combat is truly groundbreaking. Just like Ryu Hayabusa in Ninja Gaiden, the Prince has some amazing combos to showcase his skill. Not only can he dual-wield weapons this time around, but he can also grab his assailant's weapon and counter target his enemy. He can also contextually use his environment to good effect, for instance, latch onto a pole and revolve-slash multiple enemies. The effect, I tell you, is something to be seen. Warrior Within is the first game to introduce 'free-form' combat, meaning, you can create your own combos and latch them together to deal some truly unique and incredible attack manoeuvres. Imagine. Think of all the weapons that he gets his hands on and the combos you can attach them to. The though itself is whetting my appetite.

Sands of Time had a sense of grandness that not many games could even think off, particularly the level design. Even Halo cannot compare itself to it. But Warrior Within is very similar to its predecessor. Though darker story-wise, it has the same sweeping sense of scale the first rendition enjoyed and provides a lot more than that. Ubisoft has been clever not to expose everything just yet but it is safe to say that Warrior Within is much bigger than Sands of Time.

The enemies in Sands of Time were few and all of them were zombies. With some understanding, they could be easily disposed off. Not so in Warrior Within. I believe there are all-together 9 types who range from the fast Executioners who attack in co-ordinate pairs to the massive Brute who can crush you with one swipe. There is another creature called the Griffin that could put even some Ninja Gaiden bosses to shame. All sounds exciting.

Phew !. If I go on, this preview would probably never end. Since this is just a general description of what you can expect in Warrior Within, I'd be hard pressed to discuss its finer details. It is astonishing how Ubisoft has managed to change the game completely in just over a year after the first game. I would be very surprised if you aren't impressed with its technical aspects. They are truly Next-Gen and among the three consoles supporting it, the XBOX version undoubtedly looks and feels better. But it is safe to say that Prince of Persia : Warrior Within will be a must-buy for any console.

PS: Thanx for going through the preview. If you are interested in my review, you can check it out in the Playstation version of the game.
Have a nice day.

I am the first perso to actually review the game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 9
Date: December 02, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I just got this game yesterday, November 29, 2004, when it should have came out on December 2, and stayed up all night with it. Let's start with the basics:

1. Opening movie/graphics: My mouth literraly dropped open, i on't know how it happened, it literally dropped, it was like watching a fast-paced action sequal

2. Controls - There are many, many, MANY, combos, that are extremely easy to do, so you'll hardly ever pull the same one twice, whil creating your OWN fighting style, (Triangle, Triange, Triange, Square - see easy). Then the sensetivity is so right on the dot, it feel like i'm the prince, moving, sliding, spinnng, jumping...

3. Story- fair, but i'm just saying that couse i heard it so much, but i do suspect there's more to it then that

4. Gameplay: OMFG - damn that good gameplay, i already explained the FFF (Free for fighting) which is totally revolutioary) where you can creat your own fighting style, you can't even begin to imagine how good it seriously is

5. Gamestyle - the stylwe is pretty brutal, but now how the Toys'r'us people make it sound like, you can do thing like pull your enemies over traps, strangulation, and cut'em'up decapitation technichs, but it is a little Residend Evil style creepy, huge dark rooms, alone hereaning your eart beat...

Pro's

The whole game

Con's

Little diferences would hae givin it a perfect ten, but somthing like that doesn't exist.

A poor follow up to Sands of Time

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 14 / 26
Date: December 03, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Ubi's Prince of Persia Sands of Time was a wonderful surprise for many. Beautiful to look at and with some fabulous platforming sections it was the kind of game that all who played it talked endlessly about. Not a perfect game however, the combat was repetetive and generally dull, but the game's charm shone through.

The sequel takes a radically different aproach. Gone is the magic, the fairy tale settings, the Sinbad/Harryhausen feel. Instead, Ubi have created a game that sets out to be as obnoxious, loud, and unpleasant as possible.

The platform elements are still good, but the fighting is more frequent and still dull, and without the magical atmosphere of the first, this is a hugely disappointing sequel.

It's worth mentioning the soundtrack in Warrior Within. Imagine the worst US rock music possible, the kind of brain dead trash angst ridden spotty teens listen to. Warrior Within is full of such music, it's enough to make your ears bleed.

Buy the original instead, and sit this one out. Hopefully the franchise will get back on track with the next one.

Prince of Persia-Warrior Within

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 16
Date: December 03, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I just picked this game up the day it came out. It rocks, and I believe they only had a few left at the store. Go for it...you will NOT be dissapointed.

For starters, I believe this game is much better than the Sands of Time. It is comparable to the first, but in Warrior Within the action and use of the sword is awesome. The Prince seems to have more of a bad attitude and it shows in the gameplay. He is all over the place along with a lot of sarcasm from him while in fighting mode.

So far, the gameplay is great. It seems a little difficult at times, but you can keep trying from the last checkpoint which is the water fountain (as it was in Sands of Time). The graphice are excellent.

I really do recommend this game to everyone. A lot of violence and hacking of his sword to the enemy. More blood, so please go out and purchase this game.

Cleveland, Ohio

this game is horrible

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 22
Date: December 03, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I'd spend my money on Ninja Gaiden anytime. Warrior Within is horrible. Don't waste your money. I am going to ebay this sucker as fast as I can.

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