Prince of Persia: Sands of Time
Rating:  -
This is a classical revival of the classic PC platforming game where you started in the dungeon and had to escape upwards to the highest tower to save the princess from the evil vazier.
This 3D version has exactly that type of classic platforming where you essentially go higher and higher up to the top of the tower but the focus is not saving the princess but rather returning the sands of time to the hourglass. The platforming in this game in incredible. It has a great story and presentation. The combat is not that good but you don't have to fight much in the game... and you have the use of the sands of time powers to make the combat easier.
This game is the first of a trilogy in terms of the story. This one is rated T for teen but the others are M for mature.
Definitely get and play this game... and then if your old enough for M rated game than get Warrior Within and Two Towers as well where the combat, platforming, graphics, etc continue to improve and the story of the trilogy is completed.
Rating:  -
I'll be the first to admit, I favor Nintendo systems because of Zelda. I prefer puzzle games that involve a little brain power. I prefer sword combat as opposed to guns just because I stink at aiming. It's more a comedy of errors watching me play games like Halo or Splinter Cell. Not so long ago, I would've been hard pressed to say any game could match combat, puzzle solving, and storyline with the Zelda franchise. Yeah, well I have to say I must've been hiding under a rock for the past few years not to have picked up Prince of Persia sooner. Sands of Time not only meets expectations but exceeds them.
I've always felt that a truly great video game should entail a story. I love plots. I love games that use a story to move forward. SoT presents one of the best stories I've ever seen in a video game. From beginning to end, you're as drawn to the story as you are to the gameplay and puzzle solving. The cut scenes are always interesting, especially later in the game, and the ending is spectacular, really bringing the game to a grand conclusion. The banter between the Prince and Farrah is well done and amusing ... not to mention the Prince talking to himself at various points throughout the game. It's fun and all together adds to the experience.
I loved the puzzles throughout the game. It was never ridiculously difficult, though some parts caused you to think. For the most part, if you paid attention to the visions the Prince receives at every save point plus the zoomed out landscape views the camera offers whenever you enter certain rooms, it should never be rip-your-hair-out difficult. And of course, I love the Prince's acrobatics - running across walls, flipping, pole swinging, avoiding traps - all the moves the Prince has that make this a unique experience.
As for combat ... well, compared to its successors, SoT combat is pretty repetitious. Basically, you have two or three effective moves at your disposal as opposed to hacking and slashing away at the enemy. Always keep moving, use the sand powers wisely, and use your limited effective moves, and the enemies go down. However, this is usually easier said than done. I'd have to say the combat offered far more frustration than the puzzles. At times, the Prince is just swarmed by enemies, and they don't stop coming (ala elevator sequence which I had to try quite a few times before I got it right). In addition, when trying to perform a retrieve on a downed enemy, the Prince uses the dagger to freeze another enemy - really annoying. And it really isn't keeping the Prince alive that I had trouble with. A lot of the time, I had to retry combat sequences because I wasn't able to keep the baddies from killing Farrah - especially later on in the game. That has to be the most frustrating part of it (not to mention when she accidentally hits you with an arrow, which, thankfully, isn't too often). When the Prince is flying solo, its virtually smooth sailing through combat sequences ... or when Farrah stays out of reach of the sand monsters. But a good bit of the time, she's right in the middle of it. And don't get me wrong, it isn't that I didn't like the combat, and I certainly got better at it over the course of the game. It's just not what makes this game great. Over time, its just pretty much same old, same old: Get swarmed by enemies, keep from getting cornered, pray the camera angles won't screw with you, and keep Farrah breathing.
Overall, here it is: The gameplay is nearly flawless, despite some camera angle issues. The character animation is great. The voice acting is admirable for a video game. The background music is a treat. The scenery is breathtaking. If you enjoy puzzle solving games mixed with combat and highlighted by an intriguing storyline, you will not regret spending the money for this game. I'm happy to say it gives Zelda a run for its money, and though this Prince of Persia trilogy is now complete with the release of Two Thrones, I truly hope Ubisoft gives us more Prince of Persia games in the future.
Rating: -
This was such a great game!-
At the Beginning it was TO EASY-, but as you go on to harder levels, It gets more fun at the end-.^_^
You go through puzzles and traps....And just like any(most) other video games.....You fight enemies -monters! *_^
This game was a blast!
If you want a good fighting or platform game- GET THIS!
*_~
Rating: -
"Time is an ocean in a storm."
In 2003, Ubisoft, developers of the Rayman series and the recent smash hit Splinter Cell franchise, reinvented what had been one of the seminal platformers of the late 80's and early 90's. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time was a reinvention of the classic series, full of hallmarks of the series; combat, beautiful animation, cunning traps, and daring acrobatics, but with a new set of characters, new story, and brilliant new gameplay mechanics that changed the way platforming could be approached in games.
With the help of Jordan Mechner, the original creator of the Prince of Persia series, Ubisoft spins a tale of a young prince and his first conquest. Eager for honor glory, he accompanies his father to India, where, seeking treasure, they use a traitorous Vizier to infiltrate and decimate a Maharajah's palace. During the raid, the entire palace is ransacked, and the prince and his father sieze the Sands of Time, contained in a bejeweled hourglass, and the Dagger of Time, a weapon of unknown power.
However, the treacherous Vizier, seeking immortality, tricks the Prince into using the Dagger to open the hourglass, setting the Sands of Time loose as a plague upon the palace of Hazad, a once-welcoming place now turned into a death trap full of twisted Sand Creatures, spike pits, whirling blades, and bottomless chasms. With only the Dagger (giving him control over time) and Farah, the daughter of the conquered Maharajah, the Prince must make his way through the sultan's palace and undo what he has done.
The meat and potatoes of Sands of Time is its brilliantly cinematic and acrobatic platforming and puzzle solving, featuring the use of ropes, poles, beams, narrow ledges, and walls that the prince must run along to avoid danger and traverse his environment. Both the level design and the ease of control (even for pulling off the most incredible looking stunts) is leages ahead of other platforming games, and the addition of the sand powers (allowing you to rewind time, slow time, and speed it up) adds a whole new layer to the puzzles. This is enhanced by the game's visuals, which set a bechmark for animation and artistic design, drawing gorgeous vistas and gruesome enemies while never stuttering.
The sand powers are also crucial during the combat portions of the game. During the game, more and stronger enemies will stand between the Prince and redemtion, and he must use the dagger to destroy these monsters, which, in turn, grants him superhuman powers; he can freeze his enemies and slice them to ribbons, slow them to a crawl as he dances around them, and stop time completely to cut a swath through them with ease and grace. The game gives the player a larger number of options in dispatching enemies, though you'll find yourself sticking with a couple strategies for most of the game.
During combat, as well as during the exploration of the sultan's palace, there is a steady stream of banter from the characters. Whether it's simply the prince talking to himself (or to the player, as he tells his story) or the snarky comments he and Farah fire back at each other, it gives the game a great sense of personality. Both of these characters end up having to work together for survival, with Farah slipping through cracks to open doors the prince can't reach, or fire at enemies from a distance as he battles them with sword, and it's great fun to watch their attitudes toward each other gradually change.
The story that unfolds for the player, which uses both of these characters to great effect, is also a treat; it goes a step further than most video game stories, with some great twists along the way, and just the right sense of closure while still leaving room for more. And with the brilliant music and fantastic voice work, it geniunely draws the player into this world of ancient Persia, and makes sure they'll want to hear the story again and again.
With gorgeous visuals, a capturing tale, and plenty of charm, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, is a brilliant action platformer that allows players to do things previously impossible in games, and draws them into a digital world like few other titles can. So come and hear a tale like none you have heard before.
Rating: -
I really enjoyed this game. I don't think it is worth as much as it was when it first came out, but if you can get it for less than $20, do it! It's so much fun. It doesn't have a lot of replay value, other than blowing through the game again and maybe getting some of the sand clouds you missed. The game is pretty easy, except at some parts that might stump you. Also, it could be a lot longer. I beat the game within a week, but it will end up being almost twenty hours of gameplay if you enjoy it and don't rush. Again I say how much fun it is and encourage anyone who loves puzzles and lots of action in a game to buy this one.
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