Rachel Reviews: Prince of Persia Classic

Prince of Persia

The original Prince of Persia game was a 2D platformer released in 1989 on the Apple II and has been ported to numerous  platforms in the following years (see the wikipedia article for more info).  Set in Ancient Persia, the sultan's vizier Jaffar siezes control while the sultan is away fighting wars and threatens to kill his daughter.  The player takes on the role of the princess' love interest and has to escape the dungeons and rescue the princess in under an hour.

The game used rotoscoping for the animation, whereby Jordan Mechner, the developer, studied filmed footage of his brother performing the moves and translated them into computer animation.  This was a first for computer games and marked a huge step forward in video game animation.

In 2007 it was remade and released on the XBox 360 in 2007 and on the PS3 in 2008 under the title 'Prince of Persia Classic'.

Then and Now

Comparing the two versions side by side, the biggest difference seems to be the updated visuals in Prince of Persia Classic.  This includes the use of 3D modelling and levels in the style of the Sands of Time game with smoother animation.  The actual level design was unchanged, as was the premise, so it still plays like the original version.  There are some new features though, and they add to the game experience rather than detract from it.

The biggest addition to the game is progression saving.  The players still have to complete the game in under an hour to win but in the remake players can stop playing or lose all their lives and pick up where they left off.  In the original this would have meant starting over from the beginning.  This added feature also allows players to retry completed levels to get a better time.

Another addition is a little 'guide', a floating light thing that tells the player which way to go.  I never bothered with it and found it easy to ignore.

Included in the 360 version are some achievements.  These aren't as easy to get as with some arcade titles and getting them may required replaying levels to find things.  With the save feature this isn't that hard to do and taking a while to explore the levels won't affect the game as it's the fastest time that counts.

Overall Verdict

The updated graphics look great and the sound is much improved on the original while keeping the feel and gameplay of the original.  Fans of the original should definitely check out this version and anyone who hasn't played it before should definitely look into it.  The addition of the save feature takes away the frustration of 'Game Over' and the achievements add replay value (if you like that sort of thing).

What I didn't realise was that I was five when it first came out.  I'm not sure if this makes me feel old or not.