Rated by stars: * Waste of time / ** Okay / *** Recommended / **** Superb
Overall: **
NOTE#1: When it comes to video game reviews, I strongly focus on their plots rather than gameplay or things of that sort.
NOTE#2: This review covers on both the video game and the downloadable epilogue.
Now since todays reboots and remakes on movies are completey overrated, the game developers from Ubisoft decided to hit these cliches to the game consoles. Starting with one of their biggest adventure francise. With the Prince of Persia Trilogy now fully done, there's no need for a fourth title. But unfortunately, new producers and game developers feel the need to try to resurrect the series once again, reguardless of having left the trilogy on with a good note. So why the reboot if the first three were huge secesses on sales which sold over millions and millions of copies? Oh... I think I just answered my own question...
Well, the first complant I have for this game is first and foremost, the title... The title itself has nothing to do with the plot of the game. Our main hero is not even a prince and setting is not in Persia. All though in an interview with one of the producers of the game, he states that the game is set in ancient Persia, and yet through out the whole game, it explains the city's true perpose but fails mention the name or the specific century at all. So for all we know, it's just a ruined city in the middle of the dessert.
The next problem is "The Prince." Like I said before, he isn't a prince but actually a tomb raider. Yes, a common graverobber. In the instruction manual, I read the background to this character and it states that the name "The Prince" is only a nickname, yet once again, threwout the entire game, he never reveals his name, not even the nickname. So I just call him "The Drifter" because that what he pretty much claims to be.
Now with that little rant aside, let me get on with the review. The plot begins with "The Drifter" alone and lost in a sandstorm searching for his donkey, which carries a large amount of gold from his previous adventure. After the storm stops, he accidently runs into a woman named Elika who is being chased by guards. He manages to save her, but their meeting is cut short when Elika runs away and warns him not to get involved. But of course being a guy and just meeting a very gorgeous woman, he follows her anyway. After reaching their destination, they are confronted by Elika's father, The Morning King. Aparently, he is the one trying to have Elika captured. The reason being is that she is trying to restore what he has done, distroying the Tree of Life. The tree was actually a prison created in order to trap the dark God Ahriman from bringing eternal darkness threwout the world. Elika's people, the Ahura, were charged by the God of light, Ozmazd, after retreating to the stars for reasons unknown, to make sure that the dark God, his own brother, would never escape. So just think of this city as Alcatraz and Elika and the people as guards and The Morning King its warden. After many centuries of waiting for Ozmazds' return, the people began to loose all hope and like Ozmazd, they vanished as well, leaving only The King and Elika. For reasons, The King releases Ahrman in return for one wish. For what that wish might have been is not revealed until the middle of the game. When Elika discovered what he had done, she ran away from him and went to the ancient temple were the tree is kept in hope it's not too late. This is were The Drifter jumps in. For what his true intentions are, he agrees to aid in Elika's quest to heal her city from all the corruption, meaning the darkness, that Ahrman has created.
The reason why I said about the Drifter's unknown reasons for helping Elika is because that we're not sure why he's really doing it for. The game developers say that his personality is a mixture of Han Solo and Indiana Jones. After playing and observing his character, I for one, strongly disagree with that statement. The Drifter character strongly resembles to Jack Sparrow from the Priates of the Caribbean films, he really is on nobodys side. He's neither good nor evil, just someone who's pretty much along for the ride not knowing what lies instore. Another odd thing about his character, that is extremely off, is the way he speaks. The other characters speak the way they should for that era, but the Drifter talks just like another adverage smartass from the present. The kind of guy you would talk to in a sports bar while having a few beers. Almost as though he is comic relif of the game. Think of Ask from the Evil Dead series and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about...
On February 19th, 2008, the game was awarded the Outstanding Achievement in Animation at the 12th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, beating Metal Gear Solid 4, which to me is absolutely absurd. But at the same time, this award is the perfect example for todays video games. Game developers only give 100% to improving their graphics rather than their plots or game structure. Even "Final Fantasy XII" is guilty for this reason. The graphics were wonderful but the plot fell flat. Almost every game is all the same, except for one a handfull, but still, it's getting ridiculous.
I'm not going to spoil the ending, even if most of you have already beat the game, but it ends with an "to be continued" mark. That doesn't mean the game is fully over. The extra content to game must be uploaded to either your PS3 or Xbox Live Market in order to see what happens next. And no, the epilogue is not a sequel. Think of "kill Bill vol. 1 & 2" This is vol. 2. The extra level only lasts for about twenty or thirty minutes, depending on the gamer, and then the game truely ends.... with another "to be continued."
For those who haven't played this game yet, if you're a hardcore "Prince of Persia' fan, I suggest to only rent the game first then decide weather or not to perchase. If you're gamer searching for the next big adventure to your game console, keep searching....
