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62 of 63 found the following review helpful:
Much different approachDec 05, 2004
By T. Sparks I was pleasantly suprised by Ubisoft's other Prince of Persia offering--the Sands of Time--when I picked it up on clearance several months ago. The game had an undeniable charm, and, while the level structure needed some work, it was a great game.
The Warrior Within, however, takes a drastically different approach, both graphically and story-wise. Gone are the magnificent towers and palaces that filled Sands of Time, replaced instead with dank, gritty dungeons and fortresses. The game is much more dark, reflected in the voice acting, the music, and the overall story. I, for one, don't mind this change as much, but I know that it's a sticking point with some other gamers.
Graphics--I was actually slightly disappointed by the character models when I first started the game--they seemed a little bit too stiff for my liking. Perhaps it's because the FMV sequences are truely excellent. However, I became used to the graphical style quickly. 4/5 stars.
Gameplay--the game really shines here, as it's possible to pull off insane combos. I was worried that I would be relegated to simply mashing buttons, but I picked up on the "free-form fighting" system relatively quickly, and before I knew it, I was swinging around posts, bounding over enemies, propelling myself off of walls, and chopping off heads with the best of them. 5/5.
Sound--this is where Warrior Within suffers. The soundtrack is bearable in most locations, although industrial music is a very weird partnering for a game set in ancient Persia. I happen to like industrial music, but I can see how this would irritate some. Voice acting is OK, but the Prince has a new voice actor this time around. Some of the lines--particularly where the Prince curses--seem forced. 3/5.
Story--the story is interesting, although Ubisoft seems to have gone off the deep end. Sands of Time offered a very satisfying story that wrapped up neatly. But with Warrior Within . . . BOOM, just like that the Prince is running for his life. The story isn't bad, it's just that it doesn't jive with the previous game like I think it should. 4/5.
Well worth the $50 I spent on it, I'm hoping that Ubisoft continues the Prince of Persia series.
15 of 16 found the following review helpful:
A Darker "Prince," Not a Better "Prince"May 22, 2005
By --
"--"
"Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" was a phenomenal game, and delivering a follow-up in just under a year is always a tricky proposition. However, that is exactly what developer Ubisoft Montreal did with "The Warrior Within," a mostly worthy successor that unfortunately takes about as many steps forward as it takes backward.
In a strange turn, "Warrior Within" trades in the storybook style of its predecessor for a hard-edged vibe, denoted by the series' switch from a "Teen" rated game in "Sands of Time" to its current "Mature" verdict. The prince continues his adventure as a darksome pirate, less boyish and more sinister, haunted by his past and the beast his actions unleashed. This beast, known as the Dahaka, pursues him relentlessly, it seems, giving him not a moment's rest. It devours everything in its wake, and the only way it can be stopped, the prince decides, is to find the mysterious Empress of Time... and kill her. It's an interesting switch in tone from the first game, but not an entirely successful one. The mood of "Sands" was considerably more original than what's offered up here, and the absence of Farah as a pivotal character is a sad loss to the franchise. Still, it suffices even if it's easy to mourn the alteration.
Gameplay remains much the same, which is a great thing. The prince still has all the same nifty moves at his disposal (plus a few more), and is as nimble and easy to control as ever. In a curious plot hole, the character now lacks the dagger of time but can still rewind it provided he has enough sand in his possession - which is welcome, because this was the stand-out feature of the game's predecessor, and given the harder difficulty of this follow-up it's more useful than ever. Whether or not it makes logical sense from a story perspective is relatively moot. In any case, more time-shifting abilities crop up as the game proceeds, most of them aimed at helping the prince survive in battle.
Speaking of battle, this is an area of "Warrior Within" that has seen much improvement, as combat was the weakest link in the "Sands of Time" chain. The new blood and dismemberment options still seem remarkably out of character, but the action itself is integrated much more skillfully into the gameplay - which is good, since combat plays a noticeably larger role this time around. The moves at the prince's disposal are much more effective than they were previously, allowing for more interesting combos and environmental attacks that sometimes prove necessary in surviving some rather challenging fights.
Boss encounters are another new addition in "Warrior Within," as there are several interspersed throughout. These are interesting in that while they are, for the most part, a welcome feature, the majority of combos are discouraged thanks to each boss's uncanny ability to block these kinds of attacks. Instead, defeating these nefarious characters basically involves lots and lots of rolling and flipping while occasionally coming in for a simple stab or slash, then repeating the process until they eventually die. These could have provided a great opportunity to rely on the game's new, more complex maneuvers, but instead they dissolve into a stick-and-move routine that's only so exciting.
Perhaps the coolest addition to the game, however, is the Dahaka itself, which periodically pops up and forces the prince to flee for his life, usually over lots and lots of obstacles that get in his way. This provides a nice change of pace, adding loads of tension when it works at its best. Unfortunately, sometimes the camera's positioning during these sequences works against you, cropping out the dangers you're fleeing towards. Mostly, though, it's a rush of intense gameplay that shakes up the experience in a positive way.
But despite the new and improved combat and the occasional Dahaka-haunted obstacle course, "Warrior Within" is a mere shadow of its predecessor's former glory, thanks in part to the shift in tone, but more importantly to its overall less impressive design. The hub system in the game artificially lengthens the experience, and not in a good way. Lots and lots of backtracking is required, and prepare to see the same environments over and over again during the course of the journey. What's more, sometimes it is extremely unclear what you are supposed to be doing, and where it needs to be done at, and given the massive environment, which you can roam almost freely, it can become rather mind-boggling and out and out aggravating. The first game just felt tighter, like a well-oiled machine. Not so with regards to the sequel.
All in all, "Warrior Within" is certainly a very good game, but a disappointment as well. Hopefully a third installment will find a happy medium in terms of its tone, but more importantly add the much improved combat to a game that is less confounding and sharper in its design. In the end, though, "Sands of Time" is a tough act to follow, but, for the most part, its successor does its job admirably.
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
A preview of a worthy sequel...(rating based on first-look)Nov 23, 2004
By Abhilash.R
"The Sagittarian"
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.
8 of 9 found the following review helpful:
what did they do?Jan 10, 2005
By karsutch so....i was really looking forward to this game.....man....what a let down.
graphics: not nearly as majestic and awe inspiring as the last
story: eh....decent concept, fun idea....however, over the top.
character: this is the biggest issue for me, although i am one of the few who loved the prince's voice work in SoT, they totally switched it now...so the american from persia? really? who swears? ok? no not really a good idea...whoever made this decision to not use the same voice artist was a moron.
and we lost ALL of the charm from the first one....the jokes, the prince talking to himself....everything...done..gone...ruined.
Fighting....well...i enjoy some of the new moves, the two weapon fighting...but there is too much fighting....
the great thing about SoT was that it was a platform game...a big puzzle with story and purpose....this one seems to have lost sight of all of that.
although the platforming in this game is challenging....it's not nearly as much fun as SoT...
saves....a decent idea to have the fountains be saves, but a few more fountains placed throughout would have been nice....yeah i'm a pansy when it comes to my game play, i like to be able to heal without having to start over the whole level from the last save....
sound...GET YOUR OLD COMPOSER BACK....AND HAVE HIM KICK THE LIVING CRAP OUT OF WHOEVER DID THE MUSIC FOR THIS ONE....AND IF IT'S THE SAME GUY.....end his career....now.
other than crap dialogue and REALLY crap voice work.....sound effects were great.
SoT is one of my favorite games EVER. and it hurts to not like it's sequel....if i had the ability..i would go back in time and tell the people at Ubisoft to scrap the idea and start over.....
ahhh if only i could rewind.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
Aggravating like no otherJan 12, 2005
By D. B. Cooper Let's first be clear: I own the first Prince of Persia game and love it. I could not put the controller down with that one. Warrior Within is another story altogether. It is easily the most irritating game I've ever played. The graphics and sound are fantastic, some of the best that I've seen and heard. But that's where the good things end. The control is obnoxious as it seems not to matter which direction you are aiming towards, the prince will attack wherever he chooses. I found it next to impossible to accurately position and move the prince during even the most simple moves, let alone during intense combat. Save points are few and far between, carefully placed at the end of very difficult stretches of game play. I often found myself doing and redoing the same 15-20 minute stretch of game ad nauseam. I can only assume that this was done to lengthed the total time of gameplay, but it serves only to add frustration, not enjoyment. Finally, enemies require far more swipes with the sword than the Prince himself does, and considering they outnumber him about 1000 to 1, you better be prepared to invest heavily in some depressant of your choice to ease the irritation.
To ubisoft: Thank you for the not too subtle reminder of why you should always TRY before you BUY, regardless of how good the prequel was.
To anyone considering the purchase of this game: I would suggest you do the same.
based on 55 reviews
( 55 customer reviews )
