|
 The
sleeper hit of 2003 is officially now the sleeper
of 2004. Almost everything you loved about the first
game has been altered beyond recognition which results
in Warrior Within falling way behind the coveted "Better
than the original!" marketing cry. Inexplicably
the aspects of The Sands Of Time that most players
complained about, namely the endless battling of foes
has returned in spades and it's not only repetitive
beyond all reason, it's also a lot less forgiving
this time around. You also won't find the dreamy storybook
facade that permeated the first game; instead you'll
be faced with a dark, violent and gory tale which
would be more at home if Vin Diesel was shooting and
slicing his way through it. All I can say is: Ubi
Soft Montreal - "Wha' Happen?" Sands of
Time wasn't broken to the point of needing this much
reconstructive surgery! Maybe a nick and tuck here,
but who the hell told you to do this?
The
story picks up where the Prince left off in the original.
The result of unleashing the Sands Of Time has created
an evil entity known as The Dahaka, and it's coming
for the Prince. There is no way to stop this unstoppable
force so with time on his side, our hero decides to
go back in time and kill the Empress of Time so that
the Sands of Time won't be created. Terminator anyone?
Your adventure begins on the Island of Time and will
continue here until you beat the game 12-20 hours
later depending on your skill level and utter confusion
as to where to go and what to do later in the game
compliments of the non-linear nature of the game.
Much like children, certain games need boundaries
and allowing our protagonist to free roam through
the environments as well as through time itself -
in effect doubling the possibility as to where to
go - causes too much confusion, backtracking and frustration
later on. The non-linear aspect is an admirable attempt
at realism but WW needed to be roped in far more than
it is. If you disagree with me, chances are you either
haven't played this game or you haven't gotten that
far into it to know what I'm talking about. But you
will. Cue maniacal laughter....
 Since
borrowing the plot from Terminator wasn't below them,
Ubi Soft Montreal decided to incorporate a little
bit of Soul Reaver and Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of
Time gameplay into the mix as well. The Prince will
have to traverse the islands many dangers in the past
and present, which depending on when
you are, the structural integrity of the islands architecture
may be suspect. This mechanic translates into lots
of backtracking through the same environments (past
and present) and unfortunately it gets a little old.
The
beauty and simplicity of Sands of Time lay directly
at the feet of the level design. Each area was either
a puzzle in which the gamer had to discern the safest
way to get from point A to point B by completing a
handful of brilliantly executed platfom challenges
or a battleground, infested with any number of enemies
which had to be slain before continuing. As mentioned,
most of us loved the platforming elements but felt
the repetitive battles with ever increasing enemies
was too much. Warrior Within builds on the platforming
aspects somewhat while maintaining realistic environments
to flip, wall run and swing in and only the chase
scenes with Dahaka gum up the smooth freeflowing aspect
of this area in the game. While the chase scenes are
new to the series and a welcome addition, the camera
angles chosen for them are undeniably cosmetic and
will result in some of the most infuriating passages
you'll encounter.
Certainly
the Prince was no slouch in the combat department
when we last saw him and he's now even more prepared
to battle undead sand creatures thanks to his new
dual wielding ability. Ubi Soft spent a lot of time
increasing the Prince's already impressive repertoire
of moves and attacks by adding violent combos which
must be performed with two weapons. There are a vast
array of secondary weapons located around the island
which you can find lying around or confiscate from
fallen enemies, but the catch is that they won't last
very long. One move you might exploit later on is
the ability to throw enemies off the sides of ledges
so that they won't bother you any longer, making large
scale battles much easier to control. The combat execution
is fantastic and it's a real gas to be able to flip
around enemies with such flair and style, thanks to
the outstanding animation of The Prince. The fighting
eventually gets to be too much and bogs down the flow
of the game in later levels which was disappointing
for me. As they say, "Too much of a good thing...."
As
in the last game you'll have to rely heavily on your
time powers. You can still rewind time if you buy
the farm during a battle or a platform challenge and
you can also slow down and speed up time to help in
these areas as well.
 Boss
battles were few and far between in the original so
Ubi Soft Montreal decided to up the ante and place
boss battles in wherever they would fit into WW. No
amount of combos or dual wielding will help. Blocking,
patience and taking the odd swipe is all you'll get
to do. It's as if the developers are forcing you to
hear the repartee between the boss and the Prince
and it ain't over until the talkings done. At least
that's how I felt. If the King from Amadeus were reviewing
this he'd say "Too many fights." Damn straight,
King.
The
visual presentation of Warrior Within is much darker
in tone than SoT and you might be a little taken aback
when the first head lops off and rolls by you. Equally
as dark and foreboding is the environments and enemies
you'll face. The cavalier atmosphere in the SoT gives
way to despair in WW and you'll notice the shift in
ambience the moment the game starts. Visually the
game is excellent. The animation of the Prince is
on par with Team Ninja's incredibly detailed Dead
Or Alive characters and the surroundings are realistic,
gritty and finely detailed right down to the most
insignificant blade of grass. The framerate is consistent
as well throughout the game although you might find
it bog down here and there when too many enemies appear
onscreen at once.
The
audio portion of WW is an unexpected kick in the arse.
The Prince is now voiced by a Sam Fisher/Wolverine
soundalike, instead of the softspoken accented hero
of SoT and its presence is most jarring. What you
have here is a Canadian development team trying to
appeal to middle America by "Americanizing"
the hero and it's a down and dirty shame, not to mention
ludicrous and quite unnecessary. However it's right
in line with changing everything that wasn't broken
in the first game to arrive at something less than
expected. In case it was overlooked....he's the Prince
of Persia...you know, Iran? Now he has more in common
with Disney's Alladin, another westernized eastern
hero. God forbid we should be forced to play as another
ethnic group, I mean, San Andreas was bad enough!
</sarcasm> Maybe next years: The Fresh Prince
of Persia will be voiced by Snoop Dogg. "Hey
Sand mother ******, put this dagger in yo fo-shizzle
de nizzle, baby!"
 Players
will also encounter drops of audio here and there
throughout the game and I'm not sure if this occurs
in the other console versions as well. The voices
of the female characters were a little out of the
ordinary as well. I've never had bosses come on to
me before....interesting. The soundtrack fits right
along side the low talking hero cliche. Heavy metal
guitar, bass and drum riffs "compliment"
the action and again, you'll be looking for Vin Diesel.
Gamers
disappointed with the short adventure of SoT will
delight in knowing that WW goes on much longer. Unfortunately
as I've heard (and possibly from some of the female
bosses in this game) longer isn't necessarily better.
If WW had wrapped up a few dozen brawls and numerous
backtracking episodes earlier, I wouldn't have minded
a bit. As it is, the length just seems to be tacked
on anyway due to the brawls and backtracking so since
nothing really new is happening, just end it already.
As
far as extras, nothing as cool is unlocked as compared
to last years hidden versions of PoP, PoP 2 and a
3D remake of the first level of the original game
developed by Jordan Mechler (all extras were console
specific). Many development teams are opting for unlockable
art galleries which doesn't seem like much of a reward
when you consider what you'll have to endure to locate
all of the items (which then in turn unlocks various
art). It's a current trend with game developers who
want to give their audience something, but for some
reason isn't sure what that something should be. It's
as if they're completely unaware of the value placed
on game altering codes by the people who purchase
their games. Many companies have yet to figure out
that instead of shortening the playability of the
game (simply allow codes to be unlocked at the end
of the game, thus giving gamers an incentive to finish),
cool codes give the game a surge in interest, which
keeps the game on the tip of gamers tongues.
 If
you've made it this far you'll know I'm disappointed
in Warrior Within. Too many redeeming aspects of SoT
were altered to accomodate more frustration and more
repetition and that's never a welcome change. Warrior
Within looks great, plays well and features some excellent
platforming and devious puzzles and yet even though
each of these aspects succeed seperately, when put
together they don't form a cohesive gaming experience.
I don't think I've met anyone who was a bigger proponent
for the Prince's first adventure on the next gen consoles
than I was, but Warrior Within just strays too far
off the beaten path for me to recommend it as a blind
purchase. That's not to say it's not worth playing
- Warrior Within is an entertaining game with some
critical flaws in its foundation, just know that going
in.
|
Hands
On: It's been almost a year since the release of
Prince Of Persia, a game that was simply fantastic even
with a few flaws in the controls. It also was a victim
of the Christmas rush and had competition against its
own makers in the way of Splinter Cell.
At
first glance, I was amazed at the graphics. They had
a dark and eerie look to them although very detailed.
This dark look was maintained throughout the game.
The music and sound effects are also done very well
and fit the game. The action started immediately.
There was a small army awaiting the Prince and the
first battle began. The battle system has been beefed
up. Now the Prince can wield two weapons or keep a
spare and do battle with just one. During my first
battle, I also noticed that the Prince could now pull
off combo attacks and chain them together. This comes
in handy to fill up the 3-hour glasses he carries.
I also soon learned this game was bloodier than the
last one. I do not mean they went crazy with the blood.
It fits the story, but I was shocked the first time
I flipped over an enemy, grabbed his hair, completed
a back-flip and was able to decapitate the nasty dude.
I was a little surprised that the game is going to
be rated "M", however, after seeing the
fighting and the gore I know now why. 
The
battle action is intense. Even with the intense action,
I noticed that while the level filled up with a ton
of enemies, there was no slow down on the screen.
You will get a few tutorial tips while the combat
is going on. I have to say the action is that intense
at times that I never got to read the tips. Now with
all this action going on and blood splattering everywhere,
the game's camera followed my every move in a great
angle. This was something the last game at times had
a little trouble with. The biggest difference in the
battles in this game is that you can also use the
Prince's agility and acrobatic skills to your advantage.
In fact you will need to. If you just stand there
and fight all the time, sooner or later the enemies
will find away to trap you. It will mean a quick death.
The controls handle great and after a little time
of playing you will get use to them again. I even
had a hard time remembering that I had to pull in
the left trigger to turn back time. I liked the fact
when I face one of the huge bosses, it required me
to use my brain and not just my weapons. I do not
want to spoil anything for those waiting for the game.
Let's just say that the old saying "brains and
brawn go hand in hand" fits perfectly here. 
The
game is not going to be a cakewalk by any means. I
wish I could say I breezed through the demo and every
enemy. I won't for a few reasons. The first reason
is that it's not true. The second is the fact Vaughn
would laugh at this point in my preview. After my
time with the demo, I popped in the last game just
to see the difference with the look of the game and
the Prince himself. I was really amazed at the difference
and how the demo was truly darker in its overall looks.
I had a fun time with the demo and look forward to
the full version that is on its way in December. It
is interesting to hear that they are going to have
downloads that will include new levels of the game.
It looks like this one is going to live up to everyone's
expectations. Do I think this one is worth buying?
My answer is simply this if you liked the last game,
you're going to be in for a huge surprise when you
get your hands on this one.
