Prince of Persia: Warrior Within Reviewed

[AgtFox]

IGN has the review for the game coming out Dec. 3rd:

Xbox - 8.7

PS2 - 8.5

GameCube - 8.6

The most interesting thing is in the PS2 review.  Hilary Goldstein (an IGN Xbox person) did the baseline review for all the platforms, but Ivan Sulik (who used to be on IGN PC if I remember) has his additional comments on Page 4 of the review and he really rails into the game and how disappointed he is in it.

The game sounds cool, but maybe Ivan is right and UbiSoft Montreal went too far with the changes and additions.  The enemy grunt voices sound like they will annoy and the music is harder (with Godsmack providing the theme song).  Anyway, feel free to discuss.

[leo8877]

Well after reading those comments, I think I can hold off on this one until I play some other stuff.  It looks like I'll still enjoy it, but I think I'll get Metroid first.

[Devil]

I didn't like the last one - maybe I'll enjoy it this time around but definitely not IN!  :wink:

[Andrew Mallon]

The tone of the review came off much more negative than the actual score. Doesn't this Hilary person shy awap from giving low scores to hyped games? I mean, beyond IGN's usual inflated scores?

Anyway, I expect good review sites and mags to really thump this game. The demo wasn't very good. Unpolished, with horrendous music and sound effects, and dialog written by a fourth grader. Some of the platforming was OK, but the "freeform combat system" felt clunky and wasn't fluid at all. The boss battle at the end was just stupid, with  a simplistic pattern.  

Definitely not IN! as well.

[Dafones]

Aww man, that sucks. I loved Sands of Time. Now I want to hear what other sites have to say.

[TheMissingLink]

Those are kind of lower than I expected...the demo was fun.  I think the music is great...pumps you up.  Perhaps I'll pick it up.  Perhaps.

[leo8877]

On a side note, it seems that the SRP is $39.99, so that's a plus.

[Laner]

IGN has the review for the game coming out Dec. 3rd:
Ivan Sulik (who used to be on IGN PC if I remember) has his additional comments on Page 4 of the review and he really rails into the game and how disappointed he is in it.

That sucks - he seems to confirm the fears of myself and others that the changes to appeal to a broader audience only take away from what made the first one so good.

[Bullwinkle]

Yep, this is exactly what I've been fearing all along with this sequel.  It just left a bad taste in my mouth from day one.

[Andrew Mallon]

Here's what one of the guys at Voodoo Extreme had to say about the game:

Prince of Persia Warrior Within - Wow, talk about screwing up a perfectly good game. I can see no improvements over the original, just failures. Don't even get me started on the constant hard-rock soundtrack Overly combat orientated
-Crappy implementation of said combat that can see you stuck between 2 enemies without a way to escape
-Many times when the camera suddenly switches as you're running up to a jump, meaning the direction you were pushing on the stick is no longer valid for the camera, equalling death
-No quick-load from total death - fade to black, slow loading blood screen, hit load game, select game to load, slow loading of game. P.S. The crappy combat music always starts after this, even if you're in a puzzle area
-Overly obscure camera angles and equally obscure paths to next section
-No flashbacks showing section ahead
-No completion percentage figure
-Way too dark
-No feeling of the game being magical in any way
-Pre-determined fate
-Change of voice actor
-Prince now totally unlikable
-No self-talking about plot points, just random retarded screams during combat
-Too many mid-game menus popping up to tell you about a new weapon you picked up or bla
-A combos menu that you have to live in to get by certain enemies
-Lots of back-tracking
-There's a map with an objective - WTF?
-Puzzles not as clever or as immediate - few crumbling platforms leading to an overly secure sense of being
-A lame-ass unkillable bad guy
-Massive distances between save points, with water points now acting as these areas. Your health is now limited by the designers, which often causes you to die and reload due to needing a large amount for the combat sections.
-And more!

I'm still hoping that I'm wrong and this will turn out to be a good game with a few annoyances, but, man, it doesn't look good.

[EngineNo9]

Well, I had been waiting to see the results of this one since I never bought the first and had heard this was supposed to be superior in every way.  Previews are great!   :roll:   I guess I don't have to feel bad about skipping this one and just picking up a cheap copy of the first one, then.

[Andrew Wonser]

I don't know about anyone else here but all I wanted was the same game with a different story. Maybe add a few new moves but leave the rest alone. But no, they had to screw with a good thing. Hope KOTOR2 doesn't end up this way.

Oh well, there's 50 I don't have to spend.

[Dafones]

Brutal. Those VE quotes make it sound like the devs tried to take the series in a new direction that just didn't work. That being said, Game Rankings has the average of the game ranging from 85% (GC) to 89% (PC), which isn't that bad.

I guess what really disappoints me is that Sands of Time was so good, and I would have been fine with a dose of more of the same.

[aledromo]

As someone who didn't like Sands of Time and thought it might have benefitted from being more like Ninja Gaiden, I feel as though I was their target audience.  The fact that I still have no interest in their product seems to suggest that they've failed in every respect imaginable.  Shame.  I'm sorry your toy got spoiled.

[aledromo]

As someone who didn't like Sands of Time and thought it might have benefitted from being more like Ninja Gaiden, I feel as though I was their target audience.  The fact that I still have no interest in their product seems to suggest that they've failed in every respect imaginable.  Shame.  I'm sorry your toy got spoiled.

[TheMissingLink]

Oh dear, VE's comments make me cringe...that's the sound of a game I would absolutely hate - PASS!

[Jumangi]

Have been wary of the game since I herd it was coming out only a year after the first. They talked about a number of changes but was suspicious that they could do that and get a polished game out the door so soon. Looks like they didn't do it.

[ingrin]

As someone who didn't like Sands of Time and thought it might have benefitted from being more like Ninja Gaiden, I feel as though I was their target audience.  The fact that I still have no interest in their product seems to suggest that they've failed in every respect imaginable.  Shame.  I'm sorry your toy got spoiled.

That describes me as well.  I gave Sands of Time a rent, didn't get to far and wasn't drawn back to it.  It wasn't until I played NG that I realized what I didn't like about Sands of Time.  NG just clicked with me, with its focus of action over platforming.
However,
I could still appreciate Sands of Time for what it was, and had oodles of respect for it.  It appears now Ubisoft is pandering to the action market, and I find it off-putting.  My respect for the franchise, if these early reviews are correct, is gone.

[Nth Power]

I really liked the first one.  I intially hated the combat, but once I got used to it I found the blend of combat and puzzles highly enjoyable.   Once I heard the sequel was going to put an emphasis on combat, I kind of lost some interest.  While the combat was pretty to look at and somewhat fun, I liked the puzzle aspect much more.   I'll wait to hear what some others say before deciding to get this or not.  Either way, with all the other stuff I have to play, this isn't too high on my priorities.

[Jancelot]

All I wanted fixed from the first one was the camera.  It would frequently obscure the Prince during combat or flip perspective to fatal consequence.  I also felt that the original's combat was simplistic to the point that it became annoying towards the end and I just wanted to get back to the puzzles.  Although the VE points make it sound bad, the scores so far don't reflect a terrible game.  I will wait for more word of mouth, but will likely hold off as I'm replaying HL2 and will immediately dive in to KOTOR2 when it's released.

[whiteboyskim]

I flat-out loved PoP: Sands of Time. I'm a closet romantic and considering the story wound up being a love story with a ton of crafty puzzles, exciting action, and a fighting system that I enjoyed (despite being repetitive), and you have a fantastic game. When you throw in spectacular animations and visuals, an outstanding sound track, and one of the best endings then you have a game that I've replayed several times.

It's a shame to hear about the sequel, but I'll reserve judgement until I play it.

[Jancelot]

Ok, I actually read the IGN review and he does seem to still really like the game.  It's more the change in the presentation that is the issue and a slightly less emphasis on platforming.  Here's a few quotes:

From a thematic perspective, it's a step backwards, even though the gameplay remains excellent.

...

Though the dark look and feel of Warrior Within were off-putting at first, once I got past those elements, I fell in love with POP all over again.

...

As for concerns that this is an all-combat affair, Warrior Within has the same balance of platforming, puzzles, and combat as Sands.

...

The major difference between Sands and Warrior Within is the sense of urgency when platforming. Sands ... forced you to be reactive, where Warrior Within is a bit more laid back.

...

Combat in the first few hours of Warrior Within is pretty awesome ... But after a few hours, I started getting tired of the battles, just as I did in The Sands of Time.

...

there will be little debate over the sound, which just plain sucks.

...

One thing that has not been fixed with platforming is the camera.

...

this is still one of the best games you could purchase this holiday.

I realize it's only one review, but those comments make me think I might still enjoy it.  But the VE points still have me worried.

[Draco]

WW sounded a lot like Blood Rayne 2 from the previews (lots of stylish killing).  I couldn't get into the demo for PoP:SoT.   In fact, I couldn't even play it because I got stuck in that courtryard puzzle with the tall crumbly walls and vines.  I couldn't figure out how to get out of the courtyard, and just turned it off.

[ElijahPrice]

It seemed that the IGN guy was really hurtv about the thematic swithc to the dark side.  Maybe they over did it a bit but I still think this is a great game and I look at the positive points he brings out.  Liek the fighting and the graphics which both got high scores.