Reviews// Prince of Persia

One unique aspect of Prince of Persia is that the prince (and Elika) cannot be killed. He cannot be beaten in battle or plummet to his death. If the prince does miss a jump, or make a wrong decision and leaps for something that is too far away, Elika uses her magic to grasp him from the jaws of doom and return him to the last place he stood on solid ground. If he is pinned in battle, Elika will perform a magical rescue, though this will give his opponent a chance to recover some energy.

While at first this seems strange, it is no different to any other game that allows you to re-spawn from the last save point. It also has a certain logic to it regarding the question, “How in other games can you repeatedly die, and yet still be all right?” In Prince of Persia you do not die, but you do experience a setback that slows your progress.

Also, if you are truly outclassed in a battle, it can become impossible to progress with the game - instead you have to run away and progress in other ways. You are free to take this approach because Prince of Persia is completely non-linear.

At the start of the story, there are four 'Fertile Grounds' that can be accessed. With Light Seeds collected from those grounds, you can choose which Ground to open up next. Progress is interlinked, you can only reach certain areas by passing through other already opened ones. You decide which sections of the game to open up next, which gives an impression of control, but since you have no idea what a given level holds in store until you open it - it is really a bit of a lottery.

Another aspect of the game that reveals itself as you progress is the importance of the Power Plates. These are activated when you gather enough Light Seeds to activate a power at the temple. Each power produces a different colour of Power Plate, which are spread throughout the levels.

By using the power plates, the prince and Elika are magically transported through the level to areas that could not previously be reached - and this is the technique by which new areas of the game are opened up. The plates themselves appear as circular shield-like amulets on the walls of the level. They can be tricky to reach, and they form an intrinsic part of the puzzle mechanism of the game.