Warrior Within

By taking a look at the title, a smart gamer can tell I played through the Prince of Persia 2 demo.
Here's what I got from it:

1) this game NEEDS a controller. The keyboard didn't necessarily make things harder, but it makes it far more difficult to maneuver and attack with precision. Make no mistake: get this game for a console, or get a gamepad.

2) POP 2 is supposed to have a beefed up, "branching" combat system. From playing the demo I really wouldn't know; the tutorial tells you what buttons to press for different attacks, but not what you are actually doing. It appears as if there's a new "grab" style button that can be used in tandem wtih jump and attack, and creates some really flashy moves. It also seems that the moves can be linked combo style, but it may have simply appeared to be that way due to my incessant button mashing. The game is also supposed to introduce new ways for the prince to interact with the environment during combat. Other than the usual wall attacks (which seem to be even more important this time around), I only saw one new move in which the prince spins aroudn a pole, kicking and slashing his foes. Pretty cool, but I wanted to see more, which unfortunately the demo didn't provide. There is also two weapon fighting, which actually mixes things up a bit by giving you control over each weapon (as opposed to hitting attack and having the prince wildly slash). There are also different types of weapons you can hold, but I didn't see any differences in how they behave. To sum up the combat: At its very worst its the same as in the original POP, which is not a bad thing. There are certainly some new additions, but in honesty the demo could have done a better job at highlighting them.

3) The graphics are for the most part similar to the original. Textures on the PC version are obviously better, and there are some new touches added with the water and flame effects. Other than that, its looks a lot the same (which is still solid in my book).

4) When I say looks the same, however, I only mean it from a purely technical standpoint, as the art direction is completely different. The original POP could best be described as having an ancient egypt/persian style that makes you think "Arabian Nights". For the fun, but not ultra serious adventure that it was, the setting was perfect. POP 2 goes in the completely different direction. In order to match the game's theme of death and destruction, this game is dark, brooding, almost depressing. When I first learned of the game I agreed that this was the best direction to take the series in; it not only makes for strong character development, but sets up the Prince for even greater conflicts and makes him more human. The fact that the game is getting an M rating also made me believe that Ubi Soft was more concerned in making the game they wanted to make than getting the coveted extra sales a Teen rating provides. Instead the demo makes me believe that the "mature" content is there in hopes that the excessant violence and gore will help boost popularity like it has in GTA, Silent Hill and (probably) the new Bloodrayne.

First off, there's blood everywhere. The logo, the loading screen, the character deaths.... you can't even walk past a wall without seeing a blotch of red. I know they are trying for a darker, morbid tone, but it gets a little ridiculous. Second, the monsters are still generic demon/sand monster types. The orignal POP had some clever designs with its sand monsters, but I want something a little different for the sequel. Instead we get what seem to be either holdovers from the orignal, or creatures we've seen before in a thousand other games.

Also, what's with the rock music? I always figured a game like this would go great with an epic muscial score. Instead we get Godsmack-esque rock playing during fights. At first it seemed to go along well, but after a while it almost felt cheesy and innapropriate. There's only one reason I can think of for its inclusion, and that's for an added "cool" factor.

One last note: the demo was somewhat buggy at the end. The final boss got stuck on things often, and couldn't be injured. I actually couldn't beat it because of this

Conclusion: I am going to own Warrior Within eventually, if not at launch then when it goes down in price. I enjoyed Sands of Time too much not to own its sequel. As with any good game, however, one always hopes the sequel will be even bigger and better, while retaining the things that made the original so great. The POP 2 demo proved the game should be just as good as its predecessor, but I was hard pressed to find anything that proved it would go above and beyond. Indeed, it actually made me concerned that Ubi Soft, dissapointed with the poor sales of Sands of Time, are going to concentrate on making the game cooler-than-school in order to better attract the mass market (those ads on the internet with "uncut footage" are sure to entice 'em) rather than continue to build upon the great gameplay formula they started. Only time will tell.