www.longplays.org
Played by: BimmyLee83
If you haven't played the original Prince of Persia and are curious, try to get hold of the PC or Amiga version instead (or if you can dig up an Apple II and play the original version, that would be good, too). The NES port is inferior to the aforementioned versions, but it isn't without a redeeming factor or two.
The sound effects are okay for an NES game. The music? I should've turned it off.
The control is inconsistent and a bit problematic at times. You have to be extremely careful while running (as you do in the other ports, but even moreso here) because there seems to be more of a delay between the time you let off of the directional pad and the time Prince stops running, which can land you at the bottom of a fatal drop or in a batch of spikes pretty easily. Creeping is much safer, but much more time consuming. Other times when you're trying to grab onto a ledge after a jump or fall, Prince simply won't. Instead, he'll bounce off the wall and fall - most likely - to his death. As for the combat, I found the swordplay to be kind of fun once you get down the timing for attacking and blocking and it helps break the monotony of stretches of running and jumping.
The graphics are what I remember most about this game. Not so much as in character or level detail, but in character animations...being that Prince of Persia is one of the first games (if not THE first) I've ever seen to utilize motion-capture animation. Of course, it was scaled down drastically for this port, but that's to be expected. That being said, the design itself is average. The color palette is limited to two background color schemes throughout the course of 14 levels. But the colors that are used are treated nicely, with just the right touches of lighting and shading. Not bad.
Overall, not a terrible game, but I'd stick with the other ports.
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