Prince of Persia: Sands of Time

by Ubisoft

Product Features

• Experience betrayal and triumph in this suspense-filled action adventure
• Uncover the mysteries of exotic worlds and vast kingdoms
• Advanced physics, lighting, graphics, animations, and more
• Gravity-defying acrobatics, ferocious lighting combos, and the ability to bend time
• Control the past, future, and present in real-time for unlimited gameplay

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B0000A1VEU
• Item Weight: 4 ounces
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: December 2, 2003
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,060 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

In medieval Persia, Earth's mightiest and most mysterious kingdom, a king and his son defeat the powerful Maharajah, looting his palace of priceless treasure, including an extravagant hourglass and a mysterious dagger. What the Prince does not realize is that these two objects can turn their possessor into an immortal god, and give him control over time itself. Tricked by a dying Vizier bent on harnessing this terrible magic for himself, the Prince releases the Sands of Time, destroying a kingdom and turning its populace into ferocious demons. Now, it is up to the young Prince of Persia to call upon every resource and ounce of courage he possesses to save his kingdom and redeem his fatal mistake.

Features:

• A technological masterpiece: witness some of the most advanced programming in gaming history, pushing the limitations of consoles and raising the standards of games in all areas of production: physics, lighting, graphics, animations, and more!
• An unmatched hero: wielding powers of mythic proportions, the Prince returns to action-adventure gaming with gravity-defying acrobatics, ferocious lighting combos, and the ability to bend time to fulfill his destiny.
• The Sands of Time: Ubisoft's Montreal Studio presents the Sands of Time--a technological breakthrough that will change the face of action-adventure gaming forever. Erase the past, behold the future, and freeze the present in real-time for unlimited gameplay variations.
• Exotic worlds and vast kingdoms: Uncover the mysteries of a world never before explored in action-adventure gaming. Medieval Persia, mythical and deadly, holds a staggering array of landscapes and kingdoms to explore and conquer.
• A sweeping adventure of betrayal and triumph: the epic legends and deadly creature of mythic Persia burn to life in this suspense-filled tale, featuring more twists and turns than the labyrinthine Palace itself.

Product Description

In my quest for redemption...not even my death canstop meProduct InformationIn medieval Persia Earth’s mightiest and most mysterious kingdom a kingand his son defeat the powerful Maharajah and kidnap his daughter looting hispalace of priceless treasure including an extravagant hourglass and amysterious dagger.  What the Prince does not realize is that these twoobjects can turn their possessor into an immortal god and give him control overtime itself. Tricked by a dying Vizier bent on harnessing this terrible magicfor himself the Prince releases the sands of time destroying a kingdom andturning its populace into ferocious demons. Only the Prince the Vizier andPrincess Farah the kidnapped daughter of the Maharajah remain unchanged. Nowit is up to the young Prince of Persia to call upon every resource and ounce ofcourage he possesses to save his kingdom and redeem his fatal mistake.The Sands of Time is a strange and mystical force that allows players toseamlessly bend the fabrics of time granting them a number of astoundingpowers.  In terms of gameplay these powers grant The Prince the ability tofight harder fight fearlessly and fight with more strategic flexibility. There are five known powers of the Sands of Time: The Power of Revival: Face danger with the ability to journey back in time. The Power of Delay: Slow the passing of time The Power of Restraint: Freeze enemies in time while you remain moving. The Power of Haste: Accelerate the passing of time and slash enemies at the speed of light The Power of Destiny: Behold startling visions of the future Product FeaturesA technological masterpieceWitness some of the most advanced programming in gaming history pushing thelimitations of consoles and raising the standards of games in all areas ofproduction: physics lighting graphics animations and more!An unmatched heroWielding powers of mythic proportions the Prince returns toaction-

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Absolute Blast!, March 4, 2004

By 

Kala (Ft Lauderdale, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (CD-ROM)

Let me start off by saying this is one of the best games I've played in a LONG time! I thoroughly enjoyed it and I beat it within a few days because I couldn't stop playing it. And I barely ever take the time to finish games. ;) I never played any other Prince of Persia games, so I don't know how true it is to the previous versions.

I played the PC version, which took a little getting used to. The controls are a little awkward, but once you figure them out it's easy enough. The only time I had real control issues was during battles. I tend to use the "W" key the most to move, but when the camera angles suddenly change, "W" doesn't go the same direction it did before causing some frustration during tough battles!

There is a battle early on in the game which is EXTREMELY difficult. I had a horrible time beating it, I probably replayed it 60 or 70 times before I got it. The bad guys in this game are especially tough because first you have to kill them with your sword, then you have to stab them with your dagger (if you don't, they come back to life). They also teleport, so if you try to run away, they just teleport to where you are. My strategy during a lot of battles was to run away until one teleported to me, kill that one, then run the opposite direction and repeat. After beating that tough battle though, the rest of the battles in the game seemed almost easy. I guess that battle is like a learning experience. ;)

Most of the game is made up of puzzles and boobytraps you have to figure out and get around. Intermixed are a few battles here and there. The storyline is really cute, I loved it. Normally the storylines in these types of games are pretty cheesy, but I really got in to this one. :) The graphics are pretty good, though I did crack up a little when one of the characters would be talking and whenever they opened their mouth, you could see the wall behind them through their head. ;)

The one disappointment I had is that the end is very anticlimactic. The big bad guy is someone you fight all alone and he's incredibly easy to beat. I beat him the first try in only a few minutes. Other than that, I really enjoyed the game. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed a game this much! And this is only the second or third game I've ever played through to completion. I'd LOVE a sequel or expansion, because while the game was great, it's not as fun to play again when you already can answer all the puzzles. ;) 5 stars though, despite a few minor faults it's by far one of the best games on the market right now.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful game, with a few small flaws, November 30, 2003

By 

Chris (UT, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (CD-ROM)

This game is definitely a worthy sequel to the original. The graphics are gorgeous, the controls are very easy and efficient, and the gameplay is solid. As you progress through the levels pulling off tricks to avoid traps, oftentimes you'll find yourself amazed that you were able to do such a trick.

The combat system is very fluid and amazing. The prince can flip over his enemies and attack from behind, can vault off of walls and objects to slam into them, and can even use his magical dagger to freeze time itself for his enemies.

The poor parts of the game mainly focus on tedium and the camera. While the game is gorgeous and fun to play, the combat can wear thin. Very rarely can you fight against just a few enemies, they tend to come at you four at a time, and there are frequently waves of around sixteen (Four, then four more, then four more, etc). This is fun at first, but gets very tedious later on when defeating enemies relies very much on precise timing.

The other downfall of the game is the camera itself is very difficult to control. Frequently you may end up fighting where the whole screen is obscured by a tapestry or drape, or fighting where the camera is stuck behind a column, making it combat much more difficult. The same goes for doing puzzles. Frequently you may have troubles seeing the wall you have to run up, or the bar you'll need to jump to, making many puzzles harder than they'll need to be.

All in all it's a very interesting and fun game that's hampered by a couple issues, but still an absolute blast to play!

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Stick to one of the console versions, June 11, 2004

By 

bayou_hannibal "bayou_hannibal" (West Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (CD-ROM)

Prince of Persia must have been a fantastic game on a Gamecube, PS2, or X-Box. On the PC, it shows signs of greatness, but the awful controls and camera movements make it too frustrating to play for an extended period of time.

Maybe console gamers are used to this, or maybe it just worked better on consoles, but as a PC player, I want simple functions, like being able to look up and down with the mouse. In PoP, you can't even freelook with the mouse unless you press a special key to enter first person mode. The mouse and keyboard provides so many efficient camera control methods that there is no excuse for not getting this right. The camera angle in Prince of Persia shifts every five seconds or so. Seriously. I never got used to it while playing the whole game. This caused me to die numerous times while fighting or trying to make a precise jump, as the "left" key would suddenly become "up". Perhaps console gamers are more used to this, but it drove me beserk.

Then there's the controls. This game was just not made for a mouse and keyboard. I hated the battles in this game because of the controls. Between the controls and the camera angles, I found that combat basically becomes a crude mouse-clicking affair, where you occasionally hit the "E" key to finish off prone enemies or freeze them. I could never quite get the Prince to do what I wanted him to do. There's an enemy to my right. Press "D" to move right and Left Click to attack. So the Prince wheels around and attacks a guy behind him instead. These types of moments will repeatedly pop up during combat and force you to get killed. Until you discover the overpowered Wall Spring move, which kills everyone in one hit. Even if you have done that, sometimes the Princess that you are escorting around gets stuck annoyingly in a group of enemies and gets killed.

What a shame, because I wanted to love this otherwise outstanding game. In this game you get to play the ultimate acrobatic hero. The Prince has a lot of cool moves, and they never get old to pull off or watch. His animations are so smooth, that they are incredible to watch. Every room is filled with traps, levers, or deep chasms and ultimately presents a puzzle to be solved. There is a very satisfying challenge in figuring out how to use all of the Prince's special abilities to navigate across each area. Solving the puzzles in the game is immensely satisfying.

The story doesn't sound like much on paper, but like many games, it's the way that you are immersed in the story that makes it great. The chivalrous, brave young man gets the beautiful girl and saves the day. It's not entirely original, but it's just so well done here. The Prince and The Princess exchange a lot of dialog, and that is what makes the romance between them so enjoyable, and also believable. It's hard to not like both characters.

But playing this game was like having a great dream -- and then getting woken up by the alarm clock. The control and camera issues get in the way of so many potentially great moments. Potentially easy challenges take two or three frustrating tries. If you own a console, I would recommend that you play this game there.