Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow & The Flame

The Good
The graphics are much more varied than the previous game and there are also new traps and enemies. There is now background music (even if its not very good) and a better storyline.

The Bad

This is one of the most difficult games I've ever played. The new puzzles and enemies are much tougher. To rub this in the save points are frequently a long way apart. Add onto this that you frequently have to use trial and error to find out what you are supposed to do and you have a recipe for the most frustrating game since Another World. After spending about 2 hours repeatedly trying to complete a small section in level 10 my keyboard was in severe danger of being thrown against the wall!

When I finally got there I found out that the last level is nearly impossible unless you have collected enough of the greater health potions in the earlier levels. There was no way I was playing through all those levels again so I gave in and cheated.

The Bottom Line
If the difficultly was toned down a bit this would have been an improvement to Prince of Persia. But as it is playing this game is definitely not what I'd call fun. I could only recommend it to either completists or masochists.

The Good
The graphics are quite nice, although I can openly say that they aren't half as fluid as the prequel's... also, the storyline is wider although I must say that it gets kinda cheesy along the way.. but hey, it's a mystic Arabian Nights tale so it's understandable =)

The Bad
Some of the puzzles are really, really, REALLY bizarre and very possibly too difficult to figure out.

The Bottom Line
An acceptable sequel to a platform of legendary value.

The Good
PoP2 ups the ante over the classic original hit by generally taking the same basic formula, technically upgrading it and coating the whole thing with a larger and far more thrilling sense of adventure.

As in the original, you play a dashing persian prince caught in the power struggle of the Grand Vizier Jaffar (tm) who wants to take over the throne by marrying the king's daughter. You get caught in the middle and get to play the hero simply because you are in love with that stupid princess which may be cliched but has served a certain plumber more than enough times, right?. Anyway, you thought you had killed the bozo in the original and having married the babe thought your problems looong gone. However the Vizier is back from the dead and magically disguised himself as you. Branding yourself as an fake you face death at the hands of the palace guards, and in a mad escape from the palace you end up stranded on some far away land while the princess (once again) awaits death in two hours at the hands of Jaffar. Ahhh... I smell some pressure plates waiting to be activated and some Vizier's ass waiting to be kicked.

The first obvious upgrade over the original comes in the technical front end. The sound and music is just ages away from the original, but what's really is amazing is the graphic upgrade. I mean, the game just looks beautiful when compared over the original and that's considering the already amazing character sprites and their fantastic animations. Now, thanks to fully VGA graphics, the sprites also sport vivid colors and such details as distinct clothing and weapons. And the backgrounds are now vividly detailed locations that set a much more distinct tone than the generic dungeon background of the original, with varied color schemes and details that set them appart from the rest. Truly the game is gorgeous, including the most beautiful examples of early VGA bitmap graphics and setting the tone in every screen including the beautiful cloudy-sky opening screen or the "meanwhile" screen that shows how much time the princess has and which takes the form of a magic tree that slowly loses it's leaves...

Gameplay-wise not much has changed from PoP, with the game still being a non-scrolling platformer with the same tight controls and carrying the same blend of jumping puzzles, trap avoidance, puzzle solving and swordfighting that made the original such a hit. There are however minor additions to the formula, mostly in the form of deeper puzzles that incorporate different elements aside from the ever-present pressure plates and which include different objectives such as getting a magic sword, activating a machine or releasing a magic carpet as opposed to just moving on to the next level as in the original. You also have the brand new feature (awarded to you mid-game) of separating your shadow from your body which deepens the gameplay by incorporating new strengths but also limiting your actions (being weightless means you cannot activate those plates for instance).

The really big improvement from the original in my opinion however, is the amplified scope of the adventure. I mean, for as fun as it was, the original game was just a dungeon crawl. PoP2 takes you out of the dungeon and takes you through all sorts of exciting locales from the Persian marketplace to an abandoned island, to a ruined temple to a magic castle, etc. etc. You'll get to face human guards as well as skeleton warriors, eagle humanoids, snakes and other supernatural creatures while you'll also get to ride magic carpets, flying unicorns and other adventures in your quest to return to Persia and kick Jaffar's ass. There's no question about it: Prince of Persia's sequel takes grand adventuring to it's limits and provides a much more thrilling and varied experience than the original.

The Bad
I'm not really complaining about it, but dammit the game is hard!! Just as the original, this game belongs to the time when men were men and uh... gamers were gamers! I mean, a time where each game was like 50-70 bucks a piece and didn't come in spiffy Game of the year editions with added mods or when you couldn't just log on to gamefaqs to learn how to overcome some level or just execute the level-jumping cheat. In other words: this is a hardcore game for hardcore gamers. If you think you can kick it's ass just because you got yourself a PS2 for christmas and rule The Sands of Time, then think again dude.

The Bottom Line
An even more beautiful version of Prince of Persia with a bigger sense of adventure and the same yet minimally improved (but improved nonetheless) legendary gameplay. Just as the original: a classic of classics.

The Good
This was a really awesome idea, and well done. Good artwork, sound, and motion, as well as story and concept. It was a bit on the edgy side, what with the Mortal-Wombat style deaths and the extreme violence and mysticism of the game, but this only further contributed to the game.

One can't help but think that this game is an esoteric production: were else does your in-game avatar die, then turn into a nigh-invincible flame-jinn? Or abandon his body and run through doors and distract enemies as a shadow? And if you think that's odd, wait till you get to the horse in the desert (actually, that happens before, but is far weirder).

And the game was intelligent, too...

The Bad
But it's too intelligent. The puzzles are prohibitively difficult, and, don't forget, there's a two hour clock. Oh, joy, two hours in which to get from the desert to that bastard's castle and kill him, all the while figuring out some damned tough puzzles, mazes, and traps. Better hotkey that reload button.

The arcade sequences, that is, every single sword-skirmish, are difficult, but only to the challenging-squared degree. Yes, you can fight while on a magic carpet and jump from a three story building landing on a local fishmonger after invoking Nyrlahotep. Well, not that difficult. They can be mastered. Unlike the puzzles, which happen to be on the mensa admission test.

The Bottom Line
This is like the Ayn Rand of computer games, tough, cruel, merciless. Don't worry, it'll beat you. It's mean. But that doesn't mean that it isn't good.

It's something like a sidescrolling Pulp Fiction meeting Twin Peaks.

The Good
He could have been off so well: in the first part of the game, the prince rescues a lovely princess, marries her and enjoys his life. Until he arrives in the throne room one morning to learn that another, identically looking man has taken his place. And is dedicated to kill him. It is an interesting story line for a platform game - much more in depth than the average Commander Keen saga. The animations were incredibly smooth for that time, the scenery diverse and the intro even featured speech.

The Bad
Ever seen a guy that bit his keyboard in frustration? If not, no one played Prince of Persia 2 while you were around. You can only return to certain save points, usually one per level. The traps have become much more diverse than in the first part of the game which makes it really difficult to get through.

The Bottom Line
It is a platform game with beautiful graphics (for its time) and a very intriguing atmosphere. Since the story is rather interesting even adventure players might find Prince of Persia 2 worth checking out. You should take your time, however. It won't be easy to go through. (Unless you get back to cheating, of course).

The Good
Graphics The graphics were better, although I liked the more simple ones of the previous P.O.P. But the prince was still the price, dispite having a new look. The locations were drawn wonderfuly with lots to explore and do. The characters are well animated, as are the rather sick death throes in lava.

Gameplay The game was very hard, a lot of it included jumping, much more that the other version. One level even has you doing split second jumping across loose floors to get to a horse. Traps have been made more deadlyer. Ranging from the old favroite spikes to the wall mounted swing blades that took of your head. Trip darts and blocks that crush are inculded as well as many more. New features also had tunnels for you to crawl through and interesting ways to kill enemys, such as knocking a Skeleton into the lava to defeat it. Other foes are, guards, heads, snakes and shadows just to name few. The game also has the shadow, this means you turn left and right untill you crumple to the ground and leave a ghost, this means you can run around the level without getting killed. The flame also makes an interesting weapon, torch from afar. Although getting it is hard. Speaking of weapons you go through about four swords, starting with your normal sword you spend about three levels attacking with a broken sword. This makes the game much harder as you have to watch your timing or miss and get hurt.

Sound The music is better, although it can be out of theme every now and then. The usal from the first is there : Footsteps, screams, "OW!" and more.

The Bad
The annoying save problem still exists. You can only save at certain points or at the start of a level. The enemy difficulty increases each time you fight, so if you die you then have to fight harder enemys than before. The puzzles are harder and there seems to be too much jumping than before.

The Bottom Line
Very good game, a must for people who are willing to spend all night playing it.

The Good
The music sounds really good using Sound Blaster Pro.

This Prince of Persia 2 is a much more magical and adventurous game this its predecessor, it contains new traps that are just as fun to avoid as the original traps, the game has faster and more intriguing sword fighting, tougher puzzles, and adventure almost completely replaces the platform genre of Prince of Persia.

The Bad
I think the game is a bit too difficult.

The Bottom Line
A game that is definitely worth buying.

This game will satisfy every player's needs.

This sequel is also a side scroller, so if you are expecting a new angle of gameplay you won't get your wish.

The Good
The graphics are more colorful and detailed than the original, which makes them prettier to look at, but this also ends up being a negative as well.

The Bad
Everything! While the graphics are pretty to look at, they make spotting traps much harder. You will die many times simply because you stepped in a trap you couldn't see.

The game is also full of enemies that are practically impossible to hit, so you will lose much of your health just trying to hit the creatures that are attacking you. I became so frustrated with trying to fight my way through the levels that I eventually resorted to using the cheat that kills all the enemies on the screen instantly, just so that I wouldn't have to replay the same sections 20 times to get by them.

Then there are the timed sections where you must step on a pressure plate and then run/climb/jump through a door before it closes, all of which requires you to do it perfectly, or you'll have to go back and do it again (and again, and again, and again, and again...).

The Bottom Line
I was still an Amiga user when this game came out and I was always disappointed that there was never an Amiga version of it. Now that I'm gotten the chance to play it, I'm glad it never came out for the Amiga because I think I might have thrown my system out the window in frustration!

I did not find this game fun to play at all. The only reason I kept going was to see the ending, then I promptly erased it off my hard drive and breathed a sigh of relieve that I would never have to torture myself by playing this stinker again!

The Good
How can this be too difficult??! Ugh!! sorry, its just it pains me to see an amazing game marked down due to "difficulty..", even though this MobyScore is irrelevant to anything..

I got the game when it was released, I beat it 2 weeks later. I was born in 1984.

-_-, Anyways, amazing game. It's a UNIQUE puzzle game, and there's nothing like bumping eagle guys into traps meant for you.. TRAPS!! !! ... .. Puzzles required THINKING not "ability to Mario Jump"

The Bad
It was too short. More levels!

The Bottom Line
This game is so good, after reading reviews from other users, I HAD TO sign up on mobygames just to give another point of view to the the awful slander the other reviewers gave it.