Prince of Persia Trilogy HD Review
The Prince Of Persia series has been around for ages. With the birth of the then-new generation renditions of the game in 2003 (Sands of Time on PS2), the franchise has seen a number of high, and low points.
The first three releases for PS2 (Sands of time 2003, Warrior Within 2004, 2005) was set to be a trilogy. It can only be assumed that it was due to the three title’s collective clout and popularity that the decision was taken to re-release them in HD remastered format for the PS3.
As per other HD remastered releases (think God Of War 1 & 2) the three titles all fit onto one bluray disk. Nice and compact.
At the time of writing, I’ve spent about 90 minutes with each title on the disk.
From insertion the game installs some data to the HDD, and then loads into a “select the title you want to play” screen, divided into three sections, one for each game. Due to the HDD install loading times are minute and you are dropped into the game very quickly.
Graphically, no real changes except for the fact that they display properly in HD. When playing these titles you will definitely notice that you are playing old games. Well, graphically old. The cutscenes were rendered from SD to HD, and some quality loss have obviously taken place.
But these games must not be inserted into your PS3 with the hopes of selling you on its polished graphical interface. Not at all. These games are timeless and should be enjoyed for what they were. Awesome games, end of story. I’ve had the privilege of playing every POP release since Sands of Time, and I can honestly say, despite the graphic limitations, in terms of gameplay, these three titles beat the sand out of the later, next gen releases. The controls are fluid and responsive, combat is fun, and running and jumping between blades, walls and pillars are still the best the franchise ever offered.
If you own a 3D tv setup, you will be able to play the games in stereoscopic 3D.
Sound wise there are minor issues. The sound for all three titles seem to have been mixed (or glitched or badly ported) that it sounds like every sound omitted by the character or enemies were recorded in a bathroom. The sound drips with reverb and just sounds completely unnatural. Luckily the in-game music and cutscenes are fine. The reverb can however be reduced by mixing the audio yourself from the in-game menu, and taking the voices down a notch so it blends in more. Seems to sort it out mostly. PS: Warrior Within still has one of the best game soundtracks of all time IMO.
All the titles also support trophies.
Nothing more can really be said about this release except that, if you never played them, you missed out, and this is a great opportunity to pick up these titles at an awesome price (around R350). In the process you'll also see where games like Assassins Creed came from. Oh, and the newer two “Prince” releases (Prince of Persia 2008, Forgotten Sands 2010) cannot possibly hold a candle to the Sands, Warrior and Throne titles. They were, plainly, much better.
Originally Posted by Duke Dude
Can't wait for the new one though 