Last Friday saw the release of the final big game of the year – Prince of Persia. This is the latest in the long-running series. I've been playing the 360 version and can't make my mind up. The upsides? The platform jumping action is fun and fluid – though the camera can be an issue – and the art design is fantastic. The Ico inspired relationship between the Prince and his female companion works well too. Basically the game flows well and is enjoyable to play. But there is a problem.
Yes, the Prince of Persia is simply too easy. And that's coming from me, someone who is much happier playing 8 hours of quality than 80 hours of bloat and has got a gaming "to-finish" pile 2 feet high. But really, this game IS too easy. It isn't just the fact that your companion "saves" you every time you miss a jump – this is simply a sexier way to restart than showing you plummeting to your death – but the fighting is a cinch too. Okay, things do get tougher later on but still. The core platforming action is pretty straightforward too and won't trouble many gamers. Especially not, you'd imagine, veterans of the sadistic original PoP games from back in the day.
But despite this I'm still playing. When time is tight Prince of Persia engenders a sense of achievement faster than most of its contemporaries. Actually, it coughs up achievement points quickly too – I got over 100 in my first hour. But anyway. Prince of Persia is easily a 7 or 8 out of 10 and that's why I can't make my mind up about how important the skill level is.
Does the ease mean more people get to play and – gasp – actually finish a game? Or is PoP the first "big" traditional gamers game that has seen its design neutered by the Wii-inspired push towards the mainstream market? Would the game have been tougher or have a less friendly design if it had come out in, say, 2005?
Despite all this I've enjoyed my time with PoP and will finish it so who knows, maybe this "easy" thing has something going for it. Anyway, anyone here played PoP yet? Too easy or just right? And if it is "too easy" does that mean we can expect more of this in the future as publishers and developers target what were once "gamer" games primarily towards a less skilled and more time restricted mainstream audience?
