Battles of Prince of Persia – Review

While the recent PSP release of Prince of Persia: Revelations saw Sony’s handheld consumers receive a somewhat tweaked version of Warrior Within, the innovative nature of Nintendo’s DS platform almost demands some degree of developer rethink in terms of gameplay experience. So, with Battles of Prince of Persia, players are given the welcome opportunity to divert themselves from the established 3D platform jumping and frantic combat, and approach the series from a completely new turn and card-based strategic angle.

The game’s central narrative unfolds between the original Sands of Time and Warrior Within series titles, and the story opens as the Prince returns to Persia, only to discover that a mysterious ancient beast—which was unknowingly unleashed at the finale of Sands of Time—is now hunting him. The main story mode, which plays out on the top screen through text-only dialogue and 2D character illustrations, then follows the Prince in his ensuing attempts to evade or defeat the relentless beast, while also battling against several of Persia’s power hungry and opportunistic neighbors.

The actual ‘battle’ mechanics in Battles of Prince of Persia are realized in a relatively minimalist fashion, and could have certainly benefited from extra graphical oomph. When embroiled in battle, the top DS screen shows simulated attack action through attractive but somewhat limited 2D character animation, while the touch screen is primarily used for issuing battle commands and viewing the top-down battlefield. Your fighting units and chosen formations are shown as simple (and somewhat disappointing) colored squares on a tactical landscape map, and, like the character models, these strategic icons could have been much better implemented where actual representative sprites are concerned.

Battle time expands across gameplay ‘hours’, but not in a literal sense. During every hour, the player selects a card from the Prince’s deck, which then allows them to issue commands to a set amount of units in every turn. As with most turn-based strategy, once that allowable amount is reached the battle opponent is then given the chance to issue orders in a similar fashion. A single ‘hour’ of actual battle could well continue until every single unit has been used at least once—though, of course, either opponent can speed up the hour by passing on their turn(s). Reaching a victorious outcome is dependent on many governing factors, which are given separate point values at the prelude of each battle and must be reached in order to secure a win for Persia. Some battles see the issuing of multiple objectives, and while many clashes may be wholly dependent, others may only require partial success to achieve victory.

Game cards—which total more than 200—are available in various categories offering battle advantages beyond the simple assignment of movement, and many grant moments of tactical benefit. As well as cards used while in direct conflict, they can also be won during battle, and the player can freely alter the content of their deck between turn-based clashes.

Touch control is obviously the most talked about feature on Nintendo’s DS, and it is used here for directly activating battle units and for issuing orders. Also, pressing ‘up’ on the control pad and then touching the bottom screen in any desired place will scroll the tactical map for better views. In the heat of battle, the top screen is used for displaying and cycling though victory objectives, a reduced view of the map, and the overall status of either attacking force. As with most DS titles, uninitiated players may find the conjunction of the touch screen mechanic, the regular face/shoulder buttons, and the control pad to be somewhat awkward to grasp—yet if you’ve bought Battle of Prince of Persia for a tactical challenge, then you’re already in the right mindset for swift acclimatisation.

Beyond the Campaign mode, players can also enter Skirmish mode, whereupon they choose a General—who comes equipped with a customized deck of cards—and then head to the battlefield and face-off against an A.I. opponent. This mode plays out in much the same way as Campaign, but it allows the player to freely hone their battle skills outside of the unfolding plot, which may well prove beneficial when they return to a saved game. Of course, the download wireless feature on Nintendo’s DS means that two friends can battle it out against each other (2 game cards are required) in Multi-Card Versus mode, or exchange blows through a single DS in Hotseat mode. All in all, plenty of options for longevity, but a shame about the lack of WiFi.

Game music is typically Middle Eastern in flavour, and duly reflects the track record of prior Prince of Persia releases. However, as it’s not played over pumping action or graceful wall jumping and pole swinging, it does have a tendency to spill into the realms of repetition as you’re struggling with strategic decisions. In-game sound effects lend themselves to the swish of swordplay, whiz of arrows, thrusts of spears, and the galloping and whinnying of horses—but generally they all fall rather flat. Gamers with hearing impairments shouldn’t suffer any particular longing concerning the sounds as a whole, as the game offers no defined character acting and the entire story unfolds through sways of text dialogue. And, unfortunately, the game isn’t called ‘Princess’ of Persia, so girl gamers are once again stuck with controlling a chap. However, for the most part, actual commanding and governance is pretty sexless, and the Prince only shows up at the passing of each hour or in direct combat—of course, all the troops from army to army are also muscle-bound fodder.

Though Battles of Prince of Persia will likely find a home with those hardcore tactical fans, it’s a long way removed from the likes of Final Fantasy Tactics in terms of exectution. Beyond the lack of an evolving semi-RPG mechanic, which is also offered up in Final Fantasy Tactics, the presentation on show in Battles of Prince of Persia really is rather disappointing by comparison to Squaresoft’s title—which still looks beautiful on the Game Boy Advance. The touch screen element may lend itself to the lauded interaction label that rightly surrounds the DS, but everything else, from graphics and sound, to immersion and impact, is sadly deficient. Prince of Persia fans beware: if you’re hoping for grace and elegance wrapped in frenetic battles and breathless effects—the very staple of Ubisoft’s series—this is not it.

Review by Stevie