Prince of Persia: The Fallen King (Nintendo DS) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

The last time we saw Prince of Persia in his classic form was way back in the Gameboy Advance days with the excellent Sands of Time. Since then we've had to put up with the rather disappointing 'Battles' which hardly set the DS community alight and was mysteriously a strategy based game rather than a classic platformer. Things continued to look a little unstable during late summer when the first screens emerged of the 'new look' Prince and fans of the 'first great platformer' were at little concerned at their hero's new makeover. Like Zeldas controversial image change, gamers will no doubt see past mere cosmetic alterations but the gameplay, now that's a completely different story.

Gameplay

The Fallen King revolves around an original storyline but given how weak this is, it's probably better to simply ignore it and concentrate on the gameplay elements. The actual level design is really quite good and the top screen displays a map detailing where you are and what treasures are hidden within the current area. The action starts out with simple running and jumping but you'll quickly also have to deal with spinning circular saws and falling boulder whilst also battling it out with the odd henchman or speeding bird intent with knocking you over. As you progress though the game you'll also learn to use new powers, which give you the ability to manipulate objects transforming them into grappeling hooks or climbing walls. Your powers even include that of summoning portals, which can then be used to form intricate traps.

The Fallen King has also received a fair amount of press because the Prince now teams up with a mysterious Magus named Zal. This makes for some intriguing puzzles, which can only be solved by working together, and using Zals abilities. A first this appears like it's just been added on as an afterthought with Zal simply summoning platforms to reach some of the more inaccessible areas but you'll quickly realize that it's much more central to the games design as you split up, working in different areas in order to progress to the next level. The various areas will also contain a variety of treasure and while this is sometimes easy to collect you may also have to backtrack when you don't have the required ability to reach it. Sadly, there's no multiplayer although you can beam a demo do your friends should they wish to give the Prince and Zal a road test themselves.

Controls

Considering this is a platformer steeped in history you'd imagine that they'd include a more traditional control set but this is all touch screen except for the odd spell selection.

Graphics

Given how richly detailed some of the past games have been, The Fallen King is a little flat in compassion and while the 3D backgrounds do provide a sense of depth it's still not nearly as pleasing to look at as Sands of Time and that was on the GBA. Fortunately the smooth animation is still here and regardless of what you make the Prince do he'll carry it out with grace and a great deal of flair. There is a price to pay for all this though and, unforgivably; there are frequent sections where the game will slowdown, which really should have been addressed during testing the stage.

Sound

While there's no voice work the ambient soundtrack is wonderful and does a great job of enhancing the whole experience. Elsewhere the sound effects are also very good indeed with the moans, groans and constant clashing of swords well implemented.

Dual screen

The Fallen King is controlled entirely by the stylus and the results are far more intuitive than you'd expect. This all kicks off with a tutorial level where you'll learn how to walk, by keeping the stylus close to your character, or run, by moving it further away. You'll also be drilled in combat, jumping and rolling under some of the many obstructions. For the most part this all works very well and it's difficult not to embrace this new method of control. Unfortunately there's also a downside to all this and the controls can also be imprecise and unresponsive especially when it really matters and falling to your death for the ninth or tenth time does not make for an entertaining experience.

Final comments

It was incredibly brave for Ubi Soft to take their classic platformer and attempt to freshen it up with a new touch screen interface and for the most part this works very well. You are also getting a fair bit of game for your buck and the average gamer will get hours of enjoyment from The Fallen King. Unfortunately there is a price to pay for all this and the occasional unresponsive control; bland storyline and far too much slowdown make what could have been a great title, an average one. It's still entertaining enough but once you've completed it you are unlikely to come back for more.

Pro: Great Animation and Level Design, Good Use of the Touch Screen.
Con: Uninteresting Storyline, Occasional Slowdown
Final score: 6.7

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