Prince of Persia Redux Impressions

I think I’ve played enough of Ubisoft Montreal’s latest Prince of Persia iteration to understand the core mechanics and style of the game. And really, I think they’ve milked their last cow. Let’s call it Prince of Persia Montreal Edition, because fuck, there are so many iterations of this god damned franchise.

I was really surprised to find that Prince of Persia Montreal Edition (or POP ME) was receiving an average 85% on both Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles. I didn’t think this game was incredibly innovate or unique, or even had that short term play-itch that tends to get me from title to title.

It’s not that the game is poorly designed or developed. In fact, quite the opposite. I really like the writing style and art direction that this game has taken. The Prince’s sarcastic but whimsical tone, combined with vibrant colours and a balanced combination of mechanical and natural environments makes It feel like I’m playing an Aladdin action movie. But I don’t know if that’s good or bad. The adult  in me doesn’t really appreciate this style anymore. It feels rash and immature. On the other hand, the Michael Jackson in me absolutely loves it.  Where the fuck is my genie? Oh right. Elika. I have a hot genie. Awesome.

However, this is only aesthetic. While I completely agree with Alison Haislip’s brilliant observation that the writing is good, and the graphics are good, I really don’t think the “play of the game” will keep you coming back any time soon. If anything, it’s the writing and the graphics, and even then, I crave something more.

Are Counter-Terrorism and Wall Running the only things that Ubisoft knows? Are they really milking their cows down to the last drop? Will it only be a matter of time before we see Prince of Vegas: Recon Assassin? Actually … that would be pretty fucking sick.

Let us know what you think…

Apologies and Bitch Slaps are in Order (or: This Week, Jon Hates…)

First off, to anyone who actually listens to the Secondary Fire Oddcast and cares, we’re very sorry for the lack of podcasting. With Amrit with his nose buried in books and myself still playing Jobhunt 3.0 (now patched), we’re a bit swamped in the ultimate game: the game of life.

If all is well in the universe, I’m sure you’re aware by now that Left 4 Dead is like, totally the most awesomest co-operative and multiplayer experience in like, totally, forever, like totally. But there is one thing that really bothers me about this game’s reception.

I’ve heard that despite glowing reviews, a lot of people refuse to buy L4D because “it’s too short.” This is a complaint heard mainly by console (well, I guess it’d be Xbox 360) owners. Is that what we’re equating game value to be nowadays? I pay $59.99 plus taxes for a video game, the campaign component must be X number of hours long?

That’s undead horseshit and you all know it. How many people play through an 8 hour campaign of Gears of War, only to spend 102938125 more hours playing online? Some people bought Halo 3 and didn’t even bother playing through the story boards. And yet, for some inane reason, people are ready to dismiss one of the best cooperative experiences we as gamers have seen so far? Suck a rotting crotch.

It is true that without friends or online multiplayer, this game might be a bit of a waste. But we’re not looking at people without internet or silver Live memberships, we call those people “cavemen”.

And speaking of cavemen (I know you love the segue), I’m also really sick of wannabe-cool video game writers and reviewers. “But Jon,” you’ll point and ask “… isn’t that what you and Amrit do? or, at the very least, without succeeding and making money, try to do!?!” Well, yes and no. Yes, because we love talking about video games. But our conversations revolve around gaming naturally.

No, because Amrit and I don’t give a shit whether or not we’re cool. I mean, don’t get us wrong, we’re cool as fuck, but when I browse published and paid-for gaming ‘journalism’ on the net, I hear, read, and see a great number of game journalists trying to portray their game-related job to be this uber-cool, uber-witty, occupation. And they do this by throwing in game-related buzzwords, and try to be enthusiastic about the game they’re discussing, but ultimately, all I hear is “blah blah gameplay. blah blah gameplay mechanics. blah blah bump mapping. Now give my money.”

Take, for example, the following video from IGN/Gametrailers:

I know I’m rambling and probably over-hating (that’s what I do, right?), so I’ll cut it short. I’m just going to end this post by making a special note of Alison Haislip’s articulate description of Prince of Persia’s gameplay merits:

“A lot of games are kind of running and shooting, running and shooting… in this game, you’re constantly active. The battles are fun, the story is great, but i think its the actual … play of the game … that will keep you coming back.”

- Alison Haislip, Hero Factor, November 2008