Prince of Persia on Game Gear: the Prince's acrobatics in sandy labyrinths on portable. Fluid animations preserved, original difficulty present. For fans.
Your verdict
Category
Action Adventure1 player12+
Description
The Prince of Persia scales walls and battles guards to rescue the princess in this Game Gear version of the action classic. Published by Domark, released in Europe in October 1993. Action platformer with acrobatics, sword combat, timer puzzles, race against time. European version.
Prince of Persia review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
3/5
Music
★★★★★
"Memorable"
3/5
Story
★★★★★
"Solid"
The conversion keeps an animation in which every gesture runs to dozens of frames, which on a handheld leaves little room for scenery: rooms are tightly framed, one platform level at a time, and the walls come down to a repeated brick pattern. The contrast between that bareness and the finesse of the movement gives this version its whole character.
A port of Jordan Mechner's classic, Prince of Persia has a hero climb, jump and fight in a race against time to save the princess. The fluid rotoscoped animation, the deadly traps and the precision demanded of jumps marked the genre, but the Game Gear version compresses the experience and hardens readability on the small screen. The tension and elegance of movement survive nonetheless. For a fan of cerebral platforming or someone curious about a video game milestone, the title keeps a real heritage interest.
