Prince of Persia: Warrior Within (PS2)

With its first release Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time the franchise became a massive hit. The was an action adventure with a number of great environments filled with lots of puzzles and topping it all was the prince's acrobatics. Now the franchise's second release Prince of Persia: Warrior Within picks up the story just from where the Sands of Time ended with some great new features. Now the prince can hold two weapons and his combat moves has also been expanded. 

STORY:


The story starts seven years after the events of The Sands of Time where the prince is constantly attacked by a beast name "Dahaka" since he had unleashed the sands of time. The prince seeks help from an old wise man who intends that whoever releases the Sands of Time must die and its the Dahaka's duty to kill the one who released the sands as its the guardian of time. The only way for the prince is to travel back in time and kill the Empress of Time(who created the Sands of Time) before she created the sands. The prince starts his journey in a ship to the Island of Time to fulfill mission, but he faces a series of obstacles on his way. He has to travel back and forth in time to find his way, often gets chased by the Dahaka and also he faces the Empress of Time (Kaileena).


SANDS OF TIME:


Like the previous release of the game the prince can use the sands of time to rewind time for a few seconds. This comes handy when I mistime a jump or make a false move in combat during which we can use the sands to rewind and proceed. The prince has a total of six sand tanks (used to store the sands of time) which can be unlocked one by one as the game progresses. I can also use slow motion which consumes a sand tank in combat particularly when we have to a number of enemies. There are some surroundings in which we cannot progress without the help of slow motion, so use it wisely. The sands can also be used as a special power when surrounded by enemies, this move unlocks as the game progresses.


WEAPONS & COMBAT:


The prince can wield two weapons simultaneously with one being primary and other secondary. The primary weapon sticks with us all the time but we get a new and stronger primary weapon in the game progress. Secondary weapons are optional, I can even opt not to use it, but it allows the prince to perform great combos which are all listed in the pause menu of the game. Practice all the combos somewhere at the starting of the game as it will be very helpful later in the game. The secondary weapon gets damaged with every hit and worn out after a little use, but I can always take another weapon dropped by the enemies or use the weapon steal combo to steal the weapon from an enemy. Combos are a great way to eliminate stronger enemies, so its good to learn most of the combos. The jump ability of the prince is also very important in combat. The prince can jump off enemies and perform a combo attack in air and also in ground. The prince can also jump off from walls and smash into an enemy to push him away. Evading is also an important strategy in this game because its better to evade from certain enemy attacks. We will notice that throwing enemies off works better in many places. Evading attacks will be key feature in boss fight as most of the combos never work against a boss. Lighter combos combined with perfect evading will result in an easier boss fight.


GAMEPLAY:


The gameplay of Warrior Within has improved dramatically when compared to The Sands of Time. The graphics is a whole lot better and the prince physic looks great . The surroundings are also more challenging complemented by extensively wide combat moves. Despite the improved combat, the strength of Warrior Within lies in its environmental puzzles. As the prince, I will need to rely on your acrobatic moves to navigate your way through many cleverly designed rooms and traps. You can still jump, wall run, climb, mantle, swing, and vault your way from ledge to ledge and from branch to branch. You can also now controlled falls by sinking your sword into wall tapestries and then sliding straight down as you slice through them to slow your descents. Completing the game's puzzles and navigating your way through each room tends to be extremely fun and satisfying, and it's made all the more enjoyable by the well-animated moves of the prince and the beautifully designed levels. This gets more interesting with inclusion of Dahaka chase every now and then, where you have quickly find your way through the environment while the Dahaka chases you. This increases the pace of the game at the right time where one false move would cause the prince getting caught by the dahaka. The game may get tougher for a few as you travel back and forth in time to find your way and this may confuse you every now and then. The prince has become more dark with the bloody and gore combat scenes which has earned this game an M rating. This game has two endings, one with a water sword and another without it. You will find life upgrades for prince throughout the game in hidden locations, it increase the total life bar of the prince a little with every every life upgrade he collects. If you manage to find all the life upgrades you will find the water sword (the most powerful sword in the game) in the throne room and in the end you will face a tougher boss (Dahaka) and the end story changes accordingly. Instead if you fail to collect all life upgrades you will face the Empress of Time (Kaileena) at the end.


Overall Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is an excellent sequel to its franchise and all POP fans will love this game while others may struggle a bit but its easy to complete. Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is easy to recommend for any action adventure fan, and its lengthier campaign should keep players busy for a lot longer this time around.

Summary: Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is an excellent sequel for everybody to enjoy