Prince of Persia Hands-On

Fans of Jordan Mechner will doubtless recall Karateka and Prince of Persia, which both appeared on home computers during the Apple vs. IBM wars of the 1980s. Published by Mattel Interactive, the new Dreamcast version of Prince of Persia looks like a winner. Keeping true to the game's origins, this title has all of the running, jumping, fighting, and climbing that made the first one so memorable. Other characteristic aspects of the game (puzzles, potions, and deadly trapdoors) are also here. Unlike in previous titles in the Prince of Persia series, you can save your game at any point. Though this will expedite beating the game, it will also probably lessen the fear of sudden death that the previous titles held. The early camera work is intuitive, and you can take control of it in a first-person view to better scope out your surroundings (this actually made the game feel very similar to Ocarina of Time). The inventory system lets you select from several different weapons (sword, bow and arrow, etc.) to best defeat the current villain. Though what was displayed at the E3 was limited (only a few enemies and one level to explore), it clearly showed that this title has large potential. It will release in November.