Prince of Persia: Warrior Within

Prince of Persia: Warrior Within Review

I really wanted to luv this game. I tried very hard to get past the annoyances. I tried but after completing it I thought "Finally! Sheesh!"

PoPWW is a great game. There's no arguemnt there. It has an engaging story that is well written and acted. It has exquisite environment, costumes and level designs. It has beautiful graphics and terrific sound design. The fighting techniques are creative and effective and can be easily executed.

Many kudos.

So here's the "but": The camera movement drove me batty. It can be such an inconvenience at the wrong time and the game became very frustrating to play. That along with the controls that switched from up to down with the angles, made this game almost throw my PC out the window.

This is an issue that most 3rd person games have since the original Tomb Raider- so why is it that designers still use these assanine techniques? Beats me.

Saving was also REALLY aggravating. There are "save fountains" that you drink from and you save at your current location. That's fine but why are they situated in the most inopportune places? Can't the players simply save anywhere?

The positives outweigh the negatives considerably which brings my overall experience with PoPWW to an excellent but annoying thumbs up. Keep in mind, this is my FIRST Prince of Persia game that I've played so I hope past and present version are just as fun or more. Preferrably more...

Prince of Persia: Warrior Within Feature

• Sequel to the award-winning Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
• The Prince returns here with deadlier skills, a darker heart and a craving for battle
• The game's free-form fighting system allows players to wage battles with no boundaries
• All-new projectile attack system allows for a variety of ranged combat tactics
• For 1 player

Prince of Persia: Warrior Within Overview

The Old Man said to the Prince "Your fate hasbeen written. You will die."Product InformationThe story begins a few years after the conclusion of Prince of Persia: TheSands of Time The Prince has returned home to Babylon to find himself hunted bya supernatural creature bent on his destruction. Forced to live a life on therun he seeks counsel from an old mystic who explains that his actions havespawned an immortal incarnation of Fate known as the Dahaka. In his quest tosave the Sultan’s palace from destruction the Prince created a rift in theTimeline.Hunted by the Dahaka the Prince embarks upon a path of both carnage andmystery to defy his preordained death as he quickly comes to realize that there’sonly one possible way to stay alive: journey to the birthplace of the Sands ofTime find a way to travel back into the past and stop the Sands from beingcreated. Without the Sands the Prince’s last adventure will not occur – andthe Dahaka will vanish. His journey leads him to the infernal core of a cursedisland stronghold harboring mankind’s greatest fears.You stand in a dim fortress corridor surrounded by the nearest one you hurlhim into a bed of spikes then slice another in half and steal his dagger.Sprinting you release the blade into a third's skull and leap for a pillarspinning around it with sword drawn.  Another body drops...your death hasalready been decided.  How you defy it it is up to you.Product HighlightsOne fate.  One million ways to defy it. Brutal enemy manipulation  moves. Countless hours of adventure rife with seductive evils and unexpected plot twists. Master over 60 melee and projectile weapons. Change storyline enemies and environments through time travel...past and present.Product Features The Game of the Year Returns: Prince of Persia 2 is the highly anticipated sequel to the universally acclaimed

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 07, 2010 14:17:06

Red Dead Redemption

Red Dead Redemption Review

For me, GTA was a fun series a few years ago, but I had dropped out of it since it seemed to be getting too repetitive & too similar. So, I was super-excited when I heard they were making Red Dead Redemption, but then disappointed when the release date kept getting pushed back. Thankfully it has been worth the wait!

The missions for the most part are good & action-packed. Generally they involve shooting a lot of bad guys, who are all displayed with red dots on your map. The red dots make it easy to find them/ count how many are left to shoot. A few of the Bonnie missions are dull, slow, boring and involve general farmhand stuff, but thankfully that's pretty early on in the game.

Something as mundane as riding around in the desert from town to town is actually fun. The scenery is beautiful and epic. I can waste hours just riding around the countryside helping people out, hunting down escaped prisoners, or hunting animals. The hunting aspect is surprisingly fun & addictive, and hunting is a very entertaining way to rack up some money if you need it.

Normally side games are lame and not-interesting, but here in RDR - Poker, Blackjack, Liar's Dice, Horseshoes, Arm Wrestling - are fun and pretty realistic. Liar's Dice is a game I'd never heard of before, but it's really fun, and I think would be a great drinking game with friends.

For my first play-through, I've been trying to be as honorable as possible, but occasionally an innocent bystander will get whacked (sorry about that). Another thing to note is that you can't use cheats in this game if you want to save & progress on the storyline. I haven't found the need, though, to cheat like in GTA with full ammo, full health, reduce wanted level, etc. If you are interested in the cheats, search online for more details.

For some people who complained that the targeting was difficult, if you double-tap the L2 button, the game does a great job of locking right on to the target - actually almost too good of a job. There is no overall easy/medium/hard Difficulty setting on this game. I'm generally so-so at video games, especially as I'm now in my 30's and can't devote hours-upon-hours to gaming like I did in college. Thankfully RDR is not a throw-down-the-controller-because-you're-so-angry difficulty. In fact, if you're a hardcore gamer, you might think it's too easy (?).

I haven't touched the online multi-player yet. The single player is so engrossing right now, and I'm generally not a fan of online shooters - and also because I suck at them. So if you are really into that genre, you're probably better off sticking to Call Of Duty or Battlefield 2. I assume most people aren't buying this game for multi-player though.

For a few of my negatives, the cut-scenes are slow-moving. The talking & overall flow of them just seems so s-l-o-w. I wish there was a double-time option for it. But you can skip them altogether, and then review the dialogue in the journal later if needed. Also, I wish you could just press select to get to the Map instead of having to go through Start -> Map. I've only had the game lock up on me once; once isn't bad, but glitch-free would be ideal.

Also, I'm a big fan of customizing your character, or better yet, creating your own guy altogether. I wish we'd have had that option in this game. As it is now, you can really only change your outfits as you unlock them. A huge Rollie Fingers mustache would be an awesome choice.

For the full price of admission, I am definitely getting my money's worth on Red Dead Redemption. It is literally hours-upon-hours of fun. I have been staying up way too late playing RDR, which unfortunately leads to a rough time going to work the next morning! Highly recommended.

Red Dead Redemption Feature

• The Dead Eye targeting mechanic, allowing the player to slow down time for shot accuracy, as well as ridable horses and more than 40 kinds of animals that you can hunt or be hunted by.
• Expansive open-world gameplay set in the final years of the American Wild West.
• Massive play area filled with NPCs, made up 3 unique regions composed of towns and outposts filled with characters with varying looks, accents, etc.
• Morality system based on honor and fame generated by the players actions throughout the game.
• Western themed mini-games including showdowns, gambling, hunting bounties, cattle herding and five finger fillet; and an assortment of period specific weapons.

Red Dead Redemption Overview

Red Dead Redemption is a Western epic, set at the turn of the 20th century when the lawless and chaotic badlands began to give way to the expanding reach of government and the spread of the Industrial Age. The story of former outlaw, John Marston, Red Dead Redemption takes players on a great adventure across the American frontier.

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 06, 2010 14:00:05

Prince of Persia PSP (Slim) Dual Colored Skin Sticker, PSP 2000

Prince of Persia PSP (Slim) Dual Colored Skin Sticker, PSP 2000 Review

Prince of Persia PSP (Slim) Dual Colored Skin Sticker, PSP 2000 Feature

• Made in high quality material
• Will not scratch, fade or peel
• Easy to install, high-tech plastic gum, without any traces after tearing
• fine all-round protection

Prince of Persia PSP (Slim) Dual Colored Skin Sticker, PSP 2000 Overview

Get skinned! Customize your PSP 2000 with Pacers skins. It is durable, it is flexible, it is really cool! They are easily removed, washable, interchangeable and protect your PSP2000 from scratches and dirt.

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 05, 2010 13:00:04

God of War III

God of War III Review

PROS:

+ New weapons - Kratos can eviscerate his enemies in new and terrifying ways.
+ 4 levels of gameplay difficulty - From the pupil to the professional.
+ Awesome voiceovers - A star-studded cast bring their vocal talents!

CONS:

- Can be completed in roughly 8 hours (only 2-3 days of gameplay)

All right people, here's the latest installment of the God of War series. I feel like I'm horribly underselling it when I say this game is an epic masterpiece - that's like saying the Sistine Chapel is a nice painting. From the very first battle scene to the climactic conclusion, you know you're in for a bloody good time with Kratos and his Blades.

PLOT:

Kratos has a bone to pick with the Gods of Olympus, but he's set his sights on the top dog, Zeus. They've got a bit of bad blood between them, and for good reason. With the help of Athena, Kratos will travel from the depths of the Underworld to the heights of Olympus to fulfill his destiny. Not even the threat of death can quell Kratos' bloodlust.

Oh, that tingling emotion at the nape of your neck, Zeus? That's fear. You're going to have to throw everything you have at Kratos to stop him.

GAMEPLAY:

God of War 3 has decided to concentrate more on combat and less on time-consuming puzzles. For most of this game, you'll be running around trying to kill anything with a pulse and upgrading your weaponry. From time to time you'll get to switch to other game modes - jumping over gaps, flying at breakneck speed, and yes, the minigame-not-meant-for-eyes-under-17-to-see is back again.

COMBAT:

One cannot think of God of War without thinking about those blades seared into Kratos' flesh...and their vicious attacks. We can do the standard light or heavy attacks, and as we attack some of the larger enemies or bosses, there are QTE (quicktime events) which ends with the boss/enemy being dead (or extremely sleepy).

**NOTE: all the prompts for QTE's are no longer in the center of the TV screen, they are at the furthest extremes of the right, left, upper or lower edges of the screen. This is a HUGE improvement over the last 2 installments of God of War.

Kratos uses the Blades of Exile to start, and he gathers other implements of death along the way such as the Claws of Hades, the Nemean Cestus, and the Nemesis Whip. Each one has unique attacks and some of these weapons must be used to solve puzzles and advance further in the game.

GRAPHICS/MUSIC:

Each installation of God of War improves over the previous installment, and God of War 3 is no exception. With the jump from the Playstation 2 to the Playstation 3, the visuals are now rendered in gorgeous 1080i, so even the slightest detail is given attention: from the speck of blood on the Golden Fleece to the rippling water effects on Poseidon's minions, this game is a feast for our eyes.

How about the music? Well, the Skywalker Symphony Orchestra did not disappoint. With a 40-string section and a 20-horn section to blast out every crescendo and tension-filled moment, our ears tell us this is a truly awesome game, in every sense of the word.

TROPHIES:

There are plenty to earn here, from the very easy (Upgrading a Weapon) to the tooth-grindingly, patience-testingly, hair-rippingly difficult (Beat the game on Titan Mode).
Another huge improvement from the first 2 God of War games is found in the Challenge of Olympus - you can choose the order you want to complete the challenges.
Most of these trophies can be earned in about 2-3 playthroughs, but save that Titan Mode trophy for last.

EXTRAS:

For the person who wants to know everything and then some about God of War 3, the following videos are available (some only after beating the game):

Making of God of War III
Animation
Camera Design
Character Art
Level Design
Motion Capture
Music
Creating Poseidon
Programming
Quality Assurance
Tech Art
User Interface
Visual Development
Visual Effects
Voice Acting (we get to see Rip Torn, Kevin Sorbo, and Malcom McDowell in the recording studio!)
And the 8 game cinematic scenes

For those who didn't get their bloodlust quenched with the main game, there are two more gameplay modes available:

Challenges of Olympus
Combat Arena (unlockable after beating Challenges of Olympus)

CONS:

My sole complaint? This game only takes 2-3 days to beat. It looks like the reduction of difficult puzzles had a side effect of reducing the total gameplay time. However, there's high replay value for the trophy-hungry crowd.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

I cannot say enough good things about God of War 3. The gameplay controls never felt awkward, the quicktime events weren't very distracting, the bloodshed and maiming were kept intact, the special weapons were fun and simple to upgrade, and the story unfolded beautifully.

It's THE game that makes us proud to own a Playstation 3.

God of War III Feature

• True to the series roots, the four pillars of game play - brutal combat, intricate puzzles, exploration of awe-inspiring worlds, and a compelling story - all return.
• God of War III is the epic conclusion to the Greek mythological trilogy, which will complete Kratos' story that began in the original title for the PlayStation 2.
• New deadly weapons like the Cestus, powerful metal gauntlets with devastating strength, and other brutal instruments of war that open up ruthless new techniques.
• The menacing creatures of Greek mythology can now be manipulated against their will, to cross chasms, inflict blind rage against enemies, reveal puzzles and secrets, and as tools of complete annihilation.
• God of War III picks up exactly where God of War II left off ? Kratos must take his quest for vengeance to the very stronghold of the Zeus.

God of War III Overview

God of War® III finds Kratos raining carnage and destruction upon the Gods who have betrayed him and the entire Ancient Greek world. Armed with his deadly double-chained blades, Kratos will take on mythology’s darkest creatures while solving intricate puzzles on his merciless quest to destroy Olympus and the mighty Zeus himself.

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 04, 2010 13:00:04

Prince Of Persia 3D (Jewel Case)

Prince Of Persia 3D (Jewel Case) Review

This game comes with two disks. Since this is the jewel case edition, there's no printed manual. There's supposed to be an on-disk manual, but I can't find it. Did the manufacturer forget about it? I'm not happy with that. Otherwise, it seems like a cool game. I have the original Prince of Persia for Super Nintendo. It was a cool game for its day. Other than the obvious improvement in graphics, I think the best thing about this new game is that you can save your progress more often, which is a good thing for such a challenging game.

Incidentally, the new "Sands of Time" game has an even higher "coolness factor", but to me it looks less like the original Prince of Persia (although I haven't played it yet). Most of the traps in "Sands of Time" cause damage to the prince but don't kill him immediately. The prospect of sudden death looming ahead is something POP3D has in common with the original. In fact, in the original game you had to go back to the beginning of the level everytime you die. Sands of Time also has the Matrix-like wall-walking moves, which look cool, but there's nothing like that in the original game.

Prince Of Persia 3D (Jewel Case) Feature

• 3-D platform game
• Game design and storyline developed in conjuction with legendary series creator Jordan Mechner
• Hundreds of gut wrenching traps to avoid and puzzles to solve
• Sword fighting combat based on a simple, elegant interface
• For one player

Prince Of Persia 3D (Jewel Case) Overview

The secrets of 12th centuryPersia await you—in glorious 3-D!Product InformationEnter a world of unbridled passion harrowing adventure and blood-pumpingaction… to a mystical place where a once-humble servant has transformedhimself into a 12th century Persian prince! This is Prince of Persia 3D—the 3-D sequel to the legendary action-adventureseries that sold over two million copies worldwide! With the fascinatingstoryline nail-biting action and addictive gameplay the original Princeof Persia set the benchmark for gaming excellence. Prince of Persia 3Dsets the bar even higher! A Story in the Rich Tradition of an Arabian Night's Tale…What began as a peaceful moonlit night ends in a nightmare. The Sultan'sbodyguards fall at the blade of an enchanting dancer. Your bride the Princessis taken hostage by the Sultan's jealous brother and condemned to marryher cousin the hideous Rugnor. You must escape the dungeon to rescue herfrom Rugnor's stronghold in the mountains. Countless traps and temptingenchantments await as you solve the mysteries and reveal the secrets ofancient Persia! Stunning Environments Fluid Animation & Lifelike ActionPrince of Persia 3D springs to life with fluid animation devious trapsand an elegantly simple interface for running jumping climbing and swordfighting. Journey through seven environments including an opulent Persianpalace an exciting air ship and Tibetan cliffs.Product Features Prince of Persia 3D is loaded with breathtaking new features! A compelling new 3-D game design and storyline developed with legendarycreator of the original Prince of Persia Jordan Mechner.12 challenging levels spanning 7 exotic Persian environments.  More than 30 human and fantasy creature opponents with AI that adjustsin real time to match your combat style.  A simple and intuitive interface for fast action combat and pinpoint control.  Realistic sword

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 03, 2010 11:00:05

Prince Of Persia - The Sands of Time/Warrior Within (2 pack)

Prince Of Persia - The Sands of Time/Warrior Within (2 pack) Review

Prince Of Persia - The Sands of Time/Warrior Within (2 pack) Overview

The Sands of Time: In medieval Persia, Earth's mightiest and most mysterious kingdom, a king and his son defeat the powerful Maharajah, looting his palace of priceless treasure, including an extravagant hourglass and a mysterious dagger. What the Prince does not realize is that these two objects can turn their possessor into an immortal god, and give him control over time itself. Tricked by a dying Vizier bent on harnessing this terrible magic for himself, the Prince releases the Sands of Time, destroying a kingdom and turning its populace into ferocious demons. Now, it is up to the young Prince of Persia to call upon every resource and ounce of courage he possesses to save his kingdom and redeem his fatal mistake. Warrior Within: The Old Man said to the Prince, "Your fate has been written. You will die." Enter the dark underworld of Prince of Persia 2, the sword-slashing sequel to the critically acclaimed Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Hunted by Dahaka, an immortal incarnation of Fate seeking divine retribution, the Prince embarks upon a path of both carnage and mystery to defy his preordained death. His journey leads to the infernal core of a cursed island stronghold harboring mankind's greatest fears. Only through grim resolve, bitter defiance and the mastery of deadly new combat arts can the Prince rise to a new level of warriorship - and emerge from this ultimate trial with his life.

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 02, 2010 07:34:03

Prince of Persia The Two Thrones

Prince of Persia The Two Thrones Review

I bought this for my family as we are all gamers, my husband, son, daughter and I. We already had Sands of Time and Warrior Within (which was a kicka$$ game BTW) My daughter doesn't really care for this type of game, but my husband, son and I do. This series of games offer some difficult challenges and though I would recommend them for everyone,you probably won't ever get to the end unless you are a gamer. It isn't a casual game. Basically in this game he has two different personalities, you are able to play both as with the other games you can use the sands of time to help you along. The graphics are great, the voice acting isn't bad either. Overall this is a great game and offers something new and challenging that the other Prince of Persia games did not have. It's definitely entertaining for the amount you spend vs the entertainment value that you get out of it. I would say it's one of the better game series.

Prince of Persia The Two Thrones Feature

• Play and master two distinct characters, the Prince and the Dark Prince -- wield the powers and weapons of two master warriors with different combat styles, attitudes, and histories
• The expanded Free-Form Fighting system lets you choose the way you kill - Strangle enemies from afar, use a new stealth art to inflict surprise decapitations -- and much more
• Dominate enemies on the perilous rooftops, dodge through chaotic streets, and ambush pursuers in dark underground passageways
• Manipulate time to surprise enemies, using all-new Sands Of Time properties
• Action combat, agility and story-driven puzzles are blended together for a rich gaming experience

Prince of Persia The Two Thrones Overview

One Warrior. Two Souls. I returned home expecting peace. Instead I found my kingdom ravaged by war and my people enslaved. Now I am a fugitive, hunted by hostile armies and plagued by a curse that is gradually possessing my soul. A darker prince resides in me now. And I must embrace his powers and skill if I want to restore peace to my land, my people, and my soul. Format: PLAYSTATION II

more>>>

*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Jun 01, 2010 03:00:05