Crystal Hohenthaner

Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, the new game from Ubisoft, packs a dark and sinister punch and is now available for Playstation2, Xbox, Nintendo Gamecube and PC CD-ROM.

The game: Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is the sequel to the 2003 Console Game of the Year Prince of Persia: Sands of Time.

Warrior Within is darker than it’s predecessor and the prince himself has darkened. The music accompanying the game, such as songs from Godsmack, is very heavy and bass-driven and sets a dark, brooding mood.

Although the graphics are quite good, some scenes don’t load too well on older Xboxes.

The story line: Although not too intricate, the plot is compelling enough to make advancement in the game interesting.

Basically, Dahaka, an immortal character, is hunting the Prince who is on a journey to defy his preordained death. This journey leads him to the core of an island stronghold full of enemies.

The Prince will only be able to survive if he can master deadly new combat arts and rise to a new level of warriorship. In this single player Role Playing Game (RPG), the Prince returns with deadlier skills and a big craving for battle.

So, of course, new battle options are available for your warrior within. These options include a freeform fighting style that allows players to manipulate the environment and a new projectile attack system that grants a variety of ranged combat attacks.

The game includes a large amount of fighting combos while the weapons include both single and double handed varieties.

Plus, although I didn’t get the Prince to the end of his journey, various bonus incentives are promised for those who finish the game.

The downside: The game is rated “M” for mature and it more than earns the rating. There is a lot of gore as well as some very scantily clad computer generated women. It is a lot more grown up than the first Prince of Persia game and I wouldn’t recommend playing it with younger friends or family members.

The bottom line: Overall, the game plays much like the Link/Legend of Zelda games with a third- person perspective. If you like The Warrior Within you may like SoulReaver 1 and 2, or Devil May Cry.

The game includes many hours of play time and, if you like this type of game, it is well worth the $49.95 price tag. Renting the game probably won’t satisfy. Even a hard core gamer would have to play nonstop to finish the game in a week.