Prince of Persia: Warrior Within

G4 TV

Once again, it exemplifies the very definition of a boundary-pushing video game.

Detroit Free Press

The prince has gone from an "Aladdin"-style teenager to a grim, angry young adult. He's even more beautifully drawn than before, and this year's installment adds a much better combat system.

BonusStage

One of the best damn games ever, period. This is definitely at the top of my list for Game of the Year, due to addicting gameplay, fantastic presentation, some of the coolest looking blood ever in a game, and a combat system that is relatively second-to-none.

Official Xbox Magazine

Warrior Within is not perfect - there's too much backtracking, too many low-poly character models, recurring cheap deaths on small platforms - but it's the closest the adventure genre will come to it in this generation of systems. [Dec 2004, p.30]

XboxAddict

Like watching a great adventure story on a Saturday afternoon, with the added dimension that YOU get to be the hero.

Gamers' Temple

The levels are imaginative and at times surreal, infusing the game with a unique and compelling atmosphere. The cutscenes are excellent and if you’ve seen a scene before and want to skip it, the game uses an interesting mechanism to allow you to bypass it.

Game Informer

Its change of pace and maturity feels just right, the platforming is divine, and the action is something to be very happy about. [Jan 2005, p.112]

Next Level Gaming

It's got the same magic that The Sands of Time had, and then just slaps you around with how great the new gameplay is. I'm in heaven once again.

TotalGames.net

The young Prince did a superb job, but amidst the darkened clouds he's aged with some style and the beautifully excessive fighting system creates a much-improved character and a better all-round game. [XBM]

Xbox Evolved

A truly great story, amazing gameplay, wonderful graphics, and by far the best sound in any Xbox game I have ever heard, easily makes Warrior Within one of the best Xbox games ever.

Play Magazine

An amazingly involving adventure from spirit to atmosphere to richness of setting and exploration. [Dec 2004, p.65]

TeamXbox

A great game with absolutely stunning visuals, intriguing gameplay, and a cool story, but it may not be everybody's cup of tea in terms of its new dank look or hard-edged feel.

MS Xbox World

If you like puzzle adventures and want a break from the usual hack and slash or shoot "em ups, than this game is a must.

Warcry

Good, old-fashioned, timeless, ass-kicking always makes for a good time.

Extreme Gamer

The step into the darkside away from the cartoony style of the previous titles was a good choice. You've just got to love the 'badass' look.

Yahoo! Games

Largely an upgrade on the original, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is still one of the most polished and imaginative escapades we've played. Like a blockbuster movie, the tale delivers on almost every count from dazzling pyrotechnics to deft storytelling.

Console Gameworld

The experience is rounded out by a killer score. Heavy metal distortion guitars complement traditional Arabic motifs, creating a near-perfect blend of atmospheric airiness and pumped up fury.

games(TM)

You get the impression that "The Sands of Time" was just a warm-up for the main event, a game that's familiar at first but soon reveals a level of imagination beyond that of the original, and displays as little room for error as one of the Prince's most daring acrobatic leaps. [Christmas 2004, p.100]

Computer and Video Games

You could say the new dark and gritty atmosphere isn't as enchanting as the sumptuous visual quality of "Sands of Time," but what it lacks in the beauty stakes it more than makes up for in pure visceral excitement. [Offical UK Xbox Magazine]

GMR Magazine

The acrobatics alone make Warrior Within a must-buy. Rounded out with superb character design and vast Myst-like landscapes, this Prince is another winner.

1UP

Not quite as good as The Sands of Time. Elements like the combat and bosses are inarguably better, but lack of evolution in the Prince and the action-oriented slant are not as good as the basic platforming mechanics that were the star of the show in last year's game.

Armchair Empire

With the refinements and enhancements the team has made it’s definitely worth a look if you missed the previous title.

XGP Gaming

Ubisoft is hoping this time around that a revamped, "free form' fighting system will address the repetitiveness of the first installment, and a darker tone will create more of an edge that will hopefully generate more sales out of the gate than with "The Sands of Time."

Kombo

The decision to take the franchise to a darker place was not a bad idea ' UbiSoft simply took it a tad far and the game has lost connection with series' roots, as anyone who looks at or plays the title without knowledge of its connection of the venerable series would probably require some convincing to accept that yes, this action game was an entry in the Prince of Persia franchise.

IGN

Ubisoft took a gamble by taking the Prince to a dark place. I don't think it paid off as the sense of magic, seen even in the old 2D PC days, is barely present here. It wasn't the wrong decision to make for a darker story, but Ubisoft took it too far.

GameZone

Most of the things that made the first game so great has been taken out to make the Warrior Within a darker combat oriented game.

GameSpot

While Warrior Within's new combat and satisfyingly long campaign improve on last year's game, the now darker tone falls somewhat flat compared to the storybook atmosphere in "The Sands of Time."

Gaming Target

This game doesn’t really do anything that you haven’t seen before in many other action games available, but this is one of the few titles that manage to do all the key ingredients really well.

My Gamer

The game is darker, bloodier, and edgier all around. The environments all look beautiful, and the combat animation is seamless.

Xbox World Australia

Builds on the great gameplay elements from "The Sands of Time" but lets itself down with too much backtracking and a weak script. The level design in the game is amazing, at times breathtaking and the addition of Boss battles is great.

Electronic Gaming Monthly

But fans of the last game will be glad to know that the levels, traps, and puzzles are once again masterpieces of design. [Jan 2005, p.126]

Game Power Australia

The game has taken a few steps backwards in terms of style, but its combat is greatly improved and it's much longer than the original. Make no mistake; this is a worthy successor to a truly great game.

3DAvenue

Those coming to Warrior Within cold probably won’t see a lot to complain about at all, outside of the somewhat repetitive and lengthy combat sequences.

GamingTrend

It isn’t that the game is bad, it is just that the mood, voices and music combine to create a game that you don’t want to play.

Jolt Online Gaming UK

Overall Warrior Within seems to be in something of a messy transition period, caught between the light-hearted fun of the original and some noirish violent action game that was probably more the result of mis-focused market testing than any kind of genuine developer decision.

Game Over Online

While the game does address previous game issues and is a worthy successor to the previous title in its own way, it does make you wonder what the game could've been if it'd straddled the line between light and dark.

Sydney Morning Herald

Exploring the labyrinthine citadel is rewarding, although backtracking and frequent deaths can be frustrating.

Total Video Games

Bizarrely it's not any aspect of the game that lets the experience down but that over style ' we simply don't like the mature nature of the game compared to the delights of its predecessor. The end result comes across as desperately trying to be edgy and blatantly falls short of the mark.

GamerFeed

Bigger and definitely badder, with a more enhanced combat set-up, deeper levels and puzzles, a neat time travel gimmick, and a darker tone that works wonderfully.

Gamer.tv

The demanding learning curve is absolutely perfect...An essential purchase for patient gamers everywhere.

AceGamez

If you loved the original but found it too easy, then give The Prince of Persia: Warrior Within a go, as it's sure to please. If you loved "Ninja Gaiden" you'll definitely like this.

GameCritics

If nothing else, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within proves that good gameplay always trumps bad style choices.

Xbox Nation Magazine

This is a rightful heir, just not resoundingly so. [Jan 2005, p.84]

Inside Gamer Online

Too bad that all of the "enhancements" made to the prince's fascinating virtual world are actually liabilities. We are glad Ubisoft toyed with the bits that needed improvement, but we wonder why they "fixed" the things that were never broken.

eToychest

As a member of a series that takes a treasured place in the pantheon of gaming greatness, it is a lackluster effort, more concerned with watering down the game's strengths to make it more palatable for the masses than in delivering more of what made its predecessor great.

Game Revolution

A downgrade in the look and sound combined with increasingly annoying platforming and camera issues get in the way of this warrior's ultimate victory.

Eurogamer

"The Sands of Time" set such a high standard in virtually every area that anything less was always going to be disappointing, and discovering that many of the bits that were nigh on flawless are less taxing, less focused, or are just the same with a scar across the face, is deeply upsetting.

Edge Magazine

Ubisoft has taken a flawed game of boundless promise, destroyed some (but not all) of its appeal, fixed some (but not enough) of its problems, and jeopardised the whole endeavour by making the same mistake twice and rushing it to market before it was steady on its feet. Prince of Persia is strong and supple enough to survive this with many of its immense virtues intact. But it deserved so much better. [Christmas 2004, p.80]

PALGN

You can't deny the fun the platforming and the combat brings. But that's really all it brings now. It's merely a game you 'play' rather than an adventure you 'experience'.

Worth Playing

The focus on combat makes the game boring, and the lack of good puzzles and platforming of the same caliber as in Sands of Time make Prince of Persia: Warrior Within a slow ride that many fans should honestly stay away from.

Xequted

There are hints of greatness here and there. But those hints only remind us of Warrior Within's predecessor, making this new Prince of Persia game's bad design decisions all the more obvious.

Cheat Code Central

Inexplicably the aspects of "The Sands Of Time" that most players complained about, namely the endless battling of foes has returned in spades and it's not only repetitive beyond all reason, it's also a lot less forgiving this time around.

GameSpy

A disappointment. It completely breaks with the first game in everything but gameplay, and even that is sabotaged by annoying, repetitive level design.

NTSC-uk

Largely missed opportunity. Those who loved the original for its setting and style will be disappointed and put off by the direction the series has taken.

The New York Times

The tone of the game has gone from an Arabian Nights fantasy to something akin to a Marilyn Manson music video. In dark and grimy settings, the once gallant prince curses and jeers as he swings his sword at demons whose decapitations are lovingly shown in slow motion to a soundtrack of screeching guitars.