Why you can trust GamesRadar+
Prince of Persia as an action platformer: great. But as a turn based strategy game? Prince moves four squares across the wall, buzzsaw trap moves three? Um, maybe not.
In actual fact, it's turned out a lot like Advance Wars, with the Prince (and various other generals) leading armies all over the Middle East and India in the period between Sands of Time and The Warrior Within.
And, you know, it's also turned out rather brilliantly. The gameplay system, based around randomly drawn cards set in the Prince of Persia universe, is richly tactical. There's easily enough depth here to satisfy those of us who ate up the machinations of the Black Hole army, and it's easy to get into, too.
It's the kind of thing that will happily fast-forward you through huge chunks of the afternoon as you shift formations, have a go at the enemy with cunningly placed archers and pretend to be an army general.
It's a shame it's not as complete a package as an Advance Wars game - you can construct your own card decks, but there's no map design, and for some reason it doesn't save any statistics - because it's just as engrossing.
Fine presentation, a decent storyline, nine playable characters and a generous multi-player modes are simply the icing on the stake, as it were.
More info
Genre | Action |
Description | The Prince of Persia franchise spins off a strategy-based sub-quest. It isn't a classic, nor is it a mistake. |
Franchise name | Prince of Persia |
UK franchise name | Prince of Persia |
Platform | DS |
US censor rating | Everyone 10+ |
UK censor rating | 12+ |
Release date | 5 December 2005 (US), 9 December 2005 (UK) |

"I can promise my game will be significantly less than $80": Indie dev stunned by Kirby Air Riders Switch 2 reveal after working on their own Air Ride successor for months

Mario Kart World quietly fixes one of the series' longest-standing annoyances and I suspect I will get hit with 10% fewer red turtle shells because of it

Superman goes full sci-fi in DC's epic CinemaCon footage, showcasing a bloodied Man of Steel rising again