flypig.co.uk

Just as a quick addendum to the previous entry, whilst playing Ico it surprised me how similar many of the game elements were to the first 3D Prince of Persia - The Sands of Time. Of course, Ico predates The Sands of Time, and when Sands of Time was released, I think Ico had only been a critical but not popular success in the UK (I don't know about Canada, where Sands of Time was developed, though). At any rate, it does look like Sands of Time has taken many good ideas from Ico: the idea of protecting someone else, gradually falling in love with her, the way the camera movement when you enter a new area gives a clue as to where you should go, the general gameplay characteristics combining architectural puzzles with intermittent fighting, the need to use both characters to solve puzzles. There seem like a whole host of similarities. To some extent, Sands of Time could be seen as a more mainstream Ico (the fighting is much more involved in the Prince of Persia title, for example), and it certainly has interesting new elements of its own too (such as the ability to rewind time). None of this reuse of ideas is a bad thing of course, but it does perhaps highlight how Ico is a game that has left an important legacy. The gaming world is better for it. It might also explain why they are both such great games, probably two of my favourite. The use of two characters (only one of which you control) to solve puzzles is part of what makes both games great and also, I believe, why the Sands of Time is so much more fulfilling than its two sequels.