Prince of Persia - disappointing

[Arkhan]

I can't imagine the Macintosh remake (1992ish?) in B&W

that has to look retarded.

The original on a composite screen, is so awesome.  also, the sound effects achieved on a stock apple // are pretty impressive.

Apple // has really interesting animation characteristics, and the colors are pretty dumb at first, but I've found they grow on you.  solid stuff.

[spenoza]

I can't imagine the Macintosh remake (1992ish?) in B&W

that has to look retarded.

Surprisingly, it does not. Many Mac games had separate B&W graphics since, at that time, a lot of Mac owners were still using B&W machines (like the SE30, which was quite powerful despite lacking color in the display). So these were graphics created from scratch to work well in black and white. Didn't take up much space in the resource fork since monochrome graphics are inherently small.

There are 3 pictures in this set at MobyGames: http://www.mobygames.com/game/macintosh/prince-of-persia/screenshots

[Arkhan]

oh boy.  it looks like a Spectrum game.

[spenoza]

As I can't find any YouTube video footage of the B&W version, you'll just have to trust me that it looks good in motion, and thanks to the Mac sound hardware, sounds good, too. The higher resolution helps, also.

[Arkhan]

searched for "Mac prince of persia black and white"

first hit.

It looks as good as any of the others in motion.  Even the Apple II one.

All of them look good in motion, really.

[spenoza]

I found that video but it doesn't count. It only shows a couple seconds of game and doesn't have any sound to go with it, either.

[grahf]

I just fired up the PCE version the other day, and finally played it through to the end of level 2.

I gotta say that it's actually pretty good. The controls seem fine, and the graphics and sound are both good. The Save/Load feature is a little crappy, forcing you to exit to the menu before you can load. I guess they did that on purpose though, because otherwise it would feel an awful lot like it had save-states. That kinda thing would totally ruin the challenge in a game like this.

So, pretty good version of the game IMO. I think I'll play it through this week.

[Arkhan]

I found that video but it doesn't count. It only shows a couple seconds of game and doesn't have any sound to go with it, either.

It shows enough.  and, we are talking about visuals, so sound is irrelevant.

It looks like a Spectrum game.   Monochrome with very well animation.   Shadow of the Beast on Spectrum, and Double Dragon, both look great for being monochrome.

They still blow compared to colorful stuff. (Except for Double Dragon on C64, which is awful forever)

[SuperDeadite]

searched for "Mac prince of persia black and white"

first hit.

It looks as good as any of the others in motion.  Even the Apple II one.

All of them look good in motion, really.

Crazy, the Mac version looks identical to the Japanese computer versions, just in black and white.  Even the "high-res" game screen with the lifebar on the outside is identical to the X68000 version.

[Arkhan]

Not really that crazy considering the mac was using a 68k too, lol

[spenoza]

The Mac version was the template for later ports. It was specially re-done. If the Japanese computer ports came after, they would have used the Mac version as the base since it was the best port at the time.

Personally, I think the Mac B&W looks much better than the Spectrum version.

And I agree that the PCE version controls well. Still, there's something missing in the animation and the animation thus looks hinky at times and not as smooth or seamless as it should, IMO.

[Arkhan]

The best way to play PoP, IMO, is to use a 1084S, press the green button, and plug a duo-r into it.

[esteban]

After reading through this thread (and wondering how the PCE port compares to the other versions), I realize that I will simply have to play it tonight and decide for myself.

Also, I am hoping it isn't too frustrating for my daughter to try. I was older than her when I first played PoP, but I think she might like this game. 

[jperryss]

Also, I am hoping it isn't too frustrating for my daughter to try. I was older than her when I first played PoP, but I think she might like this game. 

If she gets frustrated, adjusting the movement or battle speeds might help.

[Arkhan]

if she gets frustrated, throw her in a pit!