2009 – Page 2 – Daleisphere

June 8, 2009February 28, 2017

New iPhone 3G S Announced – Available June 19

$199 for 16 GB in U.S. – $299 for 32GB version (on contract of course)
- pricing only available to new AT&T customers
- $700 Upgrade fee for current AT&T iPhone users
- [June 10 Update: Rogers has announced that Canadian pricing will be the same as U.S. pricing – in Cdn $. So, $199 and $299 Cdn for the 16 and 32 GB units respectively. Only available on 3 year contracts again. No pricing for un-subbed units announced – un-subbed 3G iPhones still cannot be purchased in Canada. 8-GB, 3G Units will be decreased to $99. No word on 16GB units]
Available June 19 (U.S. & Canada)
$99 for prior 16 GB iPhone
“up to” two times Faster
Voice Control:
- voice dialing
- ask iPhone what song is playing and it will tell you
- tell iPhone to play a song, or songs by an artist or a playlist and it will play it
- developers can integrate into any app

Continue reading “New iPhone 3G S Announced – Available June 19”

June 8, 2009February 28, 2017

Leo Laporte Blows up at Mike Arrington on Gilmore Gang!

I am a loyal Leo Laporte fan. I have enjoyed his TV shows and have been listening to/watching his podcasts and net streams for years. He is one of the nicest guys you’d ever want to meet. Honest as the day is long. He is so kind tempered he reminds me of Mr. Rogers. I have never seen him loose his temper, let alone swear on his shows, podcasts or feeds.

I admire Arrington as well, but I too have grown a bit weary of his bullying. In light of their history, to my mind, Arrington’s calling Leo’s integrity into question crossed the line – especially when he followed up with a childish ‘… what are you going to do about it” comment.

Normally this kind of thing would have been laughed off by Leo. But I’ve heard Arrington go after Leo’s/Gilmore’s guests unnecessarily hard in recent shows and its time someone called him out on it. It would be one thing if Mike didn’t know Leo well. He does. Leo assiduously discloses all conflicts of interest at every opportunity. Michael knows this.

Good for you Leo!

[June 9 Update 1: A few hours later Leo recorded a 2nd Gilmore Gang where apologies and explanations were proffered. Click here to access it. It doesn’t start until about 13 minutes in. As you’ll hear, there is a real issue as to whether the Gilmore Gang will continue to be produced by the twit.tv network. I’m of mixed opinion. I fear that Gilmore’s personality and the kind of show he produces is not a match for the rest of the Twit network content.]

[June 9 Update 2: It seems the Internet mob has been tearing into Mike and he has shut down his Techcrunch account on Friendfeed. As I read through the comments against Mike and Leo, too many in the crowd have been unnecessarily abusive, mostly towards Michael. While I was upset with Mike’s cavalier attack on Leo’s integrity, Michael doesn’t deserve all this grief either. He made a mistake, he apologized. Leo accepted the apology. That should be enough. I’m now feeling sorry for Michael.]

See also:

June 7, 2009February 28, 2017

Federer – The Best Tennis Player of All Time: French Open 2009

(click images in this post for larger views)

Tying Pete Sampras’ 14 slam titles, and with a career grand slam under his belt (only the 6th man in history to do that – Sampras never won the French), Roger Federer is now, undeniably, the best tennis player – ever!

Federer beat Robin Söderling (6-1, 7-6, 6-5) easily. Söderling took down Nadal the prior Sunday, paving the way for Federer’s historic win. In the three sets Roger:

lost just 17 points on his serve
wasn’t broken
served at 66%
hit 41 winners
suffered only 24 unforced errors

It was fun to watch my all time favourite men’s tennis player, Andre Agassi, present the trophies. Having won the French Open 10 years ago and being the last man to win the career grand slam, he was a fitting choice. It was nice to see his wife, Steffi Graf present the woman’s trophies.

Continue reading “Federer – The Best Tennis Player of All Time: French Open 2009”

June 7, 2009February 28, 2017

Roger Federer’s Designer Tennis Shoes – French Open 2009

June 6, 2009February 28, 2017

Svetlana Kuznetsova wins 2009 French Open

(click on images in post for larger view)

In yet another lack-luster women’s grand slam final, the world’s number 1, and my current women’s favourite, Dinara Safina, was soundly beaten by Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 6-2.

This is Kuznetsova’s second grand slam title (the first being the 2004 U.S. Open). Safina has still not won a major. Good for Kuznetsova! But it’s hard to cheer for someone who doesn’t seem to have much of a personality.

On the up side, it was really nice to watch a women’s grand slam final without the Williams’ sisters. It was also nice to see Steffi Graf again!

I miss Clijsters, Davenport, Henin and Hingis!

June 3, 2009February 28, 2017

Sony’s E3 2009 Press Conference Summary

Sony’s 2009 E3 Press Conference can be viewed here. See also my 2008 Sony E3 coverage. Click on images below for larger views.

Exclusive PS3 Games Shown

God of War III: (demo’d – coming March 2010 ) Looks terrific! Except, that is, for Sony’s continued reliance on quick time events in boss battles. Grrr! But I still can’t wait GoW 1 and 2 were terrific games.

Gran Turismo 5 (polyphony – teaser trailer – still no ship date) – photo realistically gorgeous as you’d expect – first time cars show damage in this franchise – still a SIM that is likely only playable by extreme racing gamers.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (demo’d – naughty dog – no ship date – multi-player beta starting immediately) I’m looking forward to this one! Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is still my favorite PS3 game to date. Demo looked terrific but the female lead has changed. Elena Fisher seems to be gone :(

Continue reading “Sony’s E3 2009 Press Conference Summary”

June 2, 2009February 28, 2017

Nintendo E3 2009 Press Conference Summary

Nintendo’s 2009 E3 Press Conference can be viewed here. This has to be the most boring E3 conference I’ve ever watched. See also: My 2008 Nintendo E3 coverage.

Announcements

Multiplayer Mario co-op: (holiday 2009 – yawn)
Wii Fit Plus: 6 new exercise modes, 15 new balance games, available as software-only (fall 2009)
User Generated Content: Some user generated DS content initiatives discussed:
- FlipNotes Studio: animation drawing app (this summer)
- WarioWare DIY: Microgame creator
- Mario v. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again – level editor and online sharing (DSi – June 8, 2009).
- Will be able to upload DSi pictures to Facebook this summer.
Wii Vitality Sensor: Monitor health, pulse. Some kind of health / relaxation / stress diagnostics tool (no release date)
Super Mario Galaxy 2: New 3D Mario game

Continue reading “Nintendo E3 2009 Press Conference Summary”

June 2, 2009February 28, 2017

Bing Drives Traffic to Daleisphere on its Second Day

I was delighted to see that bing is driving traffic to the Daleisphere on only its second day of operation. Below is a clip from my Woopra dash-board showing the Daleisphere’s first bing referral (that I’ve noticed).

I find this particularly interesting because I do not recall ever seeing traffic driven from Live.com in the past. Until now 95% of my search engine traffic came from Google. Yahoo!, perhaps, drives 2%. I’m hoping bing refers more traffic in the future.

So far I like what I’ve seen of it. But I’m not ready to give up Google just yet. 😉

June 2, 2009February 28, 2017

Eric Schmidt’s Definition of Web 3.0

Eric Schmidt is the CEO of Google. In the 2 minute video below he describes what he believes Web 3.0 applications will be.

In summary, he defines, Web 3.0 as:

Applications that are pieced together.
They are relatively small.
The data is in the cloud.
The application can run on any device, PC or mobile phone.
Applications are fast and customizable
Applications are distributed virally via social networks and email.

June 1, 2009February 28, 2017

Microsoft Games on Demand Service – One Step Away from Microsoft Points

Microsoft Points Card

In my opinion, the biggest Microsoft announcement at E3 today was made after their press conference was over. They announced a new Games on Demand service (coming this August). It has two important features:

Full Games Available for Purchase on Demand: Microsoft will start selling full games on-demand via download through the Xbox Live Service starting this fall. Following in the footsteps of Steam (and to some degree Sony), this may be a critical inflection point on the path away from retail game sales. The 30 announced games are all older games (eg: Mass Effect, Assassin’s Creed and Bioshock). Games are to be sold at regular retail prices (no disk-free, Gamespot/E.B.; disintermediation discount). Nothing was said about the future availability of new titles day-and-date with retail releases. With the service in place there is, of course, no technological reason why this couldn’t happen. It’s just a matter of time.
A Step Away from Microsoft Points: Anyone who is a regular reader of my blog knows that I am a critic of Microsoft Points (see this post, for example). Games purchased through the Games on Demand service will be purchasable with a credit card. No Microsoft Points required. Amen! Let’s hope this is the beginning of the end for Microsoft Points.

For details see:

E3: Microsoft Announces ‘Games on Demand’ at Xbox Live Luncheon (Gamasutra)
Games on Demand Bringing Digital Retail to Xbox 360 (1Up.com)
Good-bye Games in boxes? Xbox 360 to get full game downloads (CNet)

June 1, 2009February 28, 2017

Microsoft E3 2009 Press Conference Summary

The Microsoft Press Conference can be viewed here. See also: My 2008 Microsoft E3 coverage.

Big Announcements:

Halo Reach: Bungie teased this new Halo game, set for a fall 2010 release. Whoo hoo! If its a Bungie shooter, and it has the name Halo on it, I’m in! Is ‘Noble 1’, Will Master Chief?
Metal Gear Rising: The next Kojima / Konami Metal Gear game is coming to the Xbox!!! Holy Cow! The final coup de gras against Sony. Kojima seemed genuinely happy to appear on stage for the announcement.
Project Natal: A ‘controller free’ , full body motion capture, item scanning, facial and voice recognition. Will work on every 360. See demo here. I’ll believe it when I see it! I don’t believe the Lion’s Gate Milo demo pictured on right. It had to be heavily scripted (click for larger view).

Continue reading “Microsoft E3 2009 Press Conference Summary”

May 31, 2009February 28, 2017

The Champ Goes Down!

When Rafael Nadal’s tripped in the third set, Mary Carillo said this picture will be famous if Nadal goes on to loose – even suggesting a title – “the Champ goes Down”. How prescient! I’m doing my part to fulfill her prophecy.

In what was a surprising and yet terrific match, Nadal’s 2007 Wimbledon nemesis,Robin Soderling (they played a 5 setter lasting 5 days due to rain delays), did something nobody has ever done before – beat Nadal at the French Open. Amazing!

This sets Federer up to accomplish three big things next Sunday:

winning his first French Open;
thereby giving him a career grand slam; and
tying Pete Sampras’s 14 major title record.

Assuming, that is, that Federer makes it to the finals next week. This is Federer’s big break. I’ll be cheering for him.

On a related note, Azarenka defeated the 2009 French Open women’s champion, Ana Ivanovic, in straight sets. That isn’t much of a surprise to me. I have thought for some time that Ivanovic was over-rated. Go Safina go!

May 31, 2009February 28, 2017

Nadal’s Designer Tennis Shoes – French Open 2009

These are the Nike, Max-air, LunarLite tennis shoes Rafael Nadal was wearing today when Robin Soderling took him down in the quarter finals at the French Open 2009.

Note the four tennis-ball-with-flame insignia’s for each of his 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 French Open titles.

Click on all images for larger views.

May 31, 2009February 28, 2017

Terminator Salvation (2009)

(4.5/5) action – thriller – sci-fi

Reference: |

Reviews: Roger Ebert (2 of 4) | IMDb External Reviews | Rotten Tomatoes 34% | Metacritic 51%

I loved it! Having listened to Ben Mankiewicz’s review I was expecting it to be terrible. Fortunately I had not read Roger Ebert’s rather ill-informed review. I hold his opinion in such high regard that I may not have seen it at the cinema. And, this kind of movie is best viewed on a big screen.

Let’s be clear, I am not a die-hard Terminator fan. But, I did faithfully watch and enjoyed the now cancelled Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles TV series. I suspect that that was a factor in my enjoying the movie as much as I did.

Ebert’s biggest criticism is that there is no story. To someone that is not a fan, that is a valid criticism. The movie makes no effort to fill the viewer in on the back story. It assumes you know it. Both Ebert and Makiewicz contrast Terminator to the recent Star Trek and how it was approachable by regular movie goers. There is validity in that argument.

But anyone who is a fan of the Terminator franchise or the TV show will enjoy how Terminator Salvation fits into the overall story arch. It shows how John Connor becomes the leader of the resistance and, ultimately, the beginnings of why the machines spent so much time in the earlier Terminator movies going back in time to try to kill him. That is the main story. There is an important side story involving Sam Worthington that I also found interesting. Indeed, the side-story’s plot is the basis for the use of ‘Salvation’ in the movie’s name. To explain why would be to provide a spoiler.

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May 28, 2009February 28, 2017

Where Do You Diverge from the Pop Culture Consensus?

From time to time I find myself swimming against the current of accepted wisdom. Below are just some of places where I diverge from the pop culture consensus. I’ll add to this list as items occur to me.

Where do you diverge from the pop culture consensus?

—- MOVIES —-

Jar Jar Binks

I liked Jar Jar Binks. What else is there to say. I thought he was an amusing character. I was happy to see him return in Attack of the Clones and the Clone Wars.

Gigli

I didn’t think Gigli sucked. It was far from great. It would probably rate 2 out of 5 Dale-heads if I were to review it formally. But it doesn’t deserve to be the butt of all jokes and one of the most lambasted movies of all time.

The English Patient

If there ever was a more boring, self-indulgent, overly-hyped movie, than The English Patient, I don’t know what it is. It was cathartic to see the fictional Seinfeld character Elaine Benes hate on the movie in the English Patient episode! :) This is probably the only thing I ever agreed with the Elaine character on.

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May 27, 2009February 28, 2017

The Trouble with Harry (1955)

(3/5) comedy – mystery

Reference: |

Reviews: Rotten Tomatoes 89% | IMDb External Reviews

The Trouble with Harry (1955) is not your typical Hitchcock movie. It is, to some degree, a who-done it, but it is hardly suspenseful. IMDb calls it a comedy | mystery | thriller. I agree with the comedy part and, perhaps its a bit of a mystery. But it is hardly a thriller. Rather its a small, sleepy, madcap of a movie (if a movie that slow can be called a madcap) with a good ensemble cast.

Edmund Gwenn finds the rather dead (‘Harry’) while hunting. He thinks he shot the man. Remarkably, multiple residents of a tiny hamlet trundle by the ‘scene of the crime’ , even though the scene is a remote hilltop in the woods. Confusion, cover-ups, mix-ups and new-found love ensues.

This was Shirley MacLaine’s film debut. At 21, she was at her buttoned-nosed cutest. She was terrific from the start, playing a recently widowed, single mother. [My all-time favourite Maclaine movie is probably The Apartment (1960), with Jack Lemmon].

What struck me most, though, was how contemporary actress Julianne Nicholson is a dead ringer for Shirley MacLaine in this film (see photos below). If this film were ever re-made, Nicholson would be the spot-on choice to play her role. Better yet, if a movie required a young and old version of Shirley MacLaine, these two would be a perfect match – not just for their remarkably comparable looks but for their similar personalities

Continue reading “The Trouble with Harry (1955)”

May 27, 2009February 28, 2017

J. Lohr – Estates – Seven Oaks – Cabernet Sauvignon (2007)

(4/5) cabernet sauvignon

Description

I am not particularly a fan of cabernet sauvignon wines. This one is an exception, and one of the better cabernet sauvignons I’ve tasted. It has a nice, subtle nose. I enjoyed its intense, yet creamy, spicy, vanilla texture and taste. Like most low priced cabernet sauvignons it initially had a wee bit too much alcohol flavour in the finish for my taste. But that disappeared over time (see ‘story’ section below). According to the label it:

… has aromas and bouquets of cherry, blackberry, violets and vanilla.

The LCBO Website describes the wine as follows:

Every time Vintages released this wine, it disappeared from store shelves at lightning speed! So we decided to make it an Essential to ensure that it’s always available and you’re never disappointed. Aged in oak for more than a year, this densely coloured red is packed with intense aromas of black cherry, blackcurrant, cedar, vanilla, and spices. Full-bodied and sweet-centred, this Cabernet will pair beautifully with roasted or grilled red meats.

Note: This wine is not to be confused with the pricier $39.95 2006 vintage of the same name. I have not yet tasted it. That wine was originally sold in Toronto for $19.95 (see this Toronto Life review). Perhaps it would be a good idea to purchase a case of the 2007 vintage if the price rise for the 2006 vintage is any indication.

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May 25, 2009February 28, 2017

Left 4 Dead

(3.5/5) – shooter – zombie – survival horror

This is not my normal style of game. I hate zombies. I hate zombie games. I fully expected to hate this game. However, given its stellar reputation, I rented it, expecting to play it for an hour, and toss it. That almost happened.

At first I played the single player campaign. I didn’t know what was going on. I was frustrated. I kept dying repeatedly. The game provides no in-game save option. Consequently I kept getting sent back 20 minutes to the last (rare) check point – a game construct that annoys me to no end.

After a couple hours of futility I was about to return it to the rental store. But, I had heard that it must be played online to be enjoyed. Having no friends with the game I loathed the thought of going online with unruly 13 year olds running off in every direction telling me how much I suck at it. But an amazing thing happened. I had fun.

I was into a game within 30 seconds. At first, I didn’t put my headset on. I expected to hate it and didn’t want to hear others berate my ineptitude. Strangely, 30 minutes later I noticed I was having fun – a lot of fun. At one point I was about to die and then someone came by and healed me. What? That never happens? Where did this sudden benevolence come from?

Continue reading “Left 4 Dead”

May 23, 2009February 28, 2017

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand

(2.5/5) – shooter

Reviews: Metacritic 71% | Game Rankings 72.47% | zero punctuation
Reference: | Achievements
Walkthrus: Couldn’t find any – you won’t need it!
Developer: Swordfish Studios Engine: Unreal Engine 3

In 50 Cent: Blood in the Sand, rapper Curtis Jackson (aka ‘50 Cent’) was to be paid for an African concert with a diamond encrusted skull. The skull was stolen. 50 Cent and his G-unit side-kick become a two man army, rampaging through Africa killing anyone that stands between them and their skull.

This game can be aptly described as a shooter with training wheels meets Lego star wars. If there was any game worthy of a zero punctuation lampoon, this one is it!

General Observations

I knew going in that this was going to be a poor game. I tried it, nonetheless, because someone on the Listen Up podcast mentioned that the game was a lot better than it was given credit for. While I agree that it was better than expected (I expected a 1.5 out of 5) I certainly cannot recommend it beyond a $5 rental.

After playing through on ‘normal’ I was set to give this game a 2 out of 5. However, my score was bumped up to 2.5 after playing it through on hard and playing online co-op.

The game is ridiculously easy on both normal and hard. It does get a bit (and I mean just a ‘bit’) more challenging towards the end of the game but only on hard mode. Having leveled-up all my weapons, taunts and counter kills (lame melee attacks) before playing co-op, I admit that I had some fun running and gunning through the game, co-operatively with strangers over Xbox-live, with super-pimped out weapons and characters cussing up a storm.

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May 20, 2009February 28, 2017

How to Preserve Opened Bottles of Wine

In a previous post I wrote about how to use marbles and the vacu vin pump to preserve open wine. In a terrific Globe & Mail video (shown above but now removed) Beppi Crosariol demonstrates the following additional approaches:

Using the Inert Argon Gas: I had used the inert argon gas method in the past with mixed results. Until I watched the video, I didn’t fully understand how to use it or why/how it worked. I didn’t understand, for example, that argon is heavier than air. It doesn’t fill the bottle. Rather it covers the wine like a blanket. Because it sinks down to the wine, you don’t need to worry about it leaking out of the top as you re-cork the bottle. Place the straw against the inside neck of the bottle. Spray for one second followed by a few short bursts. Reseal with any cork. This should keep the wine for up to three weeks. These argon bottles cost between $12-$15 ($8ish in the U.S.) and can be found at most liquor stores (click here to purchase argon gas on Amazon.com). Note: To keep the ‘blanket of argon’ over the wine (and away from the air in the bottle above the blanket), you’ll want to make sure you don’t shake/bump the wine too much while being stored – so keeping it in the fridge door probably is not a good idea.
Small Wine Bottles: Pour the remains of a big bottle of wine into a smaller wine bottle. Then recork. If you fill the smaller bottle, there will be no (or very little) air left in the bottle to react with the wine. The wine will keep indefinitely.

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May 16, 2009February 28, 2017

How to Change Number of Items Showing in Windows 7 Jump Lists

With Windows 7 RC1, Microsoft limited the number of Jump List items showing above taskbar icons to 10. (click image for larger view). In the beta there was no such limit.

I gather that more than 10 was confusing for some. For me large jump lists are very useful– especially for programs that do not make it easy to find and open recent files.

One such program is Windows Live Writer – the program I use to write blog posts. It remembers only the three most recent posts. However, I frequently tweak and retweak recent posts until I get it just right. The more prior posts showing up in the Jump List the easier it is to access and edit those posts.

To change the default number of items in the jump List that Windows 7 makes available:

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May 16, 2009February 28, 2017

How to Make Windows 7 Activate a Window by Hovering a Mouse Over It.

windows 7 logo

To me, and I suspect to many Windows users, it would be intuitive for Windows to bring whatever window the mouse is currently hovering over into focus without the need to click on that window.

It turns out that Windows 7 now makes this possible. I stumbled upon this tip when writing my ‘How to Shut Off Windows 7 Aero Snap – Stop it from Auto Arranging Windows’ post.

There are two additional reasons why I want Windows 7 to activate (bring focus to an ‘out of focus’ window) by hovering the mouse over it:

1. Symbiotic With Single-Click Item Activation

For the better part of a year I have been using the ‘single-click to open’ option in Windows Vista and Windows 7 (The option has been around since Windows 95). The idea behind this one-click option is to make the Windows use experience similar to the web-browsing experience. Instead of double clicking icons and options to open/access/activate them in Windows, you need only click icons, items etc. once.

Continue reading “How to Make Windows 7 Activate a Window by Hovering a Mouse Over It.”

May 16, 2009February 28, 2017

How to Shut Off Windows 7 Aero Snap – Stop it from Auto Arranging Windows

Window’s 7 new Aero Snap feature is, no doubt, a useful feature for those with just one monitor. In my case, where I use multiple monitors, it is a major pain. Windows 7 frequently auto-adjusts windows across multiple monitors when I have no desire for this to happen.

In the picture above, my Firefox window was originally open in just the lower, central, window. I was dragging the lower right corner with my mouse (see yellow arrow) to adjust the window when, suddenly, it popped up across three monitors (see four red arrows above). Yikes!

Windows 7 does this because it thinks that if you drag an edge of a window to the edge of a screen (any screen) you want the widow stretched across the full screen (or in my case, multiple screens). Nobody would want the result produced above.

Before disabling Aero Snap this happened to me several times a day. It doesn’t any longer. To disable Aero Snap, follow these steps:

Continue reading “How to Shut Off Windows 7 Aero Snap – Stop it from Auto Arranging Windows”

May 14, 2009February 28, 2017

The Intertwined History of Peet’s and Starbucks

Few people realize that the owners of Peet’s once owned Starbucks and that the Starbucks we know today was created when Howard Shultz (Starbucks current Chairman, then a disgruntled executive) bought out the original Starbucks owners (who then purchased Peet’s) after a dispute as to whether or not to include espresso bars in their coffee bean stores.

I fell in love with Peet’s coffee when I lived in Silicon Valley from 1998 to 2002. To this day I have a couple pounds mail ordered to Canada every few weeks. Over many cups of Peet’s coffee, I took the following notes as I read Howard Shultz’s book – Pour Your Heart Into it: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time. It’s quite the interesting, intertwined history.

Alfred Peet (pictured on the right) formed Peet’s in Berkley, California in 1966. (click here for more info on Alfred Peet)
Originally Peet’s locations just sold beans – no drip coffee, latte’s etc.
While attending college at Berkley, a Starbucks Founder (I forget his name, let’s call him "SF1") strolled by and bought some beans. SF1, a native of Seattle, fell in love with Peet’s beans.
SF1 returned home after college and continued to purchase coffee from Peet’s by mail order (as I do today).
SF1 enjoyed the beans so much that he decided to open a similar bean selling store, Starbucks, in Seattle with Starbucks Founder II ("SF2"). SF2 had ran a local Seattle Coffee shop prior to that point. [I note from this Wikipedia entry on Starbucks that there were three founders, Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegel and Gordon Bowker. I’m not sure which of these three were SF1 and SF2]

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May 14, 2009February 28, 2017

Prince of Persia (2008)

Game Synopsis

In Prince of Persia (“PoP”), an unnamed prince, who isn’t really a prince, travels with Princess Elika to each of the 24 regions, jumping, climbing dodging, fighting enemies to get to the region’s ‘fertile ground". He defeats a bad guy, Elika ‘heals’ the fertile ground, then they retrace their steps on either side to collect light ‘seeds’ (Crackdown-style) to level up. THEN HE DOES IT ALL AGAIN – TWENTY-FOUR TIMES. That’s the game.

It’s gorgeous and somewhat fun, but left me wanting. I preferred the the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time on the original Xbox – especially the fighting elements and the ability to rewind time.

General Observations

Tomb Raider Meets God of War : The game style can best be described as a cell-shaded combination of God of War, Crackdown, Assassin’s Creed and Tomb Raider without GoW’s terrific combo-leveling up system. I note that PoP uses the same game engine as Assassin’s Creed (Scimitar) which explains a lot.

Grander in Scale: This Prince of Persia is much grander in scale than the original Prince of Persia: Sands of Time and similar in scope to Assassin’s Creed.

Level Intricacies: The intricacies of the 24 regions are quite amazing – especially given their three dimensional nature. You explore every nook and cranny, but, unfortunately, you must explore each nook at least three times to fully complete the game. This is the poster-child for games that extend play by forcing you to retrace your steps, over and over.

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