Battle of the Ports - Prince of Persia (プリンス・オブ・ペルシャ) Show 429 - 60fps
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Time Code
00:29 - Apple II
03:36 - Amiga
04:35 - MS Dos
05:49 - Amstrad CPC
06:54 - ZX Spectrum
07:53 - SAM Coupe
09:56 - NEC PC-9801
11:31 - Sharp X68000
13:01 - PC Engine Super CD
14:18 - GameBoy
15:10 - Fujitsu FM Towns
16:45 - Super Famicom
18:50 - Mega CD
20:15 - Master System
21:29 - NES
22:35 - Mega Drive
24:23 - GameBoy Colour
25:23 - All versions side by side
Enjoy!
![[TAS] SNES Prince of Persia by Challenger & eien86 in 32:33.90](/img/n.gif)
I love that the SFC/SNES version had so many little additions not present in the other ports (extra cut-scenes, extra tiles, extra levels, extra enemy types, bosses!!!), really makes it stand on it's own. Loved that at the very beginning the sword was hidden away down in the watery cavern area... ports always feel better when they're not just straight 1:1 conversions and can take advantage of what the systems offer.-
I agree, just look at the snes version of rampart, they turned a great single screen game into a 1 player stategy game using mode 7 for combat and expanding on the original game's combat for 1v1 matches with your friend.
It's interesting how the high degree of attention to detail in the animations really elevates Prince of Persia. The Apple II version isn't the most graphically impressive version of the game but it's subtle differences in the animations that do drag the ports down. For instance the scene at the beginning, note how quickly the princess appears to turn, showing us that she is startled when the Vizier enters the room. The Amiga version has the princess making a pretty leisurely turn that changes how you'd interpret the scene. Great video! There are so many versions of the game I've never seen and now want to try.
Fun fact: The PC98 port was actually the very first port to be released! It sold (as far as I remember) over a million units over in Japan, and it contributed to the game becoming a success.
That sure explains why all the Japanese ports are based upon it.
It is also the reason that the Prince has a turban in the Mac port amd in PoP2. Mechner was blown away by the port.
@@bishopcruzhe described the Japanese version to be like seeing a big budget and well-written film adaptation of a novel, if I remember correctly
fun fact: the gbc version wss planned to be released in Japan by sunsoft but it never happened but during 2020 Nintendo leak we got prototype of it
A couple of notes about the versions not included here: the Atari ST versions looks, strangely enough, quite different from the Amiga (and DOS) version as it is slightly more detailed and has different colours. It appears to have been developed in France and it is reminiscent of the CPC port. The Macintosh version looks again different from the DOS and Amiga as it sports a resolution of 640 by 400 pixels (exactly doubling the res. of the PC/Amiga ports) and might have influenced most of the higher res. Japanese ports. There is also a modern era (2011) Commodore 64 port which was developed by Mr. SID (the same person who ported Canabalt and SMS Sonic the Hedgehog to the C64, truly a C64 virtuoso). As he documented all his work we know that he used the Apple II and DOS versions as the foundation for his port. Now, that version would on original hardware only if flashed on a "modern" Easy Flash cartridge for memory reasons. It might not be considered a port for the stock machine (eventho is debatable and ultimately irrelevant as it's matter of opinion and especially if you play C64 on an emulator these days) but it's an impressive undertaking nonetheless. The Commodore 64 is a superior machine to the Apple II in most respects, still a 1:1 port of PoP has always been considered tricky due to the different ways the two machines handle the memory needed for the animations.
Thanks for the information! Only the Macintosh port came after the Japanese computer versions and was inspired by them. Jordan Mechner even admitted such and was so impressed with the port that he chose to copy their art styles for the sequel.
The Mac version actually came out in 1992 so the Japanese influence would be the other way round, because it definitely took things like the character looks and some other details from those versions.
@@RagingRowen Right, I wasn't that sure about the timeline.. Still the Mac version looks like an interesting middle ground between Amiga/PC and the Japanese computers.
@@RagingRowen The Mac version actually has Arsys Software in the credits, too.
There's also Atari 8bit version released in 2021. Only downside is it's requires 128K RAM so either upgraded 65XE/800XL models or stock 130XE (or emulator).
what. no special mention of the homebrew prince of persia for commodore 64?
Oooh, Tommy Tallarico burn!
It's impossible to overstate how amazing it is seeing something that looks like this running on an Apple II
SFC one has always been my favorite by a mile. Fantastic game, and I'm glad I got the uncensored JP version of the game all those years ago.
There's so many games that got a censored release on the SNES but the SFC versions were not.
@@RetroCore it strange that the Virtual Console were based on the GBC ver instead of either Genesis and SNES version
@@RetroCore man i hate that the western made the game sucky but also censored the gory stuff but you know what i think western is only one to censored current modern gory gens and crappy micro transactions and gambling instead of censoring old retro games etc. and i kinda hate it when westerns has gone corrupted and woke. although in the full motion video scenes i kinda prefer the anime or cartoonish full motion video besides the live action ones well since every live action full motion video might cost too much limitations and money.
Did you accidentally call Matt Furniss "Tim Furniss" because you mixed his name up with Tim Follin?
Yep. I do that a lot. In another video I did the same silly mistake. I don't know why.
@@RetroCore Probably because both are amazing composers.
there was also a unofficial version to the Commodore 64, which has done a great job as well. its was releaseed in 2011 as a free game.
I was about to comment the same
its a great port as well. but Mark is right here was newer has a official version, dispite there should have been 2 official and one unofficial attempts, until we see that one. Checkout games that wasen't.
PoP on the C64 requires an Easyflash cartridge to run on an actual machine, eventho this is not noticeable on an emulator where you just load a .crt file. So I guess it wouldn't qualify as a port that would run on a stock machine.
still, its can run on the actuelle machine. Easyflash did only has extra flash memory. No special other features like reu. There was large cartriges that could uses 512kb when fillfated C64s came out. But not a game you could run on disc or cassette. Etc the main prince uses 40kb or such alone.
@@spacefractal I agree, nothing special the EF is doing there. But the game specifically needs to be flashed on an after market cartridge to run on a actual machine. If it was something that could run on one of those early 90s large Ocean Software carts, then I'd say it was running on a stock machine. Impressive port nonetheless and I'm all for C64 after market improvements. Not a purist.
Hahaha. Nothing, I mean nothing is like playing the Original Prince of Persia on the Apple II Mark. I do have this for he Amiga and MS-DOS as well. But that game on the Apple II is just so memorable for me to play growing up bro.
Thank you for sharing this with us as always Mark. 8^)
Anthony..
I can imagine that back in the day, the Apple II version really impressed anyone who saw it.
As a lifelong Sega fan it pains me to admit, but imo the SFC/SNES version is easily the best. Though I suppose it's not a port in the strictest sense, the enhancements are great. The levels keep elements of the originals, giving the game a familiar feel, but are expanded to make the game worth playing even if you've mastered other versions.
I've still got a lot of nostalgia for the Mega CD version though; it was the first version I played, and I absolutely love the main menu theme.
Yeah, finally PoP! My favorite of all time is the SFC one but the MCD is also such a great port. It's my second favorite. The MD one had potential but it feels so slow that I can't have any fun with It.
There's a pretty impressive Atari 8-bit conversion that released not too long ago. Just waiting on my SIO cables to get in so I can see how it actually plays.
I was just about to say the same!
That sick burn towards Tommy, though. 🤣
His mother is not very proud for the how the ost turned out.
Good to know that even back in the day, Tommy Tallerico was always involved in dogshit products.
The Super Famicom version with the PC Engine port's CD soundtrack (surely doable with MSU-1 integration) would be the perfect combination in my eyes!
That does exist. :)
In my opinion the Super Nintendo music sounds more full-bodied than the Pc Engine's CD music, which sounds very hollow and compressed.
@@DeadlyGamingLV Yeah, just happened to stumble upon it actually! :D There's also an option to use the Mega CD soundtrack.
@@delta7890 yes
The MCD version of PoP would be a nice addition to MD Mini 2 / Genesis Mini 2. I think Ubisoft would be okay with that, but the main hurdle will be Victor Entertainment, who still owns the publishing rights of their games (stuff from other Victor labels are owned by Marvelous).
I would have thought UBi Soft would have been the biggest issue here.
I love seeing what Japanese developers could do with a western developed game. They really were light years ahead.
They definitely were.
Japan does what American't 🤪🤙
Especially during the 8, 16 and 32bit era
@@Bubba__Sawyer take one of those European games like turrican and see what they could do with it
Some notable port differences you missed:
1. The Japanese ports moved the Jaffar fight to the final part of Level 12 where the Princess is, when he was in the previous part in the original version(s). The Jaffar from the original became a high-class guard in the ports. The SNES version adds even more extra bosses, with the most notable one (IMO) being an Ashura-like creature in Level 17 which has its own unique behaviour.
2. The European MD version is the one with the added music. It moves the level count from 12 to 16 despite the time limit being unchanged unlike the SNES version. The US version is more akin to the original with 12 levels and no music.
I only played the Sega cd version and was just too frustrating.
by far, Sega CD, SNES and Mac were my best version of it
There's a remake version of it release in 2007 developed by Gameloft (same creator behind some IOS and Android games) and published by Ubisoft known as "Prince Of Persia Classic" for PS3, Xbox 360
The game play like the original version, but Gameloft decided to make all 3D style. Just a shame the 3D model look rather cheap in my opinion
I remember Karateka being amazing. But Prince of Persia was life changing. It was the first game I played that resembled like a real person moving around. I could not believe the amount of animation and detail.
I figured it had about this many ports but didn’t realize how different some of them were. Especially the amount of detail. I really enjoyed the second game but it wasn’t as mind blowing at the time it came out.
I played the Japanese ports of the original Prince of Persia to death, especially the SFC version but never played the 2nd game for some reason. I can't even recall if I've ever seen it running.
Literally the first game I've played on PC, on a XT with green phosphor CGA, lent by the technician who sold me my first PC - a 286 with white phosphor CGA. Since the delivery of my 286 was delayed, I was lent the XT for some weird technicality to hold the price in Brazilian cash, because at the time we had to pay stuff in USD converted by the daily rate - which doubled or tripled every day. xD I can laugh now, but it was a bit trying to acquire anything technological back in 1993.
The Japanese computer versions are awesome! The NEC PC88 definitely was the blueprint of the PC-Engine CD. The cutscenes are cinematic videos instead of just looking like the gameplay. More Ninja Gaiden style. I didn’t expect it. I never played any of these versions so this video was well worth my time.
If you include the Speccy version, it's also worth including the C64 version, since neither was official. Also the omission of the original Mac version is crucial here, since many say it was the best of the Western home computer ports.
I didn't know about the C64 version. But I think so many people now know about the Sam Coupe version 😁 which is cool.
15:02 - If that's the same Tom Tallarico, he is face of scam crowdfunding for Intellivision Amico nowadays.
Yep, the one and only.
What a huge Battle of the Ports! I'm very surprised with the japanese computer releases. Didn't know about that.
Back in the day I always wondered why the SFC version was so different. Now I know why.
I had this on the Mega CD (I purchased a copy of Sonic CD from Gamestation and there was a copy in the second disc tray!) I loved it, and still do, up there as one of my all time favourite games! Great video Mark 👍🏻
You're welcome and a very lucky find in your Sonic CD case. 👍
"Tim" Furniss? I think you were getting Matt Furniss confused with Tim Follin. Granted, they're both amazing chiptune artists. While PoP really isn't my type of game (Blackthorne is the only cinematic platformer I've liked so far), I'd have to agree with popular opinion that the SNES version is probably the best one. I love how the music sounds, and the graphics look amazing. Speaking of graphics, it's kind of a shame that the X68000 and FM Towns ports didn't really add much to the PC-9801 graphics they were based on, as I know they had better color palettes and could look less grainy. But at least their FM music doesn't have the annoyingly loud PSG of the PC-9801 version. The arranged music in the CD versions of the game definitely sound like they used a Roland Sound Canvas, which is pretty believable since many games did at the time.
Man, I always do that. Why do I keep thinking Matt is Tim :p
It looks like you were playing the playable demo version of the Sam Coupe version. That's why the screen is different. It was just to give people a taste and to not go any further. There is also the full intro in the game if you press a certain key on the title screen (think it's T).
Ah, so that is why. Thanks for the info. The ROM was not label as demo so I was unsure.
@@RetroCore Yes - said in my earlier reply - need to press "I" for the intro
Had this on the Atari ST and it never clicked for me at the time, picked it up again on the Game Gear and fell in love with it.
I wish I could get the ST version running for this video but I had such a pig of a time. Cracked versions would crash after the cracktro and none cracked versions would boot 😢
When you look at the gameplay of this game, it's not hard to see where the original Tomb Raider drew influence from! Same distance in jumps from standing (shorter distance) to running (longer); same walking-through spikes to not get hurt; same picky positioning for pickup of items; same collapsing floor tiles; similar ledge pull-ups...
Absolutely. This game was definitely an influence on Tomb Raider.
@@RetroCore hi retro core you are on youtuber favorit list and i like your videos. my favorit computer are amiga, c64, atari st they have classic games. you have forget prince of persia (atari st) and prince of persia (c64)
Special note: there are unofficial versions for the Atari 8 bit and the BBC Master that are worth checking out if that's your thing
also the c64 port
And also a good version for BK-0011M.
Yeah, Atari XL is really impressive considering the system capabilities. If only it came out in 1989...
That there are. Also C64 I beleive.
Had the Amiga version to play as a kid and I liked the game so much that I got it for SNES when it was new. I was really blown away by the snes version back then
The SNES version blows all other ports out of the water. It is just amazing.
I think so, too.
It would be cool to see the European Mega Drive levels ported over in a hack. Get an absolutely complete version of the game
I'm a bit surprised to see the Prince of Persia on the NEC PC-98. It must contain a hidden hentai or high school dating sim mode on the disk.
Lol, maybe the Princess strips off if the game in completed in 40 minutes or something.
I am glad that you used the Super Famicom cover. That artwork is too damn good. The SNES version maybe the best since I heard it has so many exclusive levels. Wow, I didn't know that you dislike Tallarico's music. Yeah the control was too laggy for me to get into as a kid. I died couple of times & just gave up. I believe it was either the Sega CD or the Genesis version.
Too right, the SFC art is beautiful.
I think Tommy Tallarico is overrated. I don't dislike all of his music but I do dislike the man himself. Comes across as being a slimy self loving nob. And in recent years, an aledged scammer.
I absolutely adore the master system version. Played it to death. Had a thing about trying to kill the character off from the highest height i could find lol.
My dad always used to laugh because at the time I had a buddy who we both went to gymnastics with - my dad reckoned he ran like the guy off Prince of Persia ....Good Times.
Ah, dads taking the piss out of your mates. Yep, mine was the same :D
Great video! It is notable the absence of the Mac port, however. My favorite versions are the ones from PC-98 and FM Towns; the playability is excellent and they look like oil paintings in motion.
My, nice video, what an impressive array of ports, and you did not even include them all. 😉
This CPC port is an enormous and welcome surprise. I wish more CPC games were this well ported since the machine clearly had enormous graphical potential as the gorgeous graphics demonstrate. They are so well done that even the bulky pixels of mode 0 seem to disappear.
This said, although I appreciate the game - a true classic and historic milestone, and can play it for a bit I must say I find it too slow for my tastes. Granted, the animation is smooth and detailed but I find the action a bit too laggy and from what I can see this is something that was improved in the SNES/Famicom version. I wish they had adapted the other 16 ports thusly as well.
the author made a talk/presentation on making the game I think and it's somewhere on youtube I THINK but I can't find it now, he had journals from when he was making it
wow i remeber this game was every where for most o the 90s ,,,,,didn't they even reboot it a few diff times ?
Prince of Persia 3D on PC and Dreamcast 1999 then Ubisoft with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time on PS2, XBOX, GC and PC 2002 and subsequent titles, ones that spring to mind.
What a game! And great ports.
Played it first on Amstrad CPC.
Nice fist experience the game.
🎵Arabian nights like Arabian day more often than not are hotter than hot in a lot of good ways🎵
I had Famicom version, and i loved it for what it was. For me as a kid, it was mindblowig., ✌️😊
My dad had the DOS version, I had no ideda it started on the apple II. Despite some of the gameboy and NES attempts, I'm surprised most of these ports are pretty competent. Tommy's soundtracks are usually not too bad at all, but man does the audio on the gameboy ports sound grating...
Man, Tom Tallarico can't catch a break 🤣
Lol😁
Imagine if someone make a port of prince of persia where the death jingle is like a mashup of the Ms dos and snes version of the death jingle.
The colur palette of the master System is not limited.It blows all other 8-bit systems out of the water
I played it on Atari ST, it was pretty much the same as the Amiga version.
It's not even funny how much better the Japanese PC graphics look compared to the Amiga etc.
Better duck. The Amiga fans will be after you 😛
@@RetroCore Don’t worry. With all the money they spend on accelerators they can’t afford to keep up pursuit for long.
I have played the MS-DOS when it was released. I will never forget playing it using a green monochrome monitor 🤣🤣
Ah, the classic days of green monitors.
There is a patch for Atari STE owners, which gives an audio upgrade which uses the DMA coprocessor to play the effects better. They sound a lot cleaner and without any slowdown because the DMA is a coprocessor, working independently of the main CPU. This means that the gameplay is actually smoother than the original release
It's great when old games get modern updates based on knowledge gained over the years to improve the product.
You know what's even funnier about the Game Boy port?
They didn't even bother translating the ending. It's always displayed in German
Wow! Seriously? That's so lazy.
dats a bunch o ports :) ....sips coffee
it sure is :)
Thanks a million for this. Really great work. Gonna go with the Sega CD port personally because I really like the cheesy intro. The regular Genesis port is just gorgeous though. I wish I could combine the two. Would you happen to know anything about the XBox/PS2/Gamecube port in Sands of Time? From the small amount of footage I can find it looks like it's a version all its own.
I'm afarid I wasn't even aware of the sands of time port 😅
@@RetroCore All good haha, just thought I'd ask. Yeah, the port at least for the Xbox (can't even find footage for the other two) seems to be unique. Sands of Time on XBox also has a port of PoP 2 but from what I can tell it's just the DOS version. Edit: The Wikipedia page says that they're both the Mac versions.
@@agroed That version is the Macintosh version from 1992.
@@RetroCore This is the version he is referring to >>> th-cam.com/video/zjR_AhxPnVM/w-d-xo.html
Great video as usual! You missed the awful Atari ST port (1990) and the 2.5D Prince of Persia "Classic" remake for XBLA, PS3 and Mobile (2007).
The ST version was planned to feature but I just had no luck in getting it to run. I had no idea about the remake though. Looks like I didn't miss out on anything.
I remember playing the Apple II original in elementary school, except the school's machines were all monochrome, so I've always had the impression that the game was older than it actually is. That FM Towns version looks sick af, though, very impressive, love the textural feel of that art.
Great to see, but too bad you could not add a bonus of the Atari 130XE (or any Atrai 8-Bit that was upgraded to 128KB) version since it is a actual port, and not emulated. It's just not a "commercial" port. I had the Game Gear version, and while yeah it uses the same coding as the Master System the Game Gear version looked a lot worse on the low quality LCD screens they used on the system (fuzzy & compressed.) To make matters worse it also suffered from the ghosting. Most Master System games that ran via the Master Converter had the same issue. Unfortunately since the Master System was pretty much dead at that time in America it was never released in the states which I would have preferred a lot more. I got use to the jump mechanics of the GG/MS version so it did not irritate me that much.
Sadly I don't know about all version so there are a few missing.
I want to like Prince of Persia, but I never liked it as much as other cinematic platformers like Delphine's stuff, which I love, including Out of This World, Flashback, etc, and games like Blackthorne or what I've played of PoP2, etc. I don't think Prince of Persia is bad or anything-and I loved reading Jordan Mechner's making of PoP a few years back-it just doesn't mesh with me like Delphine's stuff (I even enjoy Shaq Fu more-at least the Genesis version-which isn't a great fighting game but is interesting as a cinematic-platformer-inspired fighter).
I first saw PoP on an Amiga at the library, but I never got to play it. I thought it was amazing to look at and hear, even if I didn't get to play the game. Instead, I first played the Game Boy version, which my uncle bought. Maybe that being the first one I actually played is one of the reasons I'm a bit soured on the game. I remember having *some* fun with it though, enough that I rented the Genesis port later on. The Genesis version was a lot better. I've also played some of the SNES and NES versions, but not until much more recently. The SNES version is probably my favorite out of those I've played; however, it does look like I should give the Master System and Sega CD versions a shot at least. I think the FM Towns is probably my favorite in the video in terms of sound with the CPC version being the one that surprised me the most in a good way. I'm probably never going to fall in love with Prince of Persia, but I do respect it.
I remember playing the crap out of the Master System version as a kid, right up until I got to a level in the palace with no obvious way forward other than to drink potions, some of which would just instakill you.
Needless to say, I quit at that point.
Also, you know about the high route back after collecting the sword, right?
Yep, I know but is that in all versions?
Wow what an epic battle! Visually I like the Mega Drive and SNES best. Might give the SNES one a try soon. Been a long time since I played this game.
In reality ZX Spectrum version of Prince of Persia has no problems at all with crashing. I have tested several releases of the game and none of them have crashed even once. Maybe try better emulator or real hardware next time? It is huge disservice to show gameplay of the demoversion, as real game is not monochrome but has colour.
RC *always* finds a way to do something like this with the Spectrum versions.
Hey man, it's been a longtime.
I've first played I think the DOS Version of Prince of Persia on the original Xbox. It came with Sands of time for the Platform.
And then compared it with the Super Nintendo Version.
But getting the sword, why the heck does it take a longtime to get it!?
I guess they want to flush out the experience?
PRINCE OF PERSIA is the grand father to all metroidvania game
nah thats getsufumaden
The Super Famicom box art is just beautiful
I absolutely agree with you.
I’m just catching up with things after spending a couple of weeks in the UK, visiting family. This is a great BOTP, obviously a lot of work went into it. It seemed to me that the three best versions are the NEC, Fujitsu and Sharp. Of course, these are also the pieces of hardware that most of us can only dream about.
Played it on DOS at my uncle's (monochrome monitor, no sound at all) and got the Game Gear version not much later. Growing up with these versions caused me a terrible pet peeve: I don't like to play PoP with music. As good as it is on many versions, it feels tacky to me.
On a sidenote, check out the connection between this game and Ray Harryhausen's Simbad films, including the unforgettable skeleton swordsman. And the guys that made the SNES version for Konami completely got Mechner's picture and added a couple o' Harryhausen-esque creatures to their expanded game!
The Snes version seems to be the complete package. I only ever played the amiga version and it was good.
Also seen a recent hack for the Mega Drive in development that improves the game
Yeah, I'd say the SNES version is the one to go for.
The sfc game is the best version for me.
And maybe it have the most beautiful box cover ever.
The SFC box art sure is beautiful. It's also used on a French novel I believe.
There's an official version for Atari ST that would have been nice to hear about. Otherwise I enjoyed this episode.
It's basically just the Amiga version but with strangely more detailed graphics. Similar to those found on the CPC but much cleaner. Otherwise, gameplay is about the same and audio is a little worse just due to the more limited soundchip.
This is every Atari ST port on this channel, "Like the Amiga game but with less colours and crap audio." I understand why he skipped it... :(
@@MistaMaddog247 actually no. It's reminiscent of the amiga game but with more colors and sampled audio.
My Favorite: snes
It's a pity that some ports are missing in this battle.
These comparisons of iconic games with many ports always end up being very interesting. I finally got into the original Prince of Persia a few years back and am pretty well versed. Plus, there's also a great video comparison out there that's pretty in depth which helped me get started. The video is titled " Stumbling through Prince of Persia on Almost Everything" and I enjoy it despite the fast talking. So I will share my brief thoughts on several versions.
First, the SNES version is well made, but the added content doesn't fit well into the game for me, and the added length also feels off as I find the original to be the perfect length for what it is. The SNES version is worth trying though since my issues come down to personal taste and it does play better than most ports.
The NES, Master System(SMS), and Genesis versions are all messed up in various ways. The SMS version has really strange jumping. The NES version has the resolution issue here, but is missing important content that just makes it not worth the time.
The PC Engine version is good in many ways. There is a speed setting in the options menu, so it needs tweaking to get it to play well enough, but I could get it to feel good for me. My biggest issue with the PCE version is that the potions are not color coded like they're supposed to be, which leads to annoyances if you don't have all the locations memorized. The Sega CD version is very similar to the PC Engine version but has the color-coded potions so that's a huge plus for me.
I haven't played the Macintosh version since about 1994, but it is worth mentioning that it plays well and has the updated, if cartoony graphics. It looks good though. The DOS version looks much simpler, but once I started playing it with all that nice animation and such, I got sucked in and really enjoyed it. The smoothness is nice compared to the console versions, especially in combat. I was actually playing an open-source recreation of the DOS game called SDL-PoP that runs natively on modern systems. If it's not an exact recreation, it's close enough. That version was my favorite one(I don't have access to the Mac version to compare further), with the Sega CD version being my second favorite and top pick from consoles. That version is good if you want to emulate and use save states for convenience.
I owned the MS-DOS port, I gave my friend the 5.25" floppy, while I kept the 3.5" one. Our experiences were vastly different though. He had VGA graphics, but only a PC speaker for audio. I had a Tandy-1000 and the game was optimized it! While I had only 16 color graphics, I had rich music, and digitized samples. The only Japanese developed one I played and liked was the SNES version, because it felt like the logical evolution of the original game's cinematic presentation.
I'm glad you did get to experience at least one of the Japanese developed versions. The SNES version is a great option. Personally the FM Towns version is my favourite followed by the SNES.
Matt not Tim Furniss lol.
I saw the most exhaustive comparison of this game a few years ago. I think you missed some unemulated ones. Eg. The Apple IIGS which I considered the best version.
The Mega Drive version got patched recently - apparently to fix the combat amongst some other things. The animation wasn’t improved though which I think is its biggest flaw.
There wasn't a native IIgs version.
I always mix matt with Tim.
@@RetroCore I think you were thinking about Tim Follin and mixing them up.
@@fnjesusfreak I was thinking about the Macintosh version but it runs slow.
@@iwanttocomplain Ah.
This mega Drive port looks mighty good!
I wonder if there's a custom MSU version with the MCD music...
That would really help!
That would be good, but also using a romhack of the mega drive port that fixes the in-game mechanics!
SNES. The only version.
I know I'm stupid late, but thank you for covering this game. IIRC, this was one of the games I suggested when you asked the audience. I know it was an enormous task, and I appreciate it.
I hope you enjoyed the video. This was indeed a big one to cover.
Great video! What always struck me as odd with the PC port is, back in the ‘80s, PCs/IBM compatibles not only didn’t come with joysticks, they didn’t come with joystick cards. That had to be installed separately. The only exception to this was the Tandy 1000 (and the IBM PCjr it was cloned from). Not only did that come with a joystick card, but two joysticks. So when Prince of Persia came to the PC, which graphics mode did the makers decide to ax joystick support and make keyboard only? Tandy, of course. The only one you’d be expected to actually have a joystick.
4:45 Actually, that’s the SNES version.
Super Famicom = SNES
I was actually referring to the fact that you’re able to continue playing after the time runs out. That’s exclusive to the SNES/SFC version.
I had this in my watchlater list since it came out, glad I finally got around to it. Very good presentation of a timeless classic. I cant say that im not a little bit disappointed that my port wasnt showcased. Is there a particular reason you choose to forego the Macintosh version ?
I can't run mac stuff. It's not just this game, but other videos too. The Mac version is always left out I'm afraid.
Sorry, I couldn't include you version.
@@RetroCore Thank you very much for this inside, and your time for replying !
there could've been version for Macintosh here but visually it's same to ma dos version with higher dietails but it's also compatible with b&w machines
The fact that the SNES version is better proves this was a 6502 origonal game. 68k based games typically work better on the MD and everything else
another unofficial ports what could've been added here are for Atari 8bit computers and bbc micro
Hi bigbro:) Where's the C64 version? İt doesn't require REU ram or any other expension. I wonder...
Where is the fabulous Atari 8 bit version???
You need to add the VIC-20 version, which is surprisingly good. 😇
A cracking battle for sure Mark. As always the work put into these huge battles is greatly appreciated and for a change nearly all are excellent. I can't say I've played those excellent Japanese computer versions so I'll say the SNES port is my favourite, I remember seeing a couple of screenshots in the magazine's of day which made it look incredible. It was pretty much a import day one purchase and it was awesome, I even turned down a swap for a Japanese copy of Parodius which nowadays I'd probably rather play. I ended up getting a four game swap from the same person a few weeks later after it was long finished, I think Soul Blazer was one of the games which was Japanese and finished over a days solid play on a Sunday.
I remember dropping 60 pounds on a Japanese Prince of Persia back in the day. The cover art on the SFC is so beautiful. Right up there with Alisia Dragoon on the Mega Drive.
Choosing the SNES as you favourite is a good option. It's also one of my favourite versions. The FM Towns just pips it for being my ultimate version though. The CD audio and sharper graphics do it for me. Both play really well though.
By the way, amazing you finished Soul Blazer in a day. That's a pretty tough game.
Oh, I really disagree about the Japanese ports looking good. I hate every single one of them. The extra detail does nothing for the art style, the constant music is overbearing and the new visuals either don't fit the animation or are straight up missing frames. Also, why the hell did they all stick to giving the protagonist a turban and vest?
I was less annoyed that they stuck to that art style for the sequel, mostly because the entire game was designed around it in the first palce, but I just can't deal with playing any of those versions. MS-DOS and Amiga are the definitive versions of this for me.
Yeah I like the minimalist style of the original Apple 2 version
Well, the turban and vest combo is also in the Macintosh version, so it's likely the rest used that as a base. So it was basically the official new look because of that Mac version.
@@ravagingwolverine For the sequel yes, they both look very similar. But the Mac version is actually much older than the Japanese computer ports that were already doing the vest and turban combo. The earliest version with that is the PC-9801 and that predates the Mac port by almost two years.
@@mademedothis424 You're right. I was thinking the Macintosh version and other PC ports were closer together in terms of time frame. I wonder if the Japanese developers suggested the change or Broderbund, who had to approve it, I'd expect. I can see why they would want to add detail with the extra hardware capability over earlier versions, but I also can understand some people not liking it as it does change the general character of the player sprite.
@@ravagingwolverine Mechner has published his diaries from the time he was developing the game, so there is actually great documentation about that whole part of it. If I remember the book correctly he was pretty pleased with the PC port specifically but didn't have much of a hand on those choices. I'm guessing the Japanese publishers just got the rights, a version of the Apple II version and let their coders go to town.
And yeah, I played the PC version first and was alreaddy extremely invested when I saw what they had done in Japan (through the SNES port, which was the obvious one). It was very different and I have to admit part of it is the aesthetics of the thing were already settled for me by then. Plus I had never seen anything animate like that in 89 on a PC, I had definitely seen better than PoP on SNES by 92. I probably would have felt differently if my experience was in a different order, but by that time there were already more games on that genre. Another World was out, for instance.
The irony: the best ports of the original game, developed by an American team, are the Japanese ones. Looks like Japanese developers really understood the original game more than any occidental developer, or programmer.
It bombed until Japan got a hold of it. That's when it started to take off.
Japan does what American't 🤪🤙
Given the focus that Japanese developers put on gameplay while western devs were still figuring it out (except for a few like Jordan Mechner, who clearly understood its importance), it is not surprising that they made the best out of the original.
This said, aside from the apparently horrendous GameBoy versions, the western ports are not too bad, and wow, the Amstrad one shines indeed.
Well the main reason it had issues in the US was that it was an apple 2 game that came out in 1989. The gsme took nearly 5 years to make and while there were ports to other computers they weren't marketed st all. Not to mention what was VERY graphically impressive on an Apple looked a but bland on more modern pcs.
Japan definitely made it a success but don't forget about Europe either. Did very well there too.
What emulator and settings are you using to play the X68000 with? I can't get the game to run well at all. Every other video on TH-cam of the X68000 version runs poorly, but you seem to have it running almost perfectly.
I always liked the SNES version. Graphics fit the story. No C64 version?
Apple ][ is impressive. Amiga makes improvements in looks and sound. PC is great. CPC pulled off a miracle. ZX Spectrum is underwhelming. Sam Coupé is broken. PC 9801 is breathtaking. X68K is awesome. Turbo CD is a mixed bag. Game Boy isn't impressive. FM Towns is a workhorse. SNES pulled out all the stops and I remembered that Konami published this in the west. Sega CD is a mostly good offering. Master System is a struggle to get into. NES is awkward to play. Genesis is an impressive western offering. GBC is the drizzling shits and that's coming from the heart.
I remember everyone in college having this on floppy and playing this on the college's 286 PCs at the time. If you launch the game with the word Megahit after the Prince.exe executable you get the cheat mode activated.
When I went to school, we had BBC Micros :( Yeah, I'm old.
The Master System version is easier to control than you think, you tap jump for short straight jumps and you hold jump for long jumps while running, holding also makes sure you jump when you reach a game tile end/ledge.
The sprite size and animation frames are larger on the NES than on the Master System. Also the sound is better on NES. That's my opinion. Look at the pillars in the Master System, they are hideous with those cracks.
23:44 also, the north american version of this mega drive port doesn't have music at all. eidos---um--i mean.......domark was probably a bit lazy.
There are also some recent open-source implementations of Prince of Persia, SDLPoP and MININIM. They look and play basically the same as the DOS version but run natively on modern systems and are more adjustable. I couldn't get MININIM to work, but SDLPoP is pretty good and will likely be my preferred way of playing the game going forward.