Prince of Persia Gameplay Demo Impressions

I just watched the gameplay footage of the new Prince of Persia from the Games Convention in Leipzig, Germany. I have to say that it looks freakin sublime.

It almost seems like a beautiful amalgam of Sands of Time (as it should), Super Mario Galaxy, and Zelda. The acrobatics are smoother than ever and even feature some nifty new tricks, some including the new female companion. The trailer also states there will be open zones with non-linear progression.

My biggest concerns are with the battles and the graphics. Both are spectacular, don't get me wrong. The super cinematic fights and the hand-drawn, cel-shaded look of new PoP are great. I can't help but wonder, though, if the battles are a bit *too* cinematic. Granted, this fight is clearly meant as a sort of boss fight, so perhaps standard enemies will be more of a straight shot... On the graphics, then, I have to say that they look gorgeous and there are lots of nice little touches that add to the gameplay like the trail that follows Prince's hand when he does a wall run (great for those of us with mixed depth perception in some games :-p). The graphics, though, look a bit unpolished. I suppose I should reserve judgment until I see it on my TV.

Here: See for yourself