Prince of Persia (PlayStation 3)

Prince of Persia: Elika Exposed

Hilary Goldstein
Get to know the Prince's invaluable new partner.
Oct 22nd, 2008 - On December 2 Ubisoft relaunches its Prince of Persia franchise. The new Prince comes equipped with a remade combat system, all new acrobatics, and an AI partner named Elika. Throughout the week, we're taking an in-depth look at Prince of Persia. Today, we take an extensive look at Elika, the magical counterpart to the warrior Prince.The Prince runs into Elika at the start of POP. Elika is trying to protect the Tree of Life, which is prison to the evil Ahriman. When Ahriman is set free, it's up to the Prince and Elika to force him back into his prison and save the world from being overrun by corruption.The Prince is a physical force and a master combatant. Elika is, in many ways, his opposite. She relies on magic to navigate the world and take on enemies. She's an essential ally to the Prince because of her magical abilities. The Prince is a stranger to Elika's world and his part in the story is mainly as anonymous hero come to save us. Elika, however, has a personal stake in the events of Prince of Persia. It could be argued that she is the emotional connection of the story.Elika isn't a character you directly control. Sorry, there is no co-op in Prince of Persia. Instead, you get a very smart AI character who helps at every turn and never gets in the way. Elika will follow the Prince, letting you lead throughout the adventure. And in combat, she circles behind the Prince waiting to be called upon with a press of the Elika button. We can't stress enoughthat Elika is not an obstruction or a nuisance. She never holds the Prince up, never interrupts an action, and never acts out of turn. She's the perfect partner. We'd marry her if she were real.
Special: Elika Exposed. Watch it in HD.
There is no HUD in Prince of Persia. The Prince has no health, there's no mini-map, and there are no permanently-displayed command prompts. Elika is your compass. Any time you're standing still, hit the Elika button and she'll cast a spell creating a luminous orb that flies towards your objective, briefly highlighting the path you need to take.When running about the world, Elika teams with the Prince for a double jump. This adds some elevation to your jumps and considerable length. Elika is a great save if you misjudge a jump and are about to fall. Just hit the Elika button and she'll sling you forward. And should you fall, Elika will save you, bringing you back to your last safe landing point. There is no death in Prince of Persia. If that gives you a pouty face, consider that Elika is bringing you back to the closest checkpoint and instead of a "You're Dead" logo stamped on screen, you get a cutscene showing Elika save you. There's really no difference.In combat, Elika offers a long range attack. Alone, she is fairly weak. However, mix Elika in with your sword and gauntlet strikes and she can be quite potent. Elika is a combo extender. Combat is a free-branching system and Elika is the key to keeping a combo branch from closing off. The more skilled you become at using Elika, the more impressive the moves. The best we've seen has Elika grabbing the Prince mid-air and throwing him into the enemy. Call it a fastball special.While acrobatics and combat are important elements, Prince is the focal point. There is, however, one area where Elika is the star. After healing an area of corruption, Light Seeds appear throughout the level. Collecting these allows Elika to unlock new magic. There are four magic abilities Elika can learn and it's your choice which order shelearns them. Each magic corresponds with specific magic plates that enable travel deeper into levels. The magic you select essentially determines which areas you can access.One of Elika's magical abilities, the Rebound, was revealed at E3 2008. When the Prince reaches a red plate, hit the Elika button and the two will shoot off towards the next plate. As you progress, things get a little more complex, as you'll rebound off a plate, then immediately have to run along a wall, leap to another wall and rebound off the next plate to reach a safe platform.More involved is the Wings of Ormazd power. Activate a yellow plate and Elika and the Prince take flight. While flying, the edges of the screen blur. While you're on rails, you can maneuver Elika around the screen. You'll need to dodge left and right, up and down to avoid obstructions. Flying is tough and requires some trial and error for some of the longer journeys.Elika is technically an AI character, but in reality she is an extension of the Prince. She is like a shadow, following your actions and only becoming active when you choose to use her. It's not different than hitting the acrobatic button to jump or the sword button to take a swipe at an enemy. Elika is as easy to use and as natural as any other action the Prince performs. And that's something we've never really seen from a secondary character.Check back tomorrow when we look at the Prince's powerful gauntlet.

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