1) The "goofy acrobatic actions" are the princes way of fighting multiple enemies... It is impossible to realistically fight off so many enemies any other way. Watch UFC? Notice that the best fighters in the world don't fight like in the movies? one or two hits here and there and submissions? Fighting doesn't work that way. My 9th Dan Karate teach tells us that if we run into three or more enemies, to not be stupid and run... You can't fight them off. Fighting *usually* isn't that fluid. YES the acrobatic moves are also very fictional, but it's better than a hack n slash like Dynasty Warriorszipzod said:Why the unconditional love for Sands of Time? Sure it was good, but not as good as Yahtzee makes it sound.
First off there was the combat, which was pretty repetitive. I also got tired of needing to perform a goofy acrobatic dance just to kill each enemy. The platforming was great, but there were some really out of place puzzles such as the rotating pillars (the one where the guard with the terrible English accent shouts at you nonstop) and the maze where you have to enter the doors in order.
Then there was that damn princess. Farah, a princess somehow more annoying than Peach and more needy than Slippy Toad. She would always miss enemies, often shoot me in the face, and made a good portion of the game seem like an extended escort mission.
And that bit about character development? Doesn't half of it go down the drain because Farah forgets everything? Or am I missing something there?
2) I often wondered what sick bastard thought up the puzzles, but I think they were ingenius for the year that Sands of Time came out. THe puzzles are actually very interesting, but don't forgt the trap system in Sand of time. Blades on the wall and ceilings? Why would a castle have blades in these places? The prince is the only one who can run on walls, so the traps are useless against everyone else. It's a platformer, it has puzzles and challenges... Whoopy...
3) it was an escort mission in some sense. The prince and Farah were trying to get the the Hourglass. Did you expect the princess to look like SIE from alpha protocol and head smash any creature that came close? and I got shot in the face MAYBe once and she saved my ass many times when I mis judged a slash and had an enemy dive at my back.
4) The whole point is that HE develops as a character, and in the end, when he tells her what to call him (can't remember off the top of my head), she realizes that there must be more to him. The game isn't about her devellopment, it's about the Prince...
The game is innovative in the industry. Created new mechanics and was loved for its story. I half expected you to say that the dagger was completely unrealistic because magic doesn't exist.