I remember when I was a kid, how I used to play both games (first PoP1, then PoP2), and how I learned to beat them, level by level.
Somehow I felt that PoP2 was so much better than the first. In fact, PoP2 is what I'd call a perfect game - great graphics, music, atmosphere, nice cutscenes, and above all - terrific gameplay. Yes, very hard at times, but somehow the challenges appealed to me.
Maybe it's because with PoP1 I had seen friends play and complete it before I started playing on my own, so it wasn't all my achievements. With PoP2 I did all by myself, with no one to help me, and that probably added to the fun factor.
But it's more than that - PoP2 had something that PoP1 didn't have - variety. In PoP1 you have 12 levels, all of which look just like the other (except different color schemes for dungeon and palace), the enemies are all the same (except a few special guards which are still just guards with swords, only they're better at it). The traps are also few - once you've seen the blades in level 3, you've seen it all. Only the shadow (reflection) and the invisible road in the last level add some variety.
PoP2, on the other hand plays across three different areas, each with its own traps and enemies, tricks, secrets and magical objects, and that's before you get to the final puzzle with Jaffar. Not to mention that the game looks colorful and much more alive (you gotta give credit to the technical aspects of the game too).
So all things accounted for, I stand by my words - PoP2 is better than the first in every way, and in fact I consider it one of the best games ever made.
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