The Prince is incredibly acrobatic, to the point that I'm wondering where all the other circus performers are.
The story starts as the Prince's father's army is attacking an advasary's palace. The Prince wants praise from his father, so he seeks the palace's treasures and obtains the legendary Dagger of Time. Later, when the palace is taken, the Vizer, whom was the opposing Sultan's aid (and traitor), persuades the Prince to insert the Dagger into the Hourglass of Time, which contain the Sands of Time. As the Prince opens the Hourglass, the Sands rush out and consume the inhabitants of the palace, making them into creatures. Because of the Dagger, the Prince is protected by the Sands, as is the Vizer and the Sultan's daughter, Farah.
The story is told as a narrative by the Prince. There are hardly any cutscenes, so typically the Prince is narrating while your leaping, slashing, and wall running. What makes the narrative real, however, are the little things the Prince says. For example, when you die, he'll say "No, that didn't happen. Let me start over". Or when you unpause, "Now, where was I?". It is also fitting that he narrates because the story focuses on him. Sure, there's a kind of world- saving plot (or rather, palace- saving), but the story mainly focuses on his guilt for releasing the Sands of Time, his annoyance (and growing affection) with the free- spirited Farah, and his anger at the Vizer.
The acrobatic Prince is graceful in the excellent platforming. He can roll, leap, run along and up walls, balance on narrow beams, climb and sidle along edges, and swing on poles. Simple touches like the Prince stuttering to a stop at the end of a wall run and slipping on wet walls makes the unreal platforming realistic. Despite the game's realism, ledges rarely crumble beneath your feet and poles don't snap while your swinging on them, unlike similar games. However, challenge stems from navigating a safe path without jumping in the wrong direction. The environments are very natural, which makes it harder to reconize a clingable ledge right in front of you.
Even if you make a fatal jump, the Prince's sand powers can save him. The powers use up sand tanks. Sand powers give the Prince control over time itself so he can slow it down, reverse it, or move at incredible speeds. The reversal power is the most used, as it can bring the Prince safely back to a ledge he's fallen from or prevent him from being stabbed to death (because you now know what can happen).
Combat is unique in the Sands of Time. Basically, the sand creatures can only be destroyed by the Dagger, so you spend your time trying to knock them down so you can stab them with it. Unfortunately, combat is the weakest part of the game. It can get very repetitive, as there are no new moves to learn over time and sometimes boils down to mindless button mashing. Another thing is that sometimes when enemies knock you down, you can't get back up. This is because when three surround you, they tend to "take turns" hitting you repeatedly.
Exploration is also an important part of the game. You can find clouds of sand to add more sand tanks to the Dagger, which are hidden cleverly. There are also dream- like fountains that are off the beaten path that increase the Prince's health. Along the way, the Prince will also find different swords, which will allow him to bash walls and such.
Overall, the Sands of Time is a great game that may be a breath of fresh air for gamers who are fatigued from exploration- heavy adventures or action- packed gore fests.