Ubisoft’s popular and princely series has a new direction and a new lead to give a truly next generation feel to the Prince of Persia name. Sword at the ready – this is going to be a sharp one...
There's a new prince in town. And despite coming to your screens with sword in hand, billowing red-blue wrap and dashing good looks, this isn't the protagonist from previous Prince of Persia games. Ubisoft is heralding a fresh dawn for its beloved series and, excitingly, this is merely the beginning of the story that is Prince of Persia on PLAYSTATION 3...
Crown jewels
There's a definite next generation look to the forthcoming game that immediately stands out thanks to its beautiful watercolour style and lusciously fluid animation, already nicely meshing with the developing gameplay that bears more than a passing resemblance to the tried and tested 3D action adventure platforming, puzzle solving and swordplay the series is known for.
Appearing like a painting or drawing come to life, Prince of Persia follows the tale of the new Prince on an adventure with an equally new and magically gifted companion named Elika, looking to defeat Ahriman, the ancient God of Darkness who has pitched the world into evil and corruption. However, it may come as a surprise to some that this Prince isn't actually royalty by any means.
"The Prince himself isn't a prince of Persia," explains Chris Easton, Community Developer for Ubisoft. "He's a wanderer, a drifter, an adventurer, a vagabond. He goes from place to place, going through battles and adventures, he doesn't really care about anything - he just wants to get some gold, go to town and blow it on booze. But then he meets Elika, who asks for his help to rid the world of this corruption and he agrees - and they begin their journey together. And it's through this journey that the Prince learns what it is to be a prince of Persia."
"You like me ‘cause I'm a scoundrel..."
In using a more Star Wars' style Han Solo rogue and an Artificial Intelligence controlled partner that accompanies him on the adventure, it may seem that Prince of Persia is taking a few more risks than its predecessors, the Sands of Time trilogy. There is also the ability to choose your path through various levels in the game, even though each player will start and finish the game the same way. Elika has a compass that will point to the quickest route through a land, but you'll still have the choice to explore if you wish, looking for secret areas and items.
Despite these departures, the fundamentals that made the series so popular in the first place are still there. "It remains true to what we call the pillars of Prince of Persia - the elements that are essential to a Prince of Persia game," says Easton. "These are: acrobatics, combat, puzzle solving and the Prince, all wrapped up in an epic story. If the game doesn't have one of these elements, it's not a Prince of Persia game."
To these ends, the Prince is equipped with a pleasing array of acrobatics, dashing along roofs, swinging from iron rings and running across walls. It's something Easton wants to emphasise as he effortlessly demonstrates the protagonist's ability to bound off each piece of scenery in various and extremely graceful ways. "We want the Prince to have this rhythm as he goes through a level," he says.
Behind every great man is a great woman
Those concerned about Elika being too much of a tether to the Prince's free-wheeling agility shouldn't worry. Throughout Easton's demo, the AI character doesn't force him to backtrack, get stuck on scenery or display any of the bugbears that occasionally come with such accompaniment. In fact, at several stages the Prince interacts with Elika in his flips and twists, increasing the elegance of his movement.
The level of interaction between the Prince and Elika is measured to your needs - you can help her up a platform if you wait for her, although she's more than able to help herself. Similarly, staying close to her lets the two characters sporadically engage in light conversation. She also acts as a checkpoint, bringing you back to a stable platform or restart point instead of using a Game Over screen, as a way of keeping you immersed in the fantasy world.
Better still, Elika assists you in the refined combat system, which features more one-on-one battles in a nod to the very first Prince of Persia game, making for tenser fights compared to ones which feature masses of enemies at once. With contextual attacks, Elika's magical aid, and the sheer amount of leaping, diving and clashing of swords, battles in Prince of Persia are already a thing of beauty.
Return of the...
With its suave looks and energetic gameplay, Prince of Persia packs more than a fair share of Eastern promise, regardless of whether you're a fan of the 2D originals or the Sands of Time trilogy. Ubisoft clearly wants to keep the quality suitable for a series of princely stature and so far there's plenty to suggest that this wanderer, drifter, adventurer, vagabond... and eventually, prince, may well reclaim his gaming throne.
