Back in 2024, Ubisoft made the strange choice to release not one but two Prince of Persia games. Early in the year, they gave us Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. It was a critical success but didn’t sell well. Midway through the year, they dropped The Rogue Prince of Persia as an early access title. Yes, they are both 2D action games, but there is little that they share. With the latter out of early access, it’s the better game.
Learning through experience
Making a roguelike Prince of Persia game makes a lot of sense. Previous games in the series have incorporated interesting mechanics into their gameplay. The Sands of Time series lets you rewind time when you make mistakes. The 2008 game gave you a companion who prevented your death. Here, you’re learning from your mistakes.
Every time The Prince dies, he doesn’t actually succumb to his injuries. Instead, he ‘wakes up’ at the last place he slept, but with all the knowledge he had before. So, while you start a new run, you keep all the previous knowledge and experience. What you’ve learned should allow you to progress further the next time.
But you’re not doing the same things over and over again. There are branching paths, and their layout is random. So, each time you visit a location, things are in different spots. Sometimes you might have a few bonus rooms to explore. In some runs, you might come across a kid who needs saving. Get to them in time and you’ll be heartily rewarded for your efforts.
Fun combat and exploration
The randomization allows for some fun exploration. Because every run is different, you can’t assume you’ll know where to go or what to expect. Sure, there are runs where you’re trying to find something specific. Doing that might limit the amount of XP and other collectibles you might discover along the way. At the same time, you’ll find the item needed to complete a quest or start a new one.
The Prince starts every run with a random main and tool to use. As you progress through the story, you can find and unlock more of each. Based on my experience, you always start with the lowest strength of a particular weapon. Progressing through the story does unlock stronger variations. Going from Iron to Diamond.
After starting with the basic weapon, you may come across a Gold variation of another one. The strength upgrade is significant, so you’ll want to switch. On top of that, some stages have areas where you can upgrade your weapons. It costs to upgrade, but when you can, the improvement in damage is noticeable. Not every stage features a weapon/item shop or an upgrade station. Because of that, you do have to be mindful of that.
Regardless of the weapons you use, the combat is a lot of fun. I enjoy every enemy encounter because The Prince can move around and cause a lot of damage. Yes, it can get a bit frantic when many enemy types attack at the same time. But if you can use their attacks to your advantage, then they don’t pose a problem.
A detailed story with many layers
Having finished the game, it took me almost 11 hours to complete. From what I can tell, I have found everything to unlock the full story. While it is possible to go through a complete run in less time, it’s not advised. The reason why I know that’s the case is the game’s “Mind Map” feature.
The “Mind Map” is this large web of information that you gather as you progress. Early in the game, you find your brother imprisoned, so you have to free him. To do that, you have to get water flowing from the Aquaduct stage, which triggers the lock mechanism. It’s not mandatory to rescue your brother, but it does prevent you from unlocking more of the story.
Once you complete a quest from the “Mind Map”, you don’t have to do it again. Unfortunately, the corresponding boss battles still take place. It’s a bit strange to fight the foe who was blocking you from rescuing your mom again. Yes, there are branching sections, so I don’t have to go that route, but that boss fight is easier.
There is only one section I missed out on, which requires a key. I remembered collecting the necessary key on an earlier run, but didn’t think much of it. It gains you access to a room before the last battle, but all it does is give you some health back. At that point in the game, my Prince already had one of the strongest weapons and over 600 HP, so I wasn’t too concerned.
Outstanding in so many areas, but only one minor gripe
Other aspects of this game are worth mentioning. While I love the fast and fluid combat, I also want to give this game praise for its soundtrack. The music here is incredible. Its Middle Eastern techno-like soundtrack adds depth to the stages. I tend to play games on mute, but this is one that I wanted to have playing loud because it added to the atmosphere.
This is a very different-looking game from The Lost Crown. The two incorporate very contrasting art styles. Yes, they both are 2D side scrollers, but the comic-book look that this has works well. Sure, it might not appear as flashy as its cousin, but that’s fine. It would have been nice if this had voice acting, but it’s not the end of the world.
My only gripe with the game is that performance on Steam Deck isn’t solid. I seldom use the Steam Deck’s Performance Overlay, but I did so for this game. I noticed that on loading screens, the game would drop from 90 FPS to the single digits. Also, in areas where there are a lot of enemies on the screen, I would see it dip from 90 to sub-60 FPS. Dropping a third of its frames is noticeable, but not game-breaking. With a Nintendo Switch 2 version planned, I hope they are looking into improving this.
The better recent Prince of Persia game
The Rogue Prince of Persia is an incredible game. In comparison to The Lost Crown, I enjoyed this more. The story is good, the combat is fluid, and the music is fantastic. Without question, this is one of my favorite games of the year, and it’s an easy recommendation. I’m a little disappointed that Ubisoft didn’t market this one more. Sure, this wasn’t developed in-house, which might explain why. Even with that, it’s a solid action game and a worthy addition to the series.
