Donnie Darko 3 took an unexpected twist
What would happen if the Prince from The Sands of Time was to merge with the 2008 incarnation? Thanks to the folks at Xbox360achievements.org and Ubisoft I was able to discover a few days earlier than most, at a Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands preview event. Due out on May 18th in the US and May 21st in Europe, PoP: The Forgotten Sands is available on all major platforms. Click Read More, to discover my early impressions, some photos of the event and a video of a cool looking bloke playing the game.
As someone who has played every Prince of Persia game since the late 80s, I have grown to admire the royal pluck of the man. My favorite game in the franchise is Sands of Time as it successfully revamped the series with an incredible sense of scale and fantastic platforming elements. Recently, I also enjoyed the 2008 version on the 360 that introduced a new aesthetic and some great gameplay elements. So where does The Forgotten Sands fit into all this? Forgotten Sands is best described as combining elements from the earlier Prince of Persia Trilogy and the 2008 game.
In terms of look, Ubisoft have reverted back to the Prince of The Two Thrones, this means that the tone is darker and in keeping with the new feature film. Graphically, the game is up to the usual standard of the series, with the water effects and character animation standing out. Despite looking great, it is the gameplay that I truly care about and Sands provides you with a pleasant mix of new and old.
Handsome man caught playing computer game
I am a platform fan first, so the fact that Forgotten Sands has many jumps and ravines to traverse is excellent. The ability to manipulate time returns and joining this is the Prince's ability to control some natural elements. The platforming feel of the game owes a lot to its 2008 predecessor, but still feels unique to this game in the series. The best moments of platforming happened when you were able to seamlessly flow from one platform to the next, this highlighted some of the quality animation work that Ubisoft have put into the game.
For fight fans there are battles with the most on screen enemies that the franchise has seen to date. These sections have more in keeping with Batman: Arkham Asylum than the previous Prince of Persia games, with numerous nasties trying to bring you down at once. To aid you in combat you can unlock powers that can be improved as you gain in game experience, as well as use rolls and pushes to take on some of the more stubborn foes.
In the time that I got to spend with Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, I was struck by how well they had blended elements from across the series. There are small touches in the game that will please nostalgia fans as the sound of vases breaking and spikes appearing is like in the original Jordan Mechner games. The ability to reverse time and epic platforming sections are similar to the trilogy seen on the PS2 and original XBox, whilst new moves and fluidity are in keeping with the 2008 game. Despite at times feeling like a 'best of Prince of Persia' compilation, The Forgotten Sands is still able to remain its own game with the introduction of new elemental powers and top graphics. Time will tell where this version of the Prince will sit in the list of games in the franchise. If things go wrong for Ubisoft, they can always reverse time and change things.
See below for some images of the night and some footage of the game: