Prince of Persia meets Dragon Ball Z wasn’t the elevator pitch I expected when I visited Ubisoft’s Montpellier studio last month, but that’s exactly what I got. The team frequently cite anime—and their love for it—as the inspiration behind the exuberant visual style for the upcoming Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.
You wouldn’t think it would work, but it does. The Lost Crown is still filled with gorgeous Persian architecture. Sprawling sandy columns and intricate statues adorn the small section I was given a hands-on with. But when I parry an enemy or unleash a super move, the landscapes are splattered by explosions of colour and animations that look like they’re straight out of Street Fighter or Dragon Ball FighterZ. Prince of Persia is back, and this time it’s brimming with style.
EMBRACE TRADITION
I know it’s not exactly the Prince of Persia fans have come to expect, especially with the hotly-anticipated Sands of Time remake currently drifting on the desert winds. I’d consider it no bad thing that it’s going for such a different feel, though. With the team behind Rayman Legends working on The Lost Crown for the last four years, the result is a gorgeous 2.5D sidescroller that hearkens back to Prince of Persia’s origins, plus all sorts of utterly devious puzzle platforming and some mighty satisfying execution.
This story is from the October 2023 edition of PC Gamer US Edition.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 2023 edition of PC Gamer US Edition.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
YELLOW CARD
Flawed deckbuilder DUNGEONS AND DEGENERATE GAMBLERS rarely plays a winning hand
GODS AND MONSTERS
AGE OF MYTHOLOGY: RETOLD modernizes a classic RTS with care
SPACED OUT
After a strong first impression, WARHAMMER 40K: SPACE MARINE 2 runs out of steam
SLIDES RULE
Redeeming a hated puzzle mechanic with SLIDER
DINER HARD
Rewriting the rules of horror in ALAN WAKE
"Kay Vess, galactic tomb raider"
Feeling like Lara Croft in STAR WARS OUTLAWS
LETHAL COMPANY
A return to some explosive post-launch patches.
MARVEL: ULTIMATE ALLIANCE
Enter the multiverse of modness.
TRACK GPT
Al's teaching sim racers to improve-what about other games?
FINDING IMMORTALITY
Twenty-five years on, PLANESCAPE: TORMENT is still one of the most talked-about RPGs of all time. This is the story of how it was created as a 'stay-busy' project by a small team at Black Isle Studios