How the game "Prince of Persia" changed: the evolution of the cult series of games (29 photos)

In 1989, the first part of the game "Prince of Persia" was released, which became the start of a cult franchise, which currently consists of more than 10 games.





Prince of Persia (1989)

The first part of the game "Prince of Persia" was released back in 1989, and it was created by only one person - game designer Jordan Mechner. However, someone still helped him in creating the game. Mechner's younger brother became the model for the characters. He ran and jumped, while Jordan himself recorded this process on camera, in order to later transfer the whole thing to a computer using rotoscoping technology.



According to the plot, while the sultan is at war, a vizier named Jafar takes the princess captive and gives her an hour to think about it, so that she would express her consent to marry him, so that he could officially seize power. But the princess's fiancé (that is, our hero) is thrown into prison, from which he now has to get out in order to challenge Jafar and save his beloved.

The game is stuffed with various levels, to pass which you will need to "connect" not only your hands, but also your head. But in addition to running and jumping, we also have to fight with guards who will prevent us from completing our goal. The main thing is not to drag out all this business, since we only have 60 minutes to complete the entire game.





The game was originally developed for Apple II computers, and then ported to other well-known platforms such as C64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Amiga, Atari ST, computer (MS-DOS) and even NES (Dendy).

In 2007, a modern remaster of this game called "Prince of Persia classic" was released for mobile platforms (as well as PS 3 and XBOX 360 game consoles).



The essence of the game, levels and gameplay remained the same. The changes affected the graphics, and several innovations were added to the game, including acrobatic ones.

Prince of Persia 2 (1993)

The game "Prince of Persia 2: Shadow of the Flame" became a direct continuation of the first part of the game. The game takes place 11 days after the end of the events of the first part. Jafar managed to survive, and now with the help of black magic he is going to take revenge for everything that was done to him.



Jafar turns into a prince, and accuses our hero of being an impostor, ordering his execution. The prince has no choice but to jump out the window and escape from the guards. And now he has to fix this whole situation.

The game has undergone major changes compared to the first part. The graphics have become much brighter and richer, and the prince himself can now take out his sword whenever he wants, and not just at certain moments. As for the gameplay, it is, for the most part, the same as in the original, with the exception of a few innovations. Plus, the creators introduced several interesting elements into the game, such as the prince's soul traveling outside the body, crawling through narrow openings, etc.



This game was released on far fewer platforms, and since it was not released on the NES and Sega Mega Drive 2 consoles, many console gamers of the 90s never played it. Only owners of the SNES (Super Nintendo) console and home computers (DOS) could enjoy playing this game.



In 2013, a remaster of this game was released on mobile platforms. As in the case of the game "Prince of Persia classic", the levels and gameplay remained exactly the same. The changes affected only the graphics, as well as some innovations. And of course, the prince himself became more like the hero from the series about the sands of time.

Prince of Persia 3D (1999)

In 1999, the last part of the original trilogy of the game "Prince of Persia" was released under the name "Prince of Persia 3D". This game was the first in the series, which was made in 3D format. Initially, it was planned to make the game as a direct continuation of the second part, but the creators of the game decided not to follow the advice of the author Jordan Mechner, but to come up with a new plot.



True, this plot can hardly be called new, since in essence it repeats the plot of the first part. During one of the receptions in the palace, the evil vizier decides to seize power and organizes a coup. The prince is placed in a prison cell, and the princess is captured in order to force her to marry that very vizier. Well, having escaped from prison, the prince, of course, must prevent all this.



In addition to the fact that the game was created in a three-dimensional format, many innovations appeared in it. For example, in this part of the game, the prince is able to swim, climb ropes and much more. Moreover, the local prince has the opportunity to get up to 4 types of weapons during the game: a sword, dual blades, a staff and a bow.



But despite a whole bunch of innovations and three-dimensionality, the game did not become popular among gamers. Moreover, many accused the game of being secondary, glitchy, inconvenient controls and stupid artificial intelligence.

Prince of Persia: Sands of time (2003)

In 2003, the Prince of Persia series of games was rebooted under the leadership of Ubisoft. This one, although not a continuation of the original trilogy, but the creator of the original game Jordan Mechner also took part in the development of the game.



According to the plot, the Prince, together with his father and his army, is trying to capture the castle of the Indian Maharaja. The vizier, close to the Sultan, pretends to help his superior, but in fact he is pursuing his own personal goals - to get the dagger of time.



But the vizier's plans are ruined when the prince himself takes possession of the dagger, who after a short time inserts it into the hourglass, releasing the sands of time. After this, the Sultan and all the other people turn into sand demons, which can only be destroyed by sticking the dagger of time into them.

And now the prince must find the hourglass hidden by the vizier. And the Indian princess Farah, who also managed to avoid the sand curse, will help him in this.



The game was released in 3D, but unlike the previous game, the game became really dynamic. Parkour elements, various traps, puzzles, interesting fights and much more. That's what awaited us 20 years ago in the fresh "Prince of Persia".

But the most important innovation was precisely in time management. Thanks to the dagger, the Prince could control time a little, namely, temporarily slow it down and go back a couple of seconds. This function was very useful if we suddenly fell into the abyss.



As for the gameplay, the gameplay and acrobatic elements are clearly separated from the battles with enemies. That is, until you defeat all the enemies, you will not be able to advance further.

Prince of Persia: Warrior within (2004)

In 2004, a direct sequel to "The Sands of Time" was released under the name "Prince of Persia: Warrior Within". According to the plot, due to a violation of the time flow, the Prince faces great problems, which is why he goes to the island of time to change his fate by destroying the sands of time forever.



The game has become much darker compared to the first part, and the prince himself has changed a lot in appearance.



As for the gameplay, it is essentially the same as in "Sands of Time" with the exception of some innovations:

Firstly, the prince no longer has the dagger of time, and we will not need to finish off enemies with a dagger;

Secondly, a lot more weapons have been introduced into the game. Firstly, as the game progresses, we will find a lot more primary weapons. Also, now the prince can take weapons from enemies, using them as additional ones. However, the effect will be temporary, so the additional weapon can be thrown at the enemy if necessary;

Thirdly, the prince will periodically move between two timelines, and in one of them he will be constantly pursued by the time keeper Dahak, who cannot be destroyed. The only thing you can do is run away from him, hiding behind a water barrier;

Fourthly, the time management systems have been improved, and some new elements have been added.



In addition, the game has two endings. The standard ending is that the prince kills the empress of time and Dahaka leaves him alone. But if you collect all 9 life energy upgrades, you will receive a water sword and fight Dahaka himself. And Kailina will remain alive and go with the prince to Babylon. And by the way, it is the second ending that is canonical.

Prince of Persia: The two trones (2005)

At the end of 2005, the third part of the game "Prince of Persia" was released with the subtitle "The Two Thrones". The game takes place immediately after the end of the second part of the game. The prince and Kailina arrive in Babylon, but find the city under siege.



Meanwhile, Kailina is kidnapped by the army of the prince's old enemy - the vizier, who is again striving for power, because due to the fact that the prince canceled the creation of the sands of time, all the events of the first part of the game were canceled. And now the prince must make his way through hordes of enemies to save his beloved.



The gameplay here is again similar to the gameplay in the previous two parts of the game, with the exception of some changes and additions. for example, now the prince can climb up narrow passages. In addition, the game has a new function "Speed ​​kill", which can instantly destroy the enemy while he does not see it. Well, and it is impossible not to mention chariot riding, which is also an important part of the game.



But the most important thing is that now the prince has a split personality, and from time to time we will move on to the essence of the dark prince with his own set of weapons.

Prince of Persia (2008)

In 2008, a new game was released under the laconic name "Prince of Persia", developed by the studio "Ubisoft Monreal". This part is independent and is not connected with "The Sands of Time".



According to the plot, a certain Prince, who lost his donkey Fara during a sandstorm, stumbles upon a wonderful website. There, the Prince meets a girl named Elika, who is running away from her father's guards. The kind Prince stands up for the girl, and ends up fighting her father.



When the prince defeats her father, the latter summons the ancient spirit of evil - Ahriman. And now Ahriman spreads darkness across all the lands, and the prince and Elika must figure out this whole situation.



The gameplay is somewhat different from the previous parts. The game is built on the teamwork of the prince and Elika and on acrobatics. Much less time is devoted to battles here than in the previous parts. And by the way, you don't have to be afraid to fall off a cliff, because Elika will always help you if something happens.

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (2010)

The game "Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands" again takes us back to the "Sands of Time" series, being an intermediate part between the first and second parts.



According to the plot, the prince decides to visit his brother Malik so that he can improve his fighting skills. But as it turns out, his brother's palace is under siege, and Malik, in order to repel the enemy attack, decides to release the legendary army of King Solomon. But everything doesn't go according to plan, as the sand army sweeps away everyone in its path, and in the end the prince is the only surviving person, and now it is up to him to fix it all.



The gameplay is about the same as in the previous parts. Time management also remained with our character, but this time we were given new elements, such as freezing water (thanks to it, streams of water turn into crossbars for a while), memory of the earth (restores previously destroyed elements), fire wave (a combat skill that throws back opponents) and some other elemental elements.

Prince of Persia: The lost crown (2024)

In 2024, another game about the prince called "Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown" was released from under the wing of the company "Ubisoft". The game is very different from the previous parts, as it is made in the genre of 2.5 action-adventure-platformer. That is, the whole game takes place from the side view. And yes, I will immediately make a reservation that this is not the same prince for whom we played earlier.



We are given control of a hero named Sargon, who must reach his goal, moving around the area, jumping on platforms and crushing his enemies. Our new prince will tear and shred his enemies with the help of two swords, which he deftly wields.



In general, the game is somewhat similar to the remasters of the first two original parts of the game. However, unlike them, this game does not have the original source.

The Rogue Prince of Persia (2025)

"The Rogue Prince of Persia" is an upcoming game from the company "Ubisoft", which is due to be released in 2025.



This game is a platformer similar to "Prince of Persia Classic", only in a cartoon style, which is more reminiscent of old games. So far, from what we have seen, it is only clear that we will rush around different locations, crushing all enemies left and right.

Prince of Persia: Sands of time remake (2026?)

Well, we will finish our article today with a remake (or rather remaster) of the game "Prince of Persia: Sands of Time". This project is an updated version of the 2003 game, nothing more.

This remake was announced back in 2020, after which the game's release was postponed every now and then. Many have already forgotten that this remake should ever appear, but the company "Ubisoft" does not forget to remind us about it. At the moment, the game's release is scheduled for 2026. Let's see if this game will be released by that time or the release will be postponed again for a good couple of years.