Today’s Nintendo Direct showcased the first new Prince of Persia game in the series since 2010’s Forgotten Sands. Forgoing its recent predecessors’ 3D setting, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown returns to the 2D side scrolling origins of the series that began with Jordan Mechner’s original Prince of Persia in 1989.
The trailer introduces a new character named Sargon on a quest to save the Prince himself, in a twist on the original premise. Graphically, the gameplay footage harkens back to Prince of Persia Classic, the 2007 remake of the first game, but a lot more vibrant and varied with its backdrops and setting.
Sargon has an array of acrobatic moves at his disposal as he swings and wall jumps his way through the world, wielding both dual scimitars and a bow in combat. The time powers were not elaborated upon, but an interesting Amulets system for improving his abilities was showcased briefly. Also on display were two screen-filling bosses, including a manticore, and an imposing coiled serpent.
Players can expect to do some Metroidvania backtracking within this deeply interconnected world, as Sargon improves upon his skills and acquires the tools needed to get past previous impediments in his path. Numerous secrets and shortcuts will need to be discovered in the quest for time crystals and treasure troves.
You can watch the brief one minute, fifteen second trailer right here:
The Lost Crown is being developed by Ubisoft Montpellier, a studio with a number of other 2D platformers under its belt, including several Rayman games, as well as Valiant Hearts: The Great War, and is said to run at 60 FPS on all platforms.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is expected to release on January 18th, 2024 on Nintendo Switch, in addition to PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.
