Preview We played the new Prince of Persia. The great Ubisoft back?
Published on 06/12/2023 at 20:55
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It’s been 13 years since we jumped from wall to wall as the Prince of Persia. While a remake of Sands of Time was announced in 2020 – with turbulent development – Ubisoft announces the coming of a real new episode. Forget the full 3D action-adventure game, the French publisher wanted to go back to basics. Those set beneath the Iranian sands, in 2.5D, for an exciting Metroidvania.
Preview Terms
We took part in a visit to Ubisoft Montpellier Studios as well as two hands-on gaming sessions. Enough to explore four different biomes and defeat two imposing bosses. We were also able to chat with Abdelhak Elguess (Producer) and Christophe Pic (World Director).
Summary
- Winning return
- The blade between the teeth
- Clear sky, clear weather
- Pop Culture
Winning return
It’s been a while since we heard from the Ubisoft studio in Montpellier. We now know why: he hatched the grand return of the Prince of Persia series out of sight. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown has been in development since January 2020 by a team now consisting of around a hundred artists and abandons the full 3D action-adventure to rely on the 2.5D “action-adventure platformer” Metroidvania. At first glance, this choice sounds like a return to basics, as we follow the hero’s actions with a profile view camera, just like when Jordan Mechner introduced us to the series’ charms on the Apple II in 1990. Platform and vicious traps, Ubisoft’s future title has plenty to offer, yes. It would still be unfair to say that the French publisher didn’t take a chance by focusing on a formula more than 30 years old.. In reality, The Lost Crown exudes modernity.
What is the game about?
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is set on Mount Qaf, home of the Simurgh, the gods of time. Sargon, the hero, is part of a group called the Immortals. your mission? Protect this sacred place. Despite being the youngest of the gang, Sargon is described as brave and powerful. One day, the queen asks the immortals to accept a rescue mission: the release of Prince Hassan… Time begins to slip and our hero has to face many dangers. He will also have to reconsider what he considers his family.
Architects know that for a palace to stand the test of time, it needs a solid foundation. Here the Ubisoft teams are building an experience based on the four pillars of storytelling, exploration, platforming and combat. Thanks to his many movements (jump, sprint, teleportation, jump against a wall, slide), the main protagonist of this epic, responding to the cute nickname Sargon, whirls in the levels like a tulip petal blown by the wind. The range of actions allows level designers to show the extent of their talents. The few levels we progressed through exuded intelligence in their construction and skillfully utilized all of the hero’s abilities. Better yet, some locations give the hardcore platformer pride of place, leaving no room for error for sequences that a Rayman or a Super Meat Boy wouldn’t deny. Try Hard fans who appreciate being manipulated in locations full of hammers, sharp spikes and platforms activated by pulling on mechanisms thanks to well-placed bow arrows will get their money’s worth.
The blade between the teeth
Metroidvania accommodates this, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown offers exploration in extensive labyrinths, tricky puzzles to be solved, but also fights. From our point of view, Ubisoft is superficially the decisive factor for confrontations. The latter are in fact numerous and quite intense.. Almost every gameplay element in this installment revolves around muscle fighting. First, every move has its utility against the hordes of enemies to be fought. An enemy carries a shield? Why not teleport behind him to test the resistance of his spine? A gigantic boss attacking? Slipping between his legs and slashing your side is a good strategy. The user benefits from a guard and a chakram to throw at their pursuers. Chaining enemies into devastating combos is quickly becoming second nature: it’s easy to send an enemy airborne, damage them with a bow, and then finish them off with your blades. The software has a whole range of customizable elements to allow the player clashes that suit their way of having fun.
Thanks to a system of amulets to be found and then equipped (about forty to be found, the number to be equipped at a time depends on the skills unlocked), Prince of Persia adapts to the player’s desires. By combining the right skills it is possible to create devastating “builds”.. “We are Metroidvania and platformers, but we also return with a certain harshness to the identity of the Prince of Persia brand, which is interesting to explore,” emphasizes Christophe Pic, world director of the project. “We tried to find that and modernize it. By adding creativity to the combat phases, acrobatic moves and combinations, we allowed players to create their own way of playing.”
The little detail that struck us as particularly interesting was how the developers found a clever way to force the player to take risks. Dealing blows will increase a meter, allowing you to use powerful powers (attack or heal). Reception lowers it. That is, if the hero runs out of potion and his survival depends only on a healing spell, he must successfully complete a few sequences without getting hurt. This mechanic makes boss fights extra intense, but also rewards risk-taking. In the game world there are places where you can charge potions and fast travel.
Clear sky, clear weather
As we explained, Sargon has powers that can be combined to create deadly choreographies. When it comes to time management, the power of rewind has been assigned to the main antagonist. However, it is always possible The player can create an imprint of their avatar in the world to teleport to whenever they want. This mechanism, useful in combat, is above all an essential tool for the success of certain puzzles. “One of the things we wanted was to be in control at all times. When we rewind, we rewind everything that happens. So there is a moment when we are passive. For us, teleportation is a modernization of rewinding. It’s a clever way of paying tribute to him,” explains Abdelhak Elguess, producer of the project. We’ve also heard of a power that traps enemies in another dimension.
Should we be afraid of microtransactions?
During a hands-on demo, we saw the Skins tab in the bottom left of the screen. Abdelhak Elguess assured us in our interview: There will be no microtransactions. Bonus skins are only offered to those who opt for the deluxe version.
The player will apparently waste time exploring the arteries of this universe from top to bottom.. Luckily for adventurers, there is a map whose parts must be bought from an NPC. The developers have integrated the “photography” system directly into the game, which allows you to remember various screenshots. This is useful for keeping track of a puzzle or mechanism that can’t be activated yet. In addition, The Lost Crown will have two modes of exploration: one for fans of the genre and another for newcomers. “There’s a lot of exploration a la Hollow Knight, so we have two modes of exploration,” explains Abdelhak Elguess. He adds, “People who are more familiar with this genre, who like to get lost, who like to search, have the standard game mode.” It was very important to keep that in our game’s DNA. But we also wanted to democratize the genre by adding a guided mode. We don’t say “go there, there, there”, we want to respect the player’s intelligence, but we give them keys that help them when they’re unfamiliar with the genre.”
Pop Culture
The future software from Ubisoft should run at 60 frames per second even on a Nintendo Switch, which is also the target machine, and is still visually appealing in the PC version we tested. We see a mix of 2D art style elements for the background and 3D elements. Even if it is not revolutionary from a purely technical point of view, Thanks to its exemplary fluidity, The Lost Crown leaves a good impression. The elders will regret an artistic direction that strays from the original game, but Ubisoft has also opted for modernity in the design of its characters. The game is inspired by Persia, its stories, its legends and its folklore (revised and corrected) to create diverse, interconnected worlds. During our demo we walked through the ruins of a palace, a forest, a prison and a desert. “For the world, we took inspiration from Persia. We have great places. The mythology is rich and we have drawn places with real visual, organic and architectural contrasts, open places where you can play with the movements, other more closed ones focused on the fights. This allowed us to create contrast and variety,” explains Christophe Pic.
As for the sound environment, it was impeccable in our test. We learned that the background music was composed by an Iranian artist (phew, forget the trailer’s hip-hop sound), while the boss themes are by the prolific Gareth Coker (Halo Infinite, Ori and the). Will of the Wisps). Since these are the bosses, these are impressive. Like a Metroid Horror, they require pattern learning and skill to defeat. The style of the game is inspired by Japanese comics and anime in its cutscenes but also in its special effects. For example, the super attacks are reminiscent of those we can see in Dragon Ball Z episodes. For fans of versus battles, the studio’s veterans also made sure to keep the rhythm throughout battles with precise keyframe animations. The team says this Prince of Persia takes pop culture cues to modernize its presentation. Just look at the hero’s gaze, which is heavily inspired by that of Jago (killer instinct), to recognize it.
Our impressions
That’s gratifying. With this new Prince of Persia we find the Ubisoft we love, which has not hesitated to take risks with a legendary series that has been around for 30 years. This powerful Metroidvania draws on the genre’s finest references while bringing its own personal touch. It seems flawless to us at the moment. Of course there are still many things to check, but for now we are devilishly convinced. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown will be released on January 18, 2024 for Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.
Editorial review
Exciting