‘Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown’ Is 2024’s First Perfect Game

Source: Ubisoft / The Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Prince of Persia is back and better than ever! Fans of the iconic franchise have been waiting YEARS for a new game and thought they would be playing the remake of Sands of Time by now, but with the arrival of The Lost Crown, maybe Ubisoft should focus on building this world out more.

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown seemed to appear out of thin air, taking many fans of the video game franchise, including myself, by surprise.

We have all been in limbo following the announcement of the Sands of Time remake, which is currently in development hell following its announcement in early 2020. Two Ubisoft studios touched the game before it firmly landed in Ubisoft Montreal’s lap and reached the “conceptual stage.”

Ubisoft decided to pivot with the Last Crown; honestly, it was the wisest decision they could have made.

Prince of Persia: The Last Crown will put players in the shoes of Sargon, a member of The Immortals, who are Persia’s best warriors.

After a brief introduction that serves as a quick tutorial, the story doesn’t waste time developing when the Prince of Persia is kidnapped and taken to Mount Qaf, a beautiful but dangerous time-twisted labyrinth.

The rescue mission The Immortals confidently embark on to bring the prince back becomes a time-bending nightmare. They are now trapped in what seems like an endless loop that Sargon has to break on top of bringing to light a conspiracy that provides a story full of twists and turns.

Oh, and there are plenty of traps and mythical beasts that will try to keep Sargon from accomplishing his goal.

A Metroidvania For Everyone

Source: Ubisoft / The Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

This game is not just for hardcore Metroidvania fans. It’s for everyone…

Metroidvanias are not everyone’s jam. Not many gamers won’t find it fun traversing large maps and revisiting areas because they don’t have the correct abilities to gain access to certain areas or the fact you have to memorize points.

Remember, there are tons of platforming and challenging foes all over that said map you have to worry about. You can easily have a horrible gaming experience if these things are not presented well.

With Prince of Persia of The Last Crown, Ubisoft Montpellier found a way to not only deliver one of the best Metroidvania-style games since Super Metroid but also a way not to make it an intimidating experience, allowing more people to fall in love with this particular style of game.

Particular features like the ability to take snapshots that stay on your map of areas with treasures or items you can’t obtain, or place markers are a huge help and are a welcome addition.

Platforming in these styles of games is expected. The Lost Crown puts a Prince of Persia spin on that many will find familiar. As you progress and Sargon gains more abilities, traversing the traps gets more complicated.

Source: Ubisoft Montpellier / Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Dying numerous times can be frustrating for players who are not used to this type of rinse-repeat gameplay. Thankfully, developers added a feature that allows Sargon to skip traversal puzzles they don’t feel like doing, especially after conquering them the first time.

This game is not just for hardcore Metroidvania fans. It’s for everyone.

The Story Is Fantastic

Source: Ubisoft Montpellier / Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Sargon’s story will draw you in, making you care about this character…

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown nails all of the Metroidvania aspects, but it also gives us an engaging story full of Persian mythology you will care deeply to see through, which is of the utmost importance when crafting a good Metroidvania-style game.

The constant twists and turns to determine why a person close to Sargon kidnapped the prince come to a noteworthy conclusion.

Sargon’s story will draw you in, making you care about this character who is all about loyalty to the crown, to the mission to save the prince, his fellow immortal compatriots, and to himself.

The acting also adds to this story as everyone delivers to bring each of the characters from Sargon down to help provide a story that very much could be the start of a new chapter in the Prince of Persia story.

A Beautiful World

Source: Ubisoft Montpellier / The Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

In other Prince of Persia titles, you are usually confined to a castle. The decision to step outside of that comfort zone was a smart one.

During my roughly 25 hours of gameplay (the game can be beaten in approximately 15 hours), I spent much of it just marveling at the beautiful world of Mount Qaf.

No biome is the same, offering different challenges, enemy types that this game doesn’t fall short of delivering, and challenging bosses that will have you screaming at television both in frustration when they kick your ass the first few times and in celebration when you land the fatal blow.

Source: Ubisoft / The Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

From the beautiful Upper City and the majestic Sacred Archives where you meet the Jailer, who is blind but has exceptionally hearing and will chase you down if he hears you to the terrifying depths so dark you need a light guide to navigate the creepy areas and see the enemies who pop out, Ubisoft Montpellier went to great lengths to ensure no area feels the same.

I only wished the game had a proper photo mode to capture the breathtaking views I encountered during my playthrough.

In other Prince of Persia titles, you are usually confined to a castle. The decision to step outside of that comfort zone was a smart one.

Final Verdict

Source: Ubisoft Montpellier / Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

After initially playing a preview of the game, I was high on this game. Being able to play it fully, my initial reactions are confirmed.

The Last Crown is a masterpiece; I was hard-pressed to find anything wrong with this game. The combat is snappy and fun to use thanks to the combo system and Sargon’s acquired abilities, allowing for stylish, fast gameplay.

The exceptional necklace feature allows Sargon to equip different combinations of amulets that you will find or purchase that bless Sargon with buffs, new abilities, and other enhancements to aid you on your journey while giving players the ability to make builds for multiple runs.

Each enemy type and boss offers unique challenges as you have to find ways to take them down efficiently before they wipe you from existence.

But don’t worry. Plenty of Wak Wak Trees are placed throughout the map that restores your health, arrows, and potions or switch out amulets and abilities, giving you comfort that having to restart from a particular point isn’t such a bad thing.

While Ubisoft Montreal is hard at work on the Sands of Time remake, Montpellier’s The Lost Crown is not just a placeholder; it’s the perfect pivot for the franchise, putting it on a refreshing path to newfound greatness.

This is a perfect game, and I can’t scream enough that you should definitely be playing it when it arrives.

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Photo: Ubisoft Montpellier / Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

*PS5 review key for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown provided by Ubisoft*