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Prince of Persia Preview

• By Cameron Lewis
• December 12, 2008 16:35 PM PST
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The Prince is reborn. Ubisoft Montreal breaks the mold, and GamePro has all the details on the new Prince of Persia.

The mysterious figure slides down the embankment with rugged grace, strands of his turban trailing behind him, his sandals surfing the currents of sand that flow across the sun-baked rock. His path leads directly and unavoidably to a 1000-foot column of empty space, and the cliff on the opposite side seems miles out of reach. The rogue leaps out without hesitation, hangs in the air for a moment, and all seems lost-until a feminine form materializes in the air above him, her arm outstretched, to swing our hero to safety.

Unlike his predecessor, this new Prince holds no sway over the flow of time, but he's every bit as acrobatic. Running across multiple walls in sequence, clutching ledges, and scrambling up sheer surfaces has never looked better than in this new-generation reinvention of Prince of Persia. A shiny new "grip glove" comes in handy as well: as it grinds against rock or cuts into soft sandstone, you'll descend sheer surfaces with full directional control, dodging troublemakers on the way down. The acrobatics are comfortingly familiar in concept and control, but breathtaking in their showmanship.

Ubisoft takes a bold step in re-inventing the Prince of Persia, but the results speak for themselves -- this game is gorgeous.

Boy Meets Girl

But who is this woman who can call upon mysterious forces to save you from certain death? That's Elika, a descendant of ancient guardians and the Prince's full-fledged partner in everything from travel to combat. "She has automatic behaviors," creative director Jean-Christophe Guyot tells us, "but you will also be able to call upon her for different actions." You'll help each other ascend to soaring altitudes, negotiate puzzles that would bewilder any lone-wolf explorer, and defeat foes who would crush the Prince without Elika's magical intervention. Once you've selected a destination, Elika will even point out the next route - just tap a button to see the glowing blue trail.

The developers are keenly aware that computer-controlled partners can be hinder more than help, and are focused on making Elika a positive presence at all times. She'll never die, get in your way, accidentally nudge you off a cliff, or demand babysitting. You might find yourself grasping a precarious handhold while she clutches your free arm in a dangerous display of implicit trust, but she'll never be a cause of failure. In fact, Elika is something of a personal savior: leap into the abyss, and she'll pull you back to the last platform without a frustrating "game over" message or loading screen.

Elika doesn't trust you much at first, never standing too close to the Prince. But as you work together, you'll see subtle changes in her attitude.

Princely Looks

The Prince and his forerunners are oceans apart in style. The Prince of the previous games was a tortured soul who wrestled as much with himself as any enemy, but this new protagonist is closer to the champion of The Sands of Time, or even Sinbad the Sailor. Though he starts the game as a nomad, coaxing along a mule laden with riches from some past exploit, he possesses a righteous heart that gets called into service soon enough. There's more to this new Prince of Persia than a change of wardrobe and outlook. With its gorgeous and utterly distinctive "illustrative" visuals, Prince of Persia's new style reveals a vibrant art style that draws as much from graphic novel artistry as the Arabian Nights. The same talented artists who define characters and settings with their brush strokes are hard at work on the hand-drawn textures that bring surfaces to life in the game, from skin to stone.

Accompanying the dramatic shift in aesthetic approach is a new emphasis on expansive outdoor environments over the cavernous interiors of previous games. The desert environment featured in this demo is studded with natural beauty: mist pours over cliff edges, sand swirls by in thick ribbons, and turbulent clouds churn overhead. The world of Prince of Persia is a high-contrast mix of uplifting lights and ominous darks. Because it's based on Assassin's Creed technology, Prince of Persia renders huge vistas that stretch into the distance, revealing far-off objectives. It's as if the Grand Canyon has been redesigned as an enormous jungle gym strictly for your amusement.

For all their majesty, the environments of Prince of Persia are clearly in pain. Ahriman, the god of darkness, was imprisoned long ago in the Tree of Life. But the immortal Tree has been split apart, and ancient evil runs riot in the form of "corruption." This inky black substance floods over and into once-thriving landscapes, poisoning the land itself with filth and evil, turning large chunks of the kingdom into treacherous obstacle courses robbed of their natural beauty. Even the sky becomes bruised and blackened with the influence of Ahriman.

The Prince and Elika swap places with dramatic animations, but the developers promise that such flourishes won't ever get in the way of responsive control.

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