Not what the PR firm wants to see at the start of a review, but I was disappointed with The Rogue Prince of Persia. I have the reboot collection in my retro pile that never gets played, and to this day, I haven’t played any Prince of Persia game since the groundbreaking original. As a big fan of the original back in the days of the humble 486, my disappointment was that this looked nothing like the 3D games, nor did it have any resemblance to the rotoscoped original.
The prince of the title does not move like a real person, nor does the animation blow you away with life-like or exaggerated dynamic finesse. Instead, first impressions were that of a crisp mobile game, running with an old idea and perhaps capitalising on it? Why then did I not push it to one side and knock up this review with some negative criticism? I have, in theory, but these were first impressions. The reason I couldn’t put this down was that it works.
While The Rogue Prince of Persia doesn’t have the same fidelity as previous games, it plays better. Movement is fluid, and with the odd exception where the timing can feel off (both mechanics and player skill issues), the prince moves with a natural parkour flair. This, for me, is the standout point about the game. Where Prince of Persia was realistic, for the time, it was very clunky. I can’t comment on the other games, but for the Evil Empire variation, it flows and moves at a hasty pace.
The setup is a simple one. The Persian kingdom is under attack, and the prince stands up to the threat. He’s killed pretty quickly, though. Fear not: this is not a spoiler, as it’s part of the intro, plus, we all know that they’re a manipulator of time, setting the tone for a decent rogue-like. Each time the prince dies within the game, he’ll reset to where he last slept, which is a hub of sorts to invest in new gear and buffs. So, nothing new here in terms of mechanics, but much needed.
Actual gameplay is running through a variation of settings, killing the invaders and rescuing hostages. The combat is quick and effective, encouraging the off button mashing mixed in with evasive techniques. I’m not the biggest fan of evasion in 2D side scrollers, but it works perfectly in The Rogue Prince of Persia, as you can roll over an enemy before their attack and destroy them from behind. This style of combat matches the pace of the game so well, and there’s never any downtime. Equally, gameplay doesn’t feel rushed either. On many occasions, you will need to plan your route, albeit briefly, so not having to worry about the clock is a good thing.
The prince can dash on the ground and mid-air, plus an excellent wall run that, naturally, works while standing next to a wall, but also the prince can place his feet on background walls and run up to new ledges or unreachable areas without having to worry about conventional platforms. Again, this works surprisingly well, though I was shocked by just how easy it was to either land or walk into spikes. If you look at the level design, the spike placement seems strange when vertical, and you’d never hit it. Even when you launch over an enemy, you rarely make contact. However, I’d often take the most damage from stupidity or ill-timed jumps.
Back at the hub, in-game currency/soul drops will allow you to unlock new weapons. These are melee-based, as well as ranged ones. For the latter, ammo is replenished with focus, which in turn is earned through combat and fancy wall-running shenanigans. Aside from permanent perks such as more health potions and extra currency, the prince can also don medallions that give boosts for the run in question, with plenty of opportunity to increase the number of medallions he can wear at one time.
The biggest challenge in The Rogue Prince of Persia is arguably boss combat and the scope of the levels. New areas will unlock as you meet new NPCs. Some will offer assistance at your camp, while others will help progress the story. Interestingly, you can visit new locations on your next run, accessible from the camp and tackled as you see fit. As for the boss battles, it is understandably a bit of trial and error. For those more skilled, these enemies might not pose so much of a threat, though for the less confident, a couple of runs and levelling up in stats and medallions will make lighter work of these essential battles.
So, we started rocky with the first impressions, but The Rogue Prince of Persia is a surprisingly good Metroidvania. I wouldn’t say the rogue-like aspect is the biggest driving force, as the upgrades are slow, though this factor is countered by the fluidity of gameplay, making you feel like an aggressive cat, the way you can effortlessly scale the unscaelable while wielding something pointy. Take that, Ninja Gaiden. Put it in your hookah and smoke it. The Rogue Prince of Persia was reviewed on PS5. You can pick up the physical version on PlayStation and the Switch.
