Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a 2.5D metroidvania^[5] game, revealed in Summer Game Fest of 2023.^[6]

Story[]

Sargon, a young gifted Persian warrior member of an elite group of warriors called The Immortals, as they explore Mount Qaf, a cursed and hostile place,^[7] trying to rescue the kidnapped Ghassan, the Prince of Persia.^[4] Sargon and the Immortals will discover that time itself will be a treacherous foe and that the world balance must be restored.^[8]

The Lost Crown exists in its own continuity, separate from previous Prince of Persia games.^[9]

Summary[]

The game begins on a battlefield with Persia defending itself from the Kushans. The Kushans have the advantage until the arrival of the Persian Immortals, who turn the tide of battle. The player takes control of Sargon, as he fights alongside the other six Immortals. The battle ends with a fight against the Karshan general, Uvishka, whom Sargon strikes down. The Immortals are impressed with Sargon's skill, and the Persian queen Thomyris awards Sargon a blue sash for his efforts. Sargon also meets Prince Ghassan, who suggests meeting Sargon under more casual circumstances in the future.^[9]

Sargon meets with the other Immortals to share in their victory, but the moment of respite is short. The kingdom is attacked, seemingly from the inside, and Prince Ghassan is kidnapped. Sargon rushes after him to discover that Anahita, his mentor, is taking Prince Ghassan, and that she is far more powerful than he first believed. Sargon and the Immortals pursue Anahita and Ghassan to the mystical Mount Qaf, former home of the god of time. Those who go to the mountain do not return, but the loyal Immortals enter without question to save their prince. The Immortals separate into groups, and Sargon is left on his own. It is apparent that something is off at the mountain, for the Immortals come across a recognizable decomposing soldier who looks like he's been dead for years, even though the Immortals only arrived a few hours ago.^[9]

As Sargon makes his way through the mountain, he comes across a young girl named Fariba, who claims to have been at Mount Qaf for years. She is surprisingly cavalier about the whole situation, and unimpressed by Sargon being an Immortal. She gives him the Eye of the Wanderer, and a map that is more than it first appears.^[9]

As Sargon continues exploring, he runs into his fellow Immortals, but something is clearly off. For Sargon, events appear to have been moving in real-time, but some members say they have been exploring for days. He finds an exhausted soldier who claims to have been at Mount Qaf for years. Sargon finds a body that resembles himself, along with Menolias' bow, but then runs into an Menolias himself later, carrying the same bow.^[9]

Sargon eventually finds Anahita and Prince Ghassan and follows them, but not before encountering Kaheva, a deity, who offers to upgrade Sargon's equipment. He also finds Jahandar.^[9]

Gameplay[]

The gameplay of The Lost Crown is a mix of flashy combat and high-speed platforming.^[8] A first-time playthrough is estimated to take 25 hours.^[9]

A single button is used for sword attacks, but there are moves that can be used to complement this, such as dashing into enemies or sliding into them. Sargon also has a counter. The player can also build up a meter to unleash a devastating special attack that is very important to manage, especially during boss fights. Sargon can bounce between walls and sprint through an area.^[9]

Sargon also has access to health potions. These refill at checkpoints. Using the map, players can leverage a mechanic called memory Shards. At any moment, the player can press down on the d-pad to take a picture of their surroundings, automatically marking the map with a photo. Players are able to save their progress at Wak-Wak trees.^[9]

The game's characters are voiced; options included English and Persian (Farsi). There are also difficulty options and Guided and Exploration modes. The former offers more map guidance, while the latter gives the player fewer hints.^[9]

The game received three free updates and one story DLC over the course of 2024. The first was "Warrior's Path," which features permadeath and a speedrun mode, as well as new outfits. The second is "Boss Attack," which is a boss run mode. The third is "Divine Trials," which features new amulets, combat, platform and puzzle challenges, and outfits.^[10] The story DLC, titled Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown - Mask of Darkness, was released in September, 2024.^[11]

Development[]

The Lost Crown was created from the bottom-up, with a team put together by game director Mounir Radi. Much of the development team previously worked on Rayman Origins and Legends. However, while influence was taken from these games, Sargon is designed to play differently from Rayman.^[9]

Once the team was assembled it took some time to decide in what direction the team wanted to go. Development began in 2019. The team tried to emotionally detach itself from the franchise and focus analytically on what players might want from a new entry. Radi, who was a fan of the series before its shift to 3D, hoped to recall the tone of the original, but through a contemporary lens. Radi wanted to harken back to the fear and isolation he felt when playing the original 2D games, while also experimenting with the time powers first introduced in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.^[9]

The goal of fear and isolation fit into the Metroidvania genre. Fighting games also influenced development, but The Lost Crown is designed to be straightforward in this regard, taking inspiration from the "one attack, one function" approach of games like Super Smash Bros and Street Fighter. Inspiration was also taken from Metroid itself.^[9]