The prodigal Prince has returned, and his comeback has gone down so well that he is doing it a second time. After his Metroidvania adventures in Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, which came out in January, gaming’s iconic dual-blade wielding royalty is coming back for seconds in The Rogue Prince of Persia, a new 2D action-platforming rogue-lite title, arriving in Early Access on Steam on May 14. Developed by Dead Cells maker Evil Empire and published by Ubisoft, the next Prince of Persia game flaunts a colourful, cartoony art style and features platforming and action combat familiar to the series.
The Rogue Prince of Persia was revealed with a trailer during the Triple-I Initiative livestream, showing off striking cinematics and a bit of gameplay. According to Ubisoft, the game is set in a fictional Ctesiphon, the capital city of the Persian Empire, under siege from a possessed army of Huns. Unlike The Lost Crown, here Players will get to take control of the eponymous prince, who possesses a magical bola that resurrects him on each death.
As expected from a rogue-lite, players will die, only to be resurrected and thrown back at the beginning. The cycle keeps repeating until players upgrade and upskill to become good enough to complete a full run of the game. With each attempt, players will explore new biomes, try out new weapons, gain valuable knowledge, find and equip trinkets and upgrade their gear as they attempt to save the city from the invasion.
The trailer shows off an acrobatic prince who can wall run, spin jump and slide around deadly obstacles in tricky platforming sections. Players will progress through procedurally generated levels, fighting off Huns imbued with the dark shamanic magic and corrupted creatures through colourful and diverse regions inspired by Persian architecture.
The prince will also have a variety of weapons at his disposal to aid in combat. Players can equip twin daggers, spears, broad swords, and axes, and also add a selection of shields, bows, grappling hooks and more as secondary weapons, according to Ubisoft.
Developers Evil Empire are no strangers to the roguelike genre, having co-developed Dead Cells with Motion Twin. According to Ubisoft, the studio approached the publisher with their own rogue-lite take on Prince of Persia. The iconic game series made a comeback after years of absence early this year with the launch of Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. A 2.5D Metroidvania action-platformer, The Lost Crown marked a fresh beginning for the franchise, featuring responsive platforming and fast-paced combat. In our review of the game, we found Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown an inspired take on the genre that forges a new path for the future of the series. The next Prince of Persia title seems to have taken that same path, too.
The Rogue Prince of Persia will release in Early Access on Steam on May 14, with Ubisoft confirming release on other platforms at a later point.