Prince of Persia: Sands of Time remake out next year

Rumors had been swirling that Ubisoft was looking to revitalize the Prince of Persia franchise and it looks like those plans are true. During the Ubisoft Forward on Thursday, the studio announced a Prince of Persia: Sands of Time remake that is set to release next year.

The game, which was built from the ground-up in the company’s Anvil game engine (the version used for the newer Assassin’s Creed games) and is the studio’s first remake, is set to release on Jan. 21, 2021. It’ll cost $40 across platforms — PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The game will be backwards compatible on the PS5 and Xbox Series X.

Prince of Persia: Sands of Time was originally released in 2003 and followed the story of the Prince, who through his hubris is tricked into releasing the Sands of Time, which causes chaos throughout the kingdom. It’s up to him to use his skills and the power of controlling time to save everybody.

The title is being led by Ubisoft Pune and Ubisoft Mumbai — both of which are in India. Pune had co-developed on projects before, namely the Just Dance games, but this is the first that the studio got to spearhead (Ubisoft Mumbai was founded in 2018).

“We wanted to give players the opportunity to experience the game again or for the very first time with a modern twist,” Annu Koul, senior producer at Ubisoft Pune, said in a briefing for press.

While the game was built from the ground-up and features updated gameplay, the developers want to stress that this is generally the same title a lot of people grew up with. It’s been made for people who want to re-experience the game again on new consoles or who never had the chance to do so before. A lot of elements are the same, including general gameplay. Yuri Lowenthal, who voiced the Prince in the 2003 version, is also returning.

However, there are some differences. For one, Ubisoft utilized motion capture for the characters (although those visuals, at least, don’t look like they received much of an update from the 2003 original). It also updated the in-game camera and the combat system. The developers from Pune and Mumbai have also redesigned the environments. Actress Supinder Wraich will also be stepping into the supporting role of Princess Farah.

In addition to Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, players will also get to unlock the very first Prince of Persia game from 1989.

The game is now available for pre-order. Players who buy in ahead of the release will get some extras, including the original Prince outfit, his original weapons, and a classic filter.

It’s been a while since we’ve had a main series Prince of Persia game. The last one, The Forgotten Sands, released in 2010. Ubisoft did announce Prince of Persia: The Dagger of Time earlier this year, but that was only for VR Escape Rooms.