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[64bitmodels]

I genuinely don't think there's any other adventure game quite like the 2000s reboots, in terms of gameplay, music, and ESPECIALLY visuals. The parkour gameplay in those games haven't really aged a day, and feel just as current now as they did back then. A bit slower in comparison to modern offerings (and even other games of the time like Mario 64 and Mario Sunshine for instance), but still extremely well made and paced, and kind of clever too- Each room is structured like a puzzle- you have to assess your surroundings carefully and figure out the correct sequence of inputs and maneuvers to get through the area. And the combat is just...

While most hack and slashes focus on goofy air combos, crazy spectacle and flashy animations, Prince of Persia keeps it humble and on the ground with extremely fluent and smooth swordplay that'll have you questioning if the animations were mocapped (spoilers: THEY WEREN'T, somehow) It's got its fair share of weapon combos and enemies too, just because it's less flashy doesn't mean it's boring. Especially when you end up SLICING AN ENEMY DOWN THE FUCKING MIDDLE.

The visuals for each game are very pretty too. Each game somehow manages to perfectly frame each environment in the promotion screenshots which create a very cinematic feel for all of the environments. This effect is multiplied tenfold when you go into the landscape mode which shows off the incredibly detailed and inspired environments the games have. Like this stuff is genuinely beautiful, extremely detailed and well made especially for the mid 2000s. Just look for yourself....

Point being: shit looks fine as hell 19+ years later.
These games have no reason to be forgotten as hard as they were. When one of my friends mentioned it to me i was just like "who?" No one had ever mentioned it in any discussion of "best 3d platformers of all time" or "best video games of all time". Keep in mind that i already knew quite a bit of retro games beforehand, so these games seemingly flying over my fucking head is goofy, because these games never deserve to be forgotten. It's just that Ubishart let these masterpieces be overshadowed by Assassins creed which is nowhere near as inspired and nowhere as fucking fun.

 

[Genesis Knight]

I share your passion for PoP. A couple thoughts on why it disappeared:

- the Assassin's Creed series was a huge commercial blockbuster, and was similar enough to PoP that probably for a time Ubisoft didn't feel like there was room for both, especially when the 2008 reboot game and Forgotten Sands sold very few copies compared to the Assassin's Creed games
- the PoP movie being neither a critical success nor a sufficiently big commercial success (it theoretically made money but not much) probably did not help Ubisoft's sentiment on the IP

That said, there is a remaster in development, so that's indication that Ubisoft is more open to investing in the property again. Still, I imagine that even if that games does well (which I doubt) we won't see a heavy investment in new material in the property from Ubi for a long while. I'm guessing it will take some time before there's enough internal interest or enough market interest for them to go big with a new AAA game again.

 

[SJRB]

Because PoP is owned by Ubisoft, who have been creatively bankrupt for about 10 years now.

PoP 2008 was a god-tier game and I will die on the hill defending it, but like pretty much every legacy IP they own Ubisoft is completely clueless what to do with it. Best chance is getting a mobile game nobody asked for.

 

[kunonabi]

The trilogy kind of just spun its wheels after the first one, the second entry in particular was a disaster, and the reboot killed any lingering interest. Which is a shame because the Wii version of forgotten sands was the sequel sands of time always deserved.

 

[Fbh]

Yeah it's a shame the franchise basically got dropped and replaced by Assassins Creed. They could really have coexisted since aside from a few similarities they aren't really that much alike.
I guess that fact that last 2 games (POP2008 and Forgotten Sands) weren't particularly good didn't help e ither.

I really miss skill based platforming in action/adventure games, when you actually had to react and time your jumps. Now most games either put you on rails like Uncharted or they do it like Assassins Creed which is basically "hold down R2 to Parkour"

 

[Larxia]

I remember being very annoyed by the combats actually. While I didn't have problems with the mechanics, they felt very repetitive at some point, especially when you're searching for your next goal, roaming around, coming back to places and always having ennemies being back, with the combat music starting every time, I don't know there was something about the combats that kind of made me feel anxious, too repetitive and too many of them.

The games as a whole in general were very good though, I agree with that, and it's a pretty unique atmosphere that we don't see that often.

My favorite Prince Of Persia game though is the 2008 game. I know it's one that most people don't like, but I really loved it.
It was more focused on exploration and less of these repetitive combats actually. The only combats in the game were boss fights, there were no random trash mobs, and I really enjoyed this, it was a great design. The visuals were stunning, the exploration and the areas were great, it was a really good game to me.

The whole polemics about how you "can't die" because Elika saves you when you fall are a false issue too... She will only save you a limited number of times, after which you will definitely die, it's just like if you used the time rewind in the previous games, except here it's done automatically if you die.

 

[ManaByte]

I remember being very annoyed by the combats actually. While I didn't have problems with the mechanics, they felt very repetitive at some point, especially when you're searching for your next goal, roaming around, coming back to places and always having ennemies being back, with the combat music starting every time, I don't know there was something about the combats that kind of made me feel anxious, too repetitive and too many of them.

I just remember the combat in Sands of Time hurting your hand after a while. Which is why I haven't booted up the BC version.

 

[Bo_Hazem]

They were perfect back then and the story somehow ended impressively at The Two Thrones. The following were like modern AC, derailing from the bigger and massive story of hunting down the free masons/templars and their historic routes. It ended at Unity as I think the real world illuminatis didn't like it getting closer to their shores. AC were the best ever as a vision, handling history carefully without hindering creativity.

The New AC games are just that, games. What keeps me going is that it was the first series to dethrone MGS as my favorite series of all times, and finally played something that had more than just a "game" in it.

 

[Alexios]

Sands of Time was so good and despite not being combat focused it kinda pioneered Batman style combat but indeed more low key and fun and, like everything in that game, parkour maneuvers included, more manual in execution than in later more automated games that followed. Dreamy

 

[BennyBlanco]

man it does not look like this in my head when i think back to it. sands of time was sick.

 

[TGO]

Seriously anything from the 2000's or late 90's are god tier.
Imagine if those Devs from back then had the technology from now.
I know some of them are still making games now but imagine them having it when they made those iconic games.

 

[Shadowstar39]

Blame ubisoft. They won't greenlight games without mtx, and always online bs.

Welcome to the new era of shit. Even AC is getting the shaft (why we didn't have one in 2021 and replaced with some gaas game, that no one but probalby some gen z twitch streamer wants) .

They really haven't made anything new in about a decade.
POP had its great ps2/pc trilogy and then the 2008 reboot that was no death but was very very unique. I liked it, and they tried something new. Both could exist but instead AC got popular and POP forgotten.
Now they are about to abandon everything for the fortnite crowd (ewwwww) and leave us old fans behind, well they will not get any money from me. No prince of persia, ac, splinter cell , far cry , single player games without bs, no buy.

 

[amigastar]

I loved PoP from 2010. I tried to play Warrior Within (i think) but the camera sucks on the PC.

 

[64bitmodels]

the second entry in particular was a disaster,

to be entirely frank i think the second entry was the best one as a whole
it's where the series peaked in terms of combat, visuals, gameplay, story and music.
going back to sands of time, the gameplay and combat feel a little dated in comparison.

 

[Shifty]

Never got around to Warrior Within or the threequel, but I really enjoyed the first one back in the day. It did a great job of showing off what my Gamecube could do compared to the ol' N64.
I remember getting it because my gaming magazine of choice gave it one of those Absolutely Essential Buy It Immediately reviews, and they were on the money. Good times.

Though, I went back to it a couple of years ago when I got a modded OG Xbox and it didn't grab me enough to get past the intro.
That's probably down to the combat - it's a solid fundament, but the real strength of the game is in the adventure platforming.

Wasn't there a Sands of Time remake in the pipeline a little while back? I don't remember what ended up happening with that.

I know I'm cherrypicking here but GOOD LORD THE BLOOM THOUGH.

 

[Borowski_1]

Because Ubisoft

A great franchise in the wrong hands

 

[Glass Prison]

I've played the reboot trilogy this year after a long time, and while I don't agree they haven't aged, I think they are still better than Assassin's Creed.
Perhaps a lot of people would disagree, but I think the 'Souls formula' would fit well with PoP, specifically in terms of level design. Keep the parkour navigation and the puzzles that are the staple of the series, add the world design and challenge of the souls series, and let me play in 9th century Babylon. It would get me more excited than any AC game.

 

[HYDE]

It kills me how many people never got around to playing the third game.

 

[radewagon]

PoP 2008 was a god-tier game and I will die on the hill defending it

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Because ass creed happened

 

[Wildebeest]

Ubisoft threw too many reworks at the IP to get the sales figures to make sense for AAA budget and in the end it came out with nobody knowing what it stood for. Your average pleb just thought that Assassins wearing hoods are much cooler than some Disney prince for little girls running around somewhere foreign with a story which has nothing to do with the USA.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Last 2 games in that Trilogy had some fineeeee WAIFUs

 

[CitizenZ]

If you didnt say that the pics were PoP, I would have assumed it was AC.

 

[anothertech]

AssCreed happened. Basically

 

[Punished Miku]

Its pretty much my favorite series.

The passage of time hasn't lessened the pain of its absence ...

 

[The Stig]

Never got around to Warrior Within or the threequel, but I really enjoyed the first one back in the day. It did a great job of showing off what my Gamecube could do compared to the ol' N64.
I remember getting it because my gaming magazine of choice gave it one of those Absolutely Essential Buy It Immediately reviews, and they were on the money. Good times.

Though, I went back to it a couple of years ago when I got a modded OG Xbox and it didn't grab me enough to get past the intro.
That's probably down to the combat - it's a solid fundament, but the real strength of the game is in the adventure platforming.

Wasn't there a Sands of Time remake in the pipeline a little while back? I don't remember what ended up happening with that.


I know I'm cherrypicking here but GOOD LORD THE BLOOM THOUGH.

as was the style at the time

 

[ReBurn]

I play Sands of Time on my PS3 all the time. I also really enjoy the SNES port of PoP. But it never got better than Sands of Time for me.

 

[Scotty W]

The platforming and movement was perfection, but the combat was the worst: Move to a new room and mash the sword button for a few minutes to take out a large crowd of identical enemies for a few minutes, then repeat. I gave up on 1 about 25 hours in.

 

[Magic Carpet]

Last 2 games in that Trilogy had some fineeeee WAIFUs

Elika is the only one I remember.

 

[crackajack]

The IP was a bit of a rollercoaster and I assume instead of attracting more fans it discouraged them.
SoT was the first good 3d pop game. Warrior within then seems like they have seen A knights tale with that different style of music, and on top rather hard. Two towers was a bit toned down, but I assume some casuals were already gone then.
Then this okayish reboot happened, which was aimed at exactly the fans warrior within scared away. Forgotten sand was a return to old form, sort of, it felt played save and insecure, but the name was perfect like remember me...
Ass Creed on the other hand appears like they immediately lost the silent assassin pitch from Jade Raymond. While parkour and lots of sword fighting in 1001 nights would have been different to parkour with sneaky backstabbing in some historical setting, once ac also got loads of sword fighting the similarities got bigger.

In an ideal world we would have gotten
Prince of Egypt
Prince of Valhalla
Prince of the Sea
And
Assassin's games where you actually mainly assassinate people and not do open world stuff, ie Hitman in the past
And
Princess of Persia staring Elika, the spin off with only easy difficulty, a chill version of pop, although very easily doable within the main series, simple difficulty option, if your aim isn't to be the anti-souls for some stupid reason.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

Elika is the only one I remember.

She was a great WAIFU
Here's the rest I'm talking about

 

[TexMex]

I don’t think they’re forgotten they’re literally remaking one right now.

 

[NiiloPielinen]

It's just that Ubishart let these masterpieces be overshadowed by Assassins creed which is nowhere near as inspired and nowhere as fucking fun.

First Assasins Creed started as Prince of Persia game

https://princeofpersia.fandom.com/wiki/Prince_of_Persia:_Assassin

 

[pqueue]

cannot microtransaction teh hell out of a game where you have few weapons.

 

[ljubomir]

I still remember them fondly and play every now and then

 

[SlimeGooGoo]

.

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

How could ou forget this gem?

Couldn't find a gif of that lol

 

[SSfox]

Because modern Ubisoft stinks

 

[NotMyProblemAnymoreCunt]

How could ou forget this gem?

 

[Arun1910]

They're remaking one right now so it's not forgotten.

I feel like an original PoP game is in pre development... I have nothing to back this up as it's just a feeling but I find it odd how they decided to Remake the game after leaving the franchise for so long.

Let's not forgot, Prince of Persia: Assassin's gave birth to Assassin's Creed and then Assassin's Creed was a huge commercial success. There was no real reason to go back... which is why the Remake sparks a few questions in my head, especially development cost.

 

[Lumpyoatmeal]

I can’t remember what magazine (probably mistaking it for another videogame, this was so long ago..) featured Sands of Time back then but the concept especially the rewind feature was so dope.

Every Pop after the original just looked lame though honestly man.

 

[Black_Stride]

 

[Dream-Knife]

I actually though POP was asscreed.

 

[Bragr]

At the end of the day, as people say, it's because the Creed games sell 4 times more.

I thought the games aged poorly, and the combat and parkour are stiff and awkward. And that spin-off they did hurt the franchise a lot, it bombed hard.

The remake was cool and still plays fine.

 

[RoadHazard]

AC took its place for Ubi, basically.

But they were working on that remake of SoT (maybe they still are, don't remember if it was cancelled or they just watched studios). So they do care a little about it I guess.

 

[RoadHazard]

At the end of the day, as people say, it's because the Creed games sell 4 times more.

I thought the games aged poorly, and the combat and parkour are stiff and awkward. And that spin-off they did hurt the franchise a lot, it bombed hard.

The remake was cool and still plays fine.

Wait, what remake? They already made one? Or do you mean the reboot?

 

[Flutta]

I Don’t remember them being any good tbh. Also Ubisoft is a garbage pub. Bad combo.

 

[Bragr]

Wait, what remake? They already made one? Or do you mean the reboot?

Yeah, I meant the reboot.

 

[CircusOfValues]

Same happened to Splinter Cell and Rayman... wonder if there's a connection...

 

[OmegaSupreme]

Bless her. What's her Patreon? I feel the need to give her all my money.