Ubisoft Montréal reinvent the franchise with a Prince paired with Elika and a no-death system that changes everything. The cel-shaded visuals remain gorgeous, the dialogue writing is tasty, and the adventure provides a refreshing breath in modern adventure-platforming.
Your verdict
Category
Action Adventure1 player12+
Description
Action-adventure by Ubisoft Montréal and Ubisoft, December 2008. The unnamed Prince and Elika, a magic-powered princess, traverse a world corrupted by darkness god Ahriman to purify zones and seal wounds. Fluid collaborative acrobatic gameplay with Elika catching the Prince on falls, animated painting aesthetic and oriental fantasy world. Visionary franchise reboot.
Prince of Persia review
MAX
Art direction
★★★★★
"Iconic"
4/5
Music
★★★★★
"Excellent"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
Chiselled Persian architecture, undulating fabrics and golden light: the adventure is steeped in a Thousand and One Nights tale of rare elegance. The acrobatic fluidity of the hero and the beauty of the settings compose an enchantment in motion. This art direction, refined and warm, elevates every leap and every ruin.
Inon Zur tunes his score to the world's healing: on the lands still tainted by Ahriman you hear only breaths and sustained strings, almost nothing, then purifying a zone releases a full theme, female voice leading. The music thus becomes the reward for the act, and returning to a cleansed place means returning to a place that sings.
Elika changes the nature of the story: she catches the Prince at every fall, so no death ever interrupts the journey, and the tale is told almost entirely through the dialogue the two hold while walking, she the heir of a cult, he a nameless thief who jokes to dodge questions. The final scene puts the player before a choice no hero should accept.
European (PAL) edition of the Ubisoft Prince of Persia reboot, wrapping its acrobatics in painted cel-shading and a duo of characters with an evolving bond, in a world to be cleansed. Distributed in the West, its appeal lies in this singular art direction and contrasting regional pressings, the Asian being markedly rarer. A piece valued by fans of stylish adventure-platforming.
Is Prince of Persia still worth playing in 2026?
Released in 2008 on Xbox 360, Ubisoft's Prince of Persia reinvents the series with a cel shaded art direction of striking painterly beauty and a more contemplative approach to acrobatics. The fluid climbing, guided by the companion Elika who catches the hero on a fall, removes the frustration of death in favour of the pleasure of movement. The open world to purify zone by zone and the careful dialogue appeal. The repetitive combat and the absence of failure divided opinion. But the beauty and the fluidity remain. For fans of poetic action adventure and strong art direction, this title keeps a definite appeal today.
