We didn’t have a Dead Cells inspired Prince of Persia rogue-like game on our prediction list but now it’s here we are certainly glad it exists. The team responsible for some of the Dead Cells DLC are behind the wheel here and while it is clear what the template is, it also does enough to stand out. It released digitally a while ago, but with the physical release on the horizon we decided to take a deeper look.
The story is that the kingdom is under siege from the Hun.
The Prince is knocked out during a battle on the outskirts of the city and
awakens three days later to find the city besieged. He now must make his way
through to the inner palace to save the day. It follows the same sort of format
as Dead Cells does. You enter an area, are allotted a standard weapon, a tool
and an upgrade from the unlocked roster and then search for an exit to the next
realm. There is normally more than one route you can discover to add some variety,
and more can be added as you discover maps and information in your adventure.
There is a stronger story element than Dead Cells though. As
you discover clues and information, you’ll get little mini quests to complete to
further the plot. These are normally things like finding out who has been
kidnapped or locating certain items, but they add another layer to the game and
the gradual unravelling of events is entertaining. There are also NPC’s to talk
to and some will return to the Oasis to offer services and more plot specific points.
Away from this it’s the standard structure of push forward as far as you can,
unlock as many permanent upgrades as possible and rinse and repeat until you
win the day.
The pace of the game is also much faster than Dead Cells. The
sense of inertia and momentum we now associate with the Prince of Persia has
been captured beautifully. There are a whole host of zooms, walls run, wall
jumps and other moves that keep the Prince bouncing around the levels, and the combat
fits perfectly into the pace as well as you dodge and flip around. It’s clear a
lot of thought and feedback has gone into getting this just right and it makes
each run a fluid joy. As a result, the game is also far more platform heavy
than Dead Cells to the point of being Super Meat Boy like with its traps and
contraptions at times.
The ‘Sands of Time’ reversal mechanic is tied into the
narrative this time by the fact that when the Prince dies, he reverses back to
awakening in the starting Oasis. Only, any people he has rescued or story
points he discovers return with him. You can’t rewind time when you make a mistake
though, a good choice as that would clash with the genre conventions.
The look of the game is closer to the long-forgotten cell
shaded Prince of Persia which came after the ‘Sands’ trilogy. It gives it a
story book aesthetic which works well and allows for clear definition on the
screen. We are also very grateful to see a host of colour-blind options that
can be set - something Dead Cells really needed when we first played it. As a result,
it means frustration is kept to your own limits of your skill set rather than
things you can’t see on the screen.
Overall, The Rogue Prince of Persia has been put together
very well. This may seem like a strange source of a Rogue-like title but it in
practice it works perfectly. There’s even an argument to be had here about it
being better than the Metroidvania version of the Prince we got not so long
ago. We are slightly surprised it wasn’t a piece of extended Dead Cells DLC,
but it’s certainly been fleshed out into a rewarding and fun game. It’s very
much worth playing if you are a fan of Dead Cells or Prince of Persia.
Overall 8/10
