Assassin’s Creedhas gone through a myriad of changes since its launch in 2007. Shifting characters, settings, and design philosophies to suit the ever-changing video game landscape, it has had to alter the formula so many times to ensure it remains one of the most-anticipated releases in each calendar year. It has fast become Ubisoft’s most popular property, andrecent announcements ofAssassin’s Creed Red, Hexe,andMiragehave showed that it intends to keep the sizable audience it has amassed. The success ofAssassin’s Creedused to be at the detriment ofPrince of Persia, but now there’s every chance they could both exist in harmony.
Prince of Persiahas been gone for years, but a remake of its best title,The Sands of Time,has been in development for a while. There were murmurs that the project had been canceled, but Ubisoft insists the game will release some time in the near future, as a swathe of remakes from other companies come to Xbox Series X and PS5. It’s officially listed as “coming soon” with no release date confirmed, but the current and future slate ofAssassin’s Creedgames may show that now is the best time to see the Prince return, as he could offer something truly different to the developer’s other projects.
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Assassin’s Creed was Prince of Persia’s Replacement
It’s hard to remember a time when Ubisoft wasn’t so committed toAssassin’s Creed, but before the IP began it was thePrince of Persiagames that were top of the pile for the company. The PlayStation 2 trilogy got progressively worse, but each of the three were loved by fans with the first, 2003’sPrince of Persia: TheSands of Timebeing one of the best games on the system.Assassin’s Creedis largely believed to be the spiritual successor toPrince of Persia, with parkour traversal and a history-draped setting being present in both.
Assassin’s Creedis very different in tone, though, with a more mature theme taking precedent over a plucky, dashing protagonist.Assassin’s Creedis a lot more grown up, and suits the current landscape of AAA games that prioritizes mature gamers, but the lighter, more jovial and romantic feel ofPrince of Persiawould do well to separate itself from the pack, making it even more enticing to those who don’t want yet another high-budget, yet glum story.Assassin’s Creedmay be more suited to gaming today, but that could work inPrince of Persia’s favor, making it truly stand out.
Prince of Persia Offers Something Different from Assassin’s Creed
While it’s far from the flavor of the generation, linearity is something that many gamers crave.Unchartedunderstood that a focused, well-paced story is more than enough to justify a price tag, andPrince of Persiawas using the same idea long before Naughty Dog moved on from theJak and Daxterseries.Assassin’s Creedhas done the opposite over time, with vast landscapes and deep RPG mechanics that give each new game a sense of escapism and exploration.Assassin’s Creed Valhallatried to fit in the mechanics of older games into a large open-world, but because of this it didn’t truly succeed at either.Prince of Persiacan carry the load for linear, story-focused experiences for Ubisoft, allowingAssassin’s Creedto go all in on the open-world genre.
Ubisoft is a company that flourished in a number of different genres. From the accurate representation of real-world cities inWatch Dogsto the fun, co-op gameplay ofGhost Recon, the company has its hand in a number of different design philosophies, and usually executes them well. Linearity is something that it has neglected though, and while theplethora ofAssassin’s Creedgamesshould provide at least one that everyone can like,Prince of Persiais something new for the company’s offerings.Assassin’s Creedwas one of the architects ofPrince of Persia’s demise, but it seems in 2022 and beyond they can exist alongside each other.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Timeis currently in development.
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