The bad news continues for Ubisoft's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake. Originally announced in 2020, news has been quiet for the last few years, aside from various delays, culminating in the announcement last year that all pre-orders would be refunded, but the project was still not cancelled. During this period, development also shifted to Ubisoft Montreal, the studio that developed the original Sands of Time in 2003.

We've now heard our first update from Ubisoft Montreal since they took over development, and it looks like fans will still have to wait some time. In a recent news update from Ubisoft, producer Jean-Francois Naud says the game is still in the "conception" phase. "Now, we're building up the team, defining the priorities, putting prototypes together, testing elements, and looking at how we can include community feedback in the development as well," said Naud. "It’s still in an early stage, and players should not expect to hear more about the game this year, but rest assured that we’re all putting our strengths and heart into this project."

The original announcement trailer in 2020 received largely negative feedback, with most commenters attacking the outdated graphics, but Ubisoft Montreal has set their sights higher than simply increasing the graphical fidelity. Game Director Michael McIntyre emphasizes that this is not simply a remaster but a full remake, and that they've been trying to rebuild everything - from the movement and combat to the story - to meet modern expectations, not believing that gamers would accept a simple "polished version" of the original.

One of the gameplay cornerstones of the original game is how the Prince moves around. And yes, there is technology that lets us execute that better—but there are also expectations from players, in terms of other modern games, of what it means to actually control a character. Ubisoft Montreal has developed a strong expertise in that, and we are looking at how we take those lessons and apply them to the spirit of a game like Prince of Persia. That kind of thing is more than just technology; it really is us as game makers having evolved, and understanding that for players, simply picking up a polished version of the original would not meet their expectations.

That refinement is actually kind of across the board. I think part of remake-versus-remaster is that there really is some degree of refinement in every aspect. The movement is a big one for us, but combat will get a similar treatment, because of how movement is evolving. And when we as a team look at some of the things that need to be refined, even the story—the story will remain true to itself. But the way it's delivered, we have new ways that stories have been told in games over the past 20 years, and it allows us to be a bit more nuanced and refined in the way we execute the story.

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[cropbehel]

remember my chillhood !

 

[lolcatzuru]

Well, it seems the people who were supposed to be making forgot too.

lol got em

 

[gohan123]

Actually, no, while the platforming and jumping around is still serviceable, the combat isn't, in fact it's pretty awful. If you fought against the sand king you'd know exactly what i'm talking about.

Although I grew up playing pop and it's being one of my favourite franchises, I never completed one of the games. So I replayed the trilogy last 2 years. While sands of time combat is somehow manageable, it was still too bad for modern standard. But the real problem begins in warrior within. That's real nightmare material. I had to brutforce and bug half the games combat encounters. Still not sure how someone could have enjoyed any of that.

 

[CoolMe]

I never completed one of the games.

Same. I played both WW & TTT quite a bit, but never finished them..

But the real problem begins in warrior within. That's real nightmare material. I had to brutforce and bug half the games combat encounters. Still not sure how someone could have enjoyed any of that.

I don't remember the combat being broken in those two games. Were you playing the hd remaster versions, perhaps? If so, I hear they're buggy, and that's probably what you're experiencing.

 

[gohan123]

Same. I played both WW & TTT quite a bit, but never finished them..

I don't remember the combat being broken in those two games. Were you playing the hd remaster versions, perhaps? If so, I hear they're buggy, and that's probably what you're experiencing.

yeah it was the collection for ps3, that might be the reason.