Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is hands down the best Metroidvania that I have played in a long time. My gold standard has always been Castlevania: Symphony of the Night but Ubisoft has really knocked this out of the park.

Given it’s been well over a decade since a new Prince of Persia game was released, it’s understandable for one to be skeptical about The Lost Crown in spite of the development studio’s excellent pedigree. Rejoicefully, The Lost Crown has turned up at the beginning of 2024 and has laid down a remarkable gauntlet for every game to live up to this year. The combat and the electrifying assortment of powers in The Lost Crown makes battles against all of Mount Qaf’s foes a vigorously moreish delight. Yes, the characters, story and lack of charisma and personality bite is a little disappointing, but when you’ve got a joyously raucous return of Prince of Persia on full display here, any disappointment flutters away and returns into the form of pure elation. The Lost Crown is a celebration of the Metroidvania and you’ll be truly glad to come along for the ride with Sargon and company.

It has everything you could want from a game. It will entertain you, it will challenge you, and you will spend a lot of time with it without even a hint of stereotype. The variety of content is truly huge on all fronts, so you won't be bored until the credits roll some 20 hours later. It's a shame that there are a few minor flaws, but they don't detract from the overall experience to the point where you'll be bothered by them.

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a fantastically clever return to the franchise that serves up slick 2.5D action wrapped up in a delightful art style and satisfying story. There's a smart balance here between old-school levels of action and challenge, moreish combat and neat puzzles, mixed with accessibility options and fine-tuning that open this traditionally tough genre up to newcomers. We knew Ubisoft Montpellier was a pair of safe hands, and it's not let us down here, serving up the first must-play of 2024, and we're only just getting started.

Taking somewhat of a gamble, The Lost Crown isn’t just a great Prince of Persia title that digs into and expands what the series can be, with interesting lore and fully leaning into the mythical elements — it’s a truly gorgeous and rewarding Metroidvania in its own right that arguably gives games like Hollow Knight and Metroid Dread a run for their money.