Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones Preview

First there was Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. A game that is very critically acclaimed for what it was able to accomplish, while it did fall short in overall entertainment value. It innovated current generation software by fusing platforming gameplay with time control mechanics. Instead of constantly having to worry about whether you were going to die navigating the palace or fighting in battle, the time control allowed you to correct your mistakes. Prince of Persia: Warrior Within took the Prince in a new direction by giving him a much darker, more mature attitude, and a kick butt/taking names combat essence that really made the game “Warrior Within”. It hugely improved upon the lack of variety in Sands of Time’s combat, but many feel it fell short in retaining the overall PoP atmosphere that they know and love. However, The Two Thrones has sought to combine the best of both PoP worlds in completing the trilogy. Can the final mission of the Prince truly realize the entertainment value of both games? Or are both themes just too incompatible to offer yet another revolutionary installment in the franchise? Read along to find out!

The Prince is both a perpetrator and a victim in this situation. He unintentionally set off a chain of events to mess up the timeline ever since he unleashes the Sand of Time that has caused him many problems throughout the franchise. However, how he’s chosen to go about certain things to fix what he started haven’t exactly been the smartest. His own greed and desire to thwart his fate have caused suffering on his end as well as with others that he has drawn in on his quests.

The Two Thrones is a direct sequel to Warrior Within as well as the finisher of the trilogy. Wanting to continue his life with his new found love in Kaileena, they both leave the Island of Time behind them and head to the Prince’s home city of Babylon. But how exactly Kaileena is even in this game in the first place considering the final events of Warrior Within escapes us. Now while no one really understands what is really going on between the Prince and Kaileena, nor what is up with all the rumors surrounding Farah; series designer Yannis Mallat has assured us all that Kindred Blades will clarify EVERYTHING.

Now how Two Thrones will stand out from its franchise predecessors to end the trilogy is the fact that the Prince can’t manipulate time this time around. He is going to be forced to “fix things for real” this time, hence the reason this is the final game in the trilogy. There’s no Dagger of Time, no Medallion from Farah, just the Prince’s raw emotion and desperate attitude!

But to make things a little more interesting this time around, what the Prince and Kaileena will witness when they finally arrive to Babylon will cause them both shock. The city is quite literally “on fire”, and the streets are just filled with endless violence. Upon arriving at the beginning of the city, the Prince and his love encounter an obvious enemy. Unfortunately Kaileena ends up being killed in the process (didn’t you do that job anyway?), and her being a vessel for the Sands of Time causes it to be unleashed on the city. The sands then completely ravage the Prince’s people, take over the generals, and eventually invade the Prince’s very body and begin causing a strange change in him!

Feeling obligated to assist his fellow Babylonians, the Prince takes to the streets of the city to protect the loyal citizens. Unfortunately since he’s been gone for so long, he is nothing but a stranger to the people. No one recognizes him and he’s quickly deemed a threat to the ensuing forces. So along with the Prince doing everything he can to save his kingdom, his love and the timeline, he must face a brand new enemy. This happens to be the Prince’s very self!

In Sands of Time he was a very naive Arabic warrior that desired to do nothing else but please his father’s legacy. In Warrior Within he was “all alone” in preventing the sands from ever being created in the first place in order to fend off a mystical creature that wanted him dead. Now in Two Thrones, the Prince will undergo yet another character change, and this time around it will cause the birth of an alter ego! This happens to be none other than the “Dark Prince”, an entity that wields a deadly short sword and dagger-tailed whip. He is also slowly “taking over” the Prince’s entire identity.

In a cooperative campaign, the two sides of the Prince will experience numerous different environments. It will no longer offer the sort of claustrophobic feel of Warrior Within, but present an open-ended city that you are free to explore as you please! Taking to the rooftops of the city to mysteriously magical and sandy areas, Two Thrones mixes the best of both predecessors!