Review | Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown

A Persian review

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a 2024 action-adventure game developed by Ubisoft Montpellier and published by Ubisoft. As part of the Prince of Persia series, it was released on January 18, 2024, for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, with a macOS version following on December 3, 2024.

I’m so happy they returned to their roots, but unfortunately, the game failed to meet Ubisoft’s sales expectations, leading to the development team being disbanded. That’s really sad, especially considering this might be one of their best titles—particularly in the 2D-3D side-scrolling platforming genre.

There’s not much to say about the PS5 (Pro) version—it runs flawlessly. Zero bugs, zero glitches, and loading times are practically nonexistent. I heard there were some issues at launch, but as of March 2025, the game is as polished as you'd expect. Let’s dive in.

Some will prise the art, some will not. I do not like it, at all. To me it looks like the characters and environments are made of clay and I just don't like that. But, the animations are really pretty and colorfull!

Story and the characters

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown introduces Sargon, a young warrior from a clan known as The Immortals. He journeys to the cursed city of Mount Qaf to rescue the kidnapped Prince Ghassan. What happens in this vast city is yours to discover, warrior!

I wasn’t particularly hooked by the story or the characters. Maybe it’s just me, but I usually don’t get too invested in the narratives of these kinds of games. The premise is interesting, and uncovering the mysteries was fun, but that’s about as far as it goes.

Progress revolves around exploring the city and its sub-locations, collecting powers that unlock new areas. The good news? The platforming and puzzles are incredibly fun, making up the bulk of the experience. So even if the story doesn’t grab you, I doubt you’ll dislike the fluid movement, jumping, and everything else that contributes to the game’s satisfying progression. My only gripe is that some powers come a bit late—but with so much to discover before and after, it’s hardly a dealbreaker.

There is just something when you explore a bit city and find much to rely on. Power ups are a must, but amulets does not serve their purpose as much

Game design, exploration

The game is yet another Metroidvania title. Don’t let that fool you—it’s awesome—but it lacks originality in terms of progression, powers, and the upgrade system. There’s nothing here that we haven’t already seen or experienced. That doesn’t mean it’s bad or boring—quite the opposite. The puzzles and challenges in this game are some of the best in a long time.

The problem? The game includes accessibility settings like auto-parry, platforming skips, and story guidance. I hate that in games, and I don’t think it does this one any favors. Where The Lost Crown truly shines is in its difficulty—the tough fights and challenging puzzles you need to overcome. That’s where the most effort was put, yet you can bypass it all by lowering the difficulty and enabling these options. A real shame.

Exploration is great. You can find hidden rooms and unlock new areas by returning with more powers, like double jump and air dash. That also means a lot of backtracking, but honestly, it’s not bad. You can teleport around, and later in the game, checkpoint teleports make it even easier. That said, some upgrades (like double jump) come a bit too late, so you might run into occasional backtracking fatigue—but, as I’ve said, the game is fun enough that it doesn’t really matter.

The last issue with the game design is that you often reach difficult areas only to be rewarded with… almost nothing. The game isn’t as rewarding as you’d hope, and the amulets—of which there are 32—don’t make much of a difference.

Good luck with some puzzles - some are really hard. I did them all without any help, but man, some really made me angry and frustrated. In a good way!

Combat

Combat is pretty basic. At first, I had some issues—it felt like you couldn’t reach enemies properly, and the combo moves were too slow. But after some practice, I found the combat to be solid—especially during tough boss fights. In fact, some of the optional challenge fights are the best the game has to offer. I loved them.

You’ll probably rely on the basic combo and learn to deflect, but if you want, you can mix in the bow and various powers to enhance your moveset. It looks cool, but at its core, combat remains pretty straightforward. That said, I do love the counter-finisher moves—when you see the yellow light, deflect, and instantly take down an enemy.

Most of the fun comes from making full use of everything at your disposal in the moment, especially in the tougher fights.

Some chest puzzles don't come with a close solution; instead, you will find the answer elsewhere, making them a bit weird to overcome. Still, the amount of awesome design when it comes to solving there is decent.

Side Content

Side content comes in the form of side quests. Usually, they involve finding something for an NPC and bringing it back. It’s not bad, but nothing special either. What really matters is the journey, and I found it fun—especially the Hidden Palace, where you lose your powers and have to think carefully about how to overcome each challenge.

One of the best fights I mentioned earlier comes from side content, so it’s definitely worth doing. Plus, upgrading your weapons and health bar makes a big difference—so do the side quests! It all feels pretty natural as you explore. If you’re collecting everything along the way, you’ll end up doing the side content anyway.

Honestly, the whole genre feels like one big side quest. Finding as much as you can helps smooth out difficulty spikes—if you run into one.

Got to appreciate the scenes, even if you dislike the cast and the story. Art in there is some next level design!

Conclusion

Overall, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a fantastic Metroidvania with fluid platforming, great puzzles, and satisfying combat—especially in its tougher fights. While the story and progression lack originality, the game makes up for it with tight mechanics and engaging exploration. Some design choices, like late-game upgrades and accessibility options that undermine the challenge, may not sit well with everyone, but the core experience remains strong. If you enjoy precision platforming, rewarding combat, and a world full of secrets, this game is absolutely worth playing.