Prince of Persia The Lost Crown: Is It a Good Game? Reviews

Prince of Persia fans waited fourteen years for a new adventure before Ubisoft Montpellier delivered Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown in January 2024. The game marked a sharp departure from the series’ recent history—swapping the open-world direction of The Forgotten Sands for a tightly designed Metroidvania that players either hailed as a genre triumph or dismissed as a tonal misstep. With its $39.99 price tag and a protagonist named Sargon exploring mythological Persian landscapes, the game landed in the middle of a surprisingly polarized debate.

Developer: Ubisoft Montpellier · Release Year: 2024 · Genre: Action-adventure platformer · Platforms: PC (Steam), PS4/PS5, Xbox, Luna, Switch, Android · Inspiration: Metroidvania

The table below summarizes essential game attributes gathered from official sources and verified reviews.

Is Prince of Persia’s lost crown a good game?

The answer depends heavily on which reviewer you ask and what aspects of a game matter most to you. Critics at Metacritic consistently highlight two strengths: gameplay described as “extremely fluid and precise,” and level design that “fits the Prince of Persia spirit very well.” These mechanics-centric praises suggest the action and platforming deliver on the series’ core fantasy.

Player feedback, however, tells a more complicated story. Metacritic user reviews frequently mention “incredible boss fights” alongside gripes about “mediocre story.” One player wrote that the “music, character design, gameplay, and fantastical level design” combine beautifully, yet others describe the narrative as falling short of expectations set by earlier Prince of Persia titles.

Review scores

Aggregated review data on Metacritic positions the game favorably among action-adventure titles, though specific metascores vary by platform. Critics from multiple publications praise the platforming challenges, nonlinear exploration, and “epic boss battles” as defining strengths. The PS5 version’s critic reviews particularly emphasize these elements as reasons the game succeeds.

Player feedback

User reviews on Metacritic’s PC platform paint a picture of a game that excels mechanically but stumbles narratively. “Great variety with the gameplay mechanics, good map design” appears alongside complaints about story execution. Some players rank it among “the best metroidvania games of the 2010s,” while others express disappointment that the Prince of Persia name doesn’t carry the narrative weight they’ve come to expect.

Is Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown a flop?

Defining whether Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown qualifies as a flop requires examining what “failure” means in context. The game launched January 18, 2024 at $39.99, representing a significant tonal and mechanical shift from the franchise’s last entry, The Forgotten Sands (2010). That earlier title received largely negative reception, so Ubisoft Montpellier inherited a series with damaged goodwill.

Public sales data remains limited, making a definitive commercial judgment difficult. What is clear: critics who reviewed the game praise its gameplay systems, and player communities show sustained engagement with discussion threads analyzing mechanics, secrets, and difficulty. This suggests the audience that wanted a Metroidvania-style Prince of Persia found something worth their time.

Sales and reception data

Without official disclosure from Ubisoft, claims about commercial performance remain speculative. Metacritic aggregates critic scores that skew positive, while user review distributions show enthusiasm among players who appreciate the genre shift. The disconnect between critical praise and some player disappointment suggests a gap between what the game attempted and what a portion of the audience expected.

Comparison to expectations

The Prince of Persia brand carried certain expectations: cinematic storytelling, the Sands of Time narrative grandeur, and a specific aesthetic identity. The Lost Crown delivers none of these directly. Instead, Ubisoft Montpellier built a tight Metroidvania with time-manipulation mechanics and mythological Persian theming. For fans hungry for a return to form after 14 years, this represents either a welcome evolution or a disappointing pivot—depending on what they wanted from the franchise.

Is Lost Crown a difficult game?

Difficulty in Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown sits in an unusual position: critics and players disagree on whether it challenges enough. Metacritic reviews note that “boss fights are fun but a bit too easy overall,” suggesting the challenge ceiling disappoints players seeking Souls-like difficulty. However, platforming sections receive praise for their precision requirements without crossing into frustration territory.

On GameFAQs, players discuss the Prince’s movement style as “dramatic but requires adjustment,” noting that the fluid animations can mask the actual difficulty of timing jumps and attacks. This suggests the game’s visual polish occasionally obscures its genuine challenge.

Challenge level analysis

Mount Cof, the game’s primary setting, introduces Metroidvania staples including double jump, midair dash, and grapple mechanics according to gameplay footage analysis. These abilities layer complexity as players unlock new traversal options, creating optional challenges for completionists while maintaining accessibility for casual players. The balance tilts toward forgiving rather than punishing.

Comparison to hardest games

By genre standards, The Lost Crown does not approach the difficulty of punishing platformers like Soulsborne titles or precision games like Celeste. Boss fights that players describe as “incredible” rarely demand the pattern memorization or reaction speed of genre leaders. This places the game firmly in the “challenging but fair” category rather than the “expect to die hundreds of times” tier.

Which Prince of Persia game is considered the best?

Historical rankings consistently crown Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2003) as the franchise peak. That game revolutionized action-adventure gaming with its time-reversal mechanic and established the tonal and narrative template other entries would follow (and often fail to match). Its influence on gaming persists nearly two decades later, with its core innovations appearing in countless derivative titles.

The Lost Crown enters a different conversation. Unlike the narrative-driven Sands of Time or Warrior Within, this game prioritizes mechanical depth and exploration over story. Player rankings on Metacritic occasionally place it among “the best metroidvania games of the 2010s”—though technically launching in 2024, this speaks to how it channels classic genre sensibilities.

Rankings from IMDb

IMDb’s game rankings place classic entries ahead of The Lost Crown, reflecting the weight audiences place on narrative legacy. The Sands of Time maintains a devoted following precisely because it delivered both mechanical innovation and memorable characters. The Lost Crown‘s protagonist Sargon lacks the iconic presence of the original Prince, which affects how players categorize it in franchise hierarchies.

Lost Crown position

Current reception places The Lost Crown as a strong secondary entry—a game that satisfies Metroidvania enthusiasts and rewards series fans willing to embrace its different direction. It will not displace the classics in most rankings, but it establishes Ubisoft Montpellier’s capability to deliver quality action-platforming under the Prince of Persia banner.

Is Prince of Persia better than Assassin’s Creed?

This comparison reveals more about audience expectations than game quality. Assassin’s Creed evolved into an open-world RPG franchise with extensive content, live-service elements, and vast historical sandboxes. The Lost Crown represents the opposite approach: a focused 20-30 hour experience prioritizing tight controls and exploration over scope.

For players who feel Assassin’s Creed has grown bloated and formulaic, The Lost Crown offers a breath of fresh air. Critics praise the gameplay as “stylish and thrilling” according to Metacritic, with “acrobatic combat mechanics” and parkour that channels the series’ roots. The game feels like a love letter to the action-platforming that Assassin’s Creed moved away from.

Key differences

The structural differences are stark. Assassin’s Creed prioritizes content volume, historical tourism, and narrative complexity across dozens of hours. The Lost Crown delivers a tightly designed Metroidvania with time manipulation abilities, nonlinear exploration of Mount Cof, and a $39.99 price point that undercuts most modern AAA titles. The scope difference reflects entirely different design philosophies.

Fan comparisons

Community discussions frequently frame the choice as one between breadth and depth. Players disappointed by Assassin’s Creed Valhalla‘s bloat may find The Lost Crown refreshing precisely because it does less and does it better. Others view the comparison as unfair—the games serve different purposes and audiences. The honest answer: they excel in different areas, and your preference depends on what you want from a gaming experience.

Platform and version comparison

The following table breaks down platform-specific performance, pricing, and exclusive features to help buyers choose the right version.

Technical specifications

This specifications table consolidates verified game attributes from official sources.

Strengths and weaknesses

The pros and cons below synthesize feedback from critics and players across multiple platforms.

The gameplay is extremely fluid and precise, and the level design fits the Prince of Persia spirit very well.

— Metacritic Critic Review

Easily one of the best metroidvania games of the 2010s. The platforming challenges, nonlinear exploration and epic boss battles are why Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is such a great game.

— Metacritic User Review

Incredible boss fights, mediocre story and great variety with the gameplay mechanics, good map design.

— Metacritic User Review

For players seeking a tight action-platformer that prioritizes fluid movement and exploration over narrative sprawl, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown delivers exactly what it promises. Ubisoft Montpellier built a game that respects the Prince of Persia legacy’s mechanical roots while charting a new genre direction. The $39.99 price and 20-30 hour runtime position it as a focused alternative to bloated open-world AAA titles. Those wanting the emotional resonance of Sands of Time will need to adjust expectations—Sargon’s adventure prioritizes doing over storytelling.

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The Lost Crown builds on Prince of Persia’s 35-year franchise history with fluid platforming that reviewers widely praise despite story critiques.

Frequently asked questions