Prince of Persia | |
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![]() Original cover art used for the home computer versions in the West | |
Developer(s) | Broderbund Ports
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Publisher(s) | Broderbund Ports
|
Designer(s) | Jordan Mechner |
Composer(s) | Francis Mechner (music) Tom Rettig (sound) Mark Cooksey (NES) |
Platform(s) | Apple II ( see Ports ) |
Release | |
Genre(s) | Cinematic platform |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Prince of Persia is a 1989 cinematic platform game developed and published by Broderbund for the Apple II. It was designed and implemented by Jordan Mechner. Taking place in medieval Persia, players control an unnamed protagonist who must venture through a series of dungeons to defeat the evil Grand Vizier Jaffar and save an imprisoned princess.
Much like Karateka , Mechner's first video game, Prince of Persia used rotoscoping for its fluid and realistic animation. For this process, Mechner used as reference for the characters' movements videos of his brother doing acrobatic stunts in white clothes [4] and swashbuckler films such as The Adventures of Robin Hood .
The game was critically acclaimed and, while not an immediate commercial success, sold many copies as it was ported to a wide range of platforms after the original Apple II release. It is believed to have been the first cinematic platformer and inspired many games in this subgenre, such as Another World . [5] Its success launched the Prince of Persia franchise, consisting of two sequels, Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame (1993) and Prince of Persia 3D (1999), and two reboots: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2003), which was followed by three sequels of its own, and Prince of Persia (2008).
The main objective of the player is to lead the unnamed protagonist out of dungeons and into a fortress tower before time runs out. This cannot be done without bypassing traps and fighting hostile swordsmen. The game consists of twelve levels (though some console versions have more). However, a game session may be saved and resumed at a later time only after level 2.
The player has a health indicator that consists of a series of small red triangles. The player starts with three. Each time the protagonist is damaged (cut by sword, fallen from two floors of heights, or hit by a falling rock), the player loses one of these indicators. There are small jars containing potions of several colours and sizes. The red potions scattered throughout the game restore one health indicator. The blue potions are poisonous, and they take one life indicator as damage. There are also large jars of red potion that increase the maximum number of health indicators by one, and large jars of green potion that grants a temporary ability to hover. If the player's health is reduced to zero, the protagonist dies. Subsequently, the game is restarted from the beginning of the stage in which the protagonist died but the timer will not reset to that point, effectively constituting a time penalty. There is no counter for the number of lives, but if time runs out, the princess will be gone and the game will be over, subject to variations per console versions:[ excessive detail? ]
There are three types of traps that the player must bypass: spike traps, deep pits (three or more levels deep) and guillotines. Getting caught or falling into each results in the instant death of the protagonist. In addition, there are gates that can be raised for a short period of time by having the protagonist stand on the activation trigger. The player must pass through the gates while they are still open, avoiding locking triggers. Sometimes, there are various traps between an unlock trigger and a gate.
Hostile swordsmen (Jaffar and his guards) are yet another obstacle. The player obtains a sword in the first stage, which they can use to fight these adversaries. The protagonist's sword maneuvers are as follows: advance, back off, slash, parry, or a combined parry-then-slash attack. Enemy swordsmen also have a health indicator similar to that of the protagonist. Killing them involves slashing them until their health indicator is depleted or by pushing them into traps while fighting.
In stage three a skeletal swordsman comes to life and does battle with the protagonist. The skeleton cannot be killed with the sword, but it can be defeated by being dropped into one of the pits.
A unique trap encountered in stage four, which serves as a plot device, is a magic mirror, whose appearance is followed by an ominous leitmotif. The protagonist is forced to jump through this mirror upon which his doppelganger emerges from the other side, draining the protagonist's health to one. This apparition later hinders the protagonist by stealing a potion and throwing him into a dungeon. The protagonist cannot kill this apparition as they share lives; any damage inflicted upon one also hurts the other. Therefore, the protagonist must merge with his doppelganger.
In stage eight, the protagonist becomes trapped behind a gate before he can reach the exit. In this stage the Princess sends a white mouse to trigger the gate open again, allowing him to proceed to the next level.
In stage twelve protagonist faces his shadow doppelgänger. Once they have merged, the player can run across an invisible bridge to a new area, where they battle Jaffar (once the final checkpoint is reached, the player will no longer get a game over screen even if time runs out, except if the player dies after the timeout). Once Jaffar is defeated, his spell is broken and the Princess can be saved. In addition, the in-game timer is stopped at the moment of Jaffar's death, and the time remaining will appear on the high scores.
The game is set in medieval Persia. While the sultan is fighting a war in a foreign land, his vizier Jaffar, a wizard, seizes power. His only obstacle to the throne is the Sultan's daughter. Jaffar locks her in a tower and orders her to become his wife, or she would die within 60 minutes (extended to 120 minutes in the Super NES version, which has longer and harder levels). The game's unnamed protagonist, whom the Princess loves, is thrown prisoner into the palace dungeons. In order to free her, he must escape the dungeons, get to the palace tower and defeat Jaffar before time runs out. In addition to guards, various traps and dungeons, the protagonist is further hindered by his own doppelgänger, conjured out of a magic mirror.
Development for the game began in 1985, the year Jordan Mechner graduated from Yale University. At that time, Mechner had already developed one game, Karateka , for distributor Broderbund. Despite expecting a sequel to Karateka, the distributor gave Mechner creative freedom to create an original game. [6] The game drew from sources of inspiration including video games such as The Castles of Dr. Creep and Lode Runner , [7] literature such as the Arabian Nights stories, [8] and films such as Raiders of the Lost Ark [9] and The Adventures of Robin Hood . [10]
For a few seconds, the camera angle has them in exact profile. This was a godsend. I did my VHS/one-hour-photo rotoscope procedure, spread two-dozen snapshots out on the floor of the office and spent days poring over them trying to figure out what exactly was going on in that duel, how to conceptualise it into a repeatable pattern.
Jordan Mechner on how he used the final duel between Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone from The Adventures of Robin Hood to create the game's swordfighting mechanic. [6]
Prince of Persia was programmed in 6502 assembly, a low-level programming language. [11] Mechner used an animation technique called rotoscoping, with which he used footage to animate the characters' sprites and movements. To create the protagonist's platforming motions, Mechner traced video footage of his younger brother running and jumping in white clothes. [12] To create the game's sword fighting sprites, Mechner rotoscoped the final duel scene between Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone in The Adventures of Robin Hood. [10] Though the use of rotoscoping was regarded as a pioneering move, Mechner later recalled that "when we made that decision with Prince of Persia, I wasn't thinking about being cutting edge — we did it essentially because I'm not that good at drawing or animation, and it was the only way I could think of to get lifelike movement." [13] Also unusual was the method of combat: protagonist and enemies fought with swords, not projectile weapons, as was the case in most contemporary games. Mechner has said that when he started programming, the first ten minutes of the film Raiders of the Lost Ark had been one of the main inspirations for the character's acrobatic responses in a dangerous environment. [14]
During development, the Prince was meant to be a nonviolent character, so the game did not initially include combat. [15] However, due to finding the gameplay to be dull and after incessant demand from Tomi Pierce, a colleague of his, Mechner added sword fighting to the game and created Shadow Man, the Prince's doppelgänger. Guards were later added when Mechner managed to make use of an additional 12K of the Apple II's memory. [16]
Mechner was offended by the cover art for the Sega Genesis version, which depicts the prince as a Luke Skywalker lookalike about to cut down a helpless black guard, but by the time he made his objections it was already being printed. [15]
For the Japanese computer ports, Arsys Software [17] and Riverhillsoft [2] enhanced the visuals and redesigned the Prince's appearance, introducing the classic turban and vest look. This version became the basis for the Macintosh version and later Prince of Persia ports and games by Broderbund. Riverhillsoft's FM Towns version also added a Red Book CD audio soundtrack. [2]
The Amiga version of the game was developed by Dan Gorlin. [15] Tommy Tallarico worked on the audio for the Game Boy port of the game, and it was the first game he worked on. He originally started as a playtester for Virgin Interactive. [18]
This section needs additional citations for verification .(February 2011) |
Official | |||
---|---|---|---|
Port | Release | Developer | Publisher |
NEC PC-9801 | July 1990 [2] | Arsys Software [17] | Riverhillsoft |
MS-DOS | September 1990 | Broderbund | |
Amiga | October 1990 December 1990 (EU) [19] | Domark | |
Atari ST | March 1991 [20] | Broderbund | |
X68000 | April 30, 1991 | Riverhillsoft | |
Amstrad CPC | July 1991 | Broderbund | |
SAM Coupé | August 1991 | Chris 'Persil' White [21] | Revelation |
TurboGrafx-16 | November 8, 1991 | Riverhillsoft | |
Game Boy | January 1992 | Virgin Games | |
FM Towns | June 1992 | Riverhillsoft | |
Master System | June 1992 [22] | Domark | |
Super NES | July 3, 1992 (JP) November 1, 1992 (US, EU) | Arsys Software [23] | Masaya (JP) Konami (US, EU) |
Sega CD | August 7, 1992 (JP) 1992 (US) April 2, 1993 (EU) [24] | Bits Laboratory | Victor Musical Industries (JP) Sega (US, EU) |
NES | November 2, 1992 | MotiveTime | Virgin Games |
Classic Mac OS | December 1992 | Presage Software development, Inc. [25] | |
Game Gear | January 1993 | Domark | |
Genesis | February 1994 | Domark (EU) Tengen (US) | |
Game Boy Color | April 15, 1999 | Ed Magnin and Associates [26] | Red Orb Entertainment [26] |
Mobile ("Classic") | 2007 | Gameloft | |
Xbox 360 ("Classic") | June 13, 2007 | Gameloft | Ubisoft |
PlayStation 3 ("Classic") | October 23, 2008 | ||
Blackberry ("Classic") | April 7, 2009 | Gameloft | |
iOS ("Retro", replaced by "Classic" version in 2011) | May 28, 2010 | Ubisoft | |
iOS ("Classic") | December 19, 2011 | ||
Nintendo 3DS (Game Boy Color version on Virtual Console) | January 19, 2012 [27] | ||
Wii (Super NES version on Virtual Console) | January 19, 2012 [27] | ||
Android ("Classic") | September 13, 2012 | Ubisoft Pune | Ubisoft |
Unofficial | |||
Port | Release | Developer | Publisher |
ATM Turbo | 1994 | Honey Soft, Andrey Honichem | Moscow |
Electronika BK-0010 | 1995 | Погорельцев В. [28] | |
ZX Spectrum | 1996 | Nicodim [29] | Magic Soft [29] MC Software [30] |
HP48/GX | 1998 | Iki [31] | |
TI-89, TI-92 | 2003 | David Coz [32] | |
Enterprise 128 | 2006 | Geco (Noel Persa) [33] [34] | |
Commodore Plus/4 (Demo) | 2007 | GFW & ACW [35] | |
Commodore 64 | 2011 | Andreas Varga [36] [37] | |
Linux, macOS, Windows | 2014 | Dávid Nagy. This port, called SDLPoP, uses SDL. [38] | |
Roku (Streaming Box and Smart TV) | 2016 | Marcelo Lv Cabral [39] [40] | |
BBC Master | 2018 | Kieran [41] | |
Electronika BK-0011M | 2021 | Evgeny Pashigorov, Pasha Sizykh [42] | Flame software |
Atari 8-bit computers | 2021 | rensoup [43] | |
JavaScript | 2022 | Oliver Klemenz [44] [45] | |
Commodore Plus/4 | 2024 | Tamás Sasvári, Csaba Kémeri, Csaba Pankaczy [46] |
Publication | Score | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
DOS | Macintosh | Master System | PC | Sega Genesis | SNES | |
Dragon | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
Electronic Gaming Monthly | 32/40 [48] | |||||
Génération 4 | 90% [3] | |||||
Adventure Classic Gaming | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
Bad Influence! | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
MacWorld | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | |||||
Mean Machines | 91% [22] | |||||
Mega Guide | Positive [52] | |||||
MegaTech | 82% [53] | |||||
Sega Force | 94% [54] |
Publication | Award |
---|---|
MacUser | 1992 Eddy Award [55] |
TILT! | 1992 Tilt d'Or [55] |
Prince of Persia received a positive critical reception, but was initially a commercial failure in North America, where it had sold only 7,000 units each on the Apple II and IBM PC by July 1990. It was when the game was released in Japan and Europe that year that it became a commercial success. In July 1990, the NEC PC-9801 version sold 10,000 units as soon as it was released in Japan. It was then ported to various different home computers and video game consoles, eventually selling 2 million units worldwide by the time its sequel Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame (1993) was in production. [2] [56] [57]
Charles Ardai of Computer Gaming World wrote that the game package's claim that it "breaks new ground with animation so uncannily human it must be seen to be believed" was true. He wrote that Prince of Persia "succeeds at being more than a running-jumping game (in other words, a gussied-up Nintendo game)" because it "captures the feel of those great old adventure films", citing Thief of Baghdad , Frankenstein , and Dracula . Ardai concluded that it was "a tremendous achievement" in games comparable to that of Star Wars in film. [58]
In 1991, the game was ranked the 12th best Amiga game of all time by Amiga Power . [59] In 1992, The New York Times described the Macintosh version as having "brilliant" graphics and "excellent" sound. [60] Reviewing the Genesis version, GamePro praised the "extremely fluid" animation of the player character and commented that the controls are difficult to master but nonetheless very effective. Comparing it to the Super NES version, they summarized that "the Genesis version has better graphics, and the SNES has better music. Otherwise, the two are identical in almost every way ..." [61] Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) likewise assessed the Genesis version as "an excellent conversion of the classic action game", and added that the game's challenging strategy and technique give it high longevity. [62] EGM's panel of four reviewers each gave it a rating of 8 out of 10, adding up to an overall score of 32 out of 40. [48]
In 1991, PC Format named Prince of Persia one of the 50 best computer games ever, highlighting its "unbelievably good animation". [63] In 1996, Computer Gaming World named Prince of Persia the 84th best game ever, with the editors calling it "an acrobatic platformer with amazingly fluid action". [64] In 1995, Flux ranked the game 42nd on their Top 100 Video Games. [65]
Prince of Persia influenced cinematic platformers such as Another World and Flashback as well as action-adventure games such as Tomb Raider , [2] which used a similar control scheme. [66] A few DOS games were created using exactly the same game mechanics of the DOS version of Prince of Persia. Makh-Shevet created Cruel World in 1993 and Capstone Software created Zorro in 1995. [67]
Prince of Persia was remade and ported by Gameloft. The remake, titled Prince of Persia Classic , was released on June 13, 2007, to the Xbox Live Arcade, and on October 23, 2008, on the PlayStation Network. It features the same level design and general premise but contained 3D-rendered graphics, more fluid movements, and Sands of Time aesthetics. [68] The gameplay and controls were slightly adjusted to include a wall-jump move and different swordplay. New game modes were also added, such as "Time Attack" and "Survival". [69] The game has also been released on Android. [70]
Reverse engineering efforts by fans of the original game have resulted in detailed documentation of the file formats of the MS-DOS version. [71] Various level editors have been created that can be used to modify the level files of the game. [72] With these editors and other software, over 60 mods have been created. [73]
In April 2012, Jordan Mechner established a GitHub repository [74] containing the long-thought-lost [75] original Apple II source code for Prince of Persia. [76] [77] A technical document describing the operation of this source code is available on Mechner's website. [78]
In April 2020, Mechner did an AMA on Reddit where he stated that he would be releasing his journals from the development of the game as a book and users could ask any questions that they may have about the game to him. [79]
Rotoscoping is an animation technique that animators use to trace over motion picture footage, frame by frame, to produce realistic action. Originally, live-action movie images were projected onto a glass panel and traced onto paper. This projection equipment is referred to as a rotoscope, developed by Polish-American animator Max Fleischer. This device was eventually replaced by computers, but the process is still called rotoscoping.
Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame is a 1993 cinematic platform game released by Broderbund for the MS-DOS, and later ported to Macintosh, Super NES, and FM Towns. It is the second installment in the Prince of Persia series, and a direct sequel to 1989's Prince of Persia. Both games were designed by Jordan Mechner, but unlike the original, he did not program the sequel himself. In the game, players control the Prince as he attempts to return to Persia and defeat the evil wizard Jaffar once and for all, who has assumed his appearance, seized the throne, and put his love interest, the Princess, under a death spell.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a 2003 action-adventure game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. The game was released on the Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox and Windows in November 2003. The Sands of Time is a reboot of the Prince of Persia series created by Jordan Mechner. Mechner served as creative consultant, designer, and scenario writer for The Sands of Time.
Jordan Mechner is an American video game designer, graphic novelist, author, screenwriter, filmmaker, and former video game programmer. A major figure in the development of cinematic video games and a pioneer in video game animation, he began his career designing and programming the 1984 martial arts game Karateka for the Apple II while a student at Yale University. The game was a bestseller. He followed it with the platform game Prince of Persia five years later; it was widely ported and became a hit. Both games used rotoscoping, where actors shot on film by Mechner were drawn over to create in-game animation. Prince of Persia has become the basis for a long-running franchise, including a 2010 live-action film released by Walt Disney Pictures and an ongoing series of video games, published by Ubisoft.
The Last Express is an adventure video game designed by Jordan Mechner and published by Broderbund in 1997 for PC. Players take on the role of an American who accepts an invite by a friend to join them on the Orient Express, days before the start of World War I, only to become involved in a maelstrom of treachery, lies, political conspiracies, personal interests, romance and murder, upon boarding the train. The game is unique in how it was created, its non-linear story, and in how events in the game are conducted within real-time.
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within is an action-adventure game developed and published by Ubisoft for GameCube, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, and Xbox on November 30, 2004. A port for the PlayStation Portable developed by Pipeworks Software, titled Prince of Persia: Revelations, was released on December 6, 2005. Two mobile versions of Warrior Within were published by Gameloft for the cell phone and iOS in 2004 and 2010, respectively. Due to issues with the in-game menu, the iOS version was pulled from the App Store for two weeks, re-releasing on June 18, 2010.
Prince of Persia 3D is a 1999 action-adventure game developed by Mindscape and published by Red Orb Entertainment for Microsoft Windows. A port for the Dreamcast was developed by Avalanche Software and published by Mattel Interactive in North America the following year under the title Prince of Persia: Arabian Nights. It is the first 3D installment in the Prince of Persia series, and the final game in the trilogy that started with the original 1989 game. Taking the role of the titular unnamed character rescuing his bride from a monstrous suitor's schemes, gameplay follows the Prince as he explores environments, platforming and solving puzzles while engaging in combat scenarios.
The Prince is the name given to a group of fictional characters who act as the main protagonists of the Prince of Persia franchise, originally created by Jordan Mechner and currently owned by Ubisoft. Beginning with the titular original game in 1989, there have been several distinct Prince characters, all sharing general traits. The most prominent version was first featured in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2003), who has featured in a large number of games set within that game's continuity. In the 2008 reboot, the Prince is not from a royal family, but was planned to earn his title during the course of his journey. Other versions of the Prince have appeared in related media, most prominently the character Dastan in the 2010 Prince of Persia film portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal.
Nasir Gebelli is an Iranian-American programmer and video game designer usually credited in his games as simply Nasir. He became known in the early 1980s for programming action games for Apple II, such as Space Eggs. These were initially published by Sirius Software, then he started his own company, Gebelli Software. Several of the games he wrote for Gebelli Software were 3D space combat simulators for the Apple II.
Jaʽfar ibn Yahya Barmaki or Jafar al-Barmaki (767–803), also called Aba-Fadl, was a Persian vizier of the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid, succeeding his father in that position. He was a member of the influential Barmakid family, formerly Buddhist leaders of the Nava Vihara monastery. He was executed in 803 at the orders of Harun al-Rashid.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a 2010 American action fantasy film directed by Mike Newell from a screenplay by Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro, and Carlo Bernard, based on the video game series Prince of Persia created by Jordan Mechner. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Ben Kingsley, Gemma Arterton, and Alfred Molina. It is an adaptation of the 2003 video game of the same name published by Ubisoft. Elements from its sequels Warrior Within and The Two Thrones are also incorporated.
Prince of Persia is a video game franchise created by Jordan Mechner. It is centered around a series of action-adventure games focused on various incarnations of the eponymous Prince, set in ancient and medieval Persia.
Airheart is an action game designed and programmed by Dan Gorlin for the Apple II and published by Broderbund in 1986. It requires a 128K Apple IIe to run, as it uses the 16-color double hi-res graphics mode. After three years of development, the game was technically advanced at its time of release, using scaled sprites for 3D effects, but did not include all of the planned features. Gorlin reworked the game as Typhoon Thompson in Search for the Sea Child for the Atari ST (1988), and later the Amiga (1990), which is closer to what he originally envisioned.
Karateka is a 1984 martial arts action game for the Apple II by Jordan Mechner. It is his first published game and was created while he was attending Yale University. The game was published in North America by Broderbund and in Europe by Ariolasoft. Along with Karate Champ and Yie-Ar Kung Fu, Karateka is one of the earliest martial arts fighting games. It was inspired by Japanese culture and by early Disney animated films and silent pictures. An influential game of its era, it was one of the first to use cinematic storytelling and sound design, and rotoscoped animation.
Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands refers to a group of 2010 action-adventure games developed and published by Ubisoft, with each version handled by different internal teams. The main version was developed for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows; other versions were developed for Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, mobile and web browsers, and a notable version for the Wii. It forms part of the Prince of Persia series, and is set within the continuity of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2003).
Dungeons of Dredmor is a roguelike indie video game released on July 13, 2011, by Gaslamp Games. A downloadable content (DLC) pack, "Realm of the Diggle Gods", was released later that year. A second DLC, "You Have To Name The Expansion Pack", was released on June 5, 2012, and a third, "Conquest of the Wizardlands", was released on August 1, 2012. The game has extensive support for user-created modifications.
Prince of Persia Classic is an action, platform video game developed by Gameloft and published by Ubisoft. It is a remake of the original 1989 Prince of Persia game that utilizes the style of graphics introduced in 2003's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Similarly to the original, players control an unnamed protagonist, the Prince referenced in the title, who must save the imprisoned Princess from the evil Grand Vizier Jaffar, who attempts to conquer the land while her father, the Sultan, is away. The game is generally considered to be non-canon to the Prince of Persia series.
Lunark is a 2023 platform game developed by Canari Games and published by WayForward. The game was originally released for Windows, macOS, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch on March 30, 2023, with ports for the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 released on April 6, 2023. The game follows Leo who has unique abilities, the player attempts to uncover the origin about humanity.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a 2024 action-adventure game developed and published by Ubisoft, part of the Prince of Persia series. It was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S on 18 January 2024, and received positive reviews from critics.
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(help)The best MS game we've seen for ages!
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(help)Prince of Persia creator Jordan Mechner believed that the source code to the game's original Apple II version was gone when he failed to find it in 2002. Ten years later, Mechner's father uncovered a box of old games at the family home, and among them were disks containing Prince of Persia's bedrock program.