Prince of Persia: Differening Sands Blowing Towards Wii – Still Forgotten

Details are in about the Wii edition of the next Prince of Persia installment.  Already claiming that they are pushing the Wii to it’s limits with the title, can Ubisoft deliver on the gameplay side too?

Besides the graphics, the publisher has said that the game will have a fifteen hour campaign – as long as you would expect from a Prince of Persia title.  However, does this mean that the gameplay will be varied enough to keep players entertained for the whole ride?  Stating that the game has alternate paths, secret areas, and unlockables, there at least looks to be some re-playability value to the game.

Set in the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time universe, Ubisoft Quebec is looking to go back to the roots for The Forgotten Sands. The game is utilizing classic gameplay features such as bringing back maneuverability to the Prince meaning that the far-fetched acrobatics seen in The Sands of Time are back, combining with other old-school features like puzzle sections and traps.

The key mechanic Ubisoft Quebec are bringing to The Forgotten Sands is the mastery over sand and nature itself.  Players will be able to use this feature to uncover new areas through new powers, skills and abilities.  In other words, you can only go to certain areas when you have unlocked the ability to do so.  This forces some linearity into the game, perhaps for narrative purposes.

The Forgotten Sands claims to have the key elements that make for a blockbuster experience.  This should mean luscious environments with clever level design, and a game that utilities the platform’s key selling point.  Hopefully this isn’t a port, but a version built from the ground up with motion control in mind.  Oh, and we can’t forget epic boss battles; it’s not a classic Prince of Persia title without colossal enemies with specific weak points.

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is also shipping May 2010 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS(i), the PlayStation Portable, and of course, everyone’s favourite bastard child, Windows PC.  Expect more news to follow from Shaun, our resident Prince of Persia fanatic.