Some of the recent rumors and leaks have officially proven to be correct. Ubisoft does indeed plan on returning to Prince of Persia in the form of a remake. The remake in question is for the beloved 2003 classic, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Fans can get their hands on it on January 21, 2021 for the PS4, PC, and Xbox One. Those who purchase on PS4/Xbox One will receive a free upgrade for PS5/Xbox Series X, according to the Ubisoft Store preorder page.
Ubisoft unveiled the project during today’s Ubisoft Forward stream. Of course, a reveal trailer accompanied the news. See Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’s remake in action in the following video:
Rumblings about the franchise’s return first began in May, thanks to Ubisoft’s registration of a Prince of Persia 6 domain name. A since disproven rumor about an official reveal made the rounds not too long thereafter. Then came the launch of the @princeofpersia Twitter account. Another wave of speculation crashed due to a Guatemalan retailer listing for a Prince of Persia remake. The possibility of said remake gained plausibility after Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier claimed to have heard word about an UbiForward reveal. By this morning, the cat was basically out of the bag, courtesy of a leak on the Russian Uplay Store.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time originally hit stores in 2003 as a reboot of the franchise created by Jason Mechner. The title received new life with the PS3 release of Prince of Persia Sands of Time HD in 2010.
In other Ubisoft news, a video featuring CEO Yves Guillemot went live ahead of UbiForward. It sees Guillemot address issues that continue to plague Ubisoft, such as abuse allegations and concerns over its insensitivity towards Black Lives Matter. According to the CEO, “real change will take time.” To foster improvement, Ubisoft plans to steadily invest in a new graduate program. Additionally, the company promises to donate additional funds to the NAACP’s Legal Defense Fund.
Unfortunately, Guillemot’s message didn’t air during the live show. The Ubisoft Twitter account claims its absence was due to “time constraints.” Guillemot’s video should, however, appear in Ubisoft Forward’s VOD versions.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time will return once more for the PS4, PC, and Xbox One, on January 21, 2021. Again, players who grab a copy on current-gen hardware will receive a free next-gen upgrade.
