The Rogue Prince of Persiais an upcoming roguelike sidescroller that draws from the best of the genre, as well as thePrince of Persiafranchise, and features challenging gameplay, an addicting progression system, and trademark acrobatic platforming. Its developers at Evil Empire certainly know a thing or two about roguelikes after working on theiconic indie hitDead Cells, and they’re using that experience to make a freshPrince of Persiagame that hits all the notes fans of the series and the roguelike genre expect.
Game Rant recently spoke withThe Rogue Prince of Persiagame director Lucie Dewagnier and art director Dylan Eurlings about howDead Cellshelped the team approachThe Rogue Prince of Persia’s gameplay. They spoke about how they wanted to keep a few ideas fromDead Cellswhile honing in on what players love aboutPrince of Persia, namely its acrobatic movement and storytelling.
One of the reasonsDead Cellsis highly regardedby its players is its all-important “game feel,” which is the hard-to-describe relationship between the player’s inputs and the results on screen. How high the player jumps, grabbing onto barely-missed ledges, and “coyote time” that gives players a brief opportunity to jump after walking off a ledge all lead to an experience that feels like the avatar is acting as an extension of the player. Due toThe Rogue Prince of Persia’s emphasis on acrobatic movement, tight-feeling controls were incredibly important. As Dewagnier described,
To makeThe Rogue Prince of Persiadifferent fromDead Cells, we focused on the traversal elements and the movement. The game is all about movement. Everything moves. You always need to be asking yourself, “Where should I go and how should I go there?” you’re able to move enemies, you can jump over them; everything is based on the movement.
The ovarching goal was to capture a similar game feel asDead Cells, but to do so utilizing what makesPrince of Persiaspecial. On top of that, the team considers storytelling as one ofthe pillars for thePrince of Persiafranchise, alongside that parkour, and so the storytelling inRogue Prince of Persiais more complicated thanDead Cells.However, in capturing tight mechanics, game feel, and storytelling,Dead Cells' developers have a lot of lessons learned.
Dead Cellsalso stood out as one of the best examples of anEarly Access roguelike gamethanks to constant meaningful development. Even beyond that period, the game was further improved under Evil Empire’s stewardship. It looks likeThe Rogue Prince of Persiais on a similar path, as Dewagnier mentioned looking forward to iterating on the game alongside the community.
I’m excited to launch into Early Access because I want to talk with my players and I want to talk with the community. ForDead Cells, during Early Access and post-release, working with the community was a blast. We will change a lot of things on the balancing side of the game. We will certainly change how our progression system will work because I’m pretty sure some progression elements will be dropped or added. With community feedback, I think we’ll change a lot of things.
Evil Empire doesn’t appear to be married to the current state of the game’s features, which may be good news for players, and they’re even open to reworking the progression system if player feedback shows that things might need some changes. With responsive developers holding a track record for making good games better,The Rogue Prince of Persiais shaping up to be aroguelike worth watchingas it enters its Early Access period next month.
The Rogue Prince of Persia
WHERE TO PLAY
Experience a fast-paced, challenging but accessible roguelite as you master acrobatic moves and flow seamlessly between platforming and combat. Find new weapons, equip trinkets with special effects and upgrade them to make your own builds. Discover new characters, information and areas as you attempt to find a way to save Persia from a Hun invasion and become the hero you have always wanted to be.Lead the Prince in his fight against a Hun army corrupted by dark shamanic magic and find your place in the royal family as you explore a vibrant reinterpretation of Persia. Put the pieces of the puzzle together and discover new areas as you enter the fight again and again, meeting a cast of colorful characters through non-linear story progression.Flow seamlessly between platforming and combat, using your acrobatic moves to outmaneuver and outsmart your enemies. Use the iconic wall-run to open new routes of attack, avoid traps and explore hard to reach areas. Kick and dodge to manage groups of enemies when the odds are against you.Choose from a variety of deadly weapons and equip new medallions each run to unleash devastating effects, giving you the freedom to change your fighting style as you wish. Secondary weapons offer even more options, from bows to shields to grappling hooks. Switch your loadout mid-run to adapt to new challenges.
