Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands

Overview

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is the name of a group of 2010 action-adventure games developed and published by Ubisoft, with each version made by a different internal team. The main version was made for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows. Other versions were made for Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, mobile and web browsers, and a notable version for the Wii. It is set in the continuity of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, between that game and Warrior Within.

In the main version you control an unnamed Prince in 3D environments, using acrobatics such as climbing, wall running, wall jumping and swinging from poles, plus magic. The basic power is a limited rewind that resets time after a mistake. Water powers freeze flows to make walls and poles, an Earth power restores broken parts of the level, and Wind and Fire powers are used in combat. Killing enemies earns experience points to upgrade powers and health. Fights have you dodging and rolling through groups of enemies.

Development began alongside the 2008 series reboot, to match the movie adaptation of The Sands of Time. After the film slipped, the idea was reworked as a return to the Sands of Time continuity. The PS3, Xbox 360 and Windows versions were co-developed by Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Singapore with a team of fifty to sixty people. They run on Anvil, the engine used for the 2008 game and for Assassin's Creed, and use Havok for physics. Because the team was small, the Prince has no AI partner. Yuri Lowenthal returns as the Prince's voice, and Steve Jablonsky is the lead composer.

The mobile and browser versions came out on May 11, 2010. The console versions followed in North America on May 18, Australia and mainland Europe on May 20 and the UK on May 21, and Ubisoft published the PS3, Xbox 360 and PSP versions in Japan on June 26. A limited collector's edition for PS3 and Xbox 360 came with a disc of extras and a free copy of Prince of Persia Classic. The Windows version was delayed to June.

The game received mixed to positive reviews for most platforms, with the PSP and DS versions doing worst, and was generally seen as weaker than the earlier games. Rewards in the main version were tied to Ubisoft's Uplay, including experience boosts and costumes such as Ezio from Assassin's Creed, and Uplay support for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions ended in 2017. The Xbox 360 version became backward compatible on Xbox One in June 2019. The series then went quiet until Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown in 2024.

Official trailer

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands Launch Trailer (North America), Ubisoft. Watch on YouTube

Gameplay

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands Xbox 360 Gameplay, BenedictPlays. Watch on YouTube

Screenshots

Game details

Genres

Action-adventure, Hack and slash, Platform

Developer

Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Singapore

Publisher

Ubisoft

Series

Prince of Persia

Engine

Anvil

Composers

Steve Jablonsky, Penka Kouneva

Writers

Ceri Young

Producers

Graeme Jennings, Joel Vignola, Abderrazzak El Kaouni

Directors

Jean-Christophe Guyot, Mario Lord

Modes

Single player

Yes

Local multiplayer

No

Online multiplayer

No

Release dates

Editions

Buy this game

Achievements

Achievements40 (1,000G)

1000G possibleYes

Total

40

Gamerscore

1000

100% time

6 to 8 hours

Difficulty

3 out of 10

Playthroughs for 1000G

1

Playthroughs for 100%

1

1000G without online

Yes

Online trophies

0

Online note

All 40 achievements are single-player.

DLC has trophies

No

1000G includes DLC

No

100% includes DLC

No

DLC still for sale

No

DLC note

There are no add-ons with achievements.

Missable trophies

4

Chapter select fixes a miss

No

Separate trophy lists by region

No

Only in a language other than English

No

Languages

English, Japanese

Region note

Japan got it as Prince of Persia: Boukyaku no Suna.

Online-only version

No

Digital-only

No

Disc-only

No

Players with 1000G

15.95%

Gamerscore, base game

1000

Gamerscore with DLC

1000

Missable trophies

• Untouchable
• Got Walkthrough?
• Stay Dry

Grind

• Every sarcophagus for Got Walkthrough?

Glitches and fixes

• The collectible achievement has not unlocked for some players.

• Memories of Azad There's no turning back now! 20G 99.39% of players
• A Warm Welcome Caught up to Malik. 20G 95.49% of players
• Solomon's Army Discovered the true nature of Solomon's army. 30G 90.01% of players
• Just us and them Closed the fortress gates. 50G 73.45% of players
• Not what it looks like Defeated Ratash? 50G 66.59% of players
• No longer human Suffered defeat at Malik's hands. 50G 62.49% of players
• Welcome to Rekem Arrived in Razia's city. 30G 60.85% of players
• Power of the Djinn Razia becomes part of sword. 30G 58.77% of players
• Eye of the Storm Reached the final fight. 30G 56.72% of players
• End of the Army Complete the game. 50G 56.36% of players
• Prince of Tides Completed the Enemy Tides Challenge. 50G 42.96% of players
• Power Boost Found a sarcophagus. 20G 82.12% of players
• Got Walkthrough? We actually have no way of knowing how you found 'em all. 50G 17.5% of players
• Completist Purchased every upgrade. 50G 40.24% of players
• Anger Management Broke 100 things. (Feel better?) 15G 83.51% of players
• Sand Nemesis Killed 50 enemies in a row without taking any damage. 30G 50.26% of players
• And King of Blades Killed 500 enemies using the sword. 20G 67.33% of players
• Acrobat Jumped on 30 enemies in a row. 30G 32.57% of players
• Like Dominoes Knocked down 5 enemies with 1 kick. 15G 79.36% of players
• Floors are for losers Wall run for a total of 1/2 mile (805 meters). 15G 81.95% of players
• Stay Dry Stayed on solidified water for 1 minute without backtracking using the Power of Time. 30G 25.03% of players
• Untouchable Defeated Ratash in the Throne Room wihout taking any damage. 30G 19.08% of players
• Death from Above Finished off 10 enemies in a row using only the Aerial Slash. 30G 38.41% of players
• Invincible Finished the final battle against Ratash without taking any damage. 20G 21.11% of players
• Our Little Secret Don't worry. We won't tell if you don't. 5G 34.9% of players
• And stay down! Used the finishing lunge 20 times. 15G 73.96% of players
• Air Time Performed 20 Aerial Slash attacks. 15G 67.83% of players
• David and Goliath Finished 5 titans with the Aerial Slash. 15G 40.02% of players
• This is Persia! Kicked 20 enemies off of ledges. 20G 62.91% of players
• Attack from all angles Used aerial kick 15 times. 15G 43.59% of players
• Swift as the Wind Defeated 30 enemies using the Power of Flight. 15G 64.1% of players
• Big Finish Defeated an enemy with a power attack at the end of a combo. 10G 75.39% of players
• Elemental Control Upgraded one power to its highest level. 20G 57.05% of players
• Ding! Level Up! Used the upgrade menu. 15G 87.19% of players
• Close Call Saved the Prince's life by using the Power of Time. 15G 88.18% of players
• Not how it Happened Used the Power of Time 20 times. 15G 79.59% of players
• Prince of Fire Defeated 50 enemies using the Flame Trail. 15G 54.2% of players
• Prince of Earth Defeated 50 enemies while using the Stone Armor. 15G 54.8% of players
• Prince of Water Defeated 50 enemies using the Ice Blast. 15G 53.08% of players
• Prince of Wind Defeated 50 enemies using the Whirlwind. 15G 55.64% of players

Space and patches

Space needed5.7 GB

Update patchTitle update 1

The title updates on record for this game.

DLC

The Xbox 360 version has no add-ons on the Xbox store. Pre-order and Uplay rewards such as costumes came through Ubisoft's service, which ended for Xbox 360 in 2017.

Playable today

Playable offline todayYes

Single-player only, and still on sale for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

Online

Online servers runningNo

Plays offlineYes

The game has no online play. Uplay rewards in the console versions, such as costumes and experience boosts, were tied to Ubisoft's service, and its support for PS3 and Xbox 360 ended in 2017.

Services

Service	Status
Uplay rewards	ended

Reception

Aggregates

Outlet	Platform	Score	Scale
Metacritic	Xbox 360	74	100

Critics

Outlet	Score	Scale
Destructoid	8.5	10
Edge	6	10
Eurogamer	6	10
Game Informer	8	10
GamePro	4.5	5
GameSpot	7.5	10
GameTrailers	7.8	10
GameZone	6	10
Giant Bomb	3	5
IGN	8	10
Joystiq	3	5
Official Xbox Magazine	7.5	10

Staff and cast

Staff

Role	Name
Director	Jean-Christophe Guyot
Director	Mario Lord
Producer	Graeme Jennings
Producer	Joel Vignola
Producer	Abderrazzak El Kaouni
Artist	Wilson Mui
Writer	Ceri Young
Composer	Steve Jablonsky
Composer	Penka Kouneva

Cast

Character	Actor
The Prince	Yuri Lowenthal

Notes for collectors

• Each platform got a different game under the same title. The Xbox 360, PS3 and Windows versions share one story and gameplay, and the Wii, PSP, DS, mobile and browser versions are separate.
• The Prince has no AI companion, because the small team could not make one in time.
• The Xbox 360 version became backward compatible on Xbox One in June 2019.
• The Uplay rewards in the console versions, including a costume of Ezio from Assassin's Creed, stopped working when Uplay support for PS3 and Xbox 360 ended in 2017.
• The Windows version was delayed to June 2010 to be tuned for a wide range of PCs.
• The title was first hinted at when series creator Jordan Mechner registered a trademark for it.

Credits

Publisher

Ubisoft

Developer

Ubisoft Montreal and Ubisoft Singapore

Director

Jean-Christophe Guyot, Mario Lord

Released

2010-05-18

Age rating

T (Teen)

Disc ID

5553083E

Region

US

Time to beat

about 8 hours

Copies in the shop

• Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands (XBOX 360) CA$14.99