Storyline: Set in the mystical lands of Persia, a rogue prince and a mysterious princess race against dark forces to safeguard an ancient dagger capable of releasing the Sands of Time -- a gift from the gods that can reverse time and allow its possessor to rule the world.

• Prince Of Persia Film

Posted on Tuesday, December 1st, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

Planetadisney has a new international poster for Walt Disney Pictures big screen adaptation of the popular video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. I really don’t like this poster at all, and especially the obnoxiously loud tagline “COURAGE”.

• Question: Will there be live action sequels to 2010 film 'Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time'? No, there won’t be. The film massively underperformed. On a budget that approached $200 million USD, it only earned roughly $337 million, meaning that it didn’t even double its cost to make.
• If you enjoyed Prince of Persia scenes like the ostrich race, and characters who have serious goals but have fun along the way, this is the film for you. Heath Ledger stars as a brave medieval guy trying to bluff his way to a knight’s life through a series of jousting matches, with help from Mark Addy, Alan Tudyk and Paul Bettany as Chaucer.

Meanwhile, videogamemaker Ubisoft is reporting a $109 million loss on $232 million in sales during the first half of its fiscal year due to a lack of major titles, according to Variety. But the company is betting on the new Disney movie and a newly announced tie-in video game sequel, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, which will be timed with the Memorial Day release of the film, to turn things around.

If you haven’t seen the previously released trailers, you should check them out: Domestic Trailer 1 and International Trailer 1. Check out the full poster after the jump.

Posted on Monday, November 9th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

It has been over a year since I boarded a plane to London to visit the Pinewood Studios set of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Disney’s big screen adaptation of the popular video game. It’s a one hour ride from our hotel near downtown London to Pinewood Studios. Prince of Persia has taken over the UK-based production studios, currently occupying eight out of ten of the sound-stages on the lot. Our shuttle driver drops us off on Goldfinger Ave, and we enter a building numbered Building Seven. Posters line the walls of every building in Pinewood, showing some of the many movies that have been filmed at the studio. In the lobby of Theater Seven, the posters include Tim Burton’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Hellboy 2, The Mutant Chronicles and Quantum of Solace. It is in this lobby that we meet with Michael Singer, the unit publicist for the production, who has been working for Jerry Bruckheimer for years.

Posted on Monday, November 9th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

While on the set of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, we had a chance to talk to some of the cast. Below you will find our roundtable interviews with Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton:

You’ve done big movies like The Day After Tomorrow and you’ve had some opportunities to do a franchise movie, so what was it about this particular franchise that made you want to be involved in it?

Jake Gyllenhaal: I think just on a personal front, it was just so unlikely and so unlike anything I’d ever played really, and any type of movie that I think anyone would expect, that I just kind of wanted to do it. (laughs) It felt like that personally, but also, more than anything, when I talked with Mike Newell about it, it wasn’t just like your normal video game adaptation. It was an actual massive epic that they had in the works. They had a real classic story that was emotional and real and filled with just ridiculous turns and twists, I mean, all over the place. Every day, when we work, is filled with keeping in mind where you were and how you got there and what’s happening here and who fooled whom. It’s like The Usual Suspects every single day, and that makes it intriguing to me, just on a story point. Also just the fact that these movies, if they’re going to get done, they should be done by the best and I think that Jerry Bruckheimer in particular is the one to make them.

Had you ever played the game before and do you feel any sort of responsibility playing such an iconic character?

Gyllenhaal: I feel a responsibility because I think the prince in the video games, he has a personality and you know his story, but I think a lot of video games as an actor, just putting that kind of expression onto a character. You get to make a new path for what the character is as opposed to being nervous you’re going to screw up that’s already there. That to me I like and I think is fun. I’ve played a lot of real people in my life… Actually, there’s equal pressure in real people than video game characters, which is sort of strange. Yeah, I’ve played the game a lot more when I was really young, and I know the game in its Atari-like version. I went online when I first started researching stuff for the role. What was really important was for me personally to bring some sort of realism into this world that is not always fully based on reality. So often you can hide in all that stuff so easily, and to look at what say a real Persian prince would look like and then who the Prince of Persia is in the video game and then a whole slew of inspiration in between there.

Posted on Wednesday, November 4th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

Prince Of Persia Film

IGN has introduced a cool new feature they are calling “Rewind Theater”, where they rewatch a recent movie trailer with audio commentary with one of the creative people behind the property. The first edition takes a look at Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time with the creator of the game, Jordan Mechner. It’s fascinating to watch the trailer with commentary as they rewind, pause, and slow-mo the action. You learn so much more about the film, and notice things you might never normally in fast motion. Watch the video embedded after the jump.

Posted on Sunday, September 13th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

Update: Disney says that Prince of Persia is not being released in 3D after all. The signage at the convention is inaccurate, and the on-site rep must have been misinformed.

JoBlo came across a poster promoting upcoming Disney Digital 3D releases while walking around the floor of Disney’s D23 fan convention. The big surprise — Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time was listed on the line-up. Disney reps confirmed that the film would be released in Digital 3D in addition to the regular 2D release. The film was not shot in 3D however, and is being converted in post production.

This isn’t the first time that producer Jerry Bruckheimer has made this decision. The family action-adventure film G-Force was converted to 3D after the fact, but most of the film’s creatures were computer generated, which makes things a bit easier. While I’m one of the few web bloggers who believes that 3D is more than a gimmick, I still am not convinced that post production 3D processing is good enough for public consumption.

Posted on Monday, July 27th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

The latest issue of Empire Magazine features new photos from Disney’s big screen adaptation Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

Posted on Monday, July 20th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

Disney has sent us the US Poster Art for Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, which is essentially the same as the UK one-sheet which was posted yesterday morning. Check out the super high resolution photo after the jump. ComingSoon has a first look at Ben Kingsley as Nizam (seen above), a villainous nobleman who wants to possess the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that can reverse time. Head over to CS to see the poster in high resolution.

A small photo premiered last week, and a short bit of preview footage aired in May. Jai ho 2014 cast. The recent reveals make me wonder if Disney plans to surprise the crowds at Comic-con with footage or a trailer. Disney has two panels, one for their 3D features and another for their animated productions. The company’s live-action non-3D films are not on the official schedule to appear in Hall H. But you never know…

Empire has the exclusive debut of two new UK posters for the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced adaptation of the Prince of Persia videogame series. And, oooh, they’re arty! At first glance, I thought Gemma Arterton‘s was a magazine cover, and Jake Gyllenhaal‘s image looks a bit like a prototype Criterion Collection cover from a couple years back. Don’t get me wrong; I like these images and am interested to see that Disney is promoting the film by taking a less obvious angle than “hey, big action movie!” Does the ad campaign mean that we’re actually in for something a little less standard than a version of Pirates of the Caribbean starring a muscly Jake? I hope so!

Posted on Friday, July 17th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

Entertainment Weekly‘s comic-con preview issue hits store shelves today, and features the above first official photo of Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan from Disney’s adaptation of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Paparazzi and leaked set photos had appeared online previously. And then there was that small bit of preview footage that aired in May.

Mike Newell’s film, based on the popular video game, tells the story of an adventurous prince who teams up with a with Tamina (Gemma Arterton), a feisty and exotic princess, to prevent a villainous nobleman from possessing the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that can reverse time. Prince of Persia: Sands of Time will hit theaters on May 28th 2010.

Posted on Sunday, May 10th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta

The first footage from the Mike Newell-directed big screen adaptation of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time has aired on an ABC movie special, and is now online. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer explains the plot of the film adaptation, as we see actual footage from the film. We also get to see some of Jake Gyllenhaal‘s training and a look at the extensive on location Morocco shoot. I was on London-set of the film and while I can’t say much (or anything really), I will say that I was quite impressed with what I saw. Watch the clip after the jump, remember to hit the HQ button to see it in high quality, and please leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame is a platform game released by Broderbund in 1993.

It received an HD remake for smartphones and tablets for iOS and Android in 2013 as Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame.

Gameplay[edit]

Similar to the first Prince of Persia, the character explores various deadly areas by running, jumping, crawling, avoiding traps, solving puzzles and drinking magic potions. Prince of Persia 2 is, however, more combat-heavy than its predecessor. In the first game, enemies appear only occasionally and are always alone, while in the sequel, up to four enemies may appear at once, sometimes flanking the player, and may even be instantly replaced by reinforcements when they are killed. As in Prince of Persia, the trick is to complete the game under a strict time limit from 75 minutes (which start after a certain point in game) that passes in real time. Lives are unlimited, but time cannot be regained (except by reverting to a previously saved game). In other areas, more significant improvements have been made. The graphics are far more complex than the simple look of the game's predecessor, the areas explored are larger, and the variety of backdrops is greater.

Plot[edit]

The game takes place eleven days after the events of the first game. During this period, the Prince was hailed as a hero who defeated the evil Jaffar. He turns down all riches and instead asks for the Princess's hand in marriage as his reward, to which the Sultan of Persia reluctantly agrees. The game begins as the Prince enters the royal courts of the palace. Before he enters, however, his appearance changes into that of a beggar. Nobody recognizes him, and when he attempts to speak with the Princess, a man who shares his appearance (Jaffar, who is magically disguised) emerges from the shadows, ordering him to be thrown out. With guards pursuing him, the Prince jumps through a window and flees the city by way of a ship.

Falling asleep on the ship, the Prince dreams of a mysterious woman who asks the Prince to come to her. At this time, the ship is struck by lightning, cast by Jaffar. When the Prince regains consciousness, he finds himself on the shore of a foreign island. He comes to a cave full of reanimated human skeletons that fight him. He finally escapes on a magic carpet. In the meantime, however, in Persia, Jaffar seizes the throne in the guise of the prince.^[1] The Princess falls ill under Jaffar's spell of gradual death.^[2]

The magic carpet takes the Prince to the ruins of an old city filled with screaming ghosts, snakes and traps. Arriving at what appears to have once been a throne room, the Prince loses consciousness and the mysterious woman, revealed to be his mother, appears again. She explains that the Prince is of a royal lineage and the only survivor of the massacre by 'armies of darkness'. She implores him to avenge the fallen.^[3]

The Prince rides a magical horse to a red temple, inhabited by warrior monks wearing bird headdresses. There, he finds that the shadow, created in the events of the original game, can now leave his body at his will. He wields his shadow to obtain the magic flame of the temple, at which point the bird warriors kneel before him. He flies back to Persia on the magic horse and confronts Jaffar. With the shadow and the flame, the Prince burns Jaffar, killing him for good.

With Jaffar's spell broken, the Princess awakens. The Prince orders the former Vizier's ashes to be scattered. The game ends on a cliffhanger when an old witch is shown watching the happy couple through a crystal ball. According to Jordan Mechner the plot of the old witch and the 'armies of darkness' were set to be resolved in a sequel, which never came.^[4]

Ports and remake[edit]

Titus Software ported the game to the SNES and released it in 1996.^[5] It has some missing features and lacks several levels, including the last one. On August 11, 2006, the Genesis/Mega Drive port was leaked. Ported by Microïds, this conversion was going to be published by Psygnosis, as depicted in the leaked version, but it was canceled in an almost complete state for unknown reasons.^{[6][unreliable source?]} The game can also be unlocked in the XboxNTSC version of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time by finding a secret area. However, the GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox PAL versions feature the original Prince of PersiaBest free mp3 download site. instead and the PC version lacks the secret area entirely. The Macintosh version has high resolution graphics (640×480), the DOS and SNES version only low resolution graphics (320×200) and (256×224) respectively.

On July 25, 2013 a high-definition remake of the game was made available for iOS and Android mobile devices. The game includes options for both virtual buttons and gesture-based controls.^[7]

Reception[edit]

According to Jordan Mechner, Prince of Persia 2 was a commercial success, with sales of 750,000 units by 2000.^[8]

Charles Ardai wrote in Computer Gaming World that 'Prince of Persia 2 not only is in every dimension better than Prince of Persia, but .. is the cruelest, most infuriating, least merciful—in short, the best—game of its type I have ever played', with 'an appeal that is absolutely irresistible'. He criticized the imperfect savegame feature that forced him to replay areas dozens of times, and other aspects of gameplay, but concluded that the game 'merits nothing but salaam after salaam .. a virtuoso performance by Mechner, one of the field's most devious puzzle constructors'.^[9]Power Play gave both the DOS and Macintosh versions a 68% score.^[10][11]

Prince of Persia 2 won Computer Gaming World's 'Action Game of the Year' award in June 1994. The editors wrote that it 'certainly surpasses its predecessor', and called it a 'smoothly animated horizontal scrolling thriller with cinematic scope, vivid action and daunting puzzles'.^[12]

Coach Kyle of GamePro gave the Super NES version a mixed review. He criticized the black outlines on the characters and the weak sound effects, but praised the eerie music and the quality of the challenge, deeming it 'A tough thinking-gamer's game'.^[13]

References[edit]

1. ^Brøderbund (1993). Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame. Scene: Level 3–4 cutscene. Princess: 'Dear Father: My heart is broken. The Prince has betrayed your trust. You must return with your army and take back your throne.'
2. ^Brøderbund (1993). Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame. PC. Scene: Level 4–5 cutscene. Mysterious woman: 'Prince! Your bride is dying. Waste no more time. Come to me!'
3. ^Brøderbund (1993). Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame. PC. Scene: Level 8–9 cutscene. Mysterious woman: 'Once, this was a great city, ruled by a son of kings. He was slain and his palace laid waste by the armies of darkness. I died at his side. You alone were spared, my son! I gave you up, that you might live. This was your father's sword. Avenge us! Avenge us!'
4. ^Mechner, Jordan (April 11, 2013). 'Revisiting The Shadow and the Flame'. Jordan Mechner's blog. Archived from the original on January 23, 2014. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
5. ^'16-Bit's Last Stand'. Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 89. Ziff Davis. December 1996. p. 193.
6. ^'The unpublished Mega Drive version'. Archived from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2009.
7. ^Sliwinski, Alexander (July 11, 2013). 'Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame returns on July 25'. Joystiq. Archived from the original on July 9, 2013. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
8. ^Saltzman, Marc (May 18, 2000). Game Design: Secrets of the Sages, Second Edition. Brady Games. p. 410, 411. ISBN1566869870.
9. ^Ardai, Charles (September 1993). 'Broderbund's Prince of Persia 2'. Computer Gaming World. p. 14. Archived from the original on July 16, 2014. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
10. ^Steffen, Sönke (July 1993). 'Prinzenrolle' [Prince Biscuits] (in German). Power Play. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
11. ^Michael Hengst, Michael Hengst (August 1994). 'Prinzregent' [Prince Regent] (in German). Power Play. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
12. ^'Announcing The New Premier Awards'. Computer Gaming World. June 1994. pp. 51–58.
13. ^'Super NES ProReview: Prince of Persia 2'. GamePro. No. 101. IDG. February 1997. p. 86.

External links[edit]

• Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame at MobyGames
• Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow & The Flame at the Macintosh Garden
• Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow & The Flame page at PoPUW.com