The Rogue Prince of Persia

The Prince of Persia series has been around longer than I have been on this Earth, and that’s quite an achievement. Spanning from rotoscoped side-scrolling origins to genre-defining platformers on sixth-generation consoles, and now branching into other sub-genres with a more indie focus, the series continues to evolve. In 2024, we saw an engaging Metroidvania format with Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, and now with The Rogue Prince of Persia, we get a colourful, Hades-inspired roguelike.

With The Rogue Prince of Persia being released physically for PS5 and Nintendo Switch, this felt like a great time to dive in. This genre-hopping approach has paid off so far, but can a roguelike format—where you wall-run, scramble, fight, level up, and traverse a beautifully crafted Persian kingdom in ruin—really work?

Well, yes… yes it does.

The Prince has gone rogue!

The Rogue Prince of Persia sticks to a familiar narrative formula, showcasing a tale of ego leading to failure, followed by a compelling journey of redemption and growth. We’ve seen this across many entries in the franchise: a young royal grows too cocky, already in a position of privilege yet striving to prove himself as something greater. Inevitably, it backfires—people get hurt—and it falls to him to right those wrongs.

The consequences here are utterly devastating. A massive Hun army invades, sweeping across the kingdom and the city of Ctesiphon, leaving the Prince for dead. Awakening three days later with the help of a supernatural guide, he learns that his family is missing, the Huns have taken control, and darker forces are aiding their leader.

It’s up to the Prince to traverse the kingdom, reclaim the city, and defeat the Hun leader to redeem his past mistakes. And, of course, if he falls in battle, time rewinds to the beginning—just as any classic roguelike should.

We’ve had plenty of roguelikes in recent years, with highlights such as Dead Cells, Hades, and Blue Prince, each bringing something unique to the table. Here, the influence of Hades and Dead Cells is clear—from the art style and narrative delivery to the multi-layered world design that branches into different routes. These familiar elements are brought together incredibly well, alongside some neat additions that help The Rogue Prince of Persia stand out, particularly its parkour mechanics. The result is a promising roguelike brimming with charm and excitement.

The Prince and the prisoner of the loop

During the franchise’s peak—with titles like The Sands of Time—Prince of Persia delivered some of the best writing of its era. The weighting of morality and responsibility, blended with fantastical elements, was phenomenal for its time. The Rogue Prince of Persia does recapture much of that spirit, and it works well for the most part.

There is a genuine sincerity to the Prince. While he begins the story cocky, he quickly learns that his pride has had devastating consequences for both himself and others. Exploring this kind of character development is challenging enough without the added complexity of a roguelike structure. Hades handled this brilliantly through careful pacing and clever narrative planning.

Here, the cast is likeable, with interesting supporting characters and a protagonist I did enjoy, even if things occasionally feel a bit vanilla. Some heavier story beats are either resolved too quickly or introduced too abruptly, with certain developments and revelations appearing somewhat out of nowhere. This may also be tied to pacing and player progression—something that’s inherently tricky in a roguelike format.

For example, the Prince’s missing brother plays a key role in the story. Ideally, this would unfold during a major narrative moment, but I instead discovered him early by unlocking an alternative path. Later events still referenced moments I hadn’t properly experienced, creating a slightly disjointed feeling. Additionally, defeating several bosses on my first attempt meant certain narrative elements felt skipped or lost entirely.

Most roguelikes, like Hades, are quite challenging—even on easier settings—and this helps space out story progression more naturally. The Rogue Prince of Persia, however, is more forgiving. On my first run, I breezed through about half the game. While the reduced grind is refreshing, it does impact narrative pacing, occasionally making it feel like you can miss key story beats if you perform too well.

That said, I was still able to follow the overall narrative. I liked the Prince, enjoyed interacting with the wonderfully odd supporting cast, and found the world itself to be a standout. Its diverse biomes create a rich and visually striking kingdom, with strong environmental storytelling that balances serious moments with lighter, more playful touches.

While the writing doesn’t quite reach the heights of Hades, there are still engaging developments and well-rounded characters that kept me invested in a story about redemption and learning that pride alone does not define a prince.

Also, the visual style and soundtrack are absolutely brilliant—beautifully animated, with a bold aesthetic and an energetic, genuinely banging score.

Climb, combat, counter, collect… and climb

Now, onto the roguelike core.

Like most entries in the genre, the structure revolves around progressing through a series of levels, fighting enemies, collecting upgrades, unlocking permanent enhancements, and restarting upon death.

At its core, The Rogue Prince of Persia delivers a solid roguelike experience. The pacing feels just right—runs don’t drag on or feel overly bloated (something I felt with Skul: The Hero Slayer back in 2021).

You begin each run at camp, where you can interact with survivors, upgrade stats (such as starting gold, health, and revival chances), and unlock new weapons, outfits, and abilities. One particularly welcome feature is the ability to unlock multiple starting locations and expand your initial loadout options. It’s reminiscent of Dead Cells, but more flexible, helping reduce early repetition.

The world itself is expansive and varied, offering multiple branching paths. While the bosses remained the same in my experience, each run still introduced new enemies, traps, and rewards based on your progression. Every run felt fresh and, most importantly, fun.

The standout addition here is the parkour system. Running along walls, scrambling up surfaces, and chaining movement abilities feels fantastic, adding a dynamic layer to both traversal and level design. The transition between movement and combat is seamless.

Combat, while relatively simple, offers a good amount of flexibility. Unlike Hades, where you’re locked into your chosen weapon for an entire run, The Rogue Prince of Persia allows you to swap and experiment freely. Each weapon comes with its own stats and effects, encouraging varied playstyles within a single run.

This flexibility extends to passive buffs and modifiers—for example, spreading oil on landing and igniting it with a fire-based weapon. While the system isn’t as deep as Dead Cells, it still provides satisfying experimentation and keeps combat engaging.

In terms of difficulty, the game leans towards the more relaxed side. I completed my first run within a few hours, unlocking the next stage of progression. There is a system introduced afterwards that increases difficulty, alongside the “Mind Map” feature, which tracks side objectives like finding your family.

One notable drawback is the lack of a mid-run save feature. Many roguelikes allow you to pause and resume a run later, but here you’re expected to complete a session in one sitting—typically 30 to 45 minutes. It’s not a dealbreaker, but it would have been a welcome addition.

Aside from that, while certain elements—like boss variety and weapon depth—could be expanded further, the game succeeds in delivering a highly approachable, skill-based roguelike with strong progression, engaging mechanics, and plenty of charm.

Overall?

The Rogue Prince of Persia is a brilliant roguelike, worthy of standing alongside the genre’s greats. While its lower difficulty and a few structural shortcomings are worth noting, they don’t detract from an otherwise fantastic experience.

Its visual style, expansive level design centred around parkour and combat, and its rewarding sense of progression all shine throughout.

I highly recommend checking out The Rogue Prince of Persia, especially with its physical release on PS5 and Nintendo Switch. Hopefully, the franchise continues to evolve and deliver compelling adventures for years to come.

++ Compelling and immensely enjoyable roguelike gameplay
++ Great level design and combat variety
+ Highly approachable and fun
+ Top-notch visual and sound design

-Some minor shortcomings in the roguelike systems
-Certain story elements feel slightly underdeveloped or easily missed

A PS5 review key for The Rogue Prince of Persia was kindly provided by the publisher.