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* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass: The game contains several puzzles. The most notable example of this trope, however, doesn't appear to be one at first. In the final encounter with the Concubine, she creates five illusory copies of Elika, and you must find the real one. [[spoiler: However, running into or attacking the six one-by-one reveals that ''all'' of them are illusions. How do you uncover the real Elika? By throwing yourself off the tower, of course, prompting her to save you, [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist as always.]]
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* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass: The game contains several puzzles. The most notable example of this trope, however, doesn't appear to be one at first. In the final encounter with the Concubine, she creates five illusory copies of Elika, and you must find the real one. [[spoiler: However, running into or attacking the six one-by-one reveals that ''all'' of them are illusions. How do you uncover the real Elika? By throwing yourself off the tower, of course, prompting her to save you, [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist as always.]]]]]]
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* OnlySmartPeopleMayPass: The game contains several puzzles. The most notable example of this trope, however, doesn't appear to be one at first. In the final encounter with the Concubine, she creates five illusory copies of Elika, and you must find the real one. [[spoiler: However, running into or attacking the six one-by-one reveals that ''all'' of them are illusions. How do you uncover the real Elika? By throwing yourself off the tower, of course, prompting her to save you, [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist as always.]]
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Minor quote and control errors.
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* CharacterDevelopment: The right trigger/R2 is a dialogue button for the "Prince" to talk to Elika, which may dole out a hint, more about the backstory of the land or characters, or simply Han-and-Leia-esque playful banter.
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* CharacterDevelopment: The right trigger/R2 left trigger/L2 is a dialogue button for the "Prince" to talk to Elika, which may dole out a hint, more about the backstory of the land or characters, or simply Han-and-Leia-esque playful banter.
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'''Elika:''' I think I have an extra one if you want to wear it.
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'''Elika:''' I think I have an extra one a spare if you want to wear you'd like it.
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* Scarf Of Asskicking: The Prince wears one.
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* Scarf Of Asskicking: The Prince wears one.
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* ArmorPiercingSlap: Elika tries to pull one on the Prince at the start of the Epilogue DLC but it doesn't help either of them see the other's point of view.
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* ASinisterClue: Kinda. Looking from the temple, the left-most Grounds are guarded by the Hunter, the most decadent of the Corrupted with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. The right-most is the Warrior, a TragicMonster and the only Corrupted Elika feels sympathy for. The two in-between are bad but they at least have been Corrupted in a moment of weakness (unlike the Hunter).
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* VideoGameCaringPotential: What makes the final SadisticChoice hit so hard is that the Prince must choose between [[spoiler:undoing the result of many hours of gameplay and giving up on the person he and the player have grown to adore throughout said hours of perfect teamwork and bilateral UST-laden snarking]].
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I don\'t think \"titular\" means what you think it means.
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The game is set in ancient Persia, with the titular Prince as the main character. He is accompanied by a woman named Elika, whom he met after a large sandstorm diverted him from his course and he ended up in a mysterious land. Players traverse many different environments using his acrobatic abilities to scale walls and even crawl on the ceilings. Throughout the journey, players combat various enemies as they attempt to cleanse the land of corruption. The game's storyline and setting borrowed some aspects from [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism]].
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The game is set in ancient Persia, with the titular eponymous Prince as the main character. He is accompanied by a woman named Elika, whom he met after a large sandstorm diverted him from his course and he ended up in a mysterious land. Players traverse many different environments using his acrobatic abilities to scale walls and even crawl on the ceilings. Throughout the journey, players combat various enemies as they attempt to cleanse the land of corruption. The game's storyline and setting borrowed some aspects from [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism]].
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* MaybeMagicMaybeMundane: The Prince chalks up his involvement in everything to (bad) luck, while Elika claims it was Ormazd's doing. Ultimately, the truth of the matter is left ambiguous.
* RingOutBoss: The Warrior.
* RingOutBoss: The Warrior.
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* RingOutBoss: The Warrior.
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* RingOutBoss: The Warrior.RightManInTheWrongPlace: Had the Prince not happened to fall into the canyon, the game would've turned out very differently, and probably for the worse.
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* RealIsBrown: The game does have this, but the areas became much more colorful after being purified.
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* RealIsBrown: The game does have this, but the areas became much more colorful after being purified. Additionally, each area has a certain color palette before being purified.
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* RecycledTitle: The original game and this one share the name "Prince Of Persia".
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* RecycledTitle: The original game and this one share the name "Prince Of Persia".''Prince of Persia''. Early in development, subtitles were considered, including ''Prodigy'' and ''Heir Apparent''.
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* HeadsUpDisplay: Inverted. Aside from counting up your light seeds, there is no HUD whatsoever.
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* {{Metroidvania}}: The game is a 3D version of this genre.
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* {{Metroidvania}}: The game is a 3D version of this genre. Played with, as you choose which powerups you unlock.
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* NowWhereWasIGoingAgain: The game's map screen helpfully shows you which Fertile Grounds are corrupted, which are corrupted but you have the powers to access, and which have been cleansed. Additionally, you can press a button at any time for Elika to send a ball of light to your selected destination for you to follow.
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* InterfaceScrew: The Hunter likes to spit gobs of corruption, which obscure the centre of the screen. When [[spoiler:the Prince is infected with Corruption by the Alchemist]], the screen has a sickly green and black border.
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* HeyItsThatVoice: Wow, [[AssassinsCreed Desmond's]] ''really'' gotten the hang of the Bleeding Effect.
** [[ShadowComplex Jason Fleming]] has traded in his PoweredArmor for a CoolSword and a [[TrickedOutGloves Tricked Out Gauntlet]].
** [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey]], it's NolanNorth!
* InterfaceScrew: The Hunter likes to spit gobs of corruption, which obscure the centre of the screen. When [[spoiler:the Prince is infected with Corruption by the Alchemist]], the screen has a sickly green and black border. The same effect happens in [[PaletteSwap red and black]] if the Prince is injured during a fight.
** [[ShadowComplex Jason Fleming]] has traded in his PoweredArmor for a CoolSword and a [[TrickedOutGloves Tricked Out Gauntlet]].
** [[HeyItsThatGuy Hey]], it's NolanNorth!
* InterfaceScrew: The Hunter likes to spit gobs of corruption, which obscure the centre of the screen. When [[spoiler:the Prince is infected with Corruption by the Alchemist]], the screen has a sickly green and black border. The same effect happens in [[PaletteSwap red and black]] if the Prince is injured during a fight.
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* BadassNormal: Compared to creatures corrupted by evil and given the power to use corruption as a weapon, a princess who can wield magical light, and a vengeful god of darkness who wants to unleash misery and suffering upon the world in a never-ending reign of darkness, the Prince has a sword and a clawed gauntlet. And he's ''kicking ass''.
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* BadassNormal: Compared to creatures corrupted twisted by evil and given the power to use corruption as a weapon, a princess who can wield magical light, and a vengeful god of darkness who wants to unleash misery and suffering upon the world in a never-ending reign of darkness, the Prince has a sword and a clawed gauntlet. And he's ''kicking ass''.
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* BadassNormal: Compared to creatures corrupted by evil and given the power to use corruption as a weapon, a princess who can wield magical light, and a vengeful god of darkness who wants to unleash misery and suffering upon the world in a never-ending reign of darkness, the Prince has a sword and a clawed gauntlet. And he's ''kicking ass''.
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* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: "[[LeParkour Run]], [[LeapOfFaith jump]], [[YetAnotherStupidDeath die]], [[DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist repeat]]. Run, jump, die, repeat. I'm starting to get the hang of this."
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* WallCrawl: Along with ''ceiling crawl''. Assuming there are rings bolted along the wall/ceiling, he can run along them indefinitely. Even [[SpiderMan Spider-Man]] would be impressed.
* WallJump: Hell yes. The Prince can do it indefinitely, even.
* WallJump: Hell yes. The Prince can do it indefinitely, even.
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* UnwittingPawn: Ahriman [[spoiler:uses the same sales pitch on both the Prince and the Mourning King and succeeds both times.]] Ultimate subverted in [[spoiler:the second case, as the Prince had Elika brought back to life so she could defeat Ahriman for good]].
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Throw the Prince down pits as many times as you like! And ''infinitely'', because Elika will always save, although you [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment will miss out on an achievement if you do this too much]]. Some of the combat moves are rather nasty, too - throwing an enemy into the air, juggling them with your sword, grabbing them out of the air and smashing them to the ground, shoving them through pillars, hurling ''them'' off ledges...
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Throw the Prince down pits as many times as you like! And ''infinitely'', because Elika will always save, although you [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment will miss out on an achievement if you do this too much]]. Some of the combat moves are rather nasty, too - throwing an enemy into the air, juggling them with your sword, grabbing them out of the air and smashing them to the ground, shoving them through pillars, hurling ''them'' off ledges...
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* UnwittingPawn: Ahriman [[spoiler:uses the same sales pitch on both the Prince and the Mourning King and succeeds both times.]] Ultimate Ultimately subverted in [[spoiler:the second case, as the Prince had has Elika brought back to life so she could can defeat Ahriman for good]].
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Throw the Prince down pits as many times as you like! And ''infinitely'', because Elika will alwayssave, save him, although you [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment will miss out on an achievement if you do this too much]]. Some of the combat moves are rather nasty, too - throwing an enemy into the air, juggling them with your sword, grabbing them out of the air and smashing them to the ground, shoving them through pillars, hurling ''them'' off ledges...
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Throw the Prince down pits as many times as you like! And ''infinitely'', because Elika will always
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* BadassPrincess: Elika.
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* WorldHealingWave: Every time Elika heals a fertile ground.
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* InterfaceScrew: The Hunter likes to spit gobs of corruption, which obscure the centre of the screen. When [[spoiler:the Prince is infected with Corruption by the Alchemist]], the screen has a sickly green and black border.
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-->'''Elika:''' [[ItsQuietTooQuiet It seems quiet]].\\
'''Prince:''' Don't ever say that.\\
'''Prince:''' Don't ever say that.\\
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-->'''Elika:''' [[ItsQuietTooQuiet It seems looks quiet]].\\
'''Prince:''' Don'tever say that.it's quiet. Don't ''ever'' say it's quiet.\\
'''Prince:''' Don't
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-->'''The Prince:''' I reclaim abandoned property!
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* BeingGoodSucks: The Prince's opinion of things.
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* JokeItem:
** The Prince [[CharacterDevelopment becomes this]] as the game progresses.
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** The sky after Ahriman is released at the beginning of the game. Yes, it's the sign of evil overtaking the land and plunging the world into an era of darkness, but it sure it pretty.
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** The sky after Ahriman is released at the beginning of the game. Yes, it's the sign of evil overtaking the land and plunging the world into an era of darkness, but it sure it is pretty.
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* ForScience: Stated word-for-word to be The Alchemist's reason for turning to Ahriman.
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* SelfishGood: The Prince starts out this way; in the beginning, he helps Elika because it's the only way out. [[CharacterDevelopment That changes as time goes on]].
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** The sky after Ahriman is released at the beginning of the game. Yes, it's the sign of evil overtaking the land and plunging the world into an era of darkness, but it sure it pretty.
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* SelfishGood: The Prince starts out this way; in the beginning, he helps Elika because it's the only way out. [[CharacterDevelopment That changes as time goes on]].
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* TheDulcineaEffect: Discussed and subverted. [[spoiler:At the end, the Prince resurrects Elika partially because it's the only way to defeat Ahriman for good, but also partially because he's fallen for her. But to be fair, he ''did'' just spend a good chunk of time fighting the forces of world-ending darkness with her, [[FireForgedFriends which tends to bring people together]].
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* TheDulcineaEffect: Discussed and subverted. [[spoiler:At the end, the Prince resurrects Elika partially because it's the only way to defeat Ahriman for good, but also partially because he's fallen for her. But to be fair, he ''did'' just spend a good chunk of time fighting the forces of world-ending darkness with her, [[FireForgedFriends which tends to bring people together]].together]]]].
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* TheDulcineaEffect: Discussed and subverted. [[spoiler:At the end, the Prince resurrects Elika partially because it's the only way to defeat Ahriman for good, but also partially because he's fallen for her. But to be fair, he ''did'' just spend a good chunk of time fighting the forces of world-ending darkness with her, [[FireForgedFriends which tends to bring people together]].
-->'''Elika:''' Why are you doing this? [[TheDulcineaEffect You're not doing this for me, are you]]? [[MaleGaze I've seen you looking at me]]. [[AllMenArePerverts I recognize that look]].
-->'''Prince:''' Hey, you're cute, but not 'stay to fight a dark god' cute.
-->'''Elika:''' Would you have helped my father if ''he'' had asked you?
-->'''Prince:''' He's not that cute, either.
-->...
-->'''Elika:''' [[LampshadeHanging I have experience with men doing stupid things for women]].
-->'''Prince:''' [[SelfishGood Well, I only ever do stupid things for myself]].
-->'''Elika:''' Why are you doing this? [[TheDulcineaEffect You're not doing this for me, are you]]? [[MaleGaze I've seen you looking at me]]. [[AllMenArePerverts I recognize that look]].
-->'''Prince:''' Hey, you're cute, but not 'stay to fight a dark god' cute.
-->'''Elika:''' Would you have helped my father if ''he'' had asked you?
-->'''Prince:''' He's not that cute, either.
-->...
-->'''Elika:''' [[LampshadeHanging I have experience with men doing stupid things for women]].
-->'''Prince:''' [[SelfishGood Well, I only ever do stupid things for myself]].
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** Elika gets in on the act, too.
-->'''Elika:''' I'm beginning to worry about you and your donkey.
-->'''Elika:''' I'm beginning to worry about you and your donkey.
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* [[spoiler:AlwaysSaveTheGirl]]: [[spoiler:Depressingly so in the 2008 reboot, and subverted at the end of the DLC]].
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* [[spoiler:AlwaysSaveTheGirl]]: [[spoiler:Depressingly so in the 2008 reboot, so, and subverted at the end of the DLC]].
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* FireForgedFriends: The Prince and Elika in the reboot. [[spoiler:Ruined when the Prince re-unleashes Ahriman. Elika ''never'' forgives him for that, even when he's revealed to have had a ''very good reason'' for doing it.]]
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* FireForgedFriends: The Prince and Elika in the reboot.Elika. [[spoiler:Ruined when the Prince re-unleashes Ahriman. Elika ''never'' forgives him for that, even when he's revealed to have had a ''very good reason'' for doing it.]]
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* FootFocus: Elika is always barefoot.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The reboot Prince refers to both the war his parents died in and his fight against Ahriman as "someone else's war", in addition to expressing doubt that someone could fight for something other than themselves. [[spoiler:When Elika [[HeroicSacrifice gives up her life]] to re-seal Ahriman, the Prince releases Ahriman again to resurrect her]]. Also in the reboot, there are several hints to [[spoiler:Elika's earlier death]], which is in itself ''more'' foreshadowing the above spoiler.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The reboot Prince refers to both the war his parents died in and his fight against Ahriman as "someone else's war", in addition to expressing doubt that someone could fight for something other than themselves. [[spoiler:When Elika [[HeroicSacrifice gives up her life]] to re-seal Ahriman, the Prince releases Ahriman again to resurrect her]]. Also in the reboot, there are several hints to [[spoiler:Elika's earlier death]], which is in itself ''more'' foreshadowing the above spoiler.
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* FootFocus: Elika is always barefoot.
barefoot. In fact, the first time we see her, only her feet are shown.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Thereboot Prince refers to both the war his parents died in and his fight against Ahriman as "someone else's war", in addition to expressing doubt that someone could fight for something other than themselves. [[spoiler:When Elika [[HeroicSacrifice gives up her life]] to re-seal Ahriman, the Prince releases Ahriman again to resurrect her]]. Also in the reboot, there There are also several hints to [[spoiler:Elika's earlier death]], which is in itself ''more'' foreshadowing the above spoiler.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The
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* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Elika dies at the end of the reboot in order to reseal Ahriman. The Prince promptly releases Ahriman to free her. She's not happy about it.]]
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* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Elika dies at the end of the reboot in order to reseal Ahriman. The Prince promptly releases Ahriman to free her. She's not happy about it.]]
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The next chapter is a downloadable expansion simply titled ''Epilogue'', released on March 5, 2009, exclusively on consoles. Webcomic/PennyArcade made [[http://prince-of-persia.us.ubi.com/PA/html/index.php a thirty-page comic]] about the origin of the Hunter.
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The next chapter is a downloadable expansion simply titled ''Epilogue'', released on March 5, 2009, exclusively on consoles. A spin-off [[NintendoDS DS]] game, ''Prince of Persia: The Fallen King'' was released on Dec 2, 2008. Webcomic/PennyArcade made [[http://prince-of-persia.us.ubi.com/PA/html/index.php a thirty-page comic]] about the origin of the Hunter.
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[[quoteright:256:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Prince_of_Persia_2008_vg_Box_Art_5494.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:256:The wind is free, but the sand goes where it is blown.]]
-->''What is one grain of sand in the desert? What is one grain of sand in the storm?''
''Prince of Persia'' is another ContinuityReboot for the action-adventure and platforming PrinceOfPersia series, developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by {{Ubisoft}}. It was released in the United States on December 2, 2008 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and on December 9, 2008 for Microsoft Windows. It was later released on March 24, 2009 for Mac OS X via the Cider engine.
The game is set in ancient Persia, with the titular Prince as the main character. He is accompanied by a woman named Elika, whom he met after a large sandstorm diverted him from his course and he ended up in a mysterious land. Players traverse many different environments using his acrobatic abilities to scale walls and even crawl on the ceilings. Throughout the journey, players combat various enemies as they attempt to cleanse the land of corruption. The game's storyline and setting borrowed some aspects from [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism]].
The next chapter is a downloadable expansion simply titled ''Epilogue'', released on March 5, 2009, exclusively on consoles. Webcomic/PennyArcade made [[http://prince-of-persia.us.ubi.com/PA/html/index.php a thirty-page comic]] about the origin of the Hunter.
As of March 2012, there has been no word on a true sequel to the game; plans for it have apparently been put on hold in favour of making [[TrilogyCreep a fourth installment]] in the ''Sands of Time'' series.
----
!!Includes Examples Of:
* ActionGirl: Elika.
* [[spoiler:AlwaysSaveTheGirl]]: [[spoiler:Depressingly so in the 2008 reboot, and subverted at the end of the DLC]].
* AndYourRewardIsClothes: There are three sets each for the Prince and Elika: one a MythologyGag (the ''Sands of Time'' Prince and Farah), one a ShoutOut (to AssassinsCreed and VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil, respectively), and the last a DevelopmentGag ("prototype" versions of the characters).
* AntiHero: The Prince looks to be the [[StarWars Han Solo]] type.
* AntiVillain: The Warrior.
** The Mourning King. [[spoiler:''Everything'' he did was to spare his daughter Elika from having to kill herself to imprison Ahriman]].
* ArmorPiercingSlap: Elika tries to pull one on the Prince at the start of the Epilogue DLC but it doesn't help either of them see the other's point of view.
* ArcWords: ''"If you would have your wish, '''then give me mine'''."''
** "What is one grain of sand in the desert? What is one grain of sand in the storm?" First stated by Elika [[spoiler:then by Ahriman]].
* ArmorPiercingSlap: Subverted. Elika tries to pull one on the Prince at the start of the Epilogue {{DLC}}, but it doesn't help either of them see the other's point of view.
* BattleCouple: The Prince and Elika are a variation.
* BenevolentArchitecture: An uncanny amount of the scenery is implausibly handy for jumping/climbing/hanging/swinging/[[LeParkour free-running]] around on. Which is lucky, since there's a distinct imbalance in the ratios of really-high-places to staircases/ladders/jetpacks, smooth stable floors vs. [[SpikesOfDoom fatal]] [[BottomlessPit drops]] etc.
* BilingualBonus: The spells that Elika recites when using the compass feature are actually just her saying things like "Show the way" in Persian.
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Ahriman is definitely evil, but his brother/counterpart, Ormazd, despite being the [[LightIsNotGood god of light]] is lacking in admirable qualities and at best is a {{Neglectful Precursor|s}}. This may be {{justified}} in that being the god of light, and [[RealLife IRL]] the equivalent of ''God'' in Zoroastrianism, he isn't the kind of god that intervenes much in the world affairs... [[ChosenOne Not personally anyway]].
* BlueEyes: The Prince character.
* BodyHorror: What the Corruption does to its victims.
* BookEnds: The opening and closing scenes. "What is one grain of sand in the desert? One grain amongst the storm?"
* BottomlessPitRescueService: Elika is happy to help.
* BrokeYourArmPunchingOutCthulhu: [[spoiler:Elika dies to seal away Ahriman. Then immediately subverted by the Prince who breaks the seal of Ahriman's prison in order to revive Elika again]].
* CelShading: Taken to an extreme, combined with wide, sweeping vistas for maximum SceneryPorn.
* CharacterDevelopment: The right trigger/R2 is a dialogue button for the "Prince" to talk to Elika, which may dole out a hint, more about the backstory of the land or characters, or simply Han-and-Leia-esque playful banter.
* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: All the incarnations of the Prince are inhumanly agile. The Prince in this game might take the cake, however. The boss fights make it clear that he is more than strong enough to block and parry the blows of a massive stone behemoth, that he's physically stronger than the rest of the Corrupted (who are larger than him and empowered with darkness), and that [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking his head is harder than the Mourning King's helmet]]. He can generally throw the Corrupted in the air one-handed, as well.
* ClothingDamage: Elika's lacy blouse gets slightly more torn each time the plot advances, and it's subtle enough that the player may not even notice. This is also a FanService MythologyGag, because a player who remembers the Prince's ShirtlessScene from ''Sands of Time'' may expect Elika to repeat it. (She doesn't.)
* ContinuityReboot
* CounterAttack: In combat, the Prince is able to counter most enemy attacks and deal them a devastating blow.
* TheCorruption: Ahriman's influence.
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: The Prince is able to grab hold of specific ledges and bars to move around the area. In certain cutscenes, though, he is shown to be capable of much more elaborate manuevers. This style was actually moved into ''AssassinsCreed'' made by the same people, where you can literally grab onto almost anything.
* CrashIntoHello: Elika and the Prince.
* DeadpanSnarker: The Prince is constantly snarking in the cutscenes, and once you exhaust the optional conversations with Elika, the dialogue button basically becomes a snark button.
** Even Elika snarks from time to time.
-->'''Prince:''' That's a nice blouse.\\
'''Elika:''' I think I have an extra one if you want to wear it.
* DeathCourse: ''Lots''.
* TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything: The Prince and Elika have special animations if Elika lands on the Prince.
* DialogDuringGameplay: There's even a button for it.
* DoesNotLikeShoes: Elika displays her {{action girl}} {{badass}}ery by traversing rough terrain completely barefoot.
* [[spoiler:DownerEnding]]: [[spoiler:The Prince releases Ahriman in order to revive Elika. The Prince calmly walks away as Ahriman's darkness engulfs the land. ''Somewhat'' subverted in the [[{{DLC}} Epilogue]], where it's revealed that the Prince revived Elika because her power is the only thing that can defeat Ahriman [[KilledOffForReal for good]]; if she'd stayed dead, it would have just been a waiting game until Ahriman's seal broke and he took over the land without resistance. Then it's played straight again when Elika leaves the Prince high and dry to go look for her people, and it's implied that Ahriman attacks him shortly after.]]
** The DS game ''The Fallen King'', which could be considered a sequel to both the main 2008 game and Epilogue, at least [[spoiler:leaves some hope for a happy ending. It has The Prince go after the king of the City of New Dawn in an attempt to summon Ormazd, and gains a temporary ally, Zal, the "good half" of the king, who ends up dying after killing his other half. The Prince's other new ally, the Ancestor, leaves a message of hope for the Prince, promising that, in time, an inner power would be revealed and new ally would be found.]]
* EscortMission: The developers went out of their way to avoid the EscortMission feel with Elika, with an explicit intent of changing the way player's look at AI-controlled allies. They succeeded.
* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: [[spoiler:If you want to actually finish the game, you have to release Ahriman despite having spent the past god-knows-how-many hours ''sealing him away'']].
* FallenHero: The Warrior, who accepted Ahriman's offer of power so he could protect his people. Also, [[spoiler:the Prince at the end]].
* FireForgedFriends: The Prince and Elika in the reboot. [[spoiler:Ruined when the Prince re-unleashes Ahriman. Elika ''never'' forgives him for that, even when he's revealed to have had a ''very good reason'' for doing it.]]
* FiveBadBand: Ahriman and his minions. In order:
** The BigBad: Ahriman
** TheDragon: The Hunter
** TheBrute: The Warrior
** The EvilGenius: The Alchemist
** The DarkChick: The Concubine
** SixthRanger: [[spoiler:The Mourning King]]
* FootFocus: Elika is always barefoot.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The reboot Prince refers to both the war his parents died in and his fight against Ahriman as "someone else's war", in addition to expressing doubt that someone could fight for something other than themselves. [[spoiler:When Elika [[HeroicSacrifice gives up her life]] to re-seal Ahriman, the Prince releases Ahriman again to resurrect her]]. Also in the reboot, there are several hints to [[spoiler:Elika's earlier death]], which is in itself ''more'' foreshadowing the above spoiler.
* GenreSavvy: The Prince seems to be this, with a ''lot'' of DeadpanSnarker.
-->'''Elika:''' [[ItsQuietTooQuiet It seems quiet]].\\
'''Prince:''' Don't ever say that.\\
and\\
(After seeing that where a boss stands is precisely where they need to go:)\\
'''Prince:''' Why do we always have to move ''towards'' the monsters?
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: The Prince has quite a bit of this.
-->'''Prince:''' Oh, come on, I've helped old ladies home from the market.\\
'''Elika:''' If they had attractive daughters.\\
'''Prince:''' Yeah. I helped them, too.
* GraveRobbing: The Prince admits to this. Shamelessly. Hey, it's not like they need it anymore, right?
* GuideDangIt: Plenty. Finding all the Light Seeds, for one. If you want the "Precious Time" achievement, you have to hold ''completely still'' [[spoiler:after Elika dies]]. Do not touch any buttons, not even ones that don't make the Prince move. Hell, set down the controller, just to be safe.
** After you seal the evil back into the can, you get to walk around while credits roll, trigger a cutscene, and then find yourself trapped in a relatively small area of the game and expected to somehow figure out what you're supposed to do next - [[spoiler:let the sealed evil out of the can you've just spent the entire game going to great lengths to seal him back into]] - with only a cryptic camera shot that could be showing off the restored landscape, and a flashback sequence explaining one of the game's unanswered questions as hints...
* HereWeGoAgain: A fairly somber example, invoked by the Prince.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Elika dies at the end of the reboot in order to reseal Ahriman. The Prince promptly releases Ahriman to free her. She's not happy about it.]]
* JawsFirstPersonPerspective: [[spoiler:The end boss is played entirely from Ahriman's perspective.]]
* JokeItem:
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: The Prince.
* KnightInSourArmor: Elika is a rare female example.
* LeapOfFaith: [[spoiler:The Prince must leap off a tower to defeat the Concubine's illusory Elikas by making the real one save him.]]
* [[spoiler:LeftHanging]]: [[spoiler:The ending, and frustratingly, the Epilogue as well.]]
* LeParkour: Probably the defining game of the genre. Taken to ridiculous extremes in this game, almost outing the Prince as a relative of SpiderMan. The game even includes a ''ceiling run'' move:
-->'''Elika:''' We have to cross over there!\\
'''Prince:''' Sure, climb on the roof. [[DeadpanSnarker It's not like gravity ever killed anyone]].
* LoadBearingBoss: Each of the Corrupted has their own private lair, which collapses as you leave after defeating them.
* LovableRogue: The Prince to a T.
* {{Metroidvania}}: The game is a 3D version of this genre.
* TheMostDangerousGame: The Hunter's reason for selling his soul.
* MythologyGag: the game opens with The Prince calling for Farah (the name of the LoveInterest from the Sands of Times trilogy). Later when asked if Farah is his girlfriend, he reveals it to be the name of [[spoiler:his donkey]].
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Invoked [[spoiler:at the end. After sealing away Ahriman (at the cost of Elika's life), the Prince almost immediately undoes the same seal he worked his hands to the bone to put in place]]. See SadisticChoice.
* NoFlowInCGI: Averted. The Prince has a long scarf and a bearskin cape that billow dramatically in any wind.
* NominalImportance: Averted. The Prince is never named except in TheMovie, and several of the games have the majority of characters go unnamed. It's most notable in this game, which has eight different characters, but only two have names: [[{{Sidekick}} Elika]] and [[BigBad Ahriman]].
* NoNameGiven: The Prince.
* NotSoDifferent: Ahriman pulls this near the end.
-->Jailer...\\
Torturer...\\
What injury have I done to you\\
That you have not done to me?
* PressXToNotDie: Used in combat when the player is about to be defeated, as well as to finish certain bosses off.
* ProtagonistWithoutAPast: The Prince. He tells Elika as much when she starts questioning him. Hell, the game manual even backs him up on this one. If Elika's persistent enough (ie, if the player keeps hitting that Snark Button) he does reveal that when he was young both of his parents died for someone else's cause, leaving him with an uncle. He's been all over the world and met all kinds of people, but never got strongly attached to anyone. He robs graves and is always getting into trouble, and he's repeatedly gotten his hands on and subsequently lost a great deal of treasure. Where he comes from, rather than inheriting power, people get it by killing each other or [[BribingYourWayToVictory bribing their way into it]].
* PuzzlePan
* [[spoiler:PyrrhicVictory]]: [[spoiler:Save the world, lose the girl. Then subverted.]]
* [[spoiler:PyrrhicVillainy]]: A bit trickier to see, but it's there. It is implied in the DLC that [[spoiler:Elika is somehow crucial to defeating Ahriman for real. By bringing her back to life, Ahriman has secured his release, but it will ultimately bring about his downfall.]]
* RealIsBrown: The game does have this, but the areas became much more colorful after being purified.
* RealityIsUnrealistic: The series and the movie adaptation get a lot of flack for making the Prince [[MightyWhitey "too white"]], due to Western audiences expecting [[PhenotypeStereotype everyone who lives in the Middle East]] to [[UnfortunateImplications be brown as can be and not even vaguely similar to the rest of the world]]. In truth, the Persian people were close relatives of the Europeans, and the majority of modern Iran's population could be considered "white". And most people there identify as white. [[http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/12/4/128728998449020593.jpg Compare Iranian prime minister Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Jake Gyllenhaal.]] Also, [[http://kotaku.com/5547892/is-prince-of-persia-really-a-racial-whitewash read Kotaku's article.]]
** Even better, compare him to former deputy culture minister [[http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5aumgLlZ7iE/S5IbljYk34I/AAAAAAAABA8/DVyoARfvAP4/s1600-h/mohammad+ali+ramin.jpg Mohammad Ali Ramin]], who has a very light complexion.
* RecycledTitle: The original game and this one share the name "Prince Of Persia".
* ReverseGrip: The Prince will shift his scimitar from a standard saber grip to this when going into a defensive stance.
* RingOutBoss: The Warrior.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Elika.
* SadisticChoice: The game gives the Prince a pretty hefty one: [[spoiler:keep Ahriman trapped and the world safe (for the short time it takes for Ahriman to bust out of the weakened prison), or undo everything he's fought for and release Ahriman to destroy the world in order to bring Elika back from the dead so that she can find a way to put Ahriman back in the seal for good]]. And because, of course, by then we have [[spoiler:completely fallen for her.]]
* SceneryGorn: Before the land is healed.
* SceneryPorn: ''After'' the land is healed.
* ScrewDestiny: One of the themes.
* SealedEvilInACan: Ahriman.
* ShirtlessScene: The Prince isn't quite shirtless, but his open vest shows off quite a bit of his lovingly-rendered abdominals.
* ShoutOut: You can unlock the ''Sands Of Time'' Prince's outfit, as well as Altair's (From AssassinsCreed) outfit. Similarly, Elika can be dressed as either Farah from the ''Sands of Time'' trilogy or as Jade from ''VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil''. You also get achievements for [[{{Titanic}} standing on the beam on the prow of an airship]], and [[AssassinsCreed standing on a beam jutting out from a building that provides a spectacular view]].
** The game contains a total of [[Literature/ArabianNights one thousand and one]] light seeds.
* SidekickExMachina: Elika.
* {{Speedrun}}: There's an achievement ("Speed Demon") for finishing the game in under 12 hours.
* TakeMyHand: How Elika saves the Prince. Repeatedly. Additionally, if Elika attempts to jump to a ledge the Prince is hanging, she'll start to fall, but the Prince will spin around and grab her hand.
* ToBeContinued: This is the Achievement that pops up after [[spoiler:the Prince resurrects Elika and releases Ahriman]]. Turns out they've abandoned the new storyline in favor of a fourth installment to the "Sands of Time" storyline.
* UnflinchingWalk: The Prince [[spoiler:walks calmly away as he is engulfed by a sandstorm and a dark god flies overhead.]]
* UnwittingPawn: Ahriman [[spoiler:uses the same sales pitch on both the Prince and the Mourning King and succeeds both times.]] Ultimate subverted in [[spoiler:the second case, as the Prince had Elika brought back to life so she could defeat Ahriman for good]].
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Throw the Prince down pits as many times as you like! And ''infinitely'', because Elika will always save, although you [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment will miss out on an achievement if you do this too much]]. Some of the combat moves are rather nasty, too - throwing an enemy into the air, juggling them with your sword, grabbing them out of the air and smashing them to the ground, shoving them through pillars, hurling ''them'' off ledges...
* WarriorPrince: By name, but not by actual position.
* WhatTheHellHero: Asked by [[spoiler:Elika]] at the end of the game when [[spoiler:the Prince resurrects her and releases Ahriman]].
----
[[caption-width-right:256:The wind is free, but the sand goes where it is blown.]]
-->''What is one grain of sand in the desert? What is one grain of sand in the storm?''
''Prince of Persia'' is another ContinuityReboot for the action-adventure and platforming PrinceOfPersia series, developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by {{Ubisoft}}. It was released in the United States on December 2, 2008 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and on December 9, 2008 for Microsoft Windows. It was later released on March 24, 2009 for Mac OS X via the Cider engine.
The game is set in ancient Persia, with the titular Prince as the main character. He is accompanied by a woman named Elika, whom he met after a large sandstorm diverted him from his course and he ended up in a mysterious land. Players traverse many different environments using his acrobatic abilities to scale walls and even crawl on the ceilings. Throughout the journey, players combat various enemies as they attempt to cleanse the land of corruption. The game's storyline and setting borrowed some aspects from [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism]].
The next chapter is a downloadable expansion simply titled ''Epilogue'', released on March 5, 2009, exclusively on consoles. Webcomic/PennyArcade made [[http://prince-of-persia.us.ubi.com/PA/html/index.php a thirty-page comic]] about the origin of the Hunter.
As of March 2012, there has been no word on a true sequel to the game; plans for it have apparently been put on hold in favour of making [[TrilogyCreep a fourth installment]] in the ''Sands of Time'' series.
----
!!Includes Examples Of:
* ActionGirl: Elika.
* [[spoiler:AlwaysSaveTheGirl]]: [[spoiler:Depressingly so in the 2008 reboot, and subverted at the end of the DLC]].
* AndYourRewardIsClothes: There are three sets each for the Prince and Elika: one a MythologyGag (the ''Sands of Time'' Prince and Farah), one a ShoutOut (to AssassinsCreed and VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil, respectively), and the last a DevelopmentGag ("prototype" versions of the characters).
* AntiHero: The Prince looks to be the [[StarWars Han Solo]] type.
* AntiVillain: The Warrior.
** The Mourning King. [[spoiler:''Everything'' he did was to spare his daughter Elika from having to kill herself to imprison Ahriman]].
* ArmorPiercingSlap: Elika tries to pull one on the Prince at the start of the Epilogue DLC but it doesn't help either of them see the other's point of view.
* ArcWords: ''"If you would have your wish, '''then give me mine'''."''
** "What is one grain of sand in the desert? What is one grain of sand in the storm?" First stated by Elika [[spoiler:then by Ahriman]].
* ArmorPiercingSlap: Subverted. Elika tries to pull one on the Prince at the start of the Epilogue {{DLC}}, but it doesn't help either of them see the other's point of view.
* BattleCouple: The Prince and Elika are a variation.
* BenevolentArchitecture: An uncanny amount of the scenery is implausibly handy for jumping/climbing/hanging/swinging/[[LeParkour free-running]] around on. Which is lucky, since there's a distinct imbalance in the ratios of really-high-places to staircases/ladders/jetpacks, smooth stable floors vs. [[SpikesOfDoom fatal]] [[BottomlessPit drops]] etc.
* BilingualBonus: The spells that Elika recites when using the compass feature are actually just her saying things like "Show the way" in Persian.
* BlackAndGreyMorality: Ahriman is definitely evil, but his brother/counterpart, Ormazd, despite being the [[LightIsNotGood god of light]] is lacking in admirable qualities and at best is a {{Neglectful Precursor|s}}. This may be {{justified}} in that being the god of light, and [[RealLife IRL]] the equivalent of ''God'' in Zoroastrianism, he isn't the kind of god that intervenes much in the world affairs... [[ChosenOne Not personally anyway]].
* BlueEyes: The Prince character.
* BodyHorror: What the Corruption does to its victims.
* BookEnds: The opening and closing scenes. "What is one grain of sand in the desert? One grain amongst the storm?"
* BottomlessPitRescueService: Elika is happy to help.
* BrokeYourArmPunchingOutCthulhu: [[spoiler:Elika dies to seal away Ahriman. Then immediately subverted by the Prince who breaks the seal of Ahriman's prison in order to revive Elika again]].
* CelShading: Taken to an extreme, combined with wide, sweeping vistas for maximum SceneryPorn.
* CharacterDevelopment: The right trigger/R2 is a dialogue button for the "Prince" to talk to Elika, which may dole out a hint, more about the backstory of the land or characters, or simply Han-and-Leia-esque playful banter.
* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: All the incarnations of the Prince are inhumanly agile. The Prince in this game might take the cake, however. The boss fights make it clear that he is more than strong enough to block and parry the blows of a massive stone behemoth, that he's physically stronger than the rest of the Corrupted (who are larger than him and empowered with darkness), and that [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking his head is harder than the Mourning King's helmet]]. He can generally throw the Corrupted in the air one-handed, as well.
* ClothingDamage: Elika's lacy blouse gets slightly more torn each time the plot advances, and it's subtle enough that the player may not even notice. This is also a FanService MythologyGag, because a player who remembers the Prince's ShirtlessScene from ''Sands of Time'' may expect Elika to repeat it. (She doesn't.)
* ContinuityReboot
* CounterAttack: In combat, the Prince is able to counter most enemy attacks and deal them a devastating blow.
* TheCorruption: Ahriman's influence.
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: The Prince is able to grab hold of specific ledges and bars to move around the area. In certain cutscenes, though, he is shown to be capable of much more elaborate manuevers. This style was actually moved into ''AssassinsCreed'' made by the same people, where you can literally grab onto almost anything.
* CrashIntoHello: Elika and the Prince.
* DeadpanSnarker: The Prince is constantly snarking in the cutscenes, and once you exhaust the optional conversations with Elika, the dialogue button basically becomes a snark button.
** Even Elika snarks from time to time.
-->'''Prince:''' That's a nice blouse.\\
'''Elika:''' I think I have an extra one if you want to wear it.
* DeathCourse: ''Lots''.
* TheDevTeamThinksOfEverything: The Prince and Elika have special animations if Elika lands on the Prince.
* DialogDuringGameplay: There's even a button for it.
* DoesNotLikeShoes: Elika displays her {{action girl}} {{badass}}ery by traversing rough terrain completely barefoot.
* [[spoiler:DownerEnding]]: [[spoiler:The Prince releases Ahriman in order to revive Elika. The Prince calmly walks away as Ahriman's darkness engulfs the land. ''Somewhat'' subverted in the [[{{DLC}} Epilogue]], where it's revealed that the Prince revived Elika because her power is the only thing that can defeat Ahriman [[KilledOffForReal for good]]; if she'd stayed dead, it would have just been a waiting game until Ahriman's seal broke and he took over the land without resistance. Then it's played straight again when Elika leaves the Prince high and dry to go look for her people, and it's implied that Ahriman attacks him shortly after.]]
** The DS game ''The Fallen King'', which could be considered a sequel to both the main 2008 game and Epilogue, at least [[spoiler:leaves some hope for a happy ending. It has The Prince go after the king of the City of New Dawn in an attempt to summon Ormazd, and gains a temporary ally, Zal, the "good half" of the king, who ends up dying after killing his other half. The Prince's other new ally, the Ancestor, leaves a message of hope for the Prince, promising that, in time, an inner power would be revealed and new ally would be found.]]
* EscortMission: The developers went out of their way to avoid the EscortMission feel with Elika, with an explicit intent of changing the way player's look at AI-controlled allies. They succeeded.
* FailureIsTheOnlyOption: [[spoiler:If you want to actually finish the game, you have to release Ahriman despite having spent the past god-knows-how-many hours ''sealing him away'']].
* FallenHero: The Warrior, who accepted Ahriman's offer of power so he could protect his people. Also, [[spoiler:the Prince at the end]].
* FireForgedFriends: The Prince and Elika in the reboot. [[spoiler:Ruined when the Prince re-unleashes Ahriman. Elika ''never'' forgives him for that, even when he's revealed to have had a ''very good reason'' for doing it.]]
* FiveBadBand: Ahriman and his minions. In order:
** The BigBad: Ahriman
** TheDragon: The Hunter
** TheBrute: The Warrior
** The EvilGenius: The Alchemist
** The DarkChick: The Concubine
** SixthRanger: [[spoiler:The Mourning King]]
* FootFocus: Elika is always barefoot.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: The reboot Prince refers to both the war his parents died in and his fight against Ahriman as "someone else's war", in addition to expressing doubt that someone could fight for something other than themselves. [[spoiler:When Elika [[HeroicSacrifice gives up her life]] to re-seal Ahriman, the Prince releases Ahriman again to resurrect her]]. Also in the reboot, there are several hints to [[spoiler:Elika's earlier death]], which is in itself ''more'' foreshadowing the above spoiler.
* GenreSavvy: The Prince seems to be this, with a ''lot'' of DeadpanSnarker.
-->'''Elika:''' [[ItsQuietTooQuiet It seems quiet]].\\
'''Prince:''' Don't ever say that.\\
and\\
(After seeing that where a boss stands is precisely where they need to go:)\\
'''Prince:''' Why do we always have to move ''towards'' the monsters?
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: The Prince has quite a bit of this.
-->'''Prince:''' Oh, come on, I've helped old ladies home from the market.\\
'''Elika:''' If they had attractive daughters.\\
'''Prince:''' Yeah. I helped them, too.
* GraveRobbing: The Prince admits to this. Shamelessly. Hey, it's not like they need it anymore, right?
* GuideDangIt: Plenty. Finding all the Light Seeds, for one. If you want the "Precious Time" achievement, you have to hold ''completely still'' [[spoiler:after Elika dies]]. Do not touch any buttons, not even ones that don't make the Prince move. Hell, set down the controller, just to be safe.
** After you seal the evil back into the can, you get to walk around while credits roll, trigger a cutscene, and then find yourself trapped in a relatively small area of the game and expected to somehow figure out what you're supposed to do next - [[spoiler:let the sealed evil out of the can you've just spent the entire game going to great lengths to seal him back into]] - with only a cryptic camera shot that could be showing off the restored landscape, and a flashback sequence explaining one of the game's unanswered questions as hints...
* HereWeGoAgain: A fairly somber example, invoked by the Prince.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Elika dies at the end of the reboot in order to reseal Ahriman. The Prince promptly releases Ahriman to free her. She's not happy about it.]]
* JawsFirstPersonPerspective: [[spoiler:The end boss is played entirely from Ahriman's perspective.]]
* JokeItem:
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: The Prince.
* KnightInSourArmor: Elika is a rare female example.
* LeapOfFaith: [[spoiler:The Prince must leap off a tower to defeat the Concubine's illusory Elikas by making the real one save him.]]
* [[spoiler:LeftHanging]]: [[spoiler:The ending, and frustratingly, the Epilogue as well.]]
* LeParkour: Probably the defining game of the genre. Taken to ridiculous extremes in this game, almost outing the Prince as a relative of SpiderMan. The game even includes a ''ceiling run'' move:
-->'''Elika:''' We have to cross over there!\\
'''Prince:''' Sure, climb on the roof. [[DeadpanSnarker It's not like gravity ever killed anyone]].
* LoadBearingBoss: Each of the Corrupted has their own private lair, which collapses as you leave after defeating them.
* LovableRogue: The Prince to a T.
* {{Metroidvania}}: The game is a 3D version of this genre.
* TheMostDangerousGame: The Hunter's reason for selling his soul.
* MythologyGag: the game opens with The Prince calling for Farah (the name of the LoveInterest from the Sands of Times trilogy). Later when asked if Farah is his girlfriend, he reveals it to be the name of [[spoiler:his donkey]].
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Invoked [[spoiler:at the end. After sealing away Ahriman (at the cost of Elika's life), the Prince almost immediately undoes the same seal he worked his hands to the bone to put in place]]. See SadisticChoice.
* NoFlowInCGI: Averted. The Prince has a long scarf and a bearskin cape that billow dramatically in any wind.
* NominalImportance: Averted. The Prince is never named except in TheMovie, and several of the games have the majority of characters go unnamed. It's most notable in this game, which has eight different characters, but only two have names: [[{{Sidekick}} Elika]] and [[BigBad Ahriman]].
* NoNameGiven: The Prince.
* NotSoDifferent: Ahriman pulls this near the end.
-->Jailer...\\
Torturer...\\
What injury have I done to you\\
That you have not done to me?
* PressXToNotDie: Used in combat when the player is about to be defeated, as well as to finish certain bosses off.
* ProtagonistWithoutAPast: The Prince. He tells Elika as much when she starts questioning him. Hell, the game manual even backs him up on this one. If Elika's persistent enough (ie, if the player keeps hitting that Snark Button) he does reveal that when he was young both of his parents died for someone else's cause, leaving him with an uncle. He's been all over the world and met all kinds of people, but never got strongly attached to anyone. He robs graves and is always getting into trouble, and he's repeatedly gotten his hands on and subsequently lost a great deal of treasure. Where he comes from, rather than inheriting power, people get it by killing each other or [[BribingYourWayToVictory bribing their way into it]].
* PuzzlePan
* [[spoiler:PyrrhicVictory]]: [[spoiler:Save the world, lose the girl. Then subverted.]]
* [[spoiler:PyrrhicVillainy]]: A bit trickier to see, but it's there. It is implied in the DLC that [[spoiler:Elika is somehow crucial to defeating Ahriman for real. By bringing her back to life, Ahriman has secured his release, but it will ultimately bring about his downfall.]]
* RealIsBrown: The game does have this, but the areas became much more colorful after being purified.
* RealityIsUnrealistic: The series and the movie adaptation get a lot of flack for making the Prince [[MightyWhitey "too white"]], due to Western audiences expecting [[PhenotypeStereotype everyone who lives in the Middle East]] to [[UnfortunateImplications be brown as can be and not even vaguely similar to the rest of the world]]. In truth, the Persian people were close relatives of the Europeans, and the majority of modern Iran's population could be considered "white". And most people there identify as white. [[http://images.icanhascheezburger.com/completestore/2008/12/4/128728998449020593.jpg Compare Iranian prime minister Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Jake Gyllenhaal.]] Also, [[http://kotaku.com/5547892/is-prince-of-persia-really-a-racial-whitewash read Kotaku's article.]]
** Even better, compare him to former deputy culture minister [[http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_5aumgLlZ7iE/S5IbljYk34I/AAAAAAAABA8/DVyoARfvAP4/s1600-h/mohammad+ali+ramin.jpg Mohammad Ali Ramin]], who has a very light complexion.
* RecycledTitle: The original game and this one share the name "Prince Of Persia".
* ReverseGrip: The Prince will shift his scimitar from a standard saber grip to this when going into a defensive stance.
* RingOutBoss: The Warrior.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Elika.
* SadisticChoice: The game gives the Prince a pretty hefty one: [[spoiler:keep Ahriman trapped and the world safe (for the short time it takes for Ahriman to bust out of the weakened prison), or undo everything he's fought for and release Ahriman to destroy the world in order to bring Elika back from the dead so that she can find a way to put Ahriman back in the seal for good]]. And because, of course, by then we have [[spoiler:completely fallen for her.]]
* SceneryGorn: Before the land is healed.
* SceneryPorn: ''After'' the land is healed.
* ScrewDestiny: One of the themes.
* SealedEvilInACan: Ahriman.
* ShirtlessScene: The Prince isn't quite shirtless, but his open vest shows off quite a bit of his lovingly-rendered abdominals.
* ShoutOut: You can unlock the ''Sands Of Time'' Prince's outfit, as well as Altair's (From AssassinsCreed) outfit. Similarly, Elika can be dressed as either Farah from the ''Sands of Time'' trilogy or as Jade from ''VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil''. You also get achievements for [[{{Titanic}} standing on the beam on the prow of an airship]], and [[AssassinsCreed standing on a beam jutting out from a building that provides a spectacular view]].
** The game contains a total of [[Literature/ArabianNights one thousand and one]] light seeds.
* SidekickExMachina: Elika.
* {{Speedrun}}: There's an achievement ("Speed Demon") for finishing the game in under 12 hours.
* TakeMyHand: How Elika saves the Prince. Repeatedly. Additionally, if Elika attempts to jump to a ledge the Prince is hanging, she'll start to fall, but the Prince will spin around and grab her hand.
* ToBeContinued: This is the Achievement that pops up after [[spoiler:the Prince resurrects Elika and releases Ahriman]]. Turns out they've abandoned the new storyline in favor of a fourth installment to the "Sands of Time" storyline.
* UnflinchingWalk: The Prince [[spoiler:walks calmly away as he is engulfed by a sandstorm and a dark god flies overhead.]]
* UnwittingPawn: Ahriman [[spoiler:uses the same sales pitch on both the Prince and the Mourning King and succeeds both times.]] Ultimate subverted in [[spoiler:the second case, as the Prince had Elika brought back to life so she could defeat Ahriman for good]].
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Throw the Prince down pits as many times as you like! And ''infinitely'', because Elika will always save, although you [[VideoGameCrueltyPunishment will miss out on an achievement if you do this too much]]. Some of the combat moves are rather nasty, too - throwing an enemy into the air, juggling them with your sword, grabbing them out of the air and smashing them to the ground, shoving them through pillars, hurling ''them'' off ledges...
* WarriorPrince: By name, but not by actual position.
* WhatTheHellHero: Asked by [[spoiler:Elika]] at the end of the game when [[spoiler:the Prince resurrects her and releases Ahriman]].
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