Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown doesn’t deserve the hate it’s getting

At Summer Game Fest Live 2023, we got our first look at the new Prince of Persia game. No, not the Sands of Time remake that’s been mired in development hell for years. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a stylish 2D Metroidvania that looks to be fusing the style of 2008’s standalone Prince of Persia with the side-scrolling of the original 1989 game. It looks rad, the protagonist (he’s not the prince, who knew?) is a whole meal, and the soundtrack is banging—so why are so many people moaning about it on YouTube?

At the time of writing, the Lost Crown trailer on PlayStation’s YouTube channel is sitting at 4,800 likes and 14,000 dislikes—not a great ratio. The comments are an absolute quagmire of whiney crybabies saying, “I miss the old Prince of Persia.” This is a return to the 2D roots of the series. There’s parkour, fluid combat, and magic—it is the old Prince of Persia.