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Ubisoft has stated that finishing its now-canceled Prince of Persia: Sands of Time Remake would have “required extra time and funding than we might responsibly commit,” after greater than half a decade of improvement.
Yesterday, Ubisoft shocked followers by asserting it had scrapped the long-awaited remake fully as half of a serious enterprise reshuffle, almost six years after the challenge was first introduced, and 5 years to the day after it was initially set to launch — on January 21, 2021.
Ubisoft has by no means totally defined why the remake has had such a tortured improvement — first on the firm’s Mumbai and Pune studios, then at Ubisoft Montreal for the reason that challenge was rebooted in 2022. What has been occurring behind the scenes since then, and why has the sport been scrapped now, after so lengthy making an attempt to get it proper?
A press release that is now been shared by way of the official Prince of Persia social media account holds few solutions. Right here it is in full:
“To the Prince of Persia neighborhood, we needed to share this with you straight,” reads a press release attributed to Ubisoft’s Prince of Persia group.
“We’ve made the troublesome choice to cease improvement on Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake. We know that is deeply disappointing. The sport carries monumental that means for followers and for the groups who labored on it.
“Whereas the challenge had actual potential, we weren’t ready to attain the extent of high quality you deserve, and persevering with would have required extra time and funding than we might responsibly commit. And, we did not need to launch one thing that fell brief of what The Sands of Time represents.
“Prince of Persia as a universe and a legacy continues to matter deeply to us, and this choice doesn’t imply we’re stepping away from the franchise.
“Thanks in your ardour, endurance and love for Prince of Persia.”
Precisely what the longer term has in retailer for Prince of Persia now could be unsure. Lackluster gross sales of 2024’s Prince of Persia: The Misplaced Crown meant a deliberate sequel to that sport was additionally scrapped, and employees reorganized elsewhere throughout the firm. The franchise’s most up-to-date launch was 2025’s The Rogue Prince of Persia — made externally by Lifeless Cells co-developer Evil Empire.
Whereas many of the small print round Ubisoft’s enterprise reshuffle stay to be seen, the corporate did a minimum of title the Prince of Persia franchise as half of its new fourth “Inventive Home” division yesterday, suggesting it was certainly nonetheless an ongoing concern.
For the followers ready half a decade to play the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time Remake, nevertheless, that is doubtless of little consolation.
“Fairly unhappy we’ll by no means get this,” wrote Ubisoft fan SynthPotato, “folks had been satisfied its on the sting of releasing.” “Noticed this coming a mile away sadly,” added one other fan, 8biteric. “Please inform me you’re going to reverse time and take again this publish and make an announcement that the sport is finished and will launch later this yr,” steered TheChrisLambert, hopefully.
5 different video games had been canceled yesterday as half of Ubisoft’s reshuffle, whereas an additional seven titles have been delayed — together with the corporate’s equally long-awaited Murderer’s Creed: Black Flag remake.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s Information Editor. You may attain Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or discover him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social