Two decades after he first leapt into the hearts of gamers, the Prince of Persia returns in a brand new adventure. But gone are the turbaned troublemakers he clashed swords with back in the day -- this is a totally new world starring a totally new acrobat. Before you take the plunge, have a meet and greet with the new game's principal players.
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The Prince
The eponymous star has a more conventional background than his royal name suggests. A wandering adventurer with a keen wit, an eye for shiny baubles and a penchant for getting into trouble, he's perpetually hounded by unfortunate twists of fate that leave him empty-handed. Luckily, his skill with a sword and legendary agility -- not to mention his uncanny ability to crack a joke anywhere, anytime -- has saved his hide countless times. At the outset of the new game, our humorous hero is returning from his latest exploits on a donkey loaded with gold. What could possibly go wrong?
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Elika
All great jokesters need a straight man, but in this case, it's a woman. A princess, to be exact. Daughter of a mourning king, the mysterious Elika is a descendant of the Ahura, guardians of the Tree of Life. She's also the Prince's saving grace, literally yanking him from the jaws of death time and time again. While the Prince fights darkness with a blade, Elika is a master of light magic, although her real talent is cleansing the world from the dark god Ahriman's corruption.
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Ahriman
Based on the deity of the same name from the Persian religion of Zoroastrianism, Prince of Persia's resident bad guy Ahriman is evil incarnate. In fact, he's the God of Evil, although he's spent the last thousand years imprisoned inside the Tree of Life by his brother Ormazd, the God of Light. Hope nothing happens to that tree, because if Ahriman ever got out, he'd surely infect the world with his corruption, sending a couple brave souls on a nigh-impossible quest. Fingers crossed!
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The Hunter
When you're an evil god, you don't sweat the small stuff. Instead, you enslave a few powerful souls and force them to do your bidding, and what better place to start than with a self-indulgent prince trained in the arts of the hunt and the kill? Having been contorted into a gruesome beast by Ahriman, The Hunter is nimble, brutal, and a serious pain.
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The Alchemist
Where The Hunter was a man of death, the Alchemist was a man of life. A brilliant scientist, he begged the god Ormazd to help him unlock the secrets of the universe, only to get the cold shoulder. So like any obsessed scientist, he turned to evil, buddying up with Ahriman and becoming one of his most ruthless servants.
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The Warrior
Not all vows of evil are intentional, however. The Warrior used to rule a peaceful kingdom, but when war came from all sides, Ahriman offered his people salvation in exchange for his soul. The old bait and switch worked, and soon after his lands were saved, the horrifying creature made good on his promise by agreeing to do Ahriman's bidding. Which, incidentally, includes stopping you from doing anything unseemly to his master.
Posted: 26 Nov 2008
