Inside Ubisoft India Studios’ Debut Title: The Prince of Persia Remake

Prince of Persia is rolling again the clock, once more. Seventeen years on from the discharge of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Ubisoft has introduced its first-ever full-fledged remake. And in slightly of surprising information, it is Ubisoft India Studios — the blended would possibly of Ubisoft Pune and Ubisoft Mumbai — this is main construction at the remake. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake — as it is formally identified — is the first actual name created via Ubisoft India Studios. It is been comprised of the bottom up with a brand new engine, re-recorded discussion, and new digicam angles.

Greater than 170 staff between Mumbai and Pune have spent over two years operating on Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake, with its sprint to the end line falling below the COVID-19 cloud. Ubisoft’s India places of work were close since March when the national lockdown was once introduced, and the gaming large equipped work-from-home apparatus and give a boost to to all of its staff, to lend a hand them entire the Prince of Persia remake, in what are the important thing months main as much as recreation’s unencumber.

Ubisoft India Studios managing director Jean-Philippe Pieuchot claims it is the fruits of the primary end-to-end console manufacturing from India: “With this remake Ubisoft has pioneered AAA experience in India. […] This milestone paves the street to the way forward for the Indian gaming trade.”

Why does not it glance nice?

Whilst Pieuchot is touting it as a AAA name, the first look on the recreation — be it trailer or screenshots — is not very promising, when it comes to graphics. For a name that makes use of the similar engine (AnvilNext 2.zero) as Assassin’s Creed Origins, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake seems not anything adore it. In reality, it seems one thing that belongs to the former generation. It is a concern shared via other publications and plenty of Prince of Persia fanatics on Twitter.

“You’ll be able to ensure that the sport will likely be best notch [upon release in] January 2021,” Ubisoft Mumbai and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake recreation director Pierre-Sylvain Gires informed Devices 360. “You’ll be able to ensure that the polish will likely be there.

“Sure, we’re the use of Murderer’s Creed Origins’ Anvil engine, however that was once only a base and we published a large number of issues round this engine to in reality go well with Prince of Persia Sands of Time Remake. Now not most effective the tech means with the rewind options and all the ones issues that had to be remodeled, however just like the inventive route is meant to be other than Murderer’s Creed Origins.

“We would have liked the sport to have a novel glance that served the aim of the sport. The narration and storyline [in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time] is a delusion. It is one thing this is with reference to the [Middle Eastern folk tale collection] One Thousand and One Nights feeling. So, it’s intentional to have a novel glance that serves the aim of the sport, with a brand new lighting fixtures means [and more] saturation of the colors to lend a hand the magic and the delusion of the tale to in reality pop from the display screen.”

Ubisoft Pune senior manufacturer Annu Koul thinks the brand new Anvil engine allowed them to provide a “fashionable twist” to Prince of Persia, however nonetheless keep “true to what our recreation was once prior to.”

A white actor voicing a Heart Jap prince

Talking of staying true to the 2003 unique, Yuri Lowenthal returns because the voice and motion-capture actor for the titular Prince. That is a curious casting selection, particularly in a yr the place there was renewed outcry over white actors voicing non-white characters around the geographical regions of leisure. It is affected The Simpsons, Circle of relatives Man, Netflix’s Large Mouth, and Apple TV+’s Central Park. Many presentations and creators have even pledged to not have white actors voice non-white characters.

“It is a very, excellent query that you’re asking me right here,” Gires mentioned. “And I will be able to inform you that after we organize the casting for our characters […] we did pay a large number of consideration to the foundation of our actors. We’re in reality casting out of an excessively huge panel, and […] and we in reality attempt to get as original as imaginable.

“However in regards to the prince, Yuri Lowenthal, […] he [was cast] as every other actor. He was once shortlisted and decided on as a result of his voice. And we did take a decision all in combination, that since we would have liked to play at the nostalgia [of the original] — I believe Yuri’s voice additionally hasn’t elderly — and he has such an power and his persona was once like such a lot just like the Prince, that we need to move with him.”

Princess Farah and the Prince in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake
Photograph Credit score: Ubisoft

Moreover, Gires famous that the feminine lead persona of Farah, an Indian princess, was once being voiced via Supinder Wraich, a Canadian actress of Indian foundation.

And all through a presentation to reporters, Koul spoke concerning the native wisdom and cultural enjoy Ubisoft India Studios was once in a position to deliver to Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake that begins in Ninth-century India at a fictional Maharaja’s palace. She referred to as it “an honour.”

Why Prince of Persia remake is an honour

Koul’s workforce at Ubisoft Pune took care of the extra technical facets, operating at the recreation engine, rendering, digicam, controls, fight, missions, and AI and knowledge control. Ubisoft Mumbai treated the inventive facet of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake, which concerned the artwork (design, idea, stage, technical and 3-D artwork), animation, mo-cap, recreation and stage design, FX, and UI.

It suited the workforce’s strengths. Ubisoft Pune was once arrange in 2008 essentially for high quality regulate (QC). At the same time as it is grown from 100 staff in 2009, 500 staff in 2016, and 1300+ in 2020, high quality regulate stays its number one beat. 70 % of its staff does QC, with the remainder 30 % dedicated to manufacturing.

Alternatively, Ubisoft Mumbai — arrange in 2018 to be devoted to AAA titles — is completely dedicated to manufacturing, despite the fact that it does have just a hundred staff at this time. Ubisoft additionally has an R&D unit established on the IIT Bombay, some of the nation’s best technical universities, with lower than 30 other folks operating on AI, knowledge, and gadget finding out.

Pieuchot remarked that AAA recreation construction is not an in a single day project. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake has been made imaginable as a result of Ubisoft’s investments over a decade in the past.

The Prince working on partitions in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake
Photograph Credit score: Ubisoft

When Ubisoft India Studios learnt it will get to paintings on Prince of Persia, the groups have been elated. Gires mentioned: “We are all very excited and really, more than pleased in an effort to paintings in this first remake from Ubisoft. As a franchise, Prince of Persia is cherished in the neighborhood, and for the studio in India as neatly. So to paintings on any such recreation is an honour.”

Koul added: “I am positive, like us, you may have grown up with this recreation. We have now all grown up with this recreation, and for plenty of workforce contributors, this recreation has proven them that there is usually a profession in a gaming trade. So, the sport which has given us a profession, it was once all the time an honour to paintings on that recreation, and to exhibit that recreation to the sector now.”

Rewind the clock

Launched in overdue 2003 first for the Recreation Boy Advance, adopted briefly via PS2, Xbox, Home windows, and a model for mobiles, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is famous as some of the biggest video video games of all time. It follows the titular Prince, the son of Sharaman and inheritor to a Persian kingdom, as he discovers an hourglass and a dagger as his father sacks a Maharaja’s town. The Maharaja’s most effective daughter, Farah, is abducted as a present for the Sultan of Azad.

Once they arrive in Azad, the Prince’s father items the hourglass as a present to the Sultan, however a Vizier methods the Prince and has him stab the hourglass with the dagger, freeing the Sands of Time contained inside. They turn into the electorate into savage monsters and the Prince should then paintings with Farah to undo the wear and tear. The dagger lets in gamers to rewind time, kill, and freeze enemies.

Now, over 17 years on, you’ll do it all once more. Koul famous that that is “a remake, now not a remaster nor a reboot. We would have liked to provide gamers the chance to enjoy this recreation once more, or for the first actual time however with a contemporary twist.”

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake will likely be to be had January 21, 2021 on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Even though the sport would possibly not have a right kind release on PS5 and the Xbox Series circle of relatives, it’ll nonetheless run on next-gen consoles because of backward compatibility, Koul confident us. It is going to price €40 (about Rs. three,500) throughout platforms.