The Rogue Prince of Persia turns the classic into a fast-paced roguelite with gloriously fluid acrobatics.
The Rogue Prince of Persia is a 2D roguelite from Evil Empire, the studio that kept Dead Cells going for years. Ubisoft is the publisher. After around 15 months in Early Access, the finished version 1.0 launched on August 20, 2025. You jump, wall-run and fight your way again and again through a Persia occupied by the Huns. I've got plenty of runs under my belt, and my take is: movement has rarely felt this good in a roguelite. On Steam, around 90 percent of reviews are positive.
In this review
Rating and verdict
The Rogue Prince of Persia is a really good roguelite. The acrobatics feel fantastic, combat is fast and the comic-book style looks great. You can tell the people behind Dead Cells were at work here.
It doesn't quite match its big role model in terms of content and weapon variety, and the story stays in the background. But if you love fluid movement and fast combat, you'll get many fun hours out of it.
What we liked
✅ Gloriously fluid parkour
✅ Fast, punchy combat
✅ Strong comic-book style
✅ Runs great on Steam Deck
What bothered us
❌ Less content than Dead Cells
❌ Smaller weapon selection
❌ Story is rather secondary
Score: 80 %
A prince in a time loop
Persia is being overrun by the Huns under their leader Nogai. The prince owns a magical amulet that sends him back in time every time he dies, turning each failed attempt into a fresh start. With every run, you learn more about the attack, about traitors and about the people around the prince.
The story isn't the main reason to play The Rogue Prince of Persia, but it gives the runs a nice common thread. Side characters at camp comment on your progress, and the time loop fits the roguelite concept perfectly.
Parkour and combat
The heart of it all is movement. The prince runs along walls, vaults over enemies, kicks them into traps and rolls under attacks. Everything feels fluid and responsive, especially with a controller. After a few hours, you're practically flying through the levels, and that's exactly what makes it so addictive.
In combat, you use a main weapon and a tool such as a bow or chakram. Medallions change your playstyle, for example with poison, fire or bonus damage after wall-runs. The combinations are exciting, even if the selection is smaller than in Dead Cells.
Content and progression
Each run, you explore several biomes that are arranged a little differently every time. Between runs, you permanently unlock new weapons, medallions and shortcuts. Version 1.0 added new biomes, bosses and a proper ending.
If you know Dead Cells, you'll still find the content a bit slimmer. After 15 to 25 hours, you'll have seen most of it. On the plus side, you don't need the Ubisoft launcher to play on Steam, which is often praised in reviews.
Graphics, sound and tech
Visually, The Rogue Prince of Persia goes for a bold comic-book style with vibrant colors and thick outlines. The prince's animations are buttery smooth, and hits feel punchy. The music blends Middle Eastern sounds with driving beats and suits the high pace well. There's no voice acting.
Technically, the game runs very cleanly and is Verified on Valve's Steam Deck, with many players praising the smooth performance on the go. You'll find the exact system requirements in the table below this article.
Scores at a glance
Here you can see our score for The Rogue Prince of Persia compared to Steam user reviews. Steam scores change over time, which is why the date is included.
| Source | Score | As of |
|---|---|---|
| PlayInsider | 80 out of 100 | Oct 26, 2026 |
| Steam user reviews | Very Positive (around 90% positive) | Oct 25, 2026 |
System requirements (PC)
| Minimum | |
|---|---|
| Operating system | Windows 10 |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-4460 3.2 GHz / AMD Ryzen 3 1200 3.2 GHz |
| graphics card | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 (2GB) / AMD RX 5500 XT (4GB) |
| Memory | 8 GB RAM |
| storage | 5 GB |
