Prince of Persia
In 1989, a video game called Prince Of Persia was released for the Apple II. Created by Jordan Mechner, the game would produce sequels over the years, culminating with a trilogy – Sands Of Time, Warrior Within, and The Two Thrones – for the Xbox, Playstation 2 and GameCube. 
Today, Prince Of Persia is being prepped for the big time: a new game closer to the spirit of the original version is due out next year, a major motion picture produced by Jerry Bruckheimer is being filmed for a 2010 release, and a graphic novel has just been released from First Second Books.
Today, Prince Of Persia is being prepped for the big time: a new game closer to the spirit of the original version is due out next year, a major motion picture produced by Jerry Bruckheimer is being filmed for a 2010 release, and a graphic novel has just been released from First Second Books.Prince Of Persia ($16.95) is a tale of the city of Marv in two different time periods. The story taking place in the 9th Century centers to twin scions Guiv and Guilan, and their adopted brother Layeth, who was raised by King Saman afer he slew Layeth’s father. Following the death of Saman and the invasion of Marv by invaders from Baghdad who install Layeth upon the throne, Guiv tries to kill Layeth in his sleep, but cannot bring himself to do it. As Layeth and new wife Guilan deal with expectant parenthood and the zealous ambitions of an ambitious general, Guiv exiles himself in a citadel, trying to find answers to visions he had while being drowned for his attempt at fratricide. Soon, Guiv finds himself seeing visions of his own, a prophecy that will shape the destiny of Marv.
Meanwhile, in the 13th Century, we meet Shirin, the free-spirited daughter of a member of a corrupt commission that runs Marv. Determined to follow her dance instructor and learn more about the secrets he keeps. Cutting her hair and posing as a beggar boy, she sneaks out of Marv. Soon, she meets Ferdos, the adopted son of the guardian of waters, who was taught the legends of the siblings and bears some resemblance to Layeth. Soon, the couple finds themselves confronted by the commission’s forces, as well as the prophecy itself.
While A.B. Sina writes a compelling story, the decision to run both plots together with very few obvious segues does lead to confusion at first, particularly as Ferdos first appears, frequently calling Shirin “Guilan.” Once the two eras are firmly in place (albeit set at 300 years apart, which does not equate to the four-century difference established at the beginning), the drama proceeds well enough, particularly when the plots run on a few individual pages near the end. The wife/husband artist team of LeUyen Pham and Alex Puvilland excel with the visuals, creating a marvelous Middle Eastern backdrop and characters that seem descended from The Arabian Nights, They are ably aided by Hilary Sycamore’s color work, which makes the story more distinctive. Mechner comes in with an afterword about the origins of Prince Of Persia itself, as well as the various incarnations of the Prince himself, including a short story by Russian writer Victor Pelevin about a man who keeps playing the game and has it merge with his reality. Mechner speaks of his fascination for The Arabian Nights and his graduation towards the Shahnameh, an epic tale in itself, which further shaped his vision for Prince Of Persia.
In the end, Prince Of Persia proves itself to be as good on printed paper as on screen, recommended for everybody from non-gameplayers to those who first met a nameless Prince decades ago on the Apple II, and everybody in between.
Meanwhile, in the 13th Century, we meet Shirin, the free-spirited daughter of a member of a corrupt commission that runs Marv. Determined to follow her dance instructor and learn more about the secrets he keeps. Cutting her hair and posing as a beggar boy, she sneaks out of Marv. Soon, she meets Ferdos, the adopted son of the guardian of waters, who was taught the legends of the siblings and bears some resemblance to Layeth. Soon, the couple finds themselves confronted by the commission’s forces, as well as the prophecy itself.
While A.B. Sina writes a compelling story, the decision to run both plots together with very few obvious segues does lead to confusion at first, particularly as Ferdos first appears, frequently calling Shirin “Guilan.” Once the two eras are firmly in place (albeit set at 300 years apart, which does not equate to the four-century difference established at the beginning), the drama proceeds well enough, particularly when the plots run on a few individual pages near the end. The wife/husband artist team of LeUyen Pham and Alex Puvilland excel with the visuals, creating a marvelous Middle Eastern backdrop and characters that seem descended from The Arabian Nights, They are ably aided by Hilary Sycamore’s color work, which makes the story more distinctive. Mechner comes in with an afterword about the origins of Prince Of Persia itself, as well as the various incarnations of the Prince himself, including a short story by Russian writer Victor Pelevin about a man who keeps playing the game and has it merge with his reality. Mechner speaks of his fascination for The Arabian Nights and his graduation towards the Shahnameh, an epic tale in itself, which further shaped his vision for Prince Of Persia.
In the end, Prince Of Persia proves itself to be as good on printed paper as on screen, recommended for everybody from non-gameplayers to those who first met a nameless Prince decades ago on the Apple II, and everybody in between.
-Jason Borelli
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