With its forgiving gameplay, Ubisoft was clearly trying to make the new Prince of Persia appeal to more casual or mainstream audience. So, IndustryGamers asked producer Ben Mattes, why not bring the game to the ultimate casual console: The Wii?

Mattes said that the system just couldn't handle what his team wanted to achieve, saying "the AI of Elika was highly advanced and required a lot of processing power; the world size and dynamic loading, the draw distance, the number of polygons in the characters... If we had done a Wii version, it would have been toned down, probably linear, it wouldn't have been an open-world game, and so it would have been a very different experience. We didn't want to water it down that way."

... Plus, they couldn't have charged Wii owners $10 for the "Epilogue" DLC! No, no, we kid.

It's been quite some time since we've heard anything from the folks behind the upcoming Prince of Persia movie adaptation. Lucky for us, the film's producer Jerry Bruckheimer recently decided to let some footage of the film slip during an interview (found after the break).

When asked what Jake Gyllenhaal brings to the film, Bruckheimer says, "Well, he's very handsome." That being said, consider this an early warning for you and your elderly mother -- shot after shot of those stunning pecs and that dastardly smile could result in some unfortunate medical complications. You've been warned!

Oh, and as for the movie itself ... we'll just have to wait and see if it's any good when it arrives on July 10th not-soon-enough.

[Thanks, Sean!]

The fine purveyors of DRM-free classics at GoG.com have announced an agreement with Ubisoft, which sees good old(ish) games like Beyond Good & Evil and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time added to the downloadable lineup. Joining action journalist Jade and the time-swindling prince are ... the aeroplanes of IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946! We guess they weren't really going for much of a theme outside of all three costing $9.99 each.

Other Ubisoft titles slated to hit the PC service "in the coming weeks" include Heroes of Might and Magic, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six and Not Tom Clancy's Far Cry.

"I'm glad you're still doing that."

The Prince's relief at being spared another fatal plunge, even if it squashes his pride just a tad, is well justified in Epilogue. Crumbling, daunting, dark and no more practical than most video game locales, the Underground Palace is the sort of place that makes you glad you invested in that magical, life-saving companion. Its entirely linear layout offers a breathless string of platforming challenges for the Prince, a final chicane of scurrying and swinging that requires more adept timing than anything else in the main game.

That isn't to say that the downloadable extension is a mere taunt directed at those who scoffed at Prince of Persia's forgiving nature. The difficulty curve matches the dire situation crafted by the story, which has prompted the acrobatic duo to flee rather than fight. It's easy for me to recommend Epilogue based on the engaging spatial puzzles or the elaborate, corruption-riddled platforming sequences, but the real draw is witnessing the aftermath of Prince of Persia's poignant climax.

Sometimes, when a story comes in to Joystiq HQ, we get so excited we can hardly keep from spinning wildly in our chairs, laughing maniacally as if we were the villain in a bad sci-fi movie. Well folks, today is one of those days, for your little sister just found something awesome to print out and cover her Trapper Keeper with: shirtless Jake Gyllenhaal. That's right, new images from Prince of Persia have made their way online and Jake is looking cut. See for yourself past the break.

If you're anything like us then you've been eagerly anticipating the release of the Prince of Persia "Epilogue" DLC, which was due to drop tomorrow. Unfortunately, you've got a little longer to wait, as Ubisoft's twitter feed has revealed a "new release date," otherwise known as a one week delay. The DLC will now be available on March 5, instead.

Clearly there was some sort of last minute problem -- though the tweet gives no indication as to what -- for the DLC to have been delayed only a day before release. A disappointing misstep, especially with no Elika around to rescue it from its week-long drop to the floor.

Update: IGN reveals that the Epilogue is priced at $10. [Thanks Daniel!]

Through a partnership with TransGaming Inc., Ubisoft is poised to bring select titles to Mac gamers (yes, we repeat: "Mac gamers") through retail and digital download channels. The two most significant offerings will be Prince of Persia and Shaun White Snowboarding, although Ubisoft will also provide CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Hard Evidence, Rayman Raving Rabbids and Petz Sports to retail locations for the first time. Those games are currently only available through Ubisoft's website.

You can download Prince of Persia and Shaun White Snowboarding for Mac from Ubisoft's site (and look for the other games on retail shelves) next month.

We've told you about it -- now see the new downloadable chapter of Prince of Persia, "Epilogue." As its title suggests, this new challenge is set after the game's controversial ending. It also sees the Prince gaining a new Sprint ability and his girlfriend, uh, "companion," Elika, given the power to (temporarily) restore patches of the level to their uncorrupted state.

Hitting XBLM and PSN on February 26, this adventure through the Underground Palace -- and confrontation with a new boss, the Shapeshifter -- promises to be more challenging than anything pre-Epilogue. Just watch and you'll see what we mean.

Trophy whores have undoubtedly played Prince of Persia -- it's one of the easiest Platinum Trophies available on the system. The upcoming "Epilogue" expansion pack continues the story and adds a new magic ability called "Energize." The Prince and Elika must work together to fight a new enemy, the appropriately named Shapeshifter.

The Epilogue expansion is scheduled for release next week. No price has been announced yet, but the add-on Trophies have been revealed. You can check them out after the break.

Disney and Lego have announced a partnership to bring constructable versions of Toy Story, Cars and Prince of Persia to retail by next year. The Lego Prince of Persia will be based upon the upcoming movie and not the Sands of Time video game.

Indulging pure speculation, we received this tip with the idea that the partnership means a Lego Prince of Persia video game could happen. Despite Warner Bros. ownership of developer Traveller's Tales, it has used licenses from other movie studios, so anything is possible. We're still holding out hope for a Lego Harry Potter game first, considering that magical universe is far more evolved than the Prince's, with numerous notable characters to unlock and play.

[Thanks, Matt]

We regret to inform PC owners that if they want to know what happens after Prince of Persia ends, they'll have to pick up a console version of the game. Ubisoft's message board has a statement from the community manager explaining that, due to "business reasons," the PoP Epilogue DLC will not appear on PC. The downloadable extension is slated to arrive for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on February 26th.

We've contacted Ubisoft to find out a little more regarding those "business reasons." We'll update if we hear anything.

Update: Ubi confirmed the Epilogue DLC is "slated to release only for consoles on February 26th." Perhaps Ormazd will bless PC users with a Feb. 27 release, but that's unlikely. Our query concerning the "business reasons" behind the decision went unanswered.

[Thanks, Vivienne; Via Big Download]

While careful not to spoil the game's conclusion, Rguigui notes that Epilogue will further develop the relationship between the main characters and task them with defeating a new enemy, The Shapeshifter. "The Shapeshifter is an enemy that takes the form of two of Ahriman's most fearsome Lieutenants, the Warrior and the Hunter," he says. "Though their physical form is familiar to our heroes and the player, it will requires a particular strategy to defeat the Shapeshifter, rewarding the player that takes advantage of the new sprint feature exclusive to the Epilogue."

In addition to the royal rogue's sprinting offensive, the DLC gives Elika the "Energize" power, which allows her to temporarily restore a piece of destroyed environment. Tough-guy gamers will also be pleased to note that said environment will offer more challenging platforming sequences and additional traps to be almost-killed by. "We wanted to build a challenge and experience even greater with all the tools at our disposal, and let me say that there are a lot: Elika's power, traps, combat system, etc."

Look for all of those etc. on PSN and Xbox Live on February 26th. We'll update as soon Ubisoft settles on a price.

Jerry Bruckheimer's latest movie, Confessions Of A Shopaholic, premieres next month and ... wait, where are you going? This might actually interest you. Halfway through the movie you'll be able to catch a glimpse of the poster art for Bruckheimer's 2010 take on Prince of Persia. According to MTV, the previously unseen artwork shows up during a scene in Times Square and features Jake Gyllenhaal in full costume.

Surely, that's well worth going to see a movie with "Shopaholic" in the title. The perfect way to pull in the young, male gaming audience.

As part of its fiscal earnings report for the quarter ending December 2008, Ubisoft has revealed the "sell-in sales" (that's to retailers, not consumers) for a handful of key titles. Far Cry 2, launched in late October, shipped 2.9 million, while Raving Rabbids TV Party has tallied up 1.5 million since its mid-November unveiling.

Unfortunately, a certain wisecracking acrobat didn't seem to meet expectations. According to the report, the above figures helped to "offset the impact of a slower take-off" for Prince of Persia and its 2.2 million shipped units for December. Yesterday's NPD stats put PoP's US sales at around 483K. Ubisoft has also confirmed a fiscal 2009 release window for Assassin's Creed 2, Splinter Cell Conviction and a new Ghost Recon.