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Phew, we can all relax now. According to this first gameplay footage from Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, all concerns that the new game would forgo elements of exploration and environmental puzzle-solving -- and just go all-out "Bruckheimer" -- should be allayed. Plus, The Prince totally has some Andy Gibb hair going on. That's awesome, right?

The Forgotten Sands puts our Prince in his brother's neighboring kingdom during a great conflict. As a last-ditch effort to ensure the survival of the kingdom, the two release the Sands of Time, which saves everyone ... but also unleashes dark horrors. Uh-oh.

In PoP news, Eurogamer reports the PC version will release in June, a month after the console installments (due May 18). This is nothing new for Ubisoft, as the publisher followed the same protocol with staggered releases of both Assassin's Creed games. And if waiting an extra month hasn't deterred your goal to play The Forgotten Sands on the PC, know that it will also include Ubisoft's internet-based DRM solution -- something to keep in mind.

Make no mistake, we're interested in the upcoming Prince of Persia movie for two reasons: Jake and Gyllenhaal. Saying otherwise is just a lie -- for some reason, some of you think worshipping the Gyllemonster is a bad thing? We don't understand it, but we're not judging you, are we?

Here on Joystiq, we celebrate the roguish charm of the new wielder of the Sands of Time. And we welcome you to do the same by checking out the latest trailer past the break, courtesy of IGN.

The game looks like a mash-up of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and the most recent (and more simply titled 2008 reboot) Prince of Persia, featuring the environments of the former and the saturated color palette of the latter. It also runs really well; it's locked at 60 frames per second. What doesn't look so hot: The stiffly animated Prince himself. Given the fluidity of the action, I expected his movements to be, well, more fluid.

Said to have been in development for two years now, The Forgotten Sands seems to make good use of the Wiimote for performing fantastic feats with the Sands of Time. Much like in Super Mario Galaxy, players will be able to aim the Prince's magic independently of his movement -- using the cursor to place "sand rings" anywhere on walls for handholds, "sand columns" to reach new heights and a "sand sphere" that lets the Prince hover in-between leaps, planning his next move. The result looks to provide a lot more freedom in the ways that levels can be navigated. I just hope the Prince ends up looking cooler while sand-magic-ing his way through the world in the final release.

Which Prince of Persia game features "superb graphic detail and incredibly fluid animation" and "more thrills than a saber duel with a thousand sultans"? If you answered, "Ubisoft's Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands," you'd ... well, you'd probably be right. But that text first appeared on the SNES box of 1992's Prince of Persia, an enhanced port of Jordan Mechner's original vizier vanquish-'em-up.

Nintendo announced at its San Francisco media event today that the SNES game will be included in the Wii version of Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, which is slated for release on May 18. Earlier this month, rumors suggested that Prince of Persia Classic -- a direct remake of the original game, initially released on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network -- would be included in The Forgotten Sands. Instead, Wii owners get classic Prince of Persia exclusively.

Don't fret too much about the platforms, though. You're probably in for more thrills than a saber duel with a thousand sultans no matter what.

According to a BBFC listing, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands may include a special bonus -- Prince of Persia Classic. Unfortunately, the listing isn't enough to discern whether the classic version would be the same game now available on Xbox Live and PSN, or if it's part of some kind of special edition package.

When asked for comment, a Ubisoft representative told Joystiq it would not comment on rumors. Although our questions remain unanswered, at least we can look forward to the Sands of Time prince coming to the HD era and answering a few other questions.

[Via Destructoid]

click to PoP into the gallery
Want to see what Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands will look like on Wii? You're going to have to wait a while longer. In the meantime, you can enjoy some ridiculously high-res screenshots that Ubisoft says are the Wii version. We like their optimism.

In addition to these outrageous screens, Ubi released some new info about the game, which sounds both believable and neat. The levels will have alternate paths, some of which require acrobatics and crazy sand powers to access. The press release specifies 15 hours of gameplay in addition to unlockables, secret paths, and such.

The actual Wii version, which we're guessing will display in actual Wii resolution, will be out May 18.

Ubisoft's current focus to iterate its "major franchises" seems to expose its key brands to franchise fatigue and, with it, dwindling sales -- just look what happened to sales of Guitar Hero and Tony Hawk when Activision implemented a similar strategy. However, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot remains unconcerned about so-called franchise fatigue, as he emphasized today that the publisher's goal is to "increase and come out more often" with games.

Speaking during a financial earnings call for investors, Guillemot expressed his belief that Ubisoft has taken plenty of time to develop the next installments in the Driver, Ghost Recon, Prince of Persia and Splinter Cell franchises -- development time that will ultimately result in more iterations in less time, in turn improving brand visibility and training consumers to expect these franchises more often, and plan their gaming budgets accordingly. He also pointed out that sales of these upcoming titles should boost sales of their franchises' legacy games.

Of course, with that said, Guillemot re-emphasized that quality is still important and that the company has invested (and continues to invest) in building game engines and tools that can be used for the next 10 years. The CEO noted that Ubisoft development teams our given enough time to ensure very high quality work, adding that Ubisoft "takes those elements into consideration."

Here's the good news: The first images of McFarlane Toys' line of action figures based on the upcoming Prince of Persia movie have been released, and they don't look half bad. Sure, some of the villains' figurines are sort of dead-eyed, but hey -- that's just a natural side-effect of the angry sand infusion they've undergone. Check out Toy News International's gallery to see the rest of the man-dolls.

Here's the bad news: These figures are only four-to-six inches tall. Even if you're a person of limited stature, it would be impossible to play "Jake Gyllenhaal Fantasy Dream Date" with a four-inch-tall representation of the guy.

[Via Kotaku]

This past Saturday brought us the Spike TV Video Game Awards and – before experiencing the litany of world exclusives that awaited us inside – we spent some time outside cruising the red carpet and talking (briefly!) to many of the game developers and talent. We squeezed them for information as fast as we could while simultaneously wishing them holiday cheer and good tidings. Yes, it was as awkward as it sounds. Here's what we learned from Nolan North.

You're quickly becoming one of the recognizable stars of video game voiceover acting. How did that happen?

You know ... I don't really know how that happened. I was lucky to land a lot of good roles in good games that became really popular ... Assassin's Creed, Uncharted, Prince of Persia, and they became really popular so fast and my name just happened to be attached to them. And you know, with the success of Uncharted -- the first one and then the second ... I don't know. It's just a phenomenon that I'm just lucky to be a part of.

Claudia Black told us that the motion capture sessions were the real key to making the relationship between Nathan and Chloe seem real. What do you think?

Absolutely. A lot of times we're just in a booth behind a microphone, unshaven and just ready to go ... and alone, more than anything. I mean, working with all of these actors, it's like doing theater somewhere. As a matter of fact, it's like what we used to call Black Box Theater back in college. There really wasn't much of a set ... we were just out there doing our thing, but the interaction was there and I think that's what translated so well to a video game.

We've been doing this Joystiq thing for a while now and, after sifting through years of traffic data, we think we finally know what you're all here for: shirtless Jake Gyllenhaal. It's okay, we're big fans of the guy's pecs, lats, abs, and peclatabs too. As such, we knew we had to post this behind-the-scenes look at Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, not for its juicy interview bits nor to see the picturesque locales where the crew filmed, but for those few seconds of Gyllenhaal in all his shirtless glory. The video is right after the break. You're entirely welcome, internet.

[Via Latino Review]

During a recent Ubisoft preview event, Michael McIntyre, director of level design for Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, talked to Joystiq about the new sequel to the old trilogy, establishing its connection to the Sands of Time game series and the Bruckheimer film. The Forgotten Sands is a side story, based in the Sands of Time universe, bridging the seven-year gap between the original Sands of Time game and its sequel, Warrior Within.

Clearly, Ubisoft has positioned the next game to piggyback on the Bruckheimer blockbuster and ideally generate renewed sales for the brand (which underperformed in its 2008 iteration). Forgotten Sands is also an opportunity for Ubisoft to finally justify the Prince's remarkable transformation from carefree hero to brooding, emo warrior.

Continue reading for our full interview with Michael McIntyre -- after the break -- in which he reveals new (and rewinding revisited) elements in the game and the return of a familiar voice.

We're not sure if it's possible to Gyllenhaalify a game, but that's exactly how we'd describe what's happened to the Prince in the latest trailer for Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands. Premiering last night on the Spike Video Game Awards, the first footage from the game doesn't show us much in the vein of actual gameplay, but it does remind us repeatedly of the everlasting nature of sand. Unfortunately, we won't get to control Prince Dreamboat through Sandland until sometime in May. In the meantime, we have the trailer for you just after the break.

The 2008 reboot of the Prince of Persia franchise (which, apparently, is getting shut down) featured some of the most enjoyable snark and pith we've ever heard in a video game. Fortunately, Andy Walsh, the man responsible for the Prince and Elika's sharp-tongued exchanges, was recently recognized for his witty dialogue when he won the Writers' Guild of Great Britain Games Award last night in London.

Normally, this is where we'd drop in a quote from Walsh about how excited he was to receive the award, but it doesn't seem that anyone initiated the optional dialogue with him following the Writers' Guild awards ceremony. Too bad, something tells us we've missed out on the best part.

Ubisoft has just announced a new Prince of Persia -- but it's not a sequel to 2008's polarizing adventure (if desired, add unhappy emoticons to sentence). Instead, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands will continue the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time trilogy series, complete with "many of the fan-favorite elements" and "new gameplay innovations that gamers have come to expect from the Prince of Persia brand." Oh, and an accompanying film!

You can catch the game's premiere trailer on Spike TV's Video Game Awards on Saturday, December 12, 2009 at 8 p.m. EST. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands is scheduled for release on "consoles and handhelds" in May 2010.

The next-to-last day of Steam's "Early Holiday Sale" brings with it an eclectic collection of discounted PC titles, including last year's Prince of Persia ($14.99), Battlefield 2 ($14.99), Lucidity ($2.49) and Guild Wars Trilogy ($24.99). Also, here's a link to a Black Friday sale for a 1TB internal HDD. If you've been following this Steam sale for the past few days, you're probably hurting for hard drive space right about now.

Make sure you free up some room before tomorrow -- at 8 a.m. PST, the last batch of 24-hour sales will be announced. Stay tuned!