The Realm of Water

Lore & Background

The Two Thrones is the sixth main installment in the Prince of Persia series and the final chapter of the Sands of Time trilogy. The story follows the Prince as he returns to his home in Babylon, only to find that his actions in Warrior Within have undone the events of The Sands of Time. The villainous Vizier is back from the dead and kills the Prince's companion Kaileena, absorbing the Sands of Time from her, which transform him into an immortal monster.

The Prince must work together with his past love Farah (whom he meets for the first time in this new timeline) to defeat the Vizier, while also struggling against his own Dark Prince persona. The game is set immediately after the events of Warrior Within. The Prince's actions alter the timeline: in the original timeline, the Vizier and Maharajah found an hourglass filled with the Sands; in this modified timeline, they find it empty. Since the Vizier never released the Sands, he is still alive at the beginning of this game.

Farah has never met the Prince. The Prince and Kaileena return to Babylon, their ship is attacked, and Kaileena is taken. The Prince confronts the Vizier, who kills Kaileena with the Dagger of Time, unleashing the Sands again. The Vizier impales himself and becomes immortal. The Prince is infected, gaining a Daggertail, but steals the Dagger before the Sands infect him completely.

Reader's Guide

The game combines exploration and combat, using the Prince's acrobatic capability. The player traverses the palace by running across walls, jumping between walls, avoiding traps, climbing, solving puzzles, and using discovered objects. There are on-rails chariot sequences. During combat, the player attacks and blocks using a dagger; the Dagger of Time and its time-control abilities are critical.

The Dagger can be upgraded by disabling sand gates. The Prince can obtain secondary weapons for dual wield combat; most weapons have limited durability. The Wii version of Rival Swords implements attacks with shakes of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. The Prince can launch off walls at 45-degree angles, slide down chutes, and balance on swinging poles.

A Speed Kill system allows instant defeat of enemies if the player presses the attack button at certain times. The Dark Prince form uses a Daggertail, loses health constantly, and can collect Sand to regain health. The Prince turns back to normal upon stepping into water. Health upgrades are found in side routes; sand credits unlock concept art.

The Prince recovers health by drinking water or at save fountains. The PSP version of Rival Swords adds chariot sequences, obstacle courses in sand gates, and a local wireless 2-player racing mode.

Did You Know?

• The game sold over 1.5 million copies within one month of release.
• The Wii version of Rival Swords uses motion-sensing functionality of its controller.
• The Dark Prince's Daggertail can be used to pull blocks out of walls and grapple along torches or high bars.