I have been a fan of the Prince of Persia [POP] games for a long time. Back when series creator Jordan Mechner was filming his brother running in the backyard in order to better simulate human movement in the original “Prince of Persia” for PC, I was reading about it. And when Ubisoft rebooted the series, releasing “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” to a wealth of critical acclaim, I was playing it and loving it.

Then, two years ago, Ubisoft rebooted the series, releasing their fourth POP game, simply called “Prince of Persia,” and I, of course, bought it. This game was quite different from all that had come before, however. The main character wasn’t a prince at all, but rather a street kid hunting for treasure in dangerous places. And the gameplay was different as well, eschewing the Sands of Time trilogy’s time manipulation game mechanics for a partner character, Elika, who would catch you when you fell.

This made the game a bit too easy, and along with the new story, made it controversial among fans . I enjoyed this new style of main character and play style, but overall, the game left me longing for the traditional prince (and his devilishly fun old tricks).

This year, my prayers, and the prayers of many POP fans worldwide have been answered in a big way, as this summer has seen the release of a brand new game, “Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands,” and a major motion picture, “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.” Both are welcome additions to the series, and although they are not directly related, together they present a back-to-basics approach to the franchise that is extremely refreshing.

The new game, “Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands,” is an odd sort of movie tie-in. The last POP game was released in December 2008, only about a year and a half ago, and as previously mentioned, it took the series in an entirely new direction. Games usually take at least two years to develop, and even if they didn’t, studios tend to leave two years in between game releases within the same franchise to allow anticipation to grow for the next game.

But here we are in 2010 with another Prince of Persia game that chronologically fits between “The Sands of Time” and “Warrior Within,” the first and second games in the Sands of Time trilogy. The gameplay is also very similar to games from that trilogy, making this game an admission of the fact that 2008’s new direction was a bad idea. But the rushed development period and the hearkening back to “Sands of Time” gameplay tropes can only mean one thing: Ubisoft is trying to cash in on the expected success of the new film.

But I have to give Ubisoft credit: “The Forgotten Sands” is far better than your typical movie tie-in game. “Kung-Fu Panda: The Game” this is not. Instead, Ubisoft is giving fans of POP what they really want: an HD reimagining of 2003’s fantastic “The Sands of Time.”

Unlike many movie-based video games, “The Forgotten Sands” is not based on the film directly at all. The game and film share a main character, a setting and a theme, but the plots of the two are completely different. The game finds the titular prince visiting his brother’s kingdom, only to find it in the midst of war. In order to combat his attackers, the prince’s brother accidentally unleashes an ancient evil he doesn’t understand, and all hell breaks loose. The prince must then pick up the pieces of a shattered kingdom and try to seal the evil away once more.

Overall, the game’s story is rather thin and predictable, but the gameplay is classic POP, with a high definition boost. The game is split like this – two-thirds is spent traversing the rocky walls and trap-filled halls of the kingdom, and the other one-thirds is spent in combat.

The traversal segments are the core of the experience, and they start off being fun and approachable. Slowly but surely, though, they creep up in difficulty, until the player is pulling off deathdefying jumps that seemed impossible an hour earlier.

I found myself initially shocked at the ridiculously challenging tasks the game placed in front of me, and then even more surprised and totally proud when I realized I was skilled enough to accomplish them.

But I am not trying to brag here, well, at least not about my ability. What is worth bragging about is the design team’s ability to teach the gamer how to play better and better, simply through expert game and level design. At the beginning of the game, sure, there are tutorials for the basic moves and skills, but as the game progresses, these become decidedly show rather than tell. This is a game that constantly ups the ante, but also provides the player with the necessary tools to stay ahead of its ever-increasing difficulty curve. The result is a feeling of personal accomplishment and satisfaction few games can provide.

There are some new features in “The Forgotten Sands” worth mentioning as well. In addition to time manipulation, the game allows the player to manipulate the natural elements. For example, there are water powers that allow the prince to freeze water momentarily, turning a waterfall into a wall to run across or a pillar to climb.

This elemental control system extends to the combat as well. The prince has access to fire, wind, ice and stone-related abilities to aid in the slaughter of hordes of skeleton enemies of varying types and strengths. Some enemies have shields that must be kicked away before you can attack them headon, and others require a greater degree of cunning to destroy. Overall, I found the combat to be the best yet for the series, but that isn’t saying much, as combat is generally considered to be the weakest aspect of the POP experience.

Many detractors have argued Ubisoft should just do away with the combat segments all together and focus on the series’ strengths instead. I disagree and feel the game would be far too homogenous without the aid of these fast-paced deviations from what would otherwise be a traversalonly game experience. Whether other critics recognize it or not, the Prince of Persia formula is finely honed and tweaked to perfection, and any deviation from it would have a significant impact on the game as a whole.

“The Forgotten Sands” is an impressive game, especially considering its shortened development cycle. As you play each new section, the development team’s fine craftsmanship is on display. This is the fifth Ubisoft-developed Prince of Persia title, and it shows, from the new ideas present in each new level, to the overall polish of the game as a whole.

This same level of consideration and care was also taken when Walt Disney Pictures and director Mike Newell took on the daunt ing task of bringing the franchise to the big screen. “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” is a carefully crafted and overall exciting adventure film, and interestingly, one that both I, and families with small children, could enjoy.

The prince in the film is played by Jake Gyllenhall, who I usually severely dislike as an actor. But here, Gyllenhall plays the swashbuckling, sarcastic and even charismatic rogue, as opposed to the overly sensitive tool he plays in all of his other films. Here he is gruff and to the point, so there is no time for the histrionic, pseudo- emo acting that often makes him uncomfortable to watch on screen.

The film’s story revolves around a dagger that can turn back time and a plot about a royal family, betrayal, deceit, and finally the main character’s quest to make everything right again. Sure it’s rote and predictable, but what summer blockbuster isn’t, right? The thing is, though, this summer blockbuster isn’t just special effects scene after scene, with over the top action blasting at you from every angle. There is also a compelling story and characters you can relate to, including an underdog, of course, and even a Jack Sparrow clone.

Yes, that’s right: this film has a character that straight up might as well be named Jack Sparrow, who rambles in semi-coherent sentences, rants and raves and provides plenty of comedic relief. “Prince of Persia” is, after all, Disney’s next big new franchise after “Pirates of the Caribbean,” and I guess they lacked the confidence to release a film completely devoid of sure-fire crowd-pleaser Jack Sparrow.

So you hear me describing the rather thin plot, the clichéd archetypes, the Jack Sparrow clone and the fact it’s a movie based on a video game, and you wonder why I’m not saying this is the worst movie in history (as it has every right to be). But somehow, “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” is better than the sum of its parts. You just have to go into the theatre without too critical of an eye, ready to have a good time. And, of course, it doesn’t hurt if you love the game series the film is based upon, as I do.

All things considered, “Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands” and “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” are two solid installments in a beloved franchise guaranteed to keep you indoors and well entertained during the hot summer months. If, like me, you are a fan of this venerable series, by all means, jump right in. And if not, start with the film and see if you don’t get sucked in to the eversifting sands of time yourself.