At the start of 2026, a massive blow for players: Ubisoft officially canceled the remake of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, although it was announced as almost finished and expected for this year. The license once again seemed condemned to nostalgia and old consoles.
On January 21, the French publisher revealed an operational loss of around 1 billion euros, a savings plan of at least €200 million and the shutdown of six games, including the famous remake, as part of a reorganization into five “creation houses”. But while Ubisoft tightens the screws, Xbox prepares a nice counterpoint which puts the Prince back in the spotlight.
Is Prince of Persia really coming back to Xbox after the canceled remake?
Anger was immediate from fans and developers alike, with some speaking of being “horrified and disgusted” at the cancellation, reports Gamingbible. It must be said that The Sands of Timereleased in 2003, remains a cult action platform game, known for its manipulation of time and considered a direct ancestor ofAssassin’s Creed.
On Xbox, the original has been officially backwards compatible since 2017 via the program Backward Compatibilitybut it had disappeared from the Xbox Store in digital version. Concretely, it only remained playable if you already owned the disc on Xbox One or especially on Xbox Series. For everyone else, the game had become impossible to legally find digitally.
What is Xbox preparing for the return of Prince of Persia via Series XS backwards compatibility?
The Xbox backwards compatibility program, launched in 2015 and paused in 2021 after more than 600 games added, will make a comeback to celebrate the brand’s 25th anniversary. The new Xbox boss, Asha Sharmaconfirmed the return of the program, while Jason Ronald promised at GDC 2026 “new ways to play iconic games”, cited by Tom’s Hardware.
At the end of March, several delisted games briefly returned to the Xbox Store with a placeholder price of $100, or around €95, before being removed again. Among them was Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. It’s difficult to see it as a simple bug when these appearances coincide with the official relaunch of backward compatibility for the Xbox anniversary.
When will we be able to play Prince of Persia again on Xbox, and why do fans stand to gain?
Today, if you still have the original disc, your Xbox Series or your Xbox One already plays it thanks to backwards compatibility. For players in Series S all digital or those who have resold their collection, the challenge is the return of the dematerialized version on the store, which everything indicates as one of the priorities of this vague anniversary.
Another key point: side PlayStationthe original is still not offered in the PS Plus Classics catalog. If The Sands of Time returns for sale on Xbox only, Microsoft gains a strong symbolic advantage over a license that was born on PC and competing consoles.
In the end, this return of the original on Xbox seems like a little justice for fans bruised by the cancellation of the remake. No, this is not the modern rereading promised by Ubisoft, but it is the opportunity to rediscover a masterpiece in good technical conditions, with current compatibility and easy access. And if the enthusiasm is there, it will remind Ubisoft that the Prince still has a real audience to satisfy.