Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Full Game Free on Switch Until September 30

Ubisoft Montpellier's Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is currently available in its entirety as a free playable demo on both Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. The trial window opened at 10 AM PT on September 24 and runs through Wednesday, September 30 at 11:59 PM PT, giving players a full week to experience the complete 2D Metroidvania adventure without spending a cent. This is an unusually generous offer — most demos restrict players to an early slice or time-limited portion, but Ubisoft has placed the entire game behind the trial gate.

The catch is straightforward: you need an active Nintendo Switch Online membership to access the demo. For subscribers, there's an additional incentive — completing a mission during the trial period awards 100 My Nintendo Platinum Points, redeemable through the Missions & Rewards section on the Nintendo Switch Online portal or directly from the console's home screen. Save data carries over to the full purchase if you decide to keep playing after the trial ends, a standard but welcome feature that respects the time you invest during the free window.

Here's a thinking process:

IGN awarded the game an 8 out of 10, praising it for "capturing not only what made games such as The Sands of Time so good, but also ironing out the little issues that plagued the 3D games in this series by opting for a 2D perspective." The shift to a side-scrolling Metroidvania structure solves long-standing problems with camera frustration and depth perception that dogged the 3D entries, while preserving the precise platforming and time-manipulation combat that defined the series at its best. For players who bounced off the 3D games' clunkier moments, this 2D approach feels like the series finally finding its natural vocabulary.

The game has also received substantial post-launch support since its initial release. Ubisoft Montpellier added new modes, quality-of-life updates, story DLC, and even a mobile port — a level of ongoing investment that suggests the team believed in the product long after launch. The Rogue Prince of Persia, a separate roguelite entry in the franchise, has similarly seen updates throughout 2024 with new elements, tools, weapon affixes, and quality-of-life improvements, showing Ubisoft hasn't abandoned the IP entirely despite this specific game's commercial fate.

Here's a thinking process:

This free demo exists against a sobering backdrop. Despite critical acclaim, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown failed to meet Ubisoft's sales expectations. The publisher responded by disbanding the development team at Ubisoft Montpellier and reportedly scrapping plans for a direct sequel. Those developers have been reassigned to other projects, including Beyond Good and Evil 2 — a game still in development that recently added a writer from Assassin's Creed Shadows to its team. The highly anticipated Sands of Time remake has also been cancelled, leaving the franchise's immediate future uncertain.

Ubisoft's strategy here is transparent: the free trial aims to spark renewed interest and potentially demonstrate latent demand that could justify revisiting sequel plans. Multiple deep-discount sales over the years have similarly tried to grow the player base post-launch. But the source material suggests this renewed interest "is not looking likely" to sway Ubisoft's calculus — the decision to disband the team and cancel the sequel appears final. For players, this means the free week represents a chance to experience a complete, polished game that will likely remain a standalone entry in the series rather than the start of a new trilogy.

If you have a Switch Online subscription and even passing curiosity about Metroidvanias or the Prince of Persia legacy, there's no reason not to download this. The game stands on its own merits as one of the genre's stronger recent entries — tight movement, satisfying combat, and a map that rewards exploration without becoming a chore. That it arrives with zero risk and a Platinum Points bonus makes it an easy recommendation. Just don't expect your playtime to contribute to a sequel that, by all indications, will never exist.