The Art Style Backlash and the Bizarre Steam Glitch That Nearly Crushed The Rogue Prince of Persia

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The journey of The Rogue Prince of Persia, the fluid roguelike platformer from Dead Cells developers Evil Empire, has been a rollercoaster, culminating in a candid post-mortem on its 1.0 launch. The developers revealed a series of unexpected hurdles that threatened to derail the game during its year-long Early Access period, most notably a polarizing aesthetic choice and an unbelievably bizarre technical roadblock involving a Spanish cell phone number.

The ‘Purple Prince’ Problem: Art Direction and Audience Rejection

Upon its initial Early Access release in May 2024, the game faced immediate and intense scrutiny over its bold, cartoon-like visual style. The art direction was a clear homage to classic Persian miniature paintings and the distinct style of Franco-Belgian comics master Mœbius, aiming for a fresh and unique look. However, one specific creative choice became a major point of contention and confusion for players:

• The CGA Homage: The developers opted to give the Prince and most of the NPCs a distinctive purple skin tone. This decision was an incredibly niche and deep-cut homage to the limited 4-color CGA palette of the 1990 original Prince of Persia PC port, where characters often appeared neon or “grape-skinned” due to technical constraints.
• Negative Reception: For the modern audience, this homage was lost. The choice was widely perceived as arbitrary, sickly, or simply “weird,” leading to a significant wave of negative sentiment and a feeling that the art did not fit the prestigious Prince of Persia IP. The developers candidly admitted that this backlash was a major blow, overshadowing the game’s otherwise slick parkour and combat mechanics.
• The Overhaul: In response to the community’s strong feedback, Evil Empire took the rare and expensive step of undertaking a comprehensive art style overhaul during Early Access. The Prince was redesigned to be “decidedly less-purple,” and the overall visuals were made more detailed, bringing the game closer to the style of Persian miniatures they were originally inspired by, helping to win back player favor.

The Bizarre Steam Logjam: A Spanish Cell Phone Crisis

In addition to the art style controversy and the unfortunate timing of launching near Hades 2, the development team was hit with a baffling technical issue that nearly prevented a critical patch from going live. This incident perfectly illustrates the unpredictable, often absurd challenges of modern video game development and publishing.

• The Steam Update Lockout: During a crucial period of development, Evil Empire found themselves unable to upload a much-needed game update to the Steam platform.
• Unbelievable Condition: The reason? The Steam system was demanding that the update authorization be confirmed via a text message sent to a specific phone number. Bizarrely, this number was registered to a Spanish cell phone that the French-based studio no longer had access to. The error message effectively stated, “you can only update your game if you respond from a Spanish cell phone number.”
• The Near-Disaster: This bureaucratic and technical nightmare meant that a small, dedicated development team was locked out of their own product. This issue, a simple yet immovable technical glitch, delayed vital content and bug fixes, and according to the developers, caused a level of frustration that nearly ‘sank’ their ability to continue a smooth Early Access process.

The Rogue Prince of Persia is now available in its polished 1.0 state, a testament to the developers’ resilience. The “purple skin” and the “Spanish phone number” stand as vivid, almost unbelievable examples of the non-development hurdles—from audience perception to backend bugs—that can make or break a promising indie game in the highly competitive roguelite genre.