The story behind jordan mechner s most successful video game, prince of persia. Jordan mechner is a famous american video game designer, author and screenwriter who has recently written a successful graphic novel called templar. Jordan mechners multiplatform prince of persia the. The making of prince of persia by jordan mechner goodreads. Played it on a monochrome cga laptop, but still the great gameplay and wonderful story shone through. The original was a beloved 2d platformer, while the series later incarnation in the sands of time set the bar for modern platforming and continues to influence games a decade later. The first game in the series, simply titled prince of persia, was created by jordan mechner after the success of karateka. Through the years, the successful video game series has been on every video gamers game list. Prince of persia was released on the apple ii 30 years ago today. Over 14 million prince of persia games have been sold around the world.
About the author jordan mechner is a game designer, screenwriter, graphic novelist, and author. Projects articles bio contact store to celebrate prince of persias 30th anniversary this year, stripe press is publishing a new illustrated, hardcover collectors edition of the old journals i kept from 19851993 while i. The making of prince of persia kindle edition by mechner, jordan. Today marks the 30th anniversary of one of the alltime great franchises. Jordan mechner said he is writing a book on the making of the prince of persia, based on journals he kept 30 years ago. Prince of persia is a 2d platformer that is commonly regarded as a progenitor of the cinematic platform genre. Been a fan of the series and jordan mechner ever since. Its a race against time when a rogue prince jake gyllenhaal reluctantly teams up with a rival princess gemma arterton to safeguard a magical dagger that gives its possessor the power to reverse time and rule the world. The sands of time movie with this book of six original stories, all highlighting the characters and the world of. But for me i want really put this book as the top 20 books ive read. Drawing from multiple general sources of inspiration, including the arabian nights stories, and films like raiders of the lost ark and the adventures of robin hood, the protagonists character animation was created using a technique.
Rather than following the more common jumpandrun mechanics, it focuses on careful advancement through fairly complex levels. Dive further into the world of the upcoming prince of persia. He became the first gamecreatorturnedscreenwriter to adapt his own work as a major motion picture with prince of persia. Mechner was just 25 when the game came out in 1989, but prince of persia went on to sell more than 2 million copies. Prince of persia 1989 back in 1989, game designer jordan mechner created the first prince of persia game. Get an insightful look behind the scenes with jordan mechner s 80s journals, documenting the making of prince of persia and karateka. On october 20, 1985, jordan mechner did his first concrete work on the game that would become prince of persia, using his illgotten video camera to film his 16yearold brother david running and jumping through a local parking lot. Books by jordan mechner author of templar goodreads. If prince of persia does buck the odds then part of the credit should go to jordan mechner, who created the video game on which the movie. The new hardcover illustrated the making of prince of persia and the making of karateka. In this video you will see how the founder of prince of persia showed his passion of creating computer games since 1979. In this graphic novel adventure based on jordan mechners classic, multimillioncopyselling prince of persia video games, two princes, in different centuries of historic persia, despair over the corruption gnawing at the heart of their worlds and their way of life. After forsaking his early obsession with comics at age 12 for a new love computers jordan started learning how to program, taking the first steps down the path to writing video games. Widely considered a pioneer of cinematic storytelling in the video game industry, he created prince of persia, one of the most successful and enduring video game franchises of all time, and became the first game creator to adapt his own work into a feature film with disneys prince of persia.
Jordan mechners videogames, including prince of persia, karateka, and the last express, have received worldwide acclaim. The franchise is built around a series of actionadventure games focused on various. Projects articles bio contact store the new hardcover illustrated the making of prince of persia and the making of karateka are now available for purchase in the store. Arists leuyen pham and alex puvilland create vivid scenes against a stunning background of ruins, lush gardens, and desert landscapes in prince of persia. Prince of persia is a graphic novel that jordan mechner, original creator of the very first prince of persia video game, probably hopes will establish the origins of the prince of persia once and for all. The complete guide to creating mother daughter book clubs seal press 2009 and creator of mother daughter. Hardcover edition of the making of prince of persia.
Jordan mechner created prince of persia, a classic game noted for its perfect design, precise controls and wonderful rotoscoped animation. Jordan mechner is a game designer, graphic novelist, screenwriter, and author. Filled with deathdefying escapes and unexpected twists at every turn prince of persia. Jordan mechner history of prince of persia 19872004 houssem sword. Widely considered a pioneer of cinematic storytelling in the. As for the first part of the memoir, theres a combination of jordans thoughts. The book chronicles jordan s life through the development of pop and pop2. Jordan mechner is an american video game designer, author, screenwriter, and filmmaker, best known for creating the prince of persia video game franchise and the 8bit game karateka. New york times bestselling author, screenwriter, and video game designer jordan mechner has created games including prince of persia, karateka, and the. Well for me in this book their were non understandable part in the book to the end. The making of prince of persia is a continuation of jordan mechner s first memoir, the making of karateka, covering the period from 1985 the publication of karateka to january 1993 the aftershocks of licensing prince of persia for a large number of platforms. While many fans know of the writer, artist and directors involvement as an executive producer and writer on the jake gyllenhaalstarring prince of persia. Prince of persia before the sandstorm a graphic novel anthology by. Thirty years on, we are very lucky to have this window into its creative process.
Projects articles bio contact store to celebrate prince of persia s 30th anniversary this year, stripe press is publishing a new illustrated, hardcover collectors edition of the old journals i kept from 19851993 while i was making the first two games. Prince of persia was originally released in 1989 for the apple ii by jordan mechner. Series creator jordan mechner once again plumbs the depths of the prince of persia mythology, penning an anthology graphic novel to serve as a prequel to the upcoming feature film. The making of prince of persia is a continuation of jordan mechners first memoir, the making of karateka, covering the period from 1985 the publication of karateka to january 1993 the aftershocks of licensing prince of persia for a large number of platforms. Jordan mechner s videogames, including prince of persia, karateka, and the last express, have received worldwide acclaim. The prince of persia collectors edition by jordan mechner.
Prince of persia game blog travel to iran tap persia. How jordan mechner made a different sort of interactive. He is best known for designing and programming the broderbund apple ii games karateka and prince of persia in the 1980s, the latter of which grew into a multiplatform franchise. Jordan mechners new book will explore the making of. He is also the author of solomons thieves, and he wrote the script for the disney movie adaptation of prince of persia. Prince of persia is a video game franchise created by jordan mechner. This artifact represents part of a donation from jordan mechner, a video game designer who created some of broderbunds bestselling games, including karateka and the prince of persia series. To say that jordan mechner is pretty busy these days is an understatement. Written by jordan mechner, the creator of the prince of persia franchise, this gorgeously illustrated graphic anthology will appeal to fans of the franchise, fans of the movie, and fans of adventure stories everywhere. The book chronicles jordans life through the development of pop and pop2. Prince of persia was the first videogame i ever finished, having only really played arcade games up till then. Prince of persia is a 1989 action game developed by jordan mechner and published by broderbund software. Prince of persia series prince of persia wiki fandom. Prince of persia was the first computer game i ever fell in love with.
Mechner pens prince of persia prequel graphic novel. As far as prince of persia is concerned, time has always been a theme of the series. Jordan mechner is a game designer, screenwriter, graphic novelist, and author. Jordan mechner is the creator of the prince of persia games, the prince of persia graphic novel, and the author of the script for the prince of persia movie. Mechner was born in new york and attended yale university. Widely considered a pioneer of cinematic storytelling in the video game industry, he created prince of persia, one of the most successful and enduring video game franchises of all time, and became the first game creator to successfully adapt his own work into a feature film with disneys prince of persia.
Acclaimed author, screenwriter, and video game designer jordan mechner began his career by creating the blockbuster games karateka and prince of persia. Before prince of persia was a bestselling video game franchise and a jerry. American author, game designer, graphic novelist and screenwriter jordan mechner is best known as a pioneer of cinematic storytelling in the video game industry, and as the creator of prince of persia, one of the most successful and enduring video game franchises of all time mechner s books include the 20 new york times bestselling, eisner awardnominated graphic novel templar, a. When he finally got around to buying a primitive blackandwhite image digitizer for his trusty apple ii more than six months later, he quickly determined that the. Jordan mechner has 11 books on goodreads with 6093 ratings. Prince of persia is a famous video game franchise firstly designed and developed by jordan mechner for the apple ii in 1989. Prince of persia is an action adventure series created by jordan mechner in the late eighties. Mechners journey is a universal one for anyone creating something brand new, and it brought me back to the early, crazy days of building instagram. Mechner used film of his younger brother david running, jumping, and performing many of the princes actions. Jordan mechner born june 4, 1964 is an american video game designer, author, screenwriter, and filmmaker. Jordan mechner books list of books by author jordan mechner.
At the heart of the bestselling video game, there is a story. Well for me i enjoyed the book prince of persia write by jordan mechner. Sina, and he wrote the script for the disney movie adaptation of prince of persia. Mechner later founded the independent game development company smoking car productions, where he created an adventure game entitled the last express. The sands of time is a funfilled adventure that will keep your pulse pounding. Jordan mechner history of prince of persia 19872004. His most recent book is the medieval heist caper told in graphic novel format, templar. The story behind jordan mechners most successful video game, prince of persia. Jordan mechner is an american video game designer, author, screenwriter, and filmmaker, best. Online shopping from a great selection at books store.
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