The future of the Prince of Persia franchise is in major doubt: Ubisoft is not only planning a major reorganization, but is also canceling the Sands of Time remake, which has been languishing in production hell for years. Luckily, this doesn't mean the game can no longer be played comfortably. PC Gamer Portal speakhow PC gamers can build their own Sands of Time remaster.
Where to find the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time
The good news is that it's not difficult to find a modern digital copy of Sands of Time. The first and most obvious choice is Steam, where the game regularly has big sales. You can also buy a copy from the Ubisoft Store, which is even cheaper, but you'll also need to download it through the publisher's store.
The third option is GOG, but it's probably better to wait a bit here. The store recently announced that Sands of Time will be part of their game pre-order program. The project will likely receive many bug fixes and small improvements that will allow the game to run better on modern hardware.
Mod for Sands of Time: the easy way
Like many games from the PS2 era, Sands of Time doesn't run well on current consoles; Poor controller support, post-processing and graphics anti-aliasing issues. While there are many small patches found on Nexus Mods and ModDB, there are more significant, larger-scale options.
The easiest way to smooth out Sands of Time's rough edges is to install a mod simply named Fix Compilation, whose creator has done similar work for many other projects. The modified package is designed for ease of installation: all you need to do is download the ZIP archive and extract it to the game folder, overwriting the files.
Fix Compilation contains a new launcher, fixes to DirectX add-ons, restored EAX audio, full support for widescreen displays, and most importantly, modern controller integration.
Additionally, if you own a copy of the game on Steam or the Ubisoft Store, the mod will remove the old DRM system, allowing you to package Sands of Time and port it to any portable gaming computer. It will work very well.
There are only two nuances to remember. First, extract the archive with mods into the game folder and run it through the PrinceOfPersia.EXE file (not POP.EXE). Second, after launch, you will have to manually bind all the joysticks when using a controller, but this scheme should usually fit on an Xbox or PlayStation gamepad, as well as on the Steam Deck.
Mods for Sands of Time: the hard way
If you're willing to put in a little more time and effort then Sands of Time Remastered Mod – the perfect choice. It appeared relatively recently, in August 2025. The fan patch includes a high-resolution texture pack, upgraded FMV video, many graphical effects fixes, and high refresh rate support.
By default, the set doesn't include a patch for widescreen, so it's possible take separately from PC Gaming Wiki. You just need to extract it into the game folder.
Download and extract the Remastered Mod into your game folder. It is installed through a separate application (Peixoto.bat), located in the Prince of Persia\Pexioto folder. Open it and select Prince of Persia – SOT from the games list. A huge list of settings will appear on the screen; You can change them to your liking but leave Fog Fix enabled.
Next is structural replacement. Go to folder C:\Users\(your username)\Documents\Games\Prince of Persia\Sands of Time\Textures\VOKSI. Transfer the contents of the VOKSI folder (from where you extracted the mod into the Prince of Persia folder) to the destination folder.
If you do it right, characters and certain key items will look more detailed, as will some common environment textures.
Finally, click Play in the Pexioto patch panel and select the PrinceofPersia.EXE file. Apply the fixes and then launch the game. There is only one negative nuance – the mod does not remove DRM from the game, so in any case it will have to be launched through this or another third-party application. Therefore, this mod is not very compatible with Steam Deck.
