The Prince comes home, and finds a kingdom in ashes and a second self whispering in his ear.

On instinct, the community puts it ahead of 63% of games. Solid, nothing more. And yet, look at it criterion by criterion and the game grows enormously. Art style, ahead of 96% of titles. The game you take to a desert island, ahead of 91%. Controller feel, the fun that keeps you up until 3am, the wish to rediscover it: all above 80%. Only the soundtrack stays average, and that is the single snag. These numbers rest on few votes, so treat them as early signals, but the direction is clear: analysed closely, The Two Thrones far outperforms the instinctive affection it gets. A game people underrate until they really weigh it.

That is the classic fate of a third entry: it concludes, it polishes, but The Sands of Time is the one everyone quotes. Still, the blend of platforming, acrobatics and the Dark Prince remains one of the peaks of action adventure of its era.

So, who is it for? For you if you like agility, chains of moves that flow on their own, and a dark oriental atmosphere. Much less so if you expect an adventure to leave a soundtrack stuck in your head.