Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands Sarcophagus guide

With the release of Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, the much-loved Prince from the epic Sands of Time trilogy has finally returned for a current-gen sequel that's faster and slicker (and maybe a little more soulless) than his previous adventures. Unsurprisingly, that also means that - like nearly every current-gen game worth a damn - the new Prince of Persia is crammed with its own hidden whatsits that you need to ferret out. In this case, they're 21 glowing Sarcophagi that need to be smashed open with a power attack.

What do you get if you track them all down? Well, a whole mess of experience points, for one, which can then unlock new abilities for the Prince to use. Perhaps more importantly, you'll earn the "Got Walkthrough?" Achievement/Trophy, worth either 50 Gamerpoints or a Gold Trophy. You also can't backtrack (without starting a new game) if you miss any, so we recommend you keep this guide handy while you play.

And if you're still on the fence about whether the game is even worth your money, may we recommend our Super Review?

SARCOPHAGI: WHERE TO FIND 'EM

Video walkthroughs:

• The Stables/The Fortress Courtyard 
• The Prison/The Sewer/The Royal Chambers 
• The Throne Room/The Terrace/The Rooftop Gardens/The Acqueducts
• The Ruins of Rekem/Rekem's Throne Room
• The Rekem Reservoir/Solomon's Vault/The King's Tower 

Text/image walthroughs:

THE STABLES
• Sarcophagus 1

THE FORTRESS COURTYARD
• Sarcophagus 2
• Sarcophagus 3

THE PRISON
• Sarcophagus 4

THE SEWER
• Sarcophagus 5
• Sarcophagus 6

THE ROYAL CHAMBERS
• Sarcophagus 7
• Sarcophagus 8
• Sarcophagus 9

THE THRONE ROOM
• Sarcophagus 10

THE TERRACE
• Sarcophagus 11

THE ROOFTOP GARDENS
• Sarcophagus 12
• Sarcophagus 13

THE ACQUEDUCTS
• Sarcophagus 14

THE RUINS OF REKEM
• Sarcophagus 15
• Sarcophagus 16

REKEM'S THRONE ROOM
• Sarcophagus 17

THE REKEM RESERVOIR
• Sarcophagus 18
• Sarcophagus 19

SOLOMON'S VAULT
• Sarcophagus 20

THE KING'S TOWER
• Sarcophagus 21

THE STABLES

Sarcophagus 1

Your first Sarcophagus is practically a gimme; the game shows you exactly where it is, just so you'll know what to look for in the future. Getting to it, however, is slightly harder. Starting in this room, run up the big wooden doors to your right.

However, you won't quite be able to reach those climbing bricks just from running up the wall...

... so instead, jump at the apex of your run and the Prince will launch himself at this beam.

From there, it's an easy jump back to the loose bricks.

Climb them (and wall-run) up to the ledge, charge up a power attack and you can cross the first Sarcophagus off your list. 

THE FORTRESS COURTYARD

Sarcophagus 2

The game won't outright show you the next Sarcophagus, but it's almost impossible not to see it anyway. After you've slid down a red banner, you'll find yourself in this area. Notice the telltale blue flecks in the air; those are a sure sign that a Sarcophagus (or a gateway to Razia's dimension) is nearby. From the position shown below, you'll want to run forward and to the left.

The Sarcophagus is just sitting there, in plain sight, waiting to be smashed open.

Jump across the gap (which you'll have to do anyway in order to hit that switch and open the way ahead), and it's yours. 

Sarcophagus 3

After the last one, you might be under the impression that all the Sarcophagi are just sitting out in the open. This next one might change your mind. As you step out onto the walkway that alternates spinning blade-poles with pressure-activated spikes, you'll catch a glimpse of the next Sarcophagus on a distant ledge, taunting you.

Ignore it for now and just run straight ahead into the next room...

... where you'll find some sand zombies in need of a good killin'.

Continue on through the next door, and run ahead past that first bladed pole.

Once you're past it, immediately hang a left and drop down to hang from the ledge.

Below you are a couple more ledges...

... so drop all the way down to the second one and start shimmying to the right.

Oh no, a gap! What do do? Just wall-run right to the next ledge.

And again...

From there, you're just a vertical run away from the ledge that seemed so distant before.

Charge up another slash attack and get ready for a big helping of XP. That Sarcophagus was asking for it.

Next page: The Prison, The Sewer and The Royal Chambers