Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is an action-adventure puzzle-platformer. The player controls the main protagonist, an unnamed Prince from a kingdom in Persia. Environments are seen through a controllable third-person view. The camera's view changes to different positions triggered by entering certain areas or performing actions.[1][2] The Prince can be moved in all directions, and he is able to manipulate large objects such as blocks and levers connected to mechanisms. His health and power meter are represented in the top left-hand corner of the screen. The Prince restores health by drinking water from pools and fountains. Collecting Sands increases the Prince's power, and drinking from hidden magic fountains increases the Prince's maximum health.[1][3] During several points in the game, the Prince is assisted by his companion Farah, controlled by artificial intelligence, who fires a bow at enemies, though her arrows can also hit the Prince if he strays into her line of fire. Monsters will attack her, and if she is killed, the game ends.[1][4]
During exploration, the Prince navigates areas filled with traps: these traps include spike pits, arrow traps, wall-mounted blades and saws, and spinning spiked stakes. The Prince's main contextual move is wall-running, an action where he runs up onto and along a wall for a set distance, either to land on or jump off to a platform. The Prince's other acrobatic abilities include climbing along and across ledges, walking along beams, swinging on and jumping from poles, jumping onto and between pillars, and swinging on ropes.[1][3][5] Large environmental puzzles are encountered during the Prince's journey, extending across multiple areas in large rooms. Many puzzles are cooperative, requiring Farah's help to complete them.[5] In combat, the Prince fights monsters created by the Sands infecting the Palace's inhabitants with dual wielded melee weapons, his sword and Dagger of Time, each controlled by a single button. With the sword, a single command contextually triggers different moves depending on position and directional movement, while other special moves such as a somersault attack and bouncing off walls into enemies require additional commands. After being damaged by the sword, enemies can only be killed by stabbing them with the Dagger of Time, which gathers up the Sands inside them.[1][6]