Question: I heard that [Prince of Persia: The sands of time movie](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Persia%3a_The_Sands_of_Time_%28film%29) was based on the [Prince of Persia: The sands of time video game](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Persia%3a_The_Sands_of_Time). However in the wiki article it is said:

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> Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a film loosely based on the game.
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I also found that the writers of the movie are Jordan Mechner, Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro. I am not aware of the story of the game. So is the story of the film not the same as that of the game? Also I could not see any attribute in the film to the game. So did the producers not buy the story legally from Ubisoft? What is the back story?

Answer: 
As I commented, the story of the film only loosely has ideas from the game like the setting and some characters.

Judging solely from my experience playing the game and the summary from [Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Persia:_The_Sands_of_Time_(film)), there are many more differences than I realized.

To start, the prince is nameless in the game, and he is an actual prince, not an orphan brought into the king's court, nor does he have any siblings at all, nor does he have a princess selected out. In fact, the girl you meet in the game is but a lowly citizen that you meet during the adventure who in turn, helps you to complete the game.

The reason his father dies in the game is because, after raiding a city, they loot the Sands of Time containing the Dagger of Time. The kingdom is then betrayed by the Vizier. He tricks the prince into releasing the sands, killing almost everyone around the kingdom by turning them into fearsome sand beasts, including your father. The entire plot of the game revolves around collecting enough of the Sands of Time in order for the Prince to revert time back to the moment he released them, and to stop this action in order to save his kingdom.

Instead, the movie focuses on more of a plot of deception from within the kingdom. Dastan, who is essentially the Prince, is being betrayed by his Uncle Nizam for the throne. Nizam realizes that he can use the dagger to prevent the Prince from being the king of Persia.
Yes. The 2010 movie ***Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time*** was based on the 2003 video game of the same name.

[From Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_of_Persia:_The_Sands_of_Time_(film)#Production):

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> In March 2004, the production company Jerry Bruckheimer Films sought to acquire feature film rights to the 2003 video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time with the film to be distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Under John August as executive producer, the series' creator Jordan Mechner was hired to write the script. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer's Pirates of the Caribbean film trilogy served as a touchstone in how a theme park ride was converted into a film franchise. According to Mechner, "Rather than do a straight beat-for-beat adaptation of the new videogame, we're taking some cool elements from the game and using them to craft a new story." Mechner previously considered producing an animated film based on the games, but could not resist Disney and Bruckheimer's offer. In February 2006, Disney hired screenwriter Jeffrey Nachmanoff to write a new script for Prince of Persia.
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So much so that Director Mike Newell had ["an assistant playing the video games to brief him on key details."](http://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/mike-newell-drops-early-prince-of-persia-details/)

While based on the game, the movie is not a straight adaptation.