Prince of Persia’s roguelite is about to get breathless—and the endgame gets brutal

Why this roadmap actually matters for players

Evil Empire’s Spring 2026 roadmap punches the accelerator on The Rogue Prince of Persia. Two free updates-Breathless (public beta late March, full release in April) and Endgame (early May)-are aimed at making runs much faster up front and significantly deeper at the back end. For anyone who enjoyed the game’s approachable roguelite loop on Nintendo Switch, Switch 2 or PC, this is more than polish: it’s a clear design push to lean into high‑tempo runs and long‑term challenge.

• Public Breathless beta at the end of March, full Breathless release in April.
• Breathless adds a freeze element, a slingshot weapon, arena gauntlets and weapon affixes to speed up and diversify runs.
• Endgame (early May) focuses on late‑game systems: Speed Run mode, Daily Awakening and tougher endgame content.
• Free updates from the Dead Cells team at Evil Empire promise both immediate rushes and longevity for competitive players.

Breaking down the Breathless update

The Breathless update is explicitly about tempo. Evil Empire says they’ve reworked the pacing of the first hour-when players pick up new mechanics and meet early bosses—and tweaked level design so biomes better spotlight the series’ wall‑run move while moving quicker and tougher. That matters: roguelites live and die by their first impressions. If runs feel slow or meandering early on, players drop off. This patch is a direct answer to that.

Gameplay additions are the fun part: a freeze element paired with a new slingshot weapon, locked arena gauntlets that force wave fights, and weapon affixes that alter loot behavior. Freeze gives designers a new way to control enemy tempo and combo windows—good for players who like tactical burst plays—while the slingshot suggests a ranged tool that can change how rooms are approached. Weapon affixes are the big systemic win here: randomized modifiers make each weapon pick more meaningful and increase build diversity, which is exactly what keeps roguelite runs feeling fresh.

What the Endgame update is aiming to do

Details are thinner for May’s Endgame update, but the headline features are unmistakable: a focus on late‑game content and new challenge modes—Speed Run and Daily Awakening. That’s the kind of stuff that turns a pleasant pick‑up‑and‑play roguelite into a sticky competitive ecosystem. Speed Run mode is a natural fit given the Breathless changes; it formalizes what veteran players already do and gives the community a leaderboard to fight over. Daily Awakening sounds like a rotating challenge that will keep streams and community competitions fed.

It’s worth being cautiously optimistic: roadmap blurbs promise more difficulty and “push the limit” content, but execution will matter. Speedruns need precise, consistent systems and clear timing rules, and Daily modes need meaningful rewards to be compelling. Still, for an indie live‑service posture, this combination of free early‑tempo reworks and endgame challenges is the right one—first hook more players, then give them reasons to stay.

Why this is a smart move from Evil Empire (and the Dead Cells team)

This caught my attention because the people handling this have pedigree. With the Dead Cells team involved, the design ethos—tight combats, responsive movement, and high replayability—already runs deep. The Breathless changes read like classic Dead Cells thinking: emphasize skill, fast feedback loops, and weapon variety. Shipping a public beta before the April release is also smart: it lets the devs tune tempo live with actual players instead of guessing.

From a player’s perspective on Switch, Switch 2 or Steam, these updates reduce friction in earlier runs while promising serious late‑game goals. For streamers and speedrunners, Breathless plus a dedicated Speed Run mode could breathe new life into leaderboards. For casual players who appreciated The Rogue Prince of Persia’s accessibility at launch, the tweaks should make early sessions more exciting without raising the entry barrier—provided the changes remain tuned for approachability.

TL;DR

Evil Empire’s Spring roadmap is a tidy one‑two: Breathless accelerates and spices up the early game (freeze element, slingshot, arenas, weapon affixes) with a public beta at the end of March and an April release, while the Endgame update in May targets high‑skill systems like Speed Run and Daily Awakening. It’s a sensible, player‑friendly plan that leans on the Dead Cells team’s strengths—fast combat and replay value—and should give both newcomers and veterans fresh reasons to keep running.