Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver I & II Remastered

Legacy of Kain is a vampire saga that began in 1997, telling a long and consistent story across numerous entries. The first part of the series was a Zelda-esque affair shot from above, but it wasn't until Soul Reaver, released in 1999, that the vampire plot exploded. The popular adventure quickly got a sequel, and now both Soul Reavers are available in high definition.

Since the first Kain was strongly inspired by two-dimensional Zeldas, Soul Reaver set out to explore the path marked out by Ocarina of Time, at least in a way. The three-dimensional vampire adventure is superficially very Zelda-like. The map is unified and from its corners here and there, the hero of the two games, Raziel, collects new features that allow him to progress elsewhere.

Raziel is a literal ghost that can move in both the spirit world and the physical world. There are differences between the two worlds, and if you hit a wall in one, you might find a passage through the wall in the other world.

The soul meter serves as the energy bar, here. Every time you defeat an enemy, Raziel can suck that soul into his pocket and thus stay on the side of the physical world. If the soul meter runs out, Raziel ends up in the spirit world, from which you can only jump back when the soul meter is full. If you die in the spirit world, it's all over.

The games don't offer a completely open-ended gaming experience, but rather an illusion of freedom along which you progress in a surprisingly straightforward manner. The sequel takes the twists and turns even more directly and is more of an action adventure that progresses in a pipeline. My memory played tricks on the two games, because the first Soul Reaver in particular had left a memory of a much more epic adventure than what reality turned out to be like 25 years later.

In terms of gameplay, both games have aged surprisingly badly. The fault is not in the controls or even the game design, but it must be remembered that the games are starting to age. The battles are quite imaginative, though. Vampires don't just die by rotting in the mud, but they have to be impaled, burned, or thrown into water.

Still, even though the remastering improves the controls of the original game and adds a slightly vague map to the package, from a modern perspective the truly deserted corridors, the lack of things to collect and find, and the combat that quickly becomes repetitive despite its good idea are numbing.

On the other hand, the best part of the game duo, i.e. the story, has not aged badly at all. The unique and multi-faceted story easily captivates you, not least thanks to the excellent cast of characters. Raziel himself is a really great character and Kain, who plays the main villain in these games, is not far behind. Although there is undoubtedly some amusing edgyness in the overall picture, the story saves a lot.

The graphics have been remastered with respect for the old games, meaning that it is practically just a resolution and texture update from the old one. In many respects, the second Reaver in particular looks the same as before, only sharper. This is not really a criticism, as the visual design of the games is still quite competent and although both games also look outdated from a modern perspective, there is a nice nostalgia in the look.

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver I & II Remastered is not actually a bad game from a modern perspective, but it is quite easy to imagine that those who have not played the games before may not understand why they were hits in their time. Even I, who played the games back then, had to scratch my head a little. Weren't these games better back then? However, the games are worth considering as a nostalgia trip, especially if you want to jump into the story once again.