Kain is deified. The followers inform tales of him, few know the reality…
…as a result of the final mainline entry within the collection was launched a miserable 22 years in the past and, since then, the franchise has light into obscurity. Though it reappeared as an ill-conceived multiplayer recreation referred to as Nosgoth, it was shortly shoved again into Crystal Dynamics’ IP catacombs. Followers, in the meantime, have been left to maintain themselves on uncooked burning ardour for the world of Nosgoth and little else.
Legacy of Kain has some of the gifted self-sustaining communities I’ve ever encountered and, as a long-suffering fan, I’ve been the beneficiary of their ardour. If the place to look, yow will discover them creating fan art, preserving and restoring cut content, writing fanfic, constructing out encyclopedias, making texture updates, and producing lore videos. And you’ll inform simply how lengthy they have been at it as a result of many of the web sites housing that, to my delight, appear to be they’re trapped within the ’90s.
Followers have been the beating coronary heart and enduring soul of Legacy of Kain for lengthy after publishers misplaced curiosity in its business viability. It felt proper, then, that followers have been intently concerned in Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered, contributing content material and even directing the project.
Crystal Dynamics clearly is aware of how a lot of a stake followers have prior to now, current, and way forward for Legacy of Kain, which is why it is heartening to see that followers proceed to be a driving drive behind its subsequent two tasks: a remaster of 2003’s Legacy of Kain: Defiance and a brand-new recreation referred to as Legacy of Kain: Ascendance that will not be what you are anticipating. Defiance will launch March 3, whereas Ascendance will probably be accessible on March 31, and Crystal Dynamics expects that each will “exceed fan expectations.”
Legacy of Kain: Defiance
Defiance, the third entry within the Soul Reaver story, brings collectively Raziel and Kain as playable characters and serves as the ultimate chapter within the story of the despotic vampire lord turned time-traveling schemer and his sire turned vengeful wraith. As a fan, I am keen to finish the set and have Defiance be part of the Soul Reaver remasters, successfully giving me entry to video games I am keen on in a handy, playable bundle. For these happening the journey for the primary time, it is an important climactic chapter within the story that’s as theatrically dramatic as the 2 video games that preceded it–not to be missed.
Based on Matt McCloskey, franchise director for Legacy of Kain, Crystal Dynamics has been engaged on the Defiance remaster for a few years alongside PlayEveryWare, a workforce that has labored on ports beforehand, however is taking Defiance on as its first main remaster mission.
As with Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered, Defiance is being given some nips and tucks, in addition to extra important function updates. From a visible standpoint, which means texture and graphical updates to make the sport look sharper, and the workforce has additionally remastered the audio and cinematics to make sure the wonderful writing and voice performing land in addition to they did all these years in the past.
The fight tutorial has been made accessible unbiased of its integration within the recreation for many who wish to spend extra time attending to grips with how the mechanics work. Beforehand, it was built-in into the sport expertise however by placing it upfront, Crystal Dynamics little question hopes it will assist easy out a standard level of friction. On high of that, there is a new picture mode, in addition to the related platform-specific achievements.
One of many extra important adjustments is a brand new, free-floating digicam. In its basic incarnation, Defiance featured a hard and fast digicam that was supposed to make the sport really feel extra cinematic. By fashionable requirements, nevertheless, it is extra prone to disrupt the platforming and fight sections of the sport, whereas feeling like a restrictive obstacle to immersion. On paper, the brand new floating digicam is significantly better suited to fashionable gaming sensibilities, however with out first-hand expertise, it is exhausting to say how efficient it’s at preserving the cinematic high quality. For longtime followers who need one thing nearer to the unique expertise, warts and all, there may be an choice to change to the unique digicam angles too.
Like the opposite two Soul Reaver remasters, a brand new map has been added to the sport. For Defiance, there’s additionally what Crystal Dynamics is looking “Foresight Navigation” to assist hold individuals on observe with aims. Defiance is not significantly elaborate or bursting with aspect quests, however at occasions it may be simple to get rotated and lose observe of issues, so the mixture of a map and goal steerage is certain to be a significant assist. The bigger canonical map of Nosgoth from the remasters can be again and barely expanded. A map may not sound significantly thrilling, however for Legacy of Kain followers, having a high-quality cartographical depiction of Nosgoth is an exciting first.
“Nosgoth is our Center-earth,” McCloskey stated. “We built-in [a map] for the primary time [in the remasters]. Now we’re additionally making it 3D and including it alongside a complicated lore reader to know what is going on on on the earth, the place the occasions are, the place the important thing places are. That is sort of all about upgrading entry to the franchise as a contemporary fantasy franchise, so we’re on our approach to attempting to turn out to be like Lord of the Rings or Recreation of Thrones. Ultimately, this will probably be an superior 3D setting you may journey by, however you may see the development that we’re making all through the remasters.”
There is a respectable quantity of fan service within the bundle too. On a smaller scale, there are new unlockable skins. For Raziel, certainly one of them is a model of his mannequin based mostly on Shifter, the unique idea for Soul Reaver earlier than it advanced right into a Legacy of Kain title, however that is tied to the usual version as a preorder bonus.
Essentially the most important addition for the Defiance remaster, significantly for archival functions, is the inclusion of fabric for Darkish Prophecy, a recreation that started improvement because the follow-up to Defiance however finally did not make it to launch. It was, nevertheless, leaked, giving followers a style of what by no means was–until now, that’s. Crystal Dynamics discovered the supply code for Darkish Prophecy, idea artwork, and different materials, and have made a playable model of it. Defiance additionally had a good quantity of minimize sections and, with the enter of followers, these have additionally been restored for individuals to expertise.
As a complete, the Defiance remaster bundle follows the template of the primary two Soul Reaver remasters, bringing one of many best-written, acted, scored, and designed video games of all time to a contemporary viewers in a means that makes it extra playable, but in addition goes the additional mile to incorporate archival and museum content material that followers will recognize.
Legacy of Kain: Ascendance
That is the place it will get fascinating. Ascendance is the primary entry within the Legacy of Kain collection in 22 years and feels very very like a walk-before-you-run endeavor. Whereas the Soul Reaver remasters proved there may be an viewers for the collection, that very a lot is predicated on nostalgia for what was. The viability of a full-scale mission stays to be seen, so Ascendance is a small mission that makes an attempt to stability what followers most likely do not need with what they do wish to discover a joyful medium.
Ascendance, developed by BitBot Media, is a side-scrolling platform-action recreation that has a low-fi, pixelated artwork type. It’s anticipated to be round 4 hours lengthy. Possibly I am being a bit presumptuous, however I believe this would possibly really feel like a little bit of a letdown as a follow-up to listening to a few brand-new Legacy of Kain recreation. I will admit, it is definitely not what I would like, however once more, Crystal Dynamics may be very clearly taking comparatively risk-free child steps with the IP, so with that in thoughts, it is sensible. What does enchantment, nevertheless, is the growth to the mythology of Legacy of Kain and a number of the neat touches in its presentation.
Ascendance takes place each earlier than and through Soul Reaver, whereas additionally referencing parts of the Blood Omen video games, although it’s primarily tethered to the time interval earlier than Raziel’s first outing and Soul Reaver 2. If that sounds complicated, you actually ought to play these video games as a result of that sort of setup is actually taking advantage of the collection’ penchant for time-traveling antics.
Internally, Ascendance is being referred to as a prequel, which suggests we get to spend a while with variations of Kain and Raziel at a degree on the timeline that has hitherto been unexplored. Crystal Dynamics and Bit Bot Media are calling this period of the collection’ anti-hero “Imperial Kain,” because it depicts him at a time when he’s main a conquest. Raziel, in the meantime, seems as a human Seraphan, who’re preventing in opposition to the rise of the vampire race. Once more, that is an period of Raziel’s that has typically been referenced, however has by no means been depicted intimately, so it might function a wealthy infusion of latest materials for the Legacy of Kain group to select aside.
Becoming a member of Raziel and Kain is a 3rd playable character named Elaleth. She is a newcomer who was launched within the Lifeless Shall Rise comedian, additionally from BitBot. Her inclusion is certain to be a contentious level of dialogue with followers as she wasn’t obtained properly and was a disappointing point of interest in a narrative that almost all anticipated to be oriented round Kain and Raziel.
Nonetheless, she does present some new gameplay prospects as a fast-paced, combat-heavy character that may string collectively talents that make her proficient in each fight and platforming. Kain has all of the vampiric talents he is recognized for within the recreation, together with mist type and, naturally, the power to wield the Soul Reaver. The large gameplay twist for Raziel, who’s but to get his wraith powers at this level within the timeline, is the power to experience a conflict horse into battle and hack by enemies. Time is break up between them equally, so these with trepidation about Elaleth being included can a minimum of take solace in the truth that there will probably be simply as a lot of Kain and Raziel this time.
To go hand-in-hand with the shifting time intervals, Ascendance additionally options three distinct artwork types. Whereas the sport primarily makes use of a retro platformer aesthetic, there’s additionally a extra anime type paying homage to Netflix’s Castlevania collection. That is used primarily for cinematics and key story moments. A extra painterly type is carried out for portraits, which function prominently within the recreation’s narrative supply.
And make no mistake, Crystal Dynamics and BitBot know the way essential narrative and its supply is to the Legacy of Kain expertise, so count on the sport to be story- and dialogue-heavy. One of the best a part of that is undoubtedly the choice to carry again the unique forged to totally voice the sport. Followers can stay up for as soon as once more listening to Simon Templeman and Michael Bell as Kain and Raziel respectively, Richard Doyle as Mobius, and Anna Gunn of Breaking Unhealthy fame as Ariel.
Since I did not get to play both recreation, I can solely go on what I have been informed and, after getting a full briefing about each tasks, I walked away with blended emotions. On the one hand, as a baseline, it’s surreal to see extra exercise round Legacy of Kain after spending so lengthy begging for something. I’m very excited for the Defiance remaster and appreciative that it seems like Crystal Dynamics is reciprocating the reverence followers have for the sport in the way it’s placing the bundle collectively.
Then again, Ascendance, the primary new entry within the collection, feels decidedly unambitious. That sentiment, largely, comes from the truth that I have been fascinated about what a brand new Legacy of Kain recreation might be for over a decade, and a side-scrolling retro platformer feels decidedly missing in comparison with the sport I have been placing collectively in my head for therefore long–it’s undoubtedly a me downside pushed by a firmly cemented love of Legacy of Kain and absolute confidence within the potential it holds, however I believe many likeminded individuals will really feel equally.
Crystal Dynamics clearly is not as eager to take the identical trust-fall and, as an alternative, has a brand new Legacy of Kain recreation that gingerly steps right into a crowded market with hopes of attracting consideration and, extra importantly, not getting pelted by followers. At this level, it might go both means, as there are as many issues to get enthusiastic about as there are issues that might be disappointing. My hope is that it is the starting of a brand new lease on life for Legacy of Kain that can see the tasks develop in scale and ambition. My concern is that that is the one shot it has at relevance, and it would not really feel prefer it packs a lot of a punch. On the very least, the fandom ought to get a stable remaster, and we are able to begrudgingly return to the darkish corners of the web the place our love of Legacy of Kain refuses to die.