Back in 1996, Crystal Dynamics released a bloody homage to The Legend of Zelda entitled Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain that pleased many gamers eager to immerse themselves in a detailed, macabre world of vampires, demons, and ultra-violent top-down action. At the conclusion of the game, the player, acting as the titular character, was given the option of pursuing one of two entirely different paths: the former being the salvation of Nosgoth, the latter its seemingly irreparable transformation.
Regardless of one's choice, the game came to its inevitable end with nary a hint of continuation. As fate would have it, the game became a moderate success, and as is the case with popular media, a sequel was contemplated, though a dilemma arose for the publisher. The title's developer, Silicon Knights, had ended its relationship with Crystal Dynamics and, subsequently, there was a calamity regarding just what to develop, as well as the question of how to develop a follow-up for a potentially lucrative franchise.
Given that Crystal Dynamics retained the rights to use Kain and his world (despite some iffy legal battles between the publisher and its erstwhile developer), they decided to go with what the knew best, and by that, I mean by utilizing the format of their mainstay, Tomb Raider as a template for the forthcoming sequel.
I should mention in passing that I'm no big fan of Ms. Lara Croft or her games; they're not terrible by any means, it's just that the motif has never held much appeal to me, and at the time, the news of the coming game's similarities proved worrisome, which is to say that I loves me some Zeldaesque gameplay, and the thought of it dissolving into yet another TR clone dissatisfied me immensely.
Despite my trepidation, Crystal Dynamics soldiered on to release Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver in 1999 (Playstation version), and sure enough, I picked up a copy because I'm a sucker like that, but needless to say, I was immediately impressed with their offering.
Taking place 1500 years after the first game, Soul Reaver follows the path of Kain having chosen the darker path of selfishness and all that lies beyond. Playing as Raziel, the fallen comrade of Kain given new 'life' by a mysterious benefactor, you set about a mission of vengeance against your previous coterie, all while solving numerous maddening puzzles and vanquishing countless foes of varying degrees of monstrosity, and when I say maddening, I imply both the frustration of the puzzles themselves, and the obligatory self-abasement following their completion.*
For its time, Soul Reaver featured phenomenal graphics, atmospheric soundtrack, and noteworthy voice acting. Sure, it was Tomb Raider, but with vampires! So it worked out quite nicely in the end. Speaking of ends, one weak point that need be mentioned is the decidedly anticlimactic ending of the game. It literally just...stopped at one point. No horseshit, Soul Reaver ended with Raziel chasing Kain through a portal, and that's it. In hindsight, it served the purpose of leading gamers toward the upcoming sequel, and in that sense it's kinda like the The Empire Strikes Back of the series (in more ways than one, considering that the next game, while good, was a bit of a letdown), but still, what a kick in the teeth, yeah?
Anyway, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver is the first (only?) game on our list released for the Sony Playstation, and what a spectacular game it was.
* Fuck! Why couldn't I have recognized the solution sooner? That's so obvious! I'm an idiot. That should have taken like two seconds, and it does, but I'm a moron. What the hell was wrong with me?
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