Originally released in 2003, Legacy of Kain: Defiance was actually the third game featuring the antihero Soul Reaver known as Raziel.
The story of Legacy of Kain: Defiance goes something like this: The journeys of vampire Lord Kain and his wraith lieutenant Raziel interweave as they try to break free from the manipulative control of destiny and the Elder God. As you play as Kain you search for Moebius the Time Streamer to confront him about the corruption of Nosgoth. Meanwhile Raziel escapes the Underworld, learning how to shift back into the material realm. Both travel through time across different eras, unaware they are being manipulated by the Elder God and Moebius...
Back in the day, the Legacy of Kain/Soul Reaver games competed directly with the juggernaut that was the Tomb Raider franchise, which sadly went down hill quickly after the first 3 instalments and only really recovered with Crystal Dynamics' excellent 2013 reboot. It's probably worth stating that apart from being contemporaries, Raziel & Kain's adventures share little else in common with Lara Croft's outings.
Gameplay-wise little has changed from the original, bar crisper visuals and a rock solid frame rate. You can swap between the remastered graphics and classic with a click of the right stick. The remastered graphics do the job but look dated. The gameplay supplied by Crystal Dynamics, Raziel & Kain certainly stand the test of time better than some, and the story & characters are probably strong enough to deserve Tomb Raider-style reboots.
Unfortunately early when playing as Raziel I got stuck in some scenery and not long after the game locked up solid when I accessed Moebius's tower. This could only be rectified by exiting to the dashboard and quitting and rebooting the game, with subsequent loss of gameplay.
The dual-protagonist setup is still one of the game’s strongest ideas on paper. Switching between Kain’s brutal, grounded vampire combat and Raziel’s spectral-plane shifting for puzzles gives the adventure a bit of variety, and the story remains the real star – dour, gothic and delivered with that unmistakable over-the-top voice acting that made the series legendary. Simon Templeman’s Kain in particular still sounds like pure aristocratic arrogance.
The game supplies 9-10 hours lifespan but it does get samey, and Kain's constant hack/slash/feed gameplay and Raziel's less combat-based realm-changing to solve puzzles gets old surprisingly quickly.
Sadly the actual gameplay hasn’t aged as gracefully as I'd hoped. Both character's combat soon reveals itself to be shallow and repetitive (especially once the novelty of the Reaver upgrades wears off), the level design leans heavily on recycled sections, and the occasional soft-lock or geometry glitch (like the one I hit) reminds you this is still a 2003 game with a new lick of paint. The free camera in the remaster helps a lot compared to the original’s almost-fixed angles, but it can’t fully disguise how methodical and occasionally tedious the exploration becomes.
If you’re a long-time fan wanting to complete the Soul Reaver arc, or someone who just wants more of that gothic, destiny-versus-free-will storytelling, Defiance is still worth the time. Just don’t expect the gameplay loop itself to feel as sharp or inventive as the writing. It’s a solid, if slightly weary, conclusion to one of gaming’s most unique sagas.
thanks to PlayEveryWare, Crystal Dynamics and Sandbox Strategies.