We last crossed paths with Kain and Raziel in 2024’s robust and lengthy Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered double-pack. This brought together the technically accomplished 1999 original, which pushed the ageing PS1 hard, and the slightly disappointing combat focused sequel from 2001 – a relatively early release for PS2. Defiance is often heralded as a fan favourite, increasingly influenced by the action adventure titles PS2 and Xbox owners were enjoying at the time, including Devil May Cry. That’s the original DMC, not the awful sequel, thankfully.
The draw in Defiance is unquestionably the dual-protagonist set-up, with its thirteen chapters alternating between the blood thirsty vampire Kain and his deposed, tattered, lieutenant Raziel. While the two share similarities, such as attacking foes with long-range slashes, they have numerous differences too, with the two play styles complementing each other. Kain mostly faces human adversaries, sometimes in great numbers, and can heal by feeding upon them, whereas Raziel must inhale souls to survive. Kain can also telepathically lob enemies off ledges and into flaming braziers, like some kind of vampiric Sith-Lord. Water will kill Kain instantly however, whereas Raziel can swim. Raziel can glide too, whereas Kain can only float downwards. Most importantly, Raziel can shift from the spectral realm into the mortal world, relocating objects and partly transforming room arrangements.
The duo must increase the abilities of their reavers as they travel through the ruins of Nosgoth in an alternative timeline, treading the same ground years apart in search of forges. Kain starts his quest in a snow coated stronghold, while Raziel must escape the clutches of the Elder God, with both seeking answers and guidance from their few remaining elders. Raziel’s new reavers fall into the light and dark category, allowing him to vanish temporarily and harness the power of fire – which is often used in puzzle solving. Most of Raziel’s quests fall into the puzzle-oriented camp, being of the block shoving and beam directing variety. Kain faces groups of vampire hunters, some of whom can cast spells, although there are numerous points where it’s possible to simply run past adversaries. Defiance’s combat comes off as more serviceable than stylish nowadays, lacking depth despite most enemies requiring several hits, so this is fortunate.
One strong plot motivator is that it’s inevitable that Kain and Raziel are going to meet; you know it’s coming, you just don’t know when. The quality of the vocal work remains ageless and impeccable, and the writing is sharp too, putting even similarly themed big budget games from this console generation to shame.
Main objectives and a map can be viewed from the menu screen, helping to keep players on track. Also assisting with progression is the new addition of foresight – pressing the trigger button will show a marker to the next location, swinging the camera around in the process. This is a godsend. Foolproof it isn’t, however. It’ll guide you to the next puzzle or an inactive portal, but there’s still a need to figure out what to do. It’s possible to save at any time too, although this isn’t a true ‘save state’ feature – it merely saves from the last checkpoint.
As this is a remaster, the graphics have been improved, complete with the ability to swap between new and old visuals. The enhanced character models, especially for Raziel, are a marked improvement, sporting more detail and subtle changes. However, the new visuals aren’t necessarily better. They’re just…different. Some areas that were meant to be dark and moody are now brighter, swapping beigey textures for more yellowy hues, while outdoor locations supposedly set during the daytime are more akin to dusk. One wintery location Kain traverses is supposed to be set within springtime for Raziel, yet the new textures make it appear more autumnal. In the end, I found myself swapping between new and old visuals often, simply picking whichever offered the best visibility. On that note, the visual distortion from the spectral world can be adjusted, removing much of its haze. This is a good thing. One of the more unexpected new features comes in the form of a floating camera, which can be disorientating if its somehow activated by accident – which is easy to do. It appears this was a fan requested feature to make it feel more contemporary.
This revamp comes from modern day Crystal Dynamics and developer PlayEveryWhere rather than Aspyr. It seems that Crystal Dynamics wanted to make this the definitive package, rummaging through their archives for cut and unseen content. The deluxe edition includes a demo of an axed proposed sequel, which we weren’t able to try, only having access to the standard edition. Word has it that it’s barely last five minutes. The standard edition does have several cut locations, though, accessible freely from a menu. There’s a brief synopsis for each, and you’ll soon notice a pattern – the purposes for many of these previously unseen locations have been lost to the mists of time. Most are simply square rooms with a non-interactive centre piece, such as a sundial. It’s safe to assume that most players are going to only spend a minute or two in these scrapped rooms before visiting the next. It’s neat that they’re preserved, but in the end, most aren’t very interesting.
It’s easy to see why Legacy of Kain: Defiance is a fan favourite, offering a mixture of bloody combat and lateral puzzle solving, with the two brooding protagonists on an inevitable crash course. It’s a long lasting adventure too, with a respectable 12 hour runtime – and the variety within the chapters, with some being more boss-fight orientated, makes for something quite moreish. There were even times when I forgot I was playing something from 2003, although that’s due to the improved visuals rather than anything else.
This is a decent enough remaster for a game this old; a couple of key improvements, slicker visuals, and a generous helping of extras that should satisfy long-time fan’s curiosity regarding its creation. If playing Soul Reaver 1 & 2 back-to-back in the recent remaster didn’t leave you frazzled, this is an extremely safe purchase with nothing sinister lurking under its rejuvenated exterior. Newcomers might be left feeling underwhelmed by the combat and overwhelmed by the methodical means of progression in these more open-ended times. No one can deny that the dual-protagonist set-up wasn’t used to its fullest though.
Crystal Dynamics’ Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is out now on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series, Xbox One and PC. A Switch version is planned for later this year.