Guides
Set in the mythical realm of Nosgoth, the Legacy of Kain franchise follows the tragic tale of the vampire Kain as he tries to fulfill his destiny as Nosgoth's savior. The gameplay involves action and a lot of puzzle-solving elements.
Overview
Originally created by Silicon Knights in association with Crystal Dynamics, Legacy of Kain is an action-adventure series known for its outstanding narrative and involving puzzle-based gameplay. The series broke new ground with its high quality of voice-acting and engaging storyline featuring complex and often dark characters. Crystal Dynamics took over development after the release of the first game and went on to add four sequels.The series is set in the mythical realm of Nosgoth where the land's two dominant races, the Ancient Vampires and the Hylden, are locked in an ageless war for its control. Much of the story revolves around the vampire Kain and his destiny as Nosgoth's savior. The franchise was unique at the time for its choice of an anti-hero as a protagonist. The other main protagonist introduced later in Soul Reaver is Raziel, Kain's former first lieutenant and now his mortal enemy. The storyline features a variety of dark, manipulative characters with betrayal and deception as common themes throughout the series. The game's story is non-linear with Kain and Raziel frequently traveling back in history to change Nosgoth's fate.
Development
The first game in the franchise, Blood Omen, was the brain child of Denis Dyack. He wanted to create an action adventure game for a more mature audience which would require good puzzle solving skills and test a players mental and physical dexterity. Silicon Knights filed a lawsuit over the Legacy of Kain IP in 1998 after they came to know that Crystal Dynamics was developing a Blood Omen game without them. After a private settlement, Crystal Dynamics continued with the development. The remaining games in the series were directed by Amy Hennig and continued with Dyack's vision of video game set in a a morbid world.Games
There have been five games in the series so far. 
Blood Omen
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain Released in 1996 on the PC and the Playstation, this Silicon Knights action adventure game lay down a good marker for the rest of the series to build on. Blood Omen introduces us to Kain, once a nobleman but now a bitter and vengeful vampire, as he struggles to come to terms with his dark gift. We follow his story as he is manipulated and betrayed at every turn and used as a pawn for much of the game. The storyline is dark,complex and tells a tragic tale about the dying world of Nosgoth. The gameplay involved traditional action adventure elements with a good amount of puzzle solving. The game was received good reviews and was generally praised for its great voice work and story. 
Blood Omen
Soul Reaver
After a legal battle with Silicon Knights, Crystal Dynamics took over development of the franchise and their first addition was 1999's Soul Reaver on the PC and the Playstation. The gameplay switched to a third person action adventure and added a great deal to the puzzle solving element of the first game. It also let you explore the world freely, thus leading to a non-linear experience. The biggest change however was that players now took control of Kain's first lieutenant, Raziel as he is banished at the very start of the game. The game tells his story as he seeks vengeance by killing his former brothers. Kain, the hero from the first game is portrayed as an antagonist here. Soul Reaver is known for its infamous cliffhanger ending, leaving the players wanting more. The game earned some great reviews, with an average rating of 88% on gamerankings.com. The game was also significant for its data streaming engine which took away the need for constant loading screens, something prevalent in all PS games until that point.
Soul Reaver 2
Crystal Dynamics continued Raziel's tale with 2001's Soul Reaver 2. The game was released on the PC and the Playstation 2. The story picks up right where Soul Reaver left. You play the role of the anti-hero, Raziel as he continues to pursue Kain across different timelines and discovers his true destiny. The game also explores the history of Nosgoth and in particular, the blade Soul Reaver. The combat was more involved than the previous game and the enemy AI was also revamped. You can also use the wraith blade, Soul Reaver, at any time and much of the gameplay revolves around its different forms. The graphics got a significant boost, having switched from the PS to PS2. The puzzle structure also moved away from the block-puzzles used in the previous game. Soul Reaver answered many questions raised in previous games but also left some mysteries of its own.
Blood Omen 2
Blood Omen 2 was released in 2002 by Crystal Dynamics. The game was released on the PC and all three consoles available at the time – PS2, Xbox and Gamecube. It was developed in parallel to Soul Reaver 2 by another team and actually takes place as a result of events in that game. Blood Omen 2 follows the story of a young and ambitious Kain in his quest to establish his empire in Nosgoth. The world has an weird sort of industrial feel to it as technology mixed with magic. We find out early on that Kain failed in his earlier crusade and was basically out cold for 200 years. You spend much of the game trying to gain back your powers and gather a big enough army to lead another assault. The gameplay involves straightforward combat and simple puzzles. It continued the tradition of great voice acting and storytelling in the series.
Defiance
Themes
All the games in the series are star based, i.e. the emphasis is always on the characters and storytelling. Fatalism and predestined futures are major themes in all the games with Kain and Raziel continuously seeking to defy their fate and write their own futures. The existence (or lack ) of free will is another important component in all the games. Raziel and Kain present the opposite sides on this debate, with Raziel being the champion of free will and Kain being a fatalistic character.
Betrayal is another common theme in all the games, with every almost character seeking to manipulate the two main protagonists in the series. Moebius and the Elder God can be seen as examples of unreliable narrators as they try to influence Raziel. Time travel is also used quite often in the series, as Kain goes back in time to change history in an attempt to repair the future.
Voice Credits
A run down of the voice actors behind the major characters in the series:
- Kain - Simon Templeman
- Raziel - Michael Bell
- Elder God & Mortanius (in Blood Omen) - Tony Jay
- Janos Audron - Rene Auberjonois
- Ariel - Anna Gunn
- Moebius - Richard Doyle
- Vorador - Paul Lukather
Legacy of Kain games
Edit
| Name | Platforms | Developer | ||
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Legacy of Kain: Defiance (Special Edition) released on Feb. 4, 2004 |
PC | Crystal Dynamics, Inc. |
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Legacy of Kain: Defiance released on Nov. 11, 2003 |
PS2, XBOX, PC | Crystal Dynamics, Inc. |
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Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen 2 |
PS2, GC, XBOX, PC | Crystal Dynamics, Inc. |
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Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2 |
PS2, PC | Crystal Dynamics, Inc. |
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Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver released on Aug. 16, 1999 |
PS1, DC, PC | Crystal Dynamics, Inc. |
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Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain released on Nov. 7, 1996 |
PS1, PC | Silicon Knights, Inc. |
