Legacy Of Kain Defiance Remastered, our review of the return to Nosgoth

The Legacy of Kain saga was neglected by the video game industry and mistreated by its creators for many years, yet it was never forgotten by fans, who over time developed a visceral love for Kain and Raziel and their struggle against the wheel of fate.

That's why when the remastered versions of Legacy Of Kain Soul Reaver 1 and 2 were announced in 2024, many of us were thrilled.
It was a clear nostalgia operation that, however, brought to light a franchise that had been silent for more than 20 years.

The enthusiasm also stemmed from the awareness that this remaster served as a way to test the waters for a relaunch of the saga, meaning a good product result would lead to new titles in the history of Nosgoth or a remake of the first two Blood Omen games.

It goes without saying that the announcements of Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered, just over a year after the work on the first two Legacy of Kain titles, and the announcement of Legacy Of Kain Ascendance, left me a little perplexed for two main reasons: a new remaster that seems to be another nostalgia operation, and a new 2D pixel art title that seems to bring back the never-so-loved Elaleth, to whom fans attributed the failure of the graphic novel Legacy Of Kain: The Dead Shall Rise.

However, in such an uncertain world, a product from the Legacy Of Kain franchise is never to be dismissed, so I couldn't help but dive back into the lands of Nosgoth.

2 Vampires Against Fate, the Plot of Legacy Of Kain Defiance Remastered

The story of Legacy Of Kain Defiance Remastered begins exactly where Soul Reaver 2 left off.
Kain and Raziel have plunged into Moebius's time-weaving machine and now find themselves in two different temporal realities; with their very personal goals, which are actually much more similar than they believe.

Kain is searching for a way to defeat adverse fate and restore the Pillars of Nosgoth without having to sacrifice himself. He is therefore on the trail of Moebius, who seems to be the only one who knows how to "repair" history and save the world from decay.

Raziel, on the other hand, seeks to understand his true nature and purpose as the "Soul Reaver"; which has led him to clash with the Elder God who would use him as a tool for his wheel of fate.

Both characters attempt to reassert their free will by trying to escape a fate that seems to have already been written.

A Nostalgia Operation Dedicated to Fans of the Saga

The remaster of Legacy Of Kain Defiance meticulously follows the operation done with Soul Reaver 1 and 2: a 1:1 re-release of the original game with graphical enhancements and additions that please long-time fans. However, it is necessary to emphasize that this is not the best element of this remaster (but we'll talk about that later).

Exactly like the previous remaster, it's possible to switch between the original and new graphics modes with the press of a button, just as the game's audio has also been remastered, giving it greater depth that allows for better immersion in the game world.

Of note is the presence of the original voice actors Simon Templeman and Michael Bell, whose performances have been technically cleaned up, maintaining the high quality of the dialogues that the original game already presented.

An excellent addition is the new game camera, which positions itself behind the character, allowing for better control and facilitating exploration and combat phases. Exactly as with the graphics mode, in the case of the camera, it's possible to switch between the original, fixed camera and the modern one at any time; this way, you can enjoy the cinematic angles of the original game and use the over-the-shoulder camera when necessary.

Other additions include the foresight mechanic, which allows you to easily identify where to go or what to do, and the presence of a local map. However, I believe I used these additions only a couple of times because the game is quite linear and clearly indicates, sometimes even too clearly, what the next objective is.

To round out the offering, there's a whole host of elements dedicated to fans of the saga: an encyclopedia of Nosgoth's history, a series of collectible skins for the two characters, the presence of levels that were canceled during development, and audio and video material from behind-the-scenes development.

Also noteworthy is the presence of the demo of Legacy Of Kain The Dark Prophecy, a game that was supposed to be the sequel to Defiance but never saw the light of day. Unfortunately, this demo is only available to those who purchase the deluxe version of the game.

Legacy of Kain Defiance Remastered, A Lot of Dust Swept Under the Rug

Exactly like the original 2004 title, Legacy Of Kain Defiance Remastered puts the player in control of both Raziel and Kain, and in doing so, makes the exact same mistakes as the 2004 title.

The gameplay of both characters is quite similar; both attack with the Soul Reaver and telekinesis; which in the long run makes the gameplay repetitive and boring (exactly as in the original game).

Beyond the technicalities, there is also the strong resistance of enemies, who require many hits to be defeated, which contrasts with the narrated events.
Kain is almost a demigod and should pass through hordes of human enemies without any problem, yet this does not happen.
The same goes for Raziel, who defeats the specters of the old guardians of the pillars without any problem, but needs many, too many, hits to defeat a simple human.

While the heaviness in combat is felt more during Kain's sections, similarly, Raziel's sections present a series of environmental puzzles that become copies of each other, both in terms of mechanics and artistic components.

It is then necessary to dwell on the proposed graphical restyling, which fails in its objective: to be the highlight of the offering.
Exactly as I already pointed out in my review of Legacy Of Kain Soul Reaver Remastered, unlike the title for the first PlayStation, the graphical improvements for the PS2 title are barely visible, and the same applies to Defiance: so much so that sometimes I didn't know if I was playing with the original or the remastered graphics mode.

The graphical improvements to the game locations are truly bland and sometimes very poorly done (from various rumors, it seems that the upscaling was done with artificial intelligence tools and then reviewed by the development studio's artists).

The situation is different for the polygonal models of the protagonists, which have a significantly higher level of detail, however, the final result sometimes deviates too much from the original models (especially Moebius and Ariel, whose original models I prefer).

Still on the graphical front, an illumination system that is difficult to understand should be noted. This tends to over-illuminate the environments, terribly altering the game's atmosphere.

Another small note should be made about the Italian translation, which is sometimes too strange, with blunders of the caliber of early Google Translate: like Checkpoint translated as "Punto di controllo" (Control Point).

Legacy Of Kain Defiance Remastered, Was It Really Necessary?

The question arises: did we really need THIS remaster?

Legacy of Kain Defiance Remastered arrives after a 2025 during which we played the remastered versions of Oblivion, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, or Metal Gear Solid Delta; titles that, while maintaining enormous fidelity to the original product, managed to re-propose it in great style. Something that Defiance Remastered unfortunately fails to do.

If the Soul Reaver remasters were understandable, especially the first one, that of Defiance is difficult to digest, especially because it arrived in not exactly optimal conditions.
A new nostalgia operation that retraces the steps of a product already appreciated at the end of 2024 cannot still aim to test the waters, but has the obligation to raise the bar of the offering; otherwise, there is a risk of moving from tribute to speculation.

Legacy Of Kain Defiance Remastered endures thanks to the excellent work at its foundation. It offers a high-level narrative, masterfully crafted protagonists, and world-building that still has so much to say more than two decades later.
The introduction of the new over-the-shoulder camera, which improves the game's quality of life, is appreciated, but for the rest, the product offered by Crystal Dynamics and PlayEveryWare fails to make an impact.

Play it if you didn't have the opportunity to play the original back in the day; avoid it if you still have a copy of the original game at home.