Customer Reviews

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Simply put, this game was very well put together. Storyline, animation, graphics, control, and music were all expertly crafted to bring one of the most enjoyable experiences on the PSX to the gamer. At no point does this game overwhelm the player with mundane intricacies or fruitless hours of combat. Instead it combines the right mixture of hack-n-slash with exploration and puzzle-solving. Definitely a leader in the developing action/rpg genre. Be warned that this game is geared towards a mature audience and that the game itself provides plenty of gore.

This is one of the best PS(Playstation) games. Right along with games like "Finall Fantasy 7". Better than the "Tomb Raider" games(Also from Eidos). allthough it has some flaws(As every game does, it still is a very fun and very good game. It has good graphics, and voice acting, good music too.
You play Raziel(if you read the editorial review you know all this), once a luitenant(not as in army rank, but kainda like right hand man sorta, second in command), to Kain, the vampire ruler, along with 5 others. However, Raziel than evolved and grew wings before Kain. Kain became jealois and furious and tore Raziel's wings, than through him into the lake, to be damned and burn for eternity(Water burns them). But then a spirit or something called the elder saves and ressurects Raziel to take revenge on Kain.
There are two realms or worlds or planes, the spectre plane and the material plane. The material realm is just the normal world, the spectre realm is a twisted version of the material realm(Of course its the underworld/netherworld death place thing)
You can switch between these realms whenever you wish, this can be a big help, as that might not be reachible in the material realm might be in the twisted spectre plane, or visa versa.
There are alot of enamys to fight(Alot more than in tomb raider, wich seems like a walk in the park compared to this), and you need to fight enamys, atleast untill you get the soul reaver, because in the material realm your energy(Health) slowly runs out, and you need to consume the souls of your enamys. The fighting works like this; first you attack your enamys with normal attacks(Square button) untill they are stunned, than, before they recover, you must attack them with a fatal blow(Triangle button), they than die and there souls(Look like balls of blue light, or mini comets floating around) leave there bodys, you can then consume the souls before they go into the spectral realm(Were they will be if you go there). You have a large collection of weapons with wich to do this. Your bare hands, or claws:You first slash them than pick them up and through them into fire or water, sunlight or onto spikes on walls. You can burn them with torches, impale them on spear, OR, you have your ultiment weapon, the soul reaver(Basicly a sword of spiritual energy that you hit enamys with). You also have magic powers, or glyphs, these include powers like the shift Glyph(You start out with this, it allows you to go between Material and Spetre), Or stone or sunlight. There are alot of puzzles to figure out, however they can be chalenging(And get repetitive). The problems are: Some times Awkward camera angles, Often time no sense of direction, Puzzles can be chalenging(You will find yourself wandering about wondering what to do, very often)though that is not a magor flaw, The soul reaver turns off if you get only slightly hurt. But aside from those flaws, its a great game, don't listen to the negative reviews, all I have told you is what the game really is like, so order this game, or go out and buy it, you won't be sorry.

The game plays like a movie and will keep you on the edge of your seat. The gameplay is pretty good; and, as the game progresses, your character gains new attributes to assist in vanquishing his vampire opponents. The graphics and sound are very good. Soul Reaver has a variety of puzzle elements which can be very tricky, and you will get stuck. I highly recomend buying a guidebook to go with this game. Overall, this game will keep you glued to the TV for hours.

I'm getting sick of everyone whining about Soul Reaver being to hard and impossible without walkthroughs or strategy guides. I'm only 14 and I beat the game without any help from Faqs, guides, walkthrough etc.

If this game is too hard for you, go play Eternal Eyes. It has cute little monsters, easy fights and a happy story. But please, stop humiliating yourselves by saying you couldn't beat a simple puzzle game like Soul Reaver. I've had harder time with Bubsy than I've had with Soul Reaver.

Anyways, great game, go buy it.

I had played the original Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen by Silicon Knights years ago, and was a bit hesitant to get the sequel because the first one was a bit boring. Finally, I realized this game was completely different from the first (namely because of a different development team, Crystal Dynamics), and got a cheap copy of it new (you gotta love this Greatest Hits series that PSX is running).

The only real connection between the two is in story, but the two games are spanned centuries apart. At the end of the first game, you as Kain are given the choice to either sacrifice yourself and bring balance to the world, or bring imbalance by becoming the dark ruler. You choose the latter. In Soul Reaver, you play as Raziel, one of Kain's lieutenants, who he has damned to an eternity of torment, only to be saved by the Elder Gods and given the mission to destroy Kain and your bretheren.

This game plays a lot less like Blood Omen and a lot more like Tomb Raider (also published by Eidos). Like Tomb Raider, it involves a combination of puzzle-solving, making your way through obstacles, and fighting enemies that get in your way (although a bit more violent). Another cool thing is since your are already undead, you can't really die. Instead of health, you have spiritual energy, which can be replenished by reaving the souls of your enemies. If you happen to lose all energy, you are sent back to the parallel dimension of the spiritual world, where your can regain your energy and come right back to where you were in the material realm.

The only problems I had with the game were that the fighting was kinda annoying, and never really gave you the oppurtunity to take all the ways of killing vampires (impalement,sunlight,water,fire) to your advantage. Also, it was a little confusing as where to go next in the game at some points, and the frame-rendering could be a little better. Nonetheless, if you liked Tomb Raider or Onimusha, or just looking to play some good cheap games, get Soul Reaver! Also, for PS2 owners out there, Soul Reaver 2 will be released for PS2 in late September, and Blood Omen 2 will shortly follow in early November, so make sure to play the original before playing these future releases, which will definately be amazing (don't bother with the original Blood Omen though, it's not worth hunting down).

I started playing the Legacy of Kain series with Soul Reaver 2. After such a good experience, especially with the epic storyline, I decided to play the previous games: Soul Reaver 1, and Blood Omen. Blood Omen, despite being a buggy, outdated game, proved to be essential in understanding the storyline, while Soul Reaver 1 added very little to the storyline, as mostly everything, including the ending, is explained in Soul Reaver 2. Gameplay-wise, I can see that a lot of improvements were made from this version in Soul Reaver 2. Combat is more limited and you spend most of the time solving very tedious puzzles, much more difficult ones than in Soul Reaver 2. "Getting stuck" is the order of the day in this game, thank goodness for guides and walkthroughs. Even the bosses are puzzles. You have to find a special way of killing them; some are really tough. This game turned the Legacy of Kain into the Legacy of Pain (in the rear end) in this aspect.

Nevertheless, the game's atmosphere and storyline is good enough to warrant some suffering through these puzzles.

Soul Reaver is fantastic, but only if you're the right type of gamer. If you enjoy the dramatic; this one's for you. If goofy is your thing; dont bother.
SR boasts great graphics and equally great story, excellently interlaced cut scenes and voice overs, satisfying achievment levels, and absolutely wicked atmosphere. In fact, you might say it simply OOOZES atmosphere. Dark, ominous...vengful, atmosphere.
The only con of SR is its almost total adbandonment of classic big boss @$$ kicking. As most major opponents are invulnerable, the player must dicover his foes weakness. That, and several puzzle type situations that must be solved in order to progress may drive the player temporarily insane: But the game's drama content more than makes up for it.
A word about the ending: It's a little dissapointing. -the rising drama towards the climax of the game is exceptional, but the whole thing ends in a 'to be continued' fashion. Rather disheartening after so much fantastic gameplay.

Even so, this one is awesome. -Now Raziel, crawl up from the underworld, consume the souls of your brothers who cursed you, and the former master who cast you into the pit so long ago.....

I bought Blood Omen:Legacy of Kain almost immediately after its release. It was good, although it suffered from many flaws (which at the time were acceptable). When I heard of the premise of Soul Reaver, I thought, "Great. Now Kain is going the route of Tomb Raider. Ho hum"...
Needless to say, I was quite pleased with the final product of Soul Reaver. No, it isn't the same as Blood Omen, but it is highly enjoyable on its own merit. My only complaint was the lack of fluidity of the controls, but this is a minor annoyance at MOST. I would recommend this game to ANYONE, period. You won't be disappointed...
Now, you follow the exploits of Raziel, as he attempts to exact revenge on his creator and betrayer, the vile Kain. The voices are great, particularly that of the sneering Kain, and the constant gameplay is fantastic. The idea of gaining new abilities as one devours souls is pretty freakin' cool, too...
However, can somebody tell me why Eidos can't put these games out ON TIME?? I waited a long time for Soul Reaver, and now I am waiting for Soul Reaver 2. Yeah, the games are good, but how about making your DEADLINE?!

And here we have something new but all the while somehow old to the 3d action genre. First, lets begin with the bad, save the good stuff for later. What may be bad about this game you ask? Well, lets face it, who here is tired of moving blocks? I know i am. It is a trap of these games, blocks, I would prefer it if they took differnt shapes, ala tomb raider the last revelation. Also, te graphic are so advanced for the playstaion system that you can help but notice some slowdowns at some points, nor the clipping problems that pop up at times. Also, the ending, oh god, the ending, what could have been quite easiest the game of the year was ruined by that chance with the ending, to be contuined? Arghhhhhhhhhh. Just another clever way by the marketing company to make us buy the sequel, errrrr. Now, the good. The good, the graphics, they are so crisp beside the cliping troubles, the architeture of the game is great, the builidings ooze creapiness. Plus the voice acting is superb, and the ways to kill your enemies, none though of witch that compare to the soul reaver blade when ya get it, hell yeah. This game is real good, damn good, go and buy it.

The game's first cinematic sequence shows why Kain casts you(Raziel) into the Vortex of the Dead. The reason he does so is because you grew your wings before him. As he circles you, you are suddenly drenched in pain as Kain rips your wings. As you lay there wounded he orders your vampire brethern to toss you into the abyss. After an eternity of pain and suffering you finally hit the bottom of the abyss.A voice suddenly summons you.He tells you he can help you get vengance on Kain. You tell him you don't deserve this fate and he replies by telling you that you have no choice. You find the cape that marked you as clan leader and cover up your face to hide the fact that your jaw has disintergrated off your face.You reluctantly agree to his offer to help.You soon discover that instead of blood you hunger fo souls.
PROS:
-Nice length(50-60hrs)
-Responsive controls
-No in-game loading
-Fantastic storyline
-Challenging puzzles
-Pulls out emotions that you normally don't feel in games.(like remorse)
-Fighting controls
-Gaining ablities by killing your enemies
CONS:
-Sometimes puzzles are harder than neccesary
That is all I can tell you without ruining anything. Just try the game and you'll be sure to love it.
-