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Legacy of Kain: Defiance Preview

Mark Simons

25/07/2003

We take a good look at the next blood sucking, soul destroying outing for Kain & Raziel...

'Legacy of Kain: Defiance' is the fifth game in this series that started out with 'Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain' on the PlayStation a few years back. The high point of the series is probably 'Soul Reaver', a very enjoyable game, with a good balance of fighting and puzzle solving, wrapped up in a lovely engine using impressive streaming techniques and a lovely morphing effect for the transition between two worlds.

The relatively recent 'Blood Omen 2' was not that great, 'Soul Reaver 2' was an improvement, but there was a chance that if the sequels stuck to the same formula they could become about as appetising as congealed blood. Thankfully 'Legend of Kain: Defiance', the fifth game in the series, sees developers Crystal Dynamics taking stock of the situation and working out how best to move things forward, developing the strong points and addressing weaknesses.

A slight change of emphasis means that the action should be faster, deeper and more satisfying whilst the storyline is more movie-like.

The story will focus on both Kain and Raziel as they progress, alternating level by level, through the game. Fans of the series will be pleased to see plot strands being brought together, whilst newcomers will still be able to pick things up quickly.

Gameplay now has fun very much at the centre, whilst puzzle solving and tactical combat is good, it is not immediately satisfying, and it's good to have something that satisfies your cravings quickly. Like a fresh neck to plunge your teeth into.

Fighting is what this game is about, fighting, sucking blood and devouring souls. This is messy business and it gets very messy in this game, brutal swordplay, impaling bodies on objects, throwing things around, munching on necks and doing it all quickly, smoothly and with a dark sense of style.

Crystal Dynamics have totally reworked their combat system, at the core there are familiar moves, on top of this there is a new combo system allowing you to rapidly dispatch individual foes, or letting you link attacks to take on crowds of enemies. Juggling enemies, as in the best fighting games, is they key. It's worth remembering that the two lead characters are very strong, you can pick up enemies, throw them in the air and then impale them with your sword, or uppercut them, or slam them back into the ground or throw them onto a spike on the wall or into a fire or, well, you get the idea, you can do a lot with them.

The focus is on creating your own combos to fit the situation and you are aided in this by improved targeting techniques and more dynamic animation. There will also be some new artificial intelligence for the enemies, meaning for instance you will have to deal with creatures hunting as packs. To help take on multiple foes you can use a bit of the old telekinesis - Vader style. With a few button presses you can be incorporating magic into your attacks, bringing enemies closer before putting your sword through their stomach, then flinging their body into an oncoming pack of nasty creatures of the night. Good stuff.

There will be finishing moves as well, and these are based around Raziel's soul eating and Kain's appetite for the red stuff. You can devour or suck souls and blood either up close and personal - messy - or from a distance, which is possibly more practical in a big fight. These moves will be accompanied by some suitably impressive effects to enhance the impact. The soul munching, blood sucking is useful for your character, but if you wish you can use the energy to charge up your weapon. A little bit of tactics creeping in, yeah, but not much, and there is enough blood and souls to go around for everyone and everything.

The violently slick fighting engine is made more spectacular with a new camera system, ditching the over the shoulder cam and going for something that frames the action a bit better. The camera is a smart thing, panning around and zooming in and out depending on what is happening on screen. A good comparison would be ICO, which a camera system that is two parts cinematic, one part dynamic and very effective.

Crystal Dynamics are ensuring that this is a very well presented game, voice artists who have worked on the previous titles will ensure that fans feel at home. Newcomers will have the story unfold in front of them, rather than have it dictated to them, as it feel like that in some parts of the previous games. Most people should be happy with the changes, but as ever, not everyone will be we are sure.

From an art and technology view the graphics are looking good, streaming techniques ensuring large continuous environments with high quality textures and stunning architecture that has more than a hint of the gothic about it. Character models are detailed and well animated, not to mention disturbingly good looking from an artistic point of view. There are all kinds of fancy lighting and particle effects; the main sword wielded by Raziel is looking absolutely stunning for one.