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The most appealing part of Blood Omen was that Players were able to take of the world as Kain, the vampiric super beast that easily took its place as the best character to which players were able to control. Not long after Blood Omens success shook the Playstation, Crystal Dynamics started work on a sequel for a PSX release. Sporting a new story, gameplay, and lead character, many were skeptical about this new game, but to everyone’s surprise, this game rocked. having sold over a million copys Crystal Dynamics opened its doors to the Sega Dreamcast to re-release this game with beefed up graphics, more characters, and longer gameplay.
You asume control of Raziel, one of Kains former upperclassmen. Having "evolved" sooner than Kain in sprouting wings, Kain punished Raziel by sending him into the Lake of Lost Souls to suffer eternal pain and suffering. In the Lake lived the Elder, a being who devoured souls until Kain deprived his food source much more quickly. He offers Raziel the chance to have his revenge on Kain if he destroys the beings of his brethren. Like the Elder you must devour souls to remain in the living realm, or else you will be taken back to the spectral realm where the world is torn, evil, and demons and souls roam free.
In legacy of Kain the most noticeable thing is, that you can't die. When you don't devour souls or get hurt to many times, you are transported to the Spectral realm (which you can go to by will if needed).In the spectral realm you are given the ability to fuel up on souls and even venture to places to which would be impossible in the real world. Once you have enough power to reenter the real world, you will see a beautiful scene as the world around you twists and turns into the other realm, that is truly fascinating.
Since Raziel's only real defenses is attacking with his claws, you will need to use the environment as your weapons. Without a spear or blade, killing your enemies becomes a puzzles itself. Having to throw enemies into rays of sunlight, water, or fire becomes a challenge that when successfully done is quite rewarding. The best weapon possible are the spears, or other random sharp blades from walls or wherever. They allow you to impale your enemy, suck in his soul, and retrieve the blade to kill again.
The Gameplay I found very addictive and if not for some really hard puzzles or my bodies insistent need for sleep and food, I would have never stopped playing this game. I found this game a mixture of Tomb Raider, with its puzzle solving and adventurous feel, and Tenchu with its 3rd person action like feel with a discreet feel. This is definitely a change in what the gaming market is used to and it proved itself to be for the best. The graphics in comparison, especially the Playstation version, but the PC version as well, are much better. Soul Reaver is host to some of the best particle and transformation effects I have ever seen. The only real problem with the graphics was the cut off/pop up range. Though greater than the Playstations version, it is no demonstration of the Dreamcasts power in full.
A very annoying problem with this game is the camera situation. In several instances I was forced to deal with aggravating situations in which the camera never revealed the true path to me. The camera just seemed to be barley to low to see a ledge in an area to which you would check last for to find the exit, making certain easy areas seem impossible. The main problem though was in the saving system. You are given the option to save at any point in the game, which sounds good but you start at the same point in the game no matter what. Which is a problem because you sometimes have to deal with puzzles over and over. Their are teleports to advance between points in the game, but if one is missed, all others are ineffective until that one is activated. I missed one early in the game which caused me to have to play the game over and over to regain the ground I had lost.
The control in the game, for the most part is good but had some issues. The button setup was good, taking advantage of all buttons and some combinations but the problem lay in the analog stick. I felt it was to jumpy which would cause a problem in fights if not for their confronting button ( which is really nice ). But the analogs jumpiness was cause for many strange jumps and landing, but not to terribly bad.
The overall presentation of Soul Reaver, was done quite well with its beautiful graphics, excellent control, and extended gameplay, but as usual this as many games suffers from basic problems which costs it a super high rating but is still WAY up there. Good job Eidos and Crystal Dynamics for one of the best Dreamcast games to date.
| Graphics: 89 | Though better than the PSX version, doesn't show Dreamcasts full potential. |
| Sound: 99 | Best voice acting to date, with great music. |
| Control: 88 | Button setup is nice but anolog is to ridgid. |
| Replay: 83 | Long addictive game is cause for nice replay, but looses some luster. |
| Overall: 92 | One of the best DC games out, a definate YES for any game fan. |
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