Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver

"It could have been worse."

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver has gotten a lot of bad press because of it's ending. However, most people use that one excuse to hate everything about the game. While it isn't perfect, I still believe it is a pretty decent game.

Story 7/10

In Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver you play as Raziel, a vampire who was betrayed by Kain for having grown wings and ''evolved'' before his master. However, the Gods have given you a second chance, one that allow you to take your revenge on Kain. I don't exactly want to give anything away though, so that was just basically what the goal of the game is.

Gameplay 7/10

The engine that Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver uses is a modified version of the Gex 3 engine. It runs very fast on the Dreamcast and the controls are right on with your commands. Movement is easy and smooth and if a mistake is made and you die or screw up, it is more than likely because you have done something wrong. Fighting takes place quite often and is easily done. Getting used to the controls should take probably no more than fifteen minutes for the average gamer. Difficulty is not so much in the combat, but in the puzzles. Entire rooms are used for moving about and exploring them is essential to completing most of the puzzles. All in all very well done. But just a bit too much like Tomb Raider without the horrible movement system.

Graphics 9/10

To be quite honest, the first time I saw this game in action I could not believe how fast the frame rate was going for the amount of polygons being displayed on screen at any one time. Easily moving at a constant sixty frames per second, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver is most definitely a feast for the eyes! Brilliant colors and very ample polygon count as well as an incredible draw distance for it's time make it obvious that this is a huge improvement over the PlayStation version, which is still one of the best looking games on that console. This game will easily make you proud to own a Dreamcast.

Sound 8/10

While there is a shortage of music, what is in the game makes for very well done and incredible musical scores. However, what really makes the sound so great is the unbelievably good voice acting. My goodness! Just get a copy of the game and hear for yourself, it is hard to describe how very well done the voices are.

Overall 7/10

While there is something lacking in the originality department, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver is a good buy for any platforming fan. There is a whole lot of fun to be had here and it definitely puts to good use the awesome power of the Sega Dreamcast!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 10/05/02, Updated 10/05/02