Soul Reaver 2

"Great game... short, but great."

It seems that games I wait along time for never disappoint me, even if they fall very short of expectations. This is, of course, no different. While they cut out a lot of what was supposed to be in the game, this time, I didn't feel like they had, like I did with Soul Reaver 1.

Gameplay: 8/10

The gameplay is great. I got the feeling throughout the game that this was much more like Blood Omen than the first Soul Reaver game. The game is very linear this time around. There should never be a point when you don't know where to go, because if it isn't stated, its pretty obvious anyway. Also, they upped the number of battles you'll have this time. This was no real problem, because all through Soul Reaver 1, I had wished that there would be more combat. I simply love this games somewhat simplistic combat system. They did make it more complex this time around, though. Since the Reaver will now drain your soul energy if you use it too much, for the first part of the game, you'll probably be relying on your claws. The battle with your claws is a simplistically complex system of dodging, blocking and comboing. Besides the battles, this game has (very few) puzzles. Unlike Soul Reaver 1, in which every ''dungeon'' had multiple puzzles, it seems that each ''dungeon'' in this game has only one pretty big puzzle. Alas, I still love the puzzles. Only in two cases in the game will you find yourself pulling blocks, which is a relief, but they replaced many of the block puzzles with ''take this thing from here to over here'' puzzles. They're still pretty cool. The cooler puzzles involve using the traits you gain from the Soul Reaver, such as created a shadow bridge with the Dark Reaver. Though the gameplay is incredibly repetitious, and involves lots of backtracking, its still remains fun. It is very short though.

Control: 7/10

The control, while most of the time good, has cases where you will want to hurl your controller at the ground, because it must already be broken not to figure out that when you press UP it means you want Raziel to move/dodge UP! But still, its good... nice layout, but they changed it slightly from Soul Reaver 1, they added some new functions, and changed twirling the view to the right analog stick. All around decent, but could use work.

Graphics: 9/10

This game is simply beautiful. The characters, the environments, everything is beautiful. The facial animation is especially good. Mouths are perfectly synched, everything just falls perfectly into place with the faces during cinemas. The only downfalls graphically in this game are shadows (they remain little circles beneath characters) and some polygonal seams in the environment. But all around, this game has some of the best graphics I've seen.

Sound: 8/10

Firstly, the voices in this game are absolutely perfect. I wouldn't be lying if I said this game has the best voice acting I have ever heard. It is simply phenomenal. The music is also pretty good, it suits the game but is repititious. The sound effects are good as well, and cool little effects help the game along in this case. Weapons sound different, footsteps different, and when you go from an open space to a confined one, you can tell that the sound effects change to reflect the surroundings. They are echoed in smaller rooms.

Story: 10/10

The story in this game blows my mind. It is incredible. I think it officially gives the Legacy of Kain series the best on going storyline. Throughout the game, due to time travel, you'll recognize things from Blood Omen and Soul Reaver 1. Especially toward the end, when the game comes full circle. And this time around the game didn't leave me with a half complete feeling at the ending. While still a cliff hanger, this ending seems to wrap the game up nicely, but still leave you wanting more.

Buy or Rent?

If your like me, and a diehard Kain fan, buy it, by all means. But since it's short, for other people, a rental is probably in order.

Overall: 8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/25/01, Updated 11/25/01