Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 And 2 Remastered on PC/Steam – The DVDfever Review

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Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 And 2 Remastered is out now, and boy, oh boy, this is one I have been waiting for. I have been a fan ever since the very first Blood Oman game launched back in 1996, with its Zeldaesque gameplay and overhead camera.

Of course, it is the original Soul Reaver which really rocketed this franchise into the stratosphere, with its PS1 release in late 1999, alongside the SEGA Dreamcast and PC releases, both of which I still own physical originals to this day.

Where Blood Omen follows the titular Vampire, Lord Kain, the Soul Reaver series is set 1500 years after the original game, and sees one of his Lieutenants Raziel looking for vengeance after his gift surpassed the abilities of his master. He is cast into the Lake of the Dead, burning flesh from bone (vampires and running water – guess they can’t get in a bath when it is still running or a shower?!).

The Elder God resurrects Raziel becoming his new master. It is time to put a stop to Kain and his other Lieutenants, given the collapse of Nosgoth and the corruption of the pillars, due to Kain not sacrificing himself…

LEGACY OF KAIN: SOUL REAVER REMASTERED Gameplay Walkthrough FULL GAME (4K 60FPS) No Commentary – Shirrako




I have said it before and will do so again here: These are remasters, so therefore the core gameplay mechanics, levels and story etc are the same as what they always have been, and reviews of both Soul Reaver games from their original release dates are still relevant today. This is not like Mafia Definitive Edition, for example, where the original game was remade from the ground up, so level design and so on changed.

However, these remasters are possibly the best ones that have been done to date for me personally. Much like the Tomb Raider Trilogy Remastered, Crystal Dynamics, the original developer have done the work and you can switch between both original and new visuals with the press of a button and that is just a start!

So we have all new visuals and artwork, which look fantastic alongside the new lighting. The sound is crystal clear, music is excellent, and it all draws you in from the start. The Soul Reaver blade, itself, has also been redesigned, and even though looking good previously, it looks even better now. All the enemy character models have been redone, as have the bosses, especially now look even more menacing than they ever did. There have been new additions, such as icons on items which can be interacted with, as occasional items like the blocks – that had to be pulled out the walls and flipped over to make patters match etc – were quite hard to see. If you do want the original experience, you can turn this feature off.

Now a big one that has been added is full camera control mapped to your right thumb stick. Originally, the camera stayed firmly behind Raziel, with just left and right movement. Now, though, you can look up and down, so sky boxes have been added for you to admire. This new function also comes in handy when having to look about, to see where you are going, in case you may have missed spotting an opening up high. You even now have a map of Nosgoth, where you can see the portals you have unlocked, and on the left side of the map screen is your current objectives, which help guide you. I got lost so many times with the original game mixing up the house banners, for where I had seen something that new skill could be used!

Even more new content has been added to Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 And 2 Remastered, in the form of cut levels and areas. Granted, they haven’t been added into the actual games, but they have been constructed so you can explore them. A final new thing alongside obligatory achievements is a photo mode, which is awesome, given some areas are just begging to be captured to hold a memory or a particularly awesome view.

…Oh and yeah, one last thing is we also now have a full day & night cycle, alongside weather!

There is just so much content here outside of the games you are more than getting your money’s worth.

LEGACY OF KAIN: SOUL REAVER 2 REMASTERED Gameplay Walkthrough FULL GAME (4K 60FPS) No Commentary – Shirrako




The Soul Reaver series started strong, and both sequels are equally as good as the first outing. The gameplay is similar to the 3D Legend of Zelda titles, and you can easily see the newer Darksiders series is inspired by both IPs.

I have always loved this style of game: beat a boss to get their power or weapon, and then use the new feature to go further and explore areas you couldn’t get to previously. This culminates in a final area, which uses everything you have acquired and learned to get through, as well as the final boss, usually.

What really makes Soul Reaver stand out, however, is that the puzzles often require thinking across both physical and spectral realms – such as areas like the bell tower, later in the game, where there is a door which you have to open, and after hitting the switch to get through it, you have very little time to get there before it closes, so after opening it, shift to the spectral realm – where time freezes – and you can then get there without any worry! That is just one example of the many different times you will have to shift to be able to get past something.

Overall, these games have aged extremely well, and the stories they tell, twist and turn as well as there being no black or white, just grey areas. The second game has a jaw-dropping moment, which really smacks you when you make the discovery partway through the story, and it fuels Raziel’s hatred and vengeance all the more. They are absolutely superb, and very relevant, today, if you love Zelda style games, such as Shadow Man and Darksiders.

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 And 2 Remastered is a must buy for fans of the originals like myself, or for new players who enjoy this style of game.

Thanks to our friends at Crystal Dynamics and Aspyr for the review code.

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 And 2 Remastered is out now on PC / Steam and the digital stores for Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PS4 and PS5.

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