Support NeoGAF

[Drizzlehell]

One of the best games of its generation. An absolute masterpiece in gothic horror, world building, action adventure gameplay, and deep storytelling with fantastic voice acting and soundtrack. It is genuinely mind-blowing that the IP holders for Legacy of Kain series have been sleeping on this for such a long time, with only one pathetic (and thankfully unsuccessful) attempt at turning the series into some weird multiplayer focused abomination.

Next to the original Metal Gear Solid, Silent Hill, Final Fantasy 9, and Medal of Honor, it is among my most fondly remembered games from PS1 era of gaming, and even though I never owned that console as a kid, I still went out of my way to seek out either emulated or ported version of those games on the PC, with Soul Reaver in particular always amazing me with its visual style, epic storytelling and amazing soundtrack and atmosphere.

I know that someone is currently working on a remake/sequel (I couldn't fill out that survey that made rounds on the internet a while back faster even if I tried, lol), but I was wondering if there are any other, more recent (7th gen-to-current-day) games that could fill that gap while we're waiting?

 

[xClout]

Go play Shadowman remastered.

 

[adamsapple]

Darksiders, I suppose, is the closest one.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Darksiders, I suppose, is the closest one.

Yeah, I played through the whole trilogy more times than I could count already, probably because it's the closest one to SR, lol.

Good shout out, though.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Go play Shadowman remastered.

Never heard of this but it looks like a game from that era and it's overwhelmingly positive on Steam? You have my attention...

 

[Evil Calvin]

Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (PS1) had better atmosphere and was more fun imo. Soul Reaver was good for the time but I still thought is was a chore to play.

 

[Damigos]

Nothing actually comes to mind..
Soul Reaver was so unique

 

[Kusarigama]

Go play Shadowman remastered.

Man your recommendation looks dope based on very superficial Google search I did. Thanks dude!

 

[Dr.Morris79]

Darksiders, I suppose, is the closest one.

Eww, no. Not with that WoW aesthetic. xClouts Shadowmans shout is spot on though.

 

[dulleyes]

Hmmmmmmmmmm might need to emulate the game to finally experience why everyone raves about it.

Definitely one of those games that I just didn't play as a kid, and now I feel like I missed out on an apparently really good game.

 

[Punished Miku]

Hmmmmmmmmmm might need to emulate the game to finally experience why everyone raves about it.

Definitely one of those games that I just didn't play as a kid, and now I feel like I missed out on an apparently really good game.

The sequel is sick as well.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Hmmmmmmmmmm might need to emulate the game to finally experience why everyone raves about it.

Definitely one of those games that I just didn't play as a kid, and now I feel like I missed out on an apparently really good game.

For sure, worth giving them a try at least. Though do keep in mind that they can kick your ass sometimes, both in combat and puzzles. Dunno what's your preference but I guess it's fair to give a bit of warning, in case your expectations are for this to be a light action-adventure metroidvania that one can just breeze through for the story.

 

[KàIRóS]

It's probably going to sound like a weird choice but I would say Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order and it's upcoming sequel.

Reasons: I would consider both series to be 3D Metroidvanias (you need to obtain new abilities to keep progressing) There's plenty of zelda-esque puzzles in both series, combat is somewhat similar though obviously more complex in Star Wars and The stories are somewhat similar.

And yes Darksiders is another good choice for almost the same reasons actually.

 

[Drizzlehell]

It's probably going to sound like a weird choice but I would say Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order and it's upcoming sequel.

Reasons: I would consider both series to be 3D Metroidvanias (you need to obtain new abilities to keep progressing) There's plenty of zelda-esque puzzles in both series, combat is somewhat similar though obviously more complex in Star Wars and The stories are somewhat similar.

And yes Darksiders is another good choice for almost the same reasons actually.

Yeah, actually you're right on that point. It's very similar in pretty much everything except the setting and atmosphere. Which is also one of the biggest qualities of the Legacy of Kain games, so it's difficult to recommend JFA to someone who's looking for a similar experience to SR. I'd sooner go for Darksiders due to both games sharing an apocalyptic fantasy setting with some loose biblical themes, and featuring a brooding antihero protagonists who try to un-screw the pooch through time travel and other magical means.

 

[MrTroubleMaker]

Nothing is, even the leaked reboot had it wrong.

 

[AndrewRyan]

Haven't played yet but Remnant: From the Ashes looks interesting.

 

[Drizzlehell]

I ended up just going back to play Soul Reaver again.

Fuck me that game is so tight. Some of the later levels have a really convoluted design and it's tough to figure out where to go next at times but that's a small price if the payoff is being able to experience everything else about this game, which is just one-of-a-kind and amazing.

I'm getting bricked up just thinking about how a faithful remake of this would look like, with modern visuals and stuff.

 

[RagnarokIV]

There isn't one. And the fact this thread died so quick kinda proves it.

I almost shit my pants (again) at how good the game is when replaying it recently. Soul Reaver 2 was phenomenal too, IMO matching Metal Gear Solid in the jump between consoles.

I still want to try Darksiders but the terrible WOW art style puts me off.

 

[SlimeGooGoo]

I'm getting bricked up just thinking about how a faithful remake of this would look like, with modern visuals and stuff.

Exactly. That was an era that is never coming back.

Now it's an industry driven exclusively by profit and nothing else more.

 

[RagnarokIV]

I'm getting bricked up just thinking about how a faithful remake of this would look like, with modern visuals and stuff.

They'd ruin it. See the leaked videos of the sequel/reboot Dead Sun.

It's shockingly bad, I'm glad it was cancelled. Some woman with her boob out, dialogue such as "Fuck you vampire!"

 

[RagnarokIV]

Anyone seen this?

 

[Drizzlehell]

They'd ruin it. See the leaked videos of the sequel/reboot Dead Sun.

It's shockingly bad, I'm glad it was cancelled. Some woman with her boob out, dialogue such as "Fuck you vampire!"

That was made at a different, much shittier period of gaming history when edgy emo things were still somehow considered cool by publishers (see DmC).

Nowadays they wouldn't make that mistake.

 

[Torrent of Pork]

The series managed to thread the needle of embracing time travel shenanigans without the plot immediately falling apart. Unfortunately the games never actually got fun until Defiance, but the series was always more about the plot, and impeccable voice acting for me.

I mean holy shit, Blood Omen 1 has better voice acting than some big-budget games made today.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

Darksiders.

I'm a huge Blood Omen and Soul Reaver fan and it's the closest I've ever seen to one of those games.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

Anyone seen this?

That's pretty cool looking. It actually seems to keep the looking feel of the original Blood Omen but in 3D. I wouldn't be against a remake of Blood Omen if they didn't really change anything other than making it 3D. Keep all the voice acting and everything intact as well as the story because it's such a great game but it has aged pretty poorly.

And again I'm going to stress to the op that the best game he's going to be able to get that's the closest to Blood Omen and Soul Reaver is Darksiders. It's my favorite IP since the PS3/360 era. I can't recommend it enough.

 

[Drizzlehell]

That's pretty cool looking. It actually seems to keep the looking feel of the original Blood Omen but in 3D. I wouldn't be against a remake of Blood Omen if they didn't really change anything other than making it 3D. Keep all the voice acting and everything intact as well as the story because it's such a great game but it has aged pretty poorly.

And again I'm going to stress to the op that the best game he's going to be able to get that's the closest to Blood Omen and Soul Reaver is Darksiders. It's my favorite IP since the PS3/360 era. I can't recommend it enough.

Yeah, it's a very underrated series. Third one wasn't really that great but I think that 1 and 2 are fucking excellent and I finished both multiple times.

 

[begotten]

Friendly LoK reminder that Blood Omen is better than Soul Reaver.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

Yeah, it's a very underrated series. Third one wasn't really that great but I think that 1 and 2 are fucking excellent and I finished both multiple times.

I like the third game better than the second one. The second one was really good and I love the voice actor. But the loot system was kind of weird and the second half didn't seem as difficult or have as many puzzles as the first half. It's like they were two different games almost.

Friendly LoK reminder that Blood Omen is better than Soul Reaver.

That's debatable. I think the first Blood Omen might be my favorite but I really love the Soul Reaver series. I actually like the second Blood Omen game in which a lot of people did not. Personally, I thought it was a lot of fun and I like how they show that technology has advanced throughout the ages.

 

[SmokedMeat]

Small indie game might be worth a look. There’s a demo to try too.

 

[begotten]

That's debatable. I think the first Blood Omen might be my favorite but I really love the Soul Reaver series. I actually like the second Blood Omen game in which a lot of people did not. Personally, I thought it was a lot of fun and I like how they show that technology has advanced throughout the ages.

Blood Omen was definitely better. It's so weird to me how when the series is talked about it's always Soul Reaver that's at the forefront. Like did the people who say this actually play these games back then lol

Blood Omen played better as an 2D action adventure game and the artstyle actually gave Nosgoth a much better atmosphere and personality than Soul Reaver ever did.

Soul Reaver was just pure jank gameplay and controllability. I don't think the plot and particularly the dialogue writing was much better than Blood Omen if at all.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

Blood Omen was definitely better. It's so weird to me how when the series is talked about it's always Soul Reaver that's at the forefront. Like did the people who say this actually play these games back then lol

Blood Omen played better as an 2D action adventure game and the artstyle actually gave Nosgoth a much better atmosphere and personality than Soul Reaver ever did.

Soul Reaver was just pure jank gameplay and controllability. I don't think the plot and particularly the dialogue writing was much better than Blood Omen if at all.

I don't think I agree much with your opinion on Soul Reaver. The first SR game was great but I agree it did have way too many box puzzles. My favorite is still the first Blood Omen game and it felt larger and more epic than the games that followed.

I do agree with you that people seem to ignore the first Blood Omen game and always talk about Soul Reaver. I think a lot of people started off with Soul Reaver and ignored the first game in the series. BO hasn't aged well and to be honest it was pretty janky and the long loading times didn't help it as well as some of the graphics were really primitive and it was hard to make out with some things are. Even with its faults though, I really liked it and it was my introduction to the series.

 

[Bragr]

Isn't this one of those 3D games with clunky controls and a stiff character that turns like a crank?

It's been so long, I don't even remember.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Isn't this one of those 3D games with clunky controls and a stiff character that turns like a crank?

It's been so long, I don't even remember.

No.

 

[Cattlyst]

Enjoyed Soul Reaver. Seeing the world warp and bend as you changed planes between alive and dead (or whatever it was) looked so cool at the time. Granted it was the Dreamcast port I played. Looked damn good for the time period. Haven’t played it since though, probably looks like ass now. But this thread has reminded me that I need to check out Soul Reaver 2 as that one passed me by.

 

[Drizzlehell]

Enjoyed Soul Reaver. Seeing the world warp and bend as you changed planes between alive and dead (or whatever it was) looked so cool at the time. Granted it was the Dreamcast port I played. Looked damn good for the time period. Haven’t played it since though, probably looks like ass now. But this thread has reminded me that I need to check out Soul Reaver 2 as that one passed me by.

Dreamcast version is actually the best one. It has the smoothest controls, it runs in 60 FPS, and graphically not only does it have texture filtering when compared to PS1 version, but it also seems to sport more detailed textures when compared with the PC port.

Right now I replayed the game on the PC but when I was halfway through that run, I checked out the emulated DC version and immediately regretted that I didn't play that one instead. At least now I know which version I'm gonna play next time.