Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered assessment — More of a ‘Definitive Edition’

Alongside next-generation blockbusters, players are being handled to refreshed re-releases of retro classics to assist enchantment to youthful gamers and reel within the older crowd for an additional likelihood at having fun with these old-school hits. It already labored for the event group at Aspyr and their well-received efforts on Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, so why not take a stab at one other beloved 3D platformer within the Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver collection?

I used to be undoubtedly an enormous fan of the primary sport throughout my impressional youth within the late Nineteen Nineties, enthralled by its gothic vampire aesthetics and verbose dialog that might match into one thing from H. P. Lovecraft’s collective works. Now, I’m considerably protecting of my rose-tinted goggles and what different folks would possibly see when handled to a look by means of them, and Aspyr already had a harsh critic in me when it introduced Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered for consoles and PC — this is what I considered the brand new launch.

What is Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered?

Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered: Intro Cutscene Comparison (Remaster/Original) – YouTube

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Optimized for Xbox Series X|S consoles, Legacy of Kain Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered will even launch on Xbox One, Sony’s PlayStation 4|5, and Nintendo Switch, alongside this PC model through Steam.

This double pack, initially proven throughout Sony’s PlayStation State of Play in September 2024, comprises Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, first launched on PlayStation in 1999, and its PS2 follow-up Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver from 2001.

Developers at Aspyr have created brand-new property for Raziel and Kain, the protagonist and antagonist pairing of each video games, alongside enemies and a forged of supporting characters with texture and mannequin enhancements.

Other enhancements embody dynamic shadows, high-resolution cutscenes, and multi-language help with subtitles.

Extra add-ons, like a dynamic map display screen, goal to enhance the expertise for brand spanking new and outdated gamers alike, with achievements encouraging replayability. Bonus content material consists of idea artwork and character renders, that are unlocked from the beginning for all gamers.

What you will like

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Gameplay mechanics in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 and a couple of are intact as they had been within the originals again in 1999 and 2001, respectively, however Aspyr treats us to a few additional features. First of all, and the obvious, is the choice to change between the unique graphics of each video games and their remastered counterparts at any time by pushing in the suitable stick (or urgent F1 on PC) with none delay by any means, the identical methodology utilized in Tomb Raider I-III Remastered.

It’s a enjoyable little characteristic, switching backwards and forwards throughout cutscenes, whereas looking menus, or in the midst of a combat to see how primitive and wobbly the retro visuals had been on the unique PlayStation and PS2. If I mix this scorching switching element with the all-new photograph mode by urgent each sticks collectively (or F3 on PC), I can see the beautiful new character fashions in excessive close-ups and admire the simple laborious work that Aspyr’s 3D artists have put in.

Third, and by far essentially the most appreciated new characteristic, is the addition of a map display screen to assist navigate the virtually ‘Metroidvania’ degree structure and determine the cryptic glyphs that signify the vampiric clans of Nosgoth. It would possibly sound minor to youthful players who’re used to the on a regular basis conveniences of an interactive, always-available map, however this makes the in any other case clunky exploration of the primary sport way more manageable.

Personally, I admire that Aspyr did not intrude with the platforming and fight controls of the primary Soul Reaver sport, and it feels as pure as ever to leap again into the lock-on fight with a easy dodge button to hop round enemy assaults.

I am unable to say the identical about Soul Reaver 2, which feels a lot slower and irritating compared. Nevertheless, each video games really feel just like the originals working in emulation with a high-resolution shader overlay that replaces character fashions and upscales setting textures, just like what NVIDIA’s RTX Remix program guarantees for PC video games however to a extra simplistic diploma right here. If you favored what Aspyr did with Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, you have to be pleased with this providing.

What you will not like

While the property of protagonist Raziel and his enemies look large in cutscenes and gameplay, the distinction in setting textures typically appears to be like unnoticeable or minor sufficient to not matter. It’s particularly disappointing when enjoying on a smaller display screen, like on my Steam Deck or ASUS ROG Ally, because the restricted draw distance of the unique video games persists, descending longer rooms and smaller outdoors areas into fog.

The additional degree of frustration comes with absolutely the absence of video choices that might often enable some customization of those features on PC and trendy consoles, however there’s nothing right here. Besides toggles for a visual compass and navigation hints, you will not discover any decision choices, ultrawide ratio tweaks, or customizable framerate limits. Extra frustrations include an absence of a ‘save anyplace’ perform in Soul Reaver 2, contemplating it is featured within the first sport, leaving the pause menu severely missing choices.

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Not that the sport struggles to run on any of my gadgets, holding 120Hz on the ROG Ally, however 16:10 screens exhibited cutoff errors on the map display screen, and there is not a lot I can do about it in addition to switching to my desktop and enjoying at a conventional 16:9 ratio. It’s right here that Soul Reaver 1 & 2 really feel like extra of a ‘Definitive Edition’ than its ‘Remastered’ namesake as a result of it is a port for contemporary machines with a mod pack changing characters and upscaling texture, however not a lot else.

For argument’s sake, I perceive that these video games are properly over 20 years outdated, and increasing the sphere of view or different real-time rendering settings might need hostile results that hamper the expertise. Still, it looks like a cop-out to not at the very least embody a decision choice and in-engine FPS restrict, particularly for enjoying on PC handhelds like a Steam Deck, the place maximizing battery life is a precedence, however neither sport attracts a lot energy anyway.

Combined with a half-and-half therapy of phenomenal character fashions and satisfactory world textures, this remaster has me tempted to drag the unique sport discs down from my attic and run every by means of authorized emulation. If I did, I could not benefit from the overhauled 3D property nor depend on the useful new map display screen. However, the differing experiences primarily cease there, and outdoors of some fancy new skyboxes and neat idea artwork, this looks like a hefty worth bounce for a modified port.

Should you purchase it?

Overall, my response to this remaster is constructive, and I feel it is price shopping for in case you’ve by no means performed both sport. On the opposite hand, followers of the basic releases who might need the unique discs mendacity round in storage would possibly really feel barely stiffed for paying upwards of $25 for what quantities to a contemporary port working at 60 FPS with new character fashions and a map display screen.

It’s a comparatively beneficiant worth level in comparison with different video games available on the market, and followers of gothic vampire fiction will like it when you get the dangle of its old-school controls. The environments will not look a lot totally different in case you’re enjoying on a handheld, and even side-by-side comparisons at 4K do not make it far more obvious.

Still, it is confirmed that Aspyr has devoted Soul Reaver followers on its improvement group, who had been maybe restricted by the video games’ engines and codebase of their scope on what could be carried out in a contemporary port. If you are on the lookout for a retro 3D platformer in an analogous vein to Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, that is undoubtedly your subsequent cease, however I am unable to assist feeling that Raziel deserved extra.