Blood Omen; Legacy of Kain

The Blood Omen or Legacy of Kain series is (in my own opinion) one of the greatest cross-platform stories of all time. Whether you are a fan of RPG, Slashers or Fighting games this series really delivers. However, as you may already know, I will be reviewing all of the games in this series over the next handful of posts and am beginning today with the PS1's installment; Blood Omen; Legacy of Kain.

LOK arrived on the scene during the heyday of the PS1 and didn't really look like anything too special when it was released, but introduced the story of Kain a murdered nobleman who was resurrected to seek revenge on his killers and expose the broader conspiracy behind his untimely death. The story begins with a short video of the slow demise of Nosgoth and how Kain's murder goes down. Basically, you are thrust into game play and storyline quickly which is a plus for impatient gamers like myself who just want to "get to it". 

Having said that, I have to say that the voice acting and story lines and arcs are top-shelf for a game of this era. The characters voices are done by professional voice talent and are true to the characters they represent and the videos supplement the story quite well. Honestly, the only real complaint I have in that regard is to the glyph symbols on the ground that freeze the game play and show an image, but I should explain those before I go too far ahead. The aforementioned glyphs are red triangular marks on the ground that glow red. Upon walking over a glyph one of three things happens. Of the three, the first will merely provide a narrative while game play continues, the second will provide a cut-scene and the third will display a picture and perhaps a voice-over. Honestly, I think it is a cool system because you are able to explore a room or dungeon before a fight or cut-scene. I mean, how often do you walk too far into a room and initiate a battle when all you were doing was exploring? I hate that s@#t.

Alright, getting back on track here, as I mentioned earlier, the story is great and definitely leaves a lot of room for surprise and treachery. In fact, I would have to say that Kain's story arc is perhaps one of the most interesting of any game character up to this point in gaming. 

In regard to the game play, I think the game is smooth and doesn't glitch up too much except when you get a lot of s@#t on the screen like the battle with King Ottmar and the Nemesis. Other than that things run quite well. I do have to complain about the weapon screen though, this bitch is the slowest screen ever. Don't get me wrong, it is cool to see Kain in his gear, but why does it take so long to load a f@#king picture? This isn't Atari! Other than that, you won't get any more complaints from me about this one. 

Lets talk about the music, graphics and sound effects. Simply put, top-shelf. There are a couple of things I don't get though. The strange ranking on the menu screen that tells how many people you've killed. I can never seem to raise my status from Whelp. I guess I just don't kill enough enemies or people or whatever... The music establishes the mood and the sound effects really capture the mayhem and environments. I do wish there was more thunder, lightning and rain during the early stages of the game though. 

As for the overall difficulty of this game, I have to say that the game isn't too hard unless you go out of your way to make it difficult on yourself. I mean, if you feel the need to kill everything and find every nook and cranny you will likely find the game more difficult, but if you just stick to the story and main areas it isn't too rough. Don't get me wrong, explore! You are going to want all the weapons, armor and items you can get and I'm not even going to mention the Soul Reaver! I also really enjoyed how the game tricks you into thinking there is a lot left when you are near the end. I think you watch the demise of the last couple of bosses and the leader of the game in a 3 minute span. Pretty sweet in my opinion how it goes down as well. 

One thing I also noticed in this LOK installment was how the game ended. By this I mean that it felt as though the game designers didn't anticipate making another LOK game. The way it ends is pretty final. I mean, it looks like they could create a part 2 or 3 or whatever, but they didn't stretch it to fit that mold like the Halo games or Sonic or whatever. 

All in all, I would highly recommend picking up this game even if you don't consider it a classic because it is highly enjoyable and will definitely generate interest in learning more about Kain and his good ole legacy. Thanks for tuning in everybody, go restore those pillars...