Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered Review — Cruel Masters

Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is the latest in a series of graphically remastered titles in the Legacy of Kain franchise by Crystal Dynamics, who, in partnership with Saber Interactive, brought you the Tomb Raider and Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered collections. As the title suggests, this remaster seeks to bring the sequel to Soul Reaver 2 to a more modern standard, graphically improving the 2003 PlayStation title for a more discerning audience to enjoy.

You can certainly say that it succeeded. The game does look better when compared to old 2003 screenshots, or by turning off the improved graphics via a menu setting, which is a very cool and convenient feature that I’m actually not really sure how Crystal Dynamics pulls off in their remastered titles.

Unfortunately, I wish I could say the remastering of Legacy of Kain: Defiance was as impressive as it was in the Soul Reaver 1&2 collection. While the original 2003 release of Defiance was a clear visual leap over its 1999 predecessor, the same cannot be said about the remasters, which essentially look the same. This isn’t a big problem on its own, but the effect is, frankly, less impressive here, as the older version doesn’t look too far removed from the modern version.

While some PNG artifacts look far better than the originals, it essentially looks like the original Legacy of Kain: Defiance just had a lot of textures upscaled or ported from the previous remaster. If we use the Steam-mandated AI content disclosure on the game’s homepage, we can see that this is probably very likely the case, as it states:

“AI-assisted tools were used to upscale and enhance some in-game textures, to help add visual detail to the original artwork. All final assets were artist-reviewed and then integrated by the development team”

The reason for what could seem to be a downgrade in effort could be because Saber Interactive, the developers behind the previously mentioned remasters and a company making something of a name as the go-to for remastering older classics, wasn’t involved in Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered. Saber has since departed from Embracer Group, the owners of Crystal Dynamics, which would explain why they weren’t involved with Defiance. I would be lying if I told you I was as impressed with the work done on this title as I was when I reviewed the Soul Reaver remasters last year.

Despite all of this, I can still honestly say that the remaster quality of Legacy of Kain: Defiance is absolutely fine and, at the very least, on par with what Crystal Dynamics has released as part of the Legacy of Kain remaster effort. Even if the work put into Defiance feels minimal compared to the last title and the upscaled textures aren’t nearly as impressive as they were when they were replacing models and textures from 1999, Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered still looks better than its 2003 counterpart and still serves as the best way to experience a more modern version of the game.

This is especially true if the Soul Reaver remasters introduced you to the franchise and you’re looking to continue the story. Legacy of Kain: Defiance continues the incredible gothic fantasy storytelling of the series, complete with brooding vampires and vengeance wraiths. This time, however, players get to experience both Kain and Raziel as the game shifts between the two protagonists, who are fighting to free themselves from the oppressive grasp of cruel masters; a more literal interpretation of the story for poor Raziel.

Everything true of the story and gameplay in the original Defiance is still there, which is great, because it was a good game that modern audiences can still appreciate. To be clear, however, the game is still going to be a product of its time. Dated combat, sound, and level design are going to keep the most discerning of modern gamers from totally enjoying what this title has to offer. That is just to say that Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is not a remake, and if, for some reason you can’t appreciate a game made in 2003 even with a pretty coat of paint, I doubt you’re going to enjoy this game.

On that note, I think it is way past time that we start having the conversation about a Legacy of Kain franchise remake. As impressive as the Soul Reaver remakes were, and as serviceable, if less impressive, as this remake of Defiance is, I think it’s time we see Kain and Raziel brought to life in completely modern graphics. After all, Legacy of Kain is a fantastic dark-fantasy, gothic series with excellent characters and storytelling, and I think the power of modern game design can really do the franchise some justice.

Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is not going to blow you away like Soul Reaver did, as the work done to modernize the 2003 graphics simply is not as impressive as it was when they were working with artifacts from 1999. However, as far as remakes go, you could do a lot worse, and if graphics are the only thing holding you back from enjoying this classic title, then Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is the best way you have to experience the game until something better comes along.

Try Hard Guides was provided a Steam code for this PC review of Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles on our Game Reviews page! Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is available on Steam, Xbox, and PlayStation.