While many fans of the series have long written off any chance of a revival, those that stuck by their guns and waited are surely getting a kick of the current resurgence of Legacy of Kain. Whether we’re talking about remasters, with the latest two reworking the three games in the Soul Reaver arc, or the subject of this review, an entirely new entry, Legacy of Kain: Ascendance, it’s safe to say there’s still hope yet for Raziel and crew.
Set in a new spot in the story proposed by the recent crowdfunded comic book called The Dead Shall Rise, Ascendance sees you playing as the newly revealed younger sister of Raziel, Elaleth, who seemingly had passed away and turned into a vampire, and is now on a quest for revenge against her brother. At the outset of the story, Raziel is still human and one of the military leaders of the Sarafan, but it doesn’t take long before he joins the dark side and we get to see him in his pre-Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver form.
In fact, during much of Legacy of Kain: Ascendance, you’ll get to check back with not only our boy, but Kain himself, and even though the game is much different than your usual entry in LoK in terms of gameplay, as it’s a 2D combat sidescroller in the vein of Castlevania, playing as our old friends is quite familiar. As vampires, they all feed on the blood of their victims, with Kain being able to turn into myst, while Raziel and his sister get to briefly float in the air using their wings.
Outside of those few differences, the core gameplay remains the same regardless of the character you might happen to be controlling. You can parry incoming attacks and dodge out of the way, and that’s pretty much all there is for the entirety of the game, outside of the all-too-powerful dive bomb both Raziel and Elaleth can pull off from the air.
Most of the experience is seen from the perspective of Elaleth, including the story, and it’s interesting to see her side of some of key events that were previously only mentioned and not shown in past games, like their childhood, the fall of their land at the hands of Kain, and eventually the events that led to the game’s setting. All of it is handled by the same creative team behind the comics, too.
As with Soul Reaver 2 and Defiance, Legacy of Kain: Ascendance is about time travelling, with Elaleth in constant pursuit of her quarry regardless of the period she happens to be in. It’s a one-note direction to be sure when it comes to a narrative, but given the relative simplicity of the game as a whole, it works surprisingly well. Given that Big Bot Media is a relatively small studio, it’s a smart choice not trying to bite more than they can chew, especially so in such a complex, lore-heavy scenario as Legacy of Kain.
Visually, Ascendance is not what you’d call beautiful, but there’s some neat flair in key places, most notably reflections and elements, all of which help set the environmental mood to an otherwise drab looking pixel art style that lacks much detail when it comes to characters, resulting in a more generic presentation. Funnily enough, character portraits during dialog are anything but lacking in detail, with nicely animated figures, jarringly so in comparison to the rest of the graphics.
It’s worth noting that all of the veteran voice actors from previous Legacy of Kain reprise their roles in this game, surprisingly. Michael Bell in particular as Raziel sounds very spry for his age, with Simon Templeman and Richard Doyle in tow as Kain and Moebius. Breaking Bad’s Anna Gunn also comes back to voice Ariel, so props to Crystal Dynamics for preserving the other legacy of the series besides the one in its name in this manner.
With its other obvious limitations, Legacy of Kain: Ascendance surely isn’t exactly what fans must’ve been looking for in a new game in the franchise, but as a piece of side content to be enjoyed, it isn’t exactly bad. Not nearly as in-depth as the Castlevania: Symphony of the Night-likes that its screenshots deceptively make it look like, Ascendance does what it strives to do well enough not to make it a throwaway game, but not very memorable either.
