There’s no question that revisiting iconic 3D Action Adventures of a PS1/PS2 era is starting to feel dated.

It’s a testament to just how far the genre has moved in just the last fifteen years and how quickly things have progressed. But there’s something about these games that still feels quite timeless.

The half-baked dialogue and overacting. The constant flow of enemies and facing down overwhelming odds. The rough edges and the slightly dodgy cameras. It does all play its part in Legacy of Kain: Defiance, but the difference between this remaster and many others is that PlayEveryWhere have done everything possible to make this feel satisfying to play in 2026.

Let me be clear, this is a really good remaster. One of the very best I’ve seen of any of these restored iconic games because the movement and feel is responsive. The look of the game has been smartly updated to look crisp. And it probably helps that the base content is actually pretty solid in of itself as you continually switch between both Kain and Raziel.

While I had deeper memories with the Soul Reaver games, this might just be the best of the Legacy of Kain games, both due to its pacing, the exploration, and that it’s actually dated extremely well.

Both characters have been built up to this point in their respective games and as such feel uniquely different to play. Raziel can soar through the skies at ease, whereas Kain’s movement is a little less agile but he’s more robust.

And each has a compelling story to tell that all interconnects and dovetails in a really eloquent and intriguing way that will make you want to keep playing through each chapter.

As mentioned, visually the game looks incredibly sharp and you can really see the level of pixelation on some of the textures and assets versus the way it’s all been smoothed out and heightened in this new upgrade. As a PS2 game, Defiance already looked great for the time, but the teams have really gone all out to make this look better than ever and truly be the definitive version of the game.

Compared to others in the franchise, this time both Kain and Raziel have a deeper menu to move through that lets you choose different weapons for the occasion, as well as look at collectibles and artefacts you gather along the way to increase your competency and even change up their skins in game. There’s also a full encyclopedia of knowledge so you can catch up on any lore you think you’re missing from the series.

As it is a PS2 era game, it, of course, suffers with some of the rough camera issues of the time. It doesn’t stay in place and so a flick of the right stick will pop the camera right back into the same position and not move with the analog. This can present issues when running in certain directions and cut off some of the screen, making you run blind and aimlessly. But it’s nothing you haven’t seen before and the work that’s been done to optimise and improve this compared to what was there originally is borderline magical.

This has free’d up movement for both characters in a way you’ve never been able to experience before but also maintained the cinematic feel the game originally had. It still feels very Devil May Cry in that sense.

The combat does also feel like it lacks some desired ‘ummph’ behind the strikes and it’s almost like you’re waving a feather duster around at times, but as you progress through the game and gain more moves, plus with the soul and blood sucking of both characters, you really start to get the cut of the game’s jib and it works extremely well.

This is just a brilliant way to revive a classic game and anyone who loved this originally absolutely must experience this all over again with the new content as well as the quality upgrades aesthetically. Especially the lighting which just makes the different worlds feel richer and more desolate by design. It really helps create a proper differentiation between them and works a dream.

With all the amazing work done with the Soul Reaver series and now Defiance, one hopes there’s more to come than just Ascendance – which we’ll also have some thoughts on soon! Nosgoth is a deep, vast world full of potential and it still feels the surface has only been scratched.

The difference between Defiance and the previous Soul Reaver games is, while those felt very much rooted in the past and a product of their times, Defiance is still a truly excellent, enjoyable game that anyone can enjoy between the writing, the visuals, sound and general feel of the gameplay. It remains a masterclass and this is about as good of a remaster as any of us could of wanted or hoped for. It even goes above and beyond!

There’s even bonus content here, such as never before seen scenes – like lost footage from cutscenes – and even a demo of a lost prototype that would have been the sequel to Defiance but was eventually cancelled. This is a huge affirmation moment for fans of the series who’ve longed for some sort of conclusion to a cliffhanger they’ve been stuck on since 2003.

And it does at least give a glimmer of hope that maybe someday somehow we will get another game in the series. It certainly feels like all this work to restore the series is leading towards that.

For now, it’s wonderful to have anything new to talk or sing about from Legacy of Kain and the Defiance Remaster is quite frankly a wonderful restoration of an excellent game that also serves as a great entry point to the series and you simply must get your hands on.

Verdict

Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is a dream, treasure vault for series fans between a playable, long lost prototype of a cancelled sequel, bonus content that adds even more context to the deep, driven story and a stunning reworking of the visuals and camera that just opens and unlocks the game in a way you’ve never played before. It’s vintage PS2 fair – with many of the drawbacks that come with that as well as the positives – but this is still a must-play remaster for fans of the series and is a surprisingly excellent jumping on point for newcomers despite being the last released game in the series.

Pros

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Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is out now on PC, Switch, PS and Xbox.

Reviewed on Nintendo Switch 

Code Kindly Provided by Crystal Dynamics for review purposes