Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered was provided by Crystal Dynamics for review. Thank you!
The Legacy of Kain franchise has had a boon as of late. With Soul Reaver 1 & 2 both receiving a remaster, a new prequel game in the form of Ascendance just being released, and the Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered launching last month. Defiance wraps up the Legacy of Kain series by being the last game chronologically.
The story in the Legacy of Kain series gradually ramps up, with Defiance being the culmination of all the key characters playing their final moves, and this is a highlight of Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered for me. The voice acting is again on point, especially for the time. The stakes are high, and it's great to see these characters interact with one another and wrap up their fates. If you've been following the storyline in previous games, then Defiance is definitely worth a purchase to enjoy the finale.
As regards gameplay, the combat feels quite fluid and smooth. The TK abilities feel great to use and allow you to throw your enemies around the room (such as throwing them onto torches to ignite them, or throwing them into other enemies), or drag them towards you and tie them up in a combo move. It doesn't feel as dated as you might imagine, and when facing multiple enemies at the same time, there are plenty of opportunities to do some satisfying combat maneuvers, such as throwing enemies into each other.
You will get to switch between Kain and Raziel as your main character as you progress through the game, with Kain having a more heavy and hard-hitting approach, whereas Raziel is more agile and dextrous. The characters don't feel too different, but it does help to switch up the gameplay a little in level design, which can get repetitive due to some backtracking. Raziel's gameplay tends to focus on simple puzzles and platforming, whereas Kain's chapters emphasize combat.
The visual improvements in the remaster are largely texture-based, with textures being run through an AI upscaler and then placed back into the game. In the AI disclosure on Steam, the developers state that they personally reviewed the AI upscaling before integrating it into the game, and that seems to be the case. Even still, there are times when it can be difficult to tell which is the remaster and which is the classic version.
A change that is far more noticeable, however, is the Remastered Camera option. This makes Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered a true third-person action game, with the camera following your character rather than using the classic fixed-camera perspectives. I would argue that this improvement is more important than the visual changes made to the game, as it markedly improves the gameplay and feel of the game.
With all that being said, it then begs the question: Is this remaster worth the price tag? As I said, the main upgrade, in my opinion, is the new camera system. If that bothered you in the original, it does make quite a difference here and definitely helps make the game easier for modern audiences, but if you were looking for a big improvement in visuals or any fundamental changes to the game, you will likely be left disappointed.
Hardcore Legacy of Kain fans should consider this remaster; it is the "best" version of Defiance, after all. If you already own the original and the camera mechanics don't bother you, or there are other things besides the camera that bother you, I would find it difficult to recommend this remaster, given the minimal difference it will make to you.
For those seeking the nostalgia factor, the enhancements are largely toggleable. You can play with the original textures and the original camera system if you wish to enjoy a more retro experience, or mix and match the two so you can play with the original camera and enhanced textures, or vice versa. There is, of course, the small bonus of getting to play some unreleased content for series fans, too.
As you might imagine, given the modest visual improvements over the original, Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered runs very well on the Steam Deck. There's no reason not to play the game at 90 FPS on an OLED model and 60 FPS on an LCD, since any battery savings from lowering the framerate would be minimal. There are also no video settings available to adjust.
The controls work flawlessly, and the game fills the Steam Deck's 1280x800 display. Because of all this, Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered definitely deserves a "Best on Deck" rating, as the game gives you the best experience it can on your first boot.
The power draw is around 8W-9W, so it doesn't stress the Steam Deck much at all. Expect a battery life of around 6 hours on a Steam Deck OLED and around 4 hours on a Steam Deck LCD. Temperatures were also low at around 50-55 °C.
You can apply a 7W TDP Limit if you want, but it has minimal impact on overall battery life compared to letting the Steam Deck manage it.
Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered doesn't have much in the way of accessibility, but it also doesn't need much. There are subtitles for the voiced dialogue, which is plentiful, and the game does have a lock-on/aim assist feature. It also has a hint system that guides you on how to proceed.
Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered offers slight visual enhancements, but the real upgrade is the new camera system and controls, which make the game much easier to play. Whether such a small change is worth the release of an entirely new game is up for debate, but series fans will probably want to check out the "best" version of Legacy of Kain: Defiance.
Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered works perfectly on the Steam Deck. There are no graphical options available, and the game will run at the maximum refresh rate of your model, be that 90 FPS or 60 FPS. Controls work perfectly, the 16:10 aspect ratio display is fully utilized, and battery life is lengthy.
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Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is a modest improvement over the original, the main upgrade being the new camera and control systems, but they were key issues for the original game. As for how the game runs on Steam Deck, it's as flawless as you could hope for, with no adjustments needed for the optimal experience.
