Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain

This release doesn't come with Veroks Open Gl/Vulkan Patch. Here's a Link: https://verokster.blogspot.com/2018/05/legacy-of-kain-blood-omen-gl-wrapper.html It's a Great upgrade.

This game used to sit comfortably in my favorite games of all time. I guess that is the price of nostalgia. Playing this game for the first time in nearly 30 years made me realize that my memories glossed over this game's flaws. Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain is a top down action/adventure game along the lines of a Zelda. You explore the world and collect new spells or abilities which allow you to access secret areas. However, none of these areas are worth exploring as the bonuses you get aren't always worth the effort. This makes the game a very linear experience. The combat isn't great because Kain lacks the ability to dodge incoming attacks. Kain is simply too slow to do any hit and run attacks. So most combat comes down to standing in front of an enemy and trading blows until the enemy is staggered enough to drain his blood. Most enemies could and should be avoided because they respawn when you reenter an area and are mostly there for a quick health refill. Once I realized this, I ended up basically speedrunning the areas. I did still enjoy the greater story and setting of the game along with the excellent voice acting however. This is a revenge story for a very bad man in a world that is dark and dying. Kain, as a vampire, only cares for himself and can enter houses at night to murder innocents for their blood. Kain is expertly voiced by Simon Templeman and his VO adds much to the overall setting/experience of the game. The VO explains every item and spell in the game with brutal details that only adds to the grim world. However, the excellent setting and VO do not make up for the mediocre gameplay. I played this game to see if one of my favorite games of all time still holds up in 2022. I am sad to say, it does not. I would only recommend this game if you are planning on playing the rest of the games in the series and want to see how the story begins

A: Bought the GOG version just in support of its DRM free release even though I have the original CD. Amazing atmosphere, great voice acting, interesting story, cool 2D graphics and fun gameplay. Has it all for a mid 90s game imo. Used to play it on a vintage Windows 98 system. Now I don't have to. Yay!

...well, not really... Gets compared to Zelda but to me seems more like a gothic version of Ys. Items and abilities are granted at a very quick pace, and the game is really well designed in terms of gently hinting at needing to use your new abilities; and though the game is most linear it offers just enough reward for re-checking areas. That kind of design might seem pretty standard - it's seen in games like Darksiders, Souls-series and countless Metroidvanias. But for '96 this is very sharp and conscientious design. If the screenshots on the store page look even somewhat interesting to you; this is a must-play. There are some fairly obvious janky elements to the game - gaudy 2D graphics, lots of Z-buffer drawing bugs, long pauses when music loops etc etc but all of these are completely forgivable as you press forward to just get a little bit further and enjoy the story along the way.

Wow. I am really impressed by this version. It is pixel perfect to the PSX version and the audio, the small arterial spray of blood when using your special abilities or attack and to top it off the horrible slowdown which plagued the original game is gone. The team that ported this did an amazing job, it obviously still is pixelated even by todays standards and that is ok. Part of what made this game was the audio, the voice over work which was/is still phenomenal and sets the tone and tenor of the game and it did an excellent job doing so. It fully immerses you into Kain's world, especially when the villagers attack again. Kain's entire character is built over the course of his travels and quests and by the end you will be feeling for him and his story. The game is still powerful storytelling all these years later. The audio work is good, clear and intact. Nothing has been pared away in this version, everything I played so far resembles the original game perfectly. I do not believe it is an emulator version based on the quality of this version, but if it is it is the BEST emulator work I've seen for a PSX game. I highly recommend buying this and for the guys my age it is well worth it and a truly stunning walk down memory lane.