Blood Omen 2 is well before the appearance of Raziel and two hundred years after the end of Blood Omen. In this first opus, Kain the Vampire was thirsty for power, for control. Only the subjugation of Nosgoth could calm him down. In front of him, the Resistance was set up, made up of Serapheans. The latter are part of a mysterious caste led by the one nicknamed Lord Seraphean whose sole purpose is to eradicate the race of Vampires and regain his place on the throne. Decades and decades passed...Finally, the Seraphians triumphed over Kain. He found himself stripped of all his strength during his wandering in an endless abyss. Two hundred later, Kain wakes up and learns by Umah, a Vampire of the Seraphean Lord, reigns as dictator on Nosgoth. He also discovers that the Vampires have gathered into an order, the Cabal, in order to overthrow this reign of terror. Out of solidarity, Kain joins the group and takes advantage of the anonymity of the past two hundred years to locate the Seraphean Lord.
Blood Omen sauce Soul Reaver
In short, a scenario in perfect osmosis with the first episode. And speaking of this episode, a noticeable change has been made to the graphics. Besides the power of 128 bits, Blood Omen is visually in line with Soul reaver : a third-person view that follows a view from above, Diablo. This transformation brings a whole new dimension to the series. We are immediately immersed in a neo-Gothic decor where past and future blend harmoniously. From a spectator, we become an actor. However, one remains a spectator all the same when the chiaroscuro rubs shoulders with the luminous architecture of a cathedral. We perfectly feel the immersion of the scenario in the decorations: black, gloomy, unhealthy… An impeccable realization which is lacking in the characters. As for Kain and his acolytes, it is not Metal Gear Solid 2 and his attention to detail. It's just fine. As for the second-rate characters, the villagers, the faces are always the same. Question diversity, it's not too much, only the dress code changes. A half-hearted result accentuated by the poor frequency of the cinematic scenes which made the charm of Blood Omen. So instead, we are treated to real-time scenes that are rather chaotic. On the one hand, the synchronization of the French voices and the movement of the lips is disastrous, on the other hand it happens that certain scenes are slowed down for no apparent reason. This is a shame knowing that the voices are of very good quality and stick perfectly to the character of the characters. The atmosphere of the software, meanwhile, is supported by honorable and in no way unpleasant background music.
Effective classicism
There remains a significant point, which makes the solidity of an adventure game: maneuverability. If it is disastrous, the lifespan takes a hit and therefore the game too. Fortunately, Blood Omen 2 pulls out of the game and comes out with virtually no flaws. Obviously, Kain has all the paraphernalia of the perfect adventure game hero: he jumps, he runs, he punches, he activates, he clings, he protects himself. But what's more, he has his own Vampire characteristics, namely that he can drink blood, hover in the air, use dark gifts. However, he is one of the only heroes who cannot swim since Vampires fear water. To defend himself from the Serapheans or simply to feed on these poor villagers, Kain has more than one trick up his sleeve. First of all, its morphology allows it to strike deadly blows using its claws. He can also use the weapons of his enemies. And each person killed represents a greater or lesser dose of blood. This blood is your energy, your life. It drains little by little and when you are dry as a prune, death comes to get you. Finally, Kain acquires dark gifts over the course of the game. These can be defensive, offensive or strategic. For example, the Mist allows you to conceal yourself in order to kill an enemy with one blow, the Telekinesis grants you the possibility of controlling a villager for a certain time. A very nice range of possibilities which gives a little more strategy and animation to the fights. The only regrettable point in this little paradise of maneuverability is that the right analog stick, controlling the camera, is a little too sensitive. We find ourselves easily at 90° when we wanted to turn the camera just a few degrees. And it may cost some cuts to Kain's beautiful skin from a well-stashed enemy.
Live my vampire life
In addition to benefiting from very satisfying handling and a catchy scenario, Blood Omen 2 has the particularity of combining phases of action and phases of reflection. So for the different bosses, sword in hand and rushing into the pile will never be the solution. For each of them, you will have to find the weak point, the error in their determination to destroy you, even if it means dying several times. Even if it starts to irritate after the fifteenth time, what joy and what pride when you have knocked it down. Of course, the fights against the minions of lesser power are legion and allow you to let off steam even if dexterity and reflexes are in the game. Finally, we find the side of reflection when it is necessary to activate such a mechanism to open such a door, as in any good adventure game. In short, it's about fifteen hours of play that await you in Blood Omen 2 which suffers very little monotony from the very catchy scenario.
Finally, note that the DVD offers the trailers of Soul Reaver 2 et Blood Omen 2. Pleasant… A little light but pleasant.
Blood Omen 2 was strongly influenced by Soul reaver both graphically and stylistically. The pro-Kains will perhaps be disappointed by this desire for interaction between the two episodes of Legacy Of Kain. We can say that Raziel triumphed over Kain even if the latter is doing not too badly. A game which is certainly not perfect but which will charm a wide audience, in addition to fans of the saga. Eidos Interactive therefore offers us a beautiful, brand new Kain that will keep us waiting for better days.
