PS3 PS1 PS4

Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain

Hack and slash/Beat 'em upAdventure

Time to beat: about 18.3 hours
Plays offline: Yes

Overview

Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain is a 1996 action-adventure video game developed by Silicon Knights and published by Crystal Dynamics for the PlayStation. A Windows port developed by Semi Logic Entertainments was released by Activision under license from Crystal Dynamics in 1997. It is the first title in the Legacy of Kain series. The game was re-released digitally via GOG.com in 2021.

In Blood Omen, the player follows Kain, a slain nobleman newly resurrected as a vampire. Seeking revenge against his murderers and a cure to his vampiric curse, Kain is tasked with traversing the fictional land of Nosgoth and slaughtering the Circle of Nine, a corrupt oligarchy of godlike sorcerers, but slowly begins to forsake humanity and view his transformation as a blessing.

Silicon Knights intended Blood Omen to be "a game which adults would want to play", intending to evolve the action role-playing genre and bring artistic cinema to video game consoles. Reviewers praised its scope and storytelling, but criticized its lengthy loading times. After its release, a dispute arose concerning ownership of its intellectual property rights, after which Crystal Dynamics retained the rights of the series and developed a sequel, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver.