r/LegacyOfKain

Forgive my naive optimism. I know things are looking grim, but we didn't think we'd be getting such high quality remasters, especially one that practically redeemed Defiance as a title, and it's pretty apparent that Ascendance was made as a budget game than a proper "continuation." Perhaps the coin will land on it's side again. You never know. At the very least there's no harm in pretending.

In short: LOK has a very complicated story, and if a sixth game that took place after Defiance (and was NOT made by Bit Bot) were to be made, it would have a hard time attracting new players due to the large amount of plot threads that players would have to wrangle through just to understand what was going on. Either they'd have to play 5 other games (at least 3 if we skip both Blood Omens, which sadly don't have remasters yet) to understand what's going on...or they'd have to just jump in blind and hope to understand all of this craziness about vampires, time travel, and Elder Gods on their own.

To fans this would be no issue, but newbies? Utter confusion. I suspect this is part of why we don't have a proper sixth game. That investors see such a deep narrative and think the average gamer isn't going to be able to play more than a few minutes because it's "too confusing" for them, so they reject it on principle.

I don't agree with that thinking, but it does bring up a good point. How would a sixth game be able to attract new players who weren't able (or interested) in playing all 5 other games to understand the plot? In an ideal world, it would just exist and be targeted for a small audience, but sadly the gaming industry doesn't work that way. Sure, the remasters have gone a long way towards making the originals more accessible, but a lot of people are sadly pretty resistant to playing older games today and even those who aren't, again, might not wanna play 5 games just to understand 1.

My suggestion would be to do what the new GOWs did, and have a story that's both self-contained but also serves as a coda to the arc established in previous games. The Dark Prophecy was going to be about the present day Kain time traveling back to meet his younger self, so why not do something with that? Perhaps start the game off as an interprequel between SR1 and BO2 about a younger Kain gaining power through deeds that lead to his rule becoming what we see in Soul Reaver (perhaps we even get to see a newly resurrected Raziel?). Then halfway through, the Kain from Defiance suddenly shows up and the latter half of the game turns into a tragic extended finale where the younger Kain witnesses what he's fated to become, while the modern Kain (who'd be the main PC of the later half, sorta like RDR2) accepts his ultimate fate, whatever it may be. The goal would be to give the original saga a proper ending, while leaving room for more interprequels set in the long period between the games following the younger Kain (or even other characters).

Or maybe it won't happen at all. Maybe not. Maybe so.

Today's prompt was "Fledgling."

This is an excerpt. I haven't had the best history with Reddit's automod and I'm paranoid it will flag me for violence. You can read the full story on AO3 without an account.

Corpse clean up was the second worst job for a Sarafan squire, only preferable to latrine duty. That was what everyone said. Raziel thought there was room for debate. The stench was about the same. They both made him sweat, even in winter and the work was dull and repetitive, nothing at all like what he wanted to be doing. 

He became a squire when he turned 14, like everyone else. For the last year he had been serving Sir Malek, Conflict Guardian and General of the Sarafan, under the recommendation of Moebius, Guardian of Time, who proclaimed great things in his future. Everyone else called it favoritism. Even Sir Malek sneered at his presence. I already have two experienced squires. What use is a third? Raziel overheard him say. 

Someday he would show them. 

Raziel lashed the dead vampire's arms to the crucifix while another squire pushed its severed head into the stake at the top. Working together, they raised the crucifix using ropes and held it steady while an older boy buried the base in soil, inside a hole Raziel had dug himself. The earth was hard during winter. If Raziel had as much sway over the Time Streamer as his peers imagined he would have asked him to make time move faster. He missed summer, even with all the flies. 

"Sir Malek, I've finished my rounds," he said to the Conflict Guardian seated on his black horse. He was surveying the killing fields, seeing that his trophies were arranged to his liking.

"It's about time," Sir Malek grumbled, flaring his nostrils. Raziel hated seeing him from this angle. "That will be all for now. Head back to camp, clean yourself up, and make preparations for our return. And don't forget to decant the wine, I want it ready and waiting for me."

"Yes Sir," he replied flatly, burying his contempt beneath his helmet. 

Raziel trudged through the snowy ruins, glaring at his boots. The Sarafan had rooted out an entire den of vampires this day, meanwhile he was relegated to guarding the horses and hammering stakes into lifeless corpses. It wasn't fair. He was old enough to fight, practically a man.  

A whispered rumbling drew him out of his stewing resentment. The snow shifted underfoot and suddenly opened up, dropping him into darkness. Raziel barely had time to gasp. His back hit the ground just as suddenly, landing on a pile of snow and rubble, the wind knocked out of him. He looked up, grimacing. The snow had hidden a weak point in the stone, which broke under his weight. He scooted backward to avoid more rubble as the ceiling cracked. Only a few pebbles tumbled down.

The burning in his chest faded to a dull ache after several deep breaths as he began to take stock of his surroundings. No one seemed to have noticed his fall, judging by the quiet. Part of him felt grateful to avoid the embarrassment. Now he needed to find his way back to the surface and alert Sir Malek to the danger, lest this misfortune claim another unlucky knight. Maybe then he would be counted for something. Responsible Raziel. He hissed under his breath, "Damn it."

This appeared to be some kind of storage room supported by wood pillars that had decayed over time. A segment of wall on his right had fallen away, leaving only about a third standing, beyond which lay a sunlit depression laden with sparkling snow. If his bearings were correct the depression should lie beyond the ruin's outer wall. That must be why he hadn't seen it before. 

He picked himself up, rolling his shoulder and rubbing at the bruise under his armor. Chainmail and padding protected him from the worst of it. Suddenly, a pair of bright eyes flashed from the shadows. Raziel drew his short sword – a pitiful toothpick fit for the Sarafan's lowliest squire. The creature cowered against the broken wall, small body pressed deep into the corner, clawed hands clasped over its unquestionably fanged mouth, staring back at him like an owl.

Continue reading on AO3.