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Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun (PS4, cancelled) / Legacy of Kain: Nosgoth (PC, upcoming)

If the OP title doesn’t mean anything, click here for previous thread - covering The Ten Cancelled Legacy of Kain games.

Since news broke regarding the existence and cancellation of PlayStation 4 launch title Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun, media has been slowly seeping out. I have some new images to present and further videos.

Also, there has been a recent influx of information regarding the upcoming Legacy of Kain: Nosgoth, which along with the enthusiasm I’m seeing from its community manager, is making me optimistic regarding the project, and eager to see more.

Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun

In the previous thread, Monkeythumbz – Community Manager for Square Enix – surprised me by not only coming onto NeoGAF to confirm my finds, but actually posted more material to support my article. It was a quite wonderful gesture of goodwill. If you missed his contribution, here it is.

I’ve been watching this post and I thought you might want a bit more information. I can confirm that Dead Sun was a project which had been in development - but which was cancelled.

I know it’s disappointing to hear about these things out of context, and whilst some of the details released are accurate - some details are not. You know game projects can be cancelled for a variety of different reasons and I know it’s very hard to tell from images and info alone, but in the end LoK: Dead Sun just wasn’t the right game, at the right time… but you’ll have to take me at my word on that, I’m afraid.

Obviously, it’s not usual for assets from cancelled games to be released, but given that there’s a lot out there already I thought you might appreciate seeing a few more images that were taken from the previously in-progress game.

As you’ll be aware, we’re currently working on a multiplayer game firmly set within the Legacy of Kain universe called Nosgoth, which we’re very proud of. It’s grown in size and scope since its initial conception and we’ll be talking more about it in the future. While we’re not working on a single-player Legacy of Kain game right now, that doesn’t mean it’s not something we’d look at making in the future.














Recently, Legacy of Kain Wiki’s Aevum (aka Corlagon) brought attention to a a tweet by Alex_Roblez1986 – highlighting some interesting concept artwork by UK based Flipbook Studio. Aevum deeper and found that the filenames explicitly mentioned Legacy of Kain. When Flipbook realised that this had been made public, the images were quickly removed. Legacy of Kain Wiki has them safely rehosted though, and I’m happy to present those images here. Full credit to Aevum/LOK wiki for this discovery:
JqHwW95.jpg

w80rZzH.jpg


X0zXSuz.jpg







This final image may be particularly familiar for fans of Soul Reaver:

D97etxq.jpg


The towering structure in the background is, almost certainly, the Silenced Cathedral from 1999’s Soul Reaver. You can see it in the background, in the SR intro sequence:

7jKXAxm.png


As Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun was to take place centuries after Soul Reaver, the existence of the Silenced Cathedral in its game world suggests further familiar landmarks would have appeared.

Next finds, videos!

Legacy Of Kain: Dead Sun Video #2
Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun Video #3
Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun Video #4
Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun Video #5
(The first video was in the previous thread)

I have found these videos on a portfolio site – listed under the Climax Games codename for the project while it was in development. The character of Gein/Asher appears in the videos, as does explicit reference to “The History of Nosgoth”.

The videos show just how far this game was in its development. We see and hear: game music, an environment, menus, part of the opening sequence, and details of the in-game upgrades and powerups.

First, some images from the opening sequence – showing what appears to be the conception and maturation of the “very old vampire child” that was referred to by one of my sources in the original thread:

mWyK3Bh.jpg


mesdQ16.jpg


IpxPH0I.jpg


A page of lore!

6JNjvw1.jpg


Images showing the protagonist in an environment, aspects of the user interface, and details of the in-game powerups. Note that Xbox button prompts appear – perhaps this video is from when the game was aiming to be a 360/PS3 title – before it became a potential PS4 launch title.

FpC2KCL.jpg
oSE2Gbe.jpg


d5GsiFm.jpg
d59uH02.jpg


MEwnbH9.jpg
B0Wgnrc.jpg


GZ8gLyR.jpg
Lu6nLXx.jpg


4b3AokA.jpg
BWD8h9b.jpg


6qp5RxP.jpg
4VLMZGG.jpg


XWWQuyj.jpg
OIge2YG.jpg


0MraTuo.jpg
W1OD4Ae.jpg


CQK8opV.jpg
SBNa2xZ.jpg


Just to summarise, from what I understand this game was cancelled after:

• Over three years in development.
• Voice Acting and Motion Capture done.
• Rendered Cutscenes made.
• Huge environments created.
• Boss battles implemented.
• Extensive story written and implemented, with lots of lore in place.

Lots of work went into this. Hopefully, more media will appear over time.


Legacy of Kain: Nosgoth

The upcoming PC Legacy of Kain game is yet to be officially unveiled. Monkeythumbz has been answering questions regarding it over at the Eidos Forums, and Raina Audrom has done a great service by compiling this into a Q&A post:

1. What genre is War for Nosgoth? Is it an MMO or MOBA type of game?

Nosgoth is not an MMO. It's a competitive online multiplayer experience (...with a bit of a twist).
Nosgoth will not be an MMORPG and Nosgoth doesn't look or play anything like DoTA2 or LoL.

While Nosgoth is unlike any other competitive online multiplayer game that I've played or am familiar with, the closest comparison is probably Unreal Championship 2. Not sure if Nosgoth is all that similar, but I suppose it's closer to that than a traditional LoK game, an MMO or a MOBA.


2. Why is it multiplayer and not singleplayer?

Because of the concept - it's the game we and the devs wanted to make.

Inevitably, due to the nature of this game being multiplayer, story will not be as prominent a factor in moment-to-moment gameplay as with previous LoK games, which hopefully will address your point about newcomers. Nevertheless, as fans of the series, it's our hope that what we are doing within the lore will encourage newcomers to be engaged by the series' rich backstory and convert them into LoK aficionados.


3. Is Nosgoth a mobile game or a potential next gen title?

Nosgoth is not a mobile game. Also, we're mostly influenced by LoK:SR1... make of that what you will.


4. Can the game be played offline?

Nosgoth is online.


5. Is there any specific date (or season) that you are all planning on revealing Nosgoth?

Yes, but I can't reveal what it is yet. We announced the game early and gave details on its context, but I'm afraid there's gonna be a bit of a gap between now and the time we release screenshots etc.

Right now, we're all heads-down and nose to the grindstone in the preparation phase, getting all the various materials in place etc, and we want to make sure that the game feels right before speaking about it more plainly and openly.


6. Will the lore of previous Legacy of Kain games stay intact?

I can tell you truthfully that Nosgoth has been built as an LoK game from the ground up. Making sure that we respect the series canon is something we take very seriously. I know you'll think I'd say that anyway, but we're devoted fans of the lore established in the previous games, so it's only natural we'd want to ensure Nosgoth both complements them and expands upon them.


7. Does Nosgoth use the same story as Dead Sun?

No, Nosgoth does not use the same story as Dead Sun (even slightly).


8. Will Nosgoth include an open world to explore?

Nosgoth is not open-world.


9. Can you answer what platforms we will see the title on?

Windows PC, but that may be expanded over time.


10. Will this game have controller input support?? Or will it rely only on keyboard input?

Right now, Nosgoth only supports mouse & keyboard.


11. Is there going to be a demo of the game available?

Yes.


12. Is the game "Nosgoth" played in 1st person, from 3rd person or bird's eye camera view?

Nosgoth is a third-person game; there's no first-person camera available.


13. Would it be unfair or terribly innacurate to say the game could be described as a Horde Mode style competitive multiplayer?

That would indeed be inaccurate.


14. Is there a training mode in the game?

I wouldn't say an in-game training mode is really necessary - it's a very intuitive game and we've ensure that it's as pick-up-and-playable as possible. We'd rather create an environment where you just dived right in and got into the action straight away.


15. So I’m getting the impression from the above that you’ve now played Nosgoth?

I've been playing Nosgoth since last December! It's come on a LONG way and I can honestly say that - as somebody who traditionally prefers playing solo narrative-driven games - it's made me appreciate multiplayer gaming in a whole new light and enjoy it in a whole new way.

In all seriousness, it's a helluva lot of fun to play - that's definitely been the focus of the development team, making a fun game you'll want to come back to over and over.


16. Will the information given outside of the games such as in FAQs be taken into account?

Regarding extraneous information, the answer is "yes" and "no". "Yes" in the sense that we've done our very best to absorb all knowledge about LoK's narrative as revealed in the games and elsewhere, and "no" in the sense that it's not really relevant to Nosgoth. As I said in my statement, Nosgoth is very much on a seperate branch of the LoK mythos to Soul Reaver and Blood Omen (and, by extension, Defiance). It's definitely the same familiar universe, though.

Additionally, by having Nosgoth exist on a different branch to SR and BO (but within the same continuity), we're going out of our way to avoid "butchering" the game and, by extension, the IP.


17. Is the game gory and will there be Kain and Raziel in it?

The game will be very violent, but as far as I'm aware the Soul Reaver sword does not appear in the game. Neither do Kain or Raziel for very good reasons - they're both busy doing... other things at the time of the game's setting. They're in Nosgoth (obviously), but they're not in Nosgoth (as in the game). It would make no sense for them to be so, narrative-wise. As explained before, it's on a separate branch of the IP, but is in continuity with the overall lore. Also, Anarcrothe is NOT playable, totally wrong time-frame.


18. Will the game be set during Moebius's crusade?

Wrong! It's a good guess, but it's not the one.


19. Are there werewolves in the game?

LoK's Werewolves aren't in Nosgoth... but I do think that's a really neat idea you have there, FWIW.


20. Will Nosgoth have some DLC or achievements?

Wait and see.


21. Can we expect good graphics?

Nosgoth will be the best looking LoK game to date.


22. In the game Nosgoth are we dealing with corrupted Nosgoth or healed Nosgoth?

The land is corrupted in Nosgoth.


23. Are vampires a playable race (faction, characters, you name it) in the upcoming game Nosgoth?

Yes.


24. Are there any non-vampire playables?

Yes, but they aren't Hylden, that wouldn't work with the game's setting


25. Will we revisit known areas of Nosgoth in the new game? Will we see new areas?

Yes.


26. Will there be a lot and a lot of weapons?

Oh yes.


27. You mentioned weapons, are we talking swords, crossbows, axes, maces etc…please tell me there aren’t any guns?

No guns, but do remember Nosgoth is place where flamethrowers exist.


28. Is it solely combat orientated?

Um... kind of. The focus is very much on combat, at least for the time being.


29. Will there be levels in the game e.g. defeat a boss you move to the next level or get a power up?

Again kind of, but there are no bosses in the game as it's a competitive multiplayer experience (...with a twist). You do gain experience, but it's not like XP in an RPG.


30. Will Nosgoth have its own Twitter and Facebook accounts? If yes, will they be launched at the same time with the official site?

Yes.


31. Can you do something about HD remakes of Legacy of Kain games?

Regarding HD ports and remakes of SR or BO games... I'm really the wrong guy to ask, I'm afraid. I mean, I'm very far away from that kind of decision making and don't really have any insight to share about that. While I'm the CM for Nosgoth, that doesn't give me visibility on every aspect of the LoK franchise as a whole, nor am I party to all decisions made about its future.

It’s worth noting that Monkeythumbz is likely very limited as to what he is allowed to answer , as the game is yet to be officially unveiled. The answers above though, do give me optimism. I’m looking forward to exploring Nosgoth again, in whatever form it comes. I’m getting the impression that the team is really being quite dedicated in fitting their new game into the lore and history of the series. Perhaps we are going to play through one of the series’ infamous wars?
 

Flayer

Member
Really sucks it got cancelled so far along into development. I have fond memories of the Legacy of Kain series.
 

KorrZ

Member
Great work on this thread! I've come to expect a good read when I see your name on a thread.

This still makes me very, very angry. To cancel a next-gen single player LOK that looks promising, for a fucking multiplayer game....It's just a travesty that I don't even have words for.
 

Finalizer

Member
Just to summarise, from what I understand this game was cancelled after:

• Over three years in development.
• Voice Acting and Motion Capture done.
• Rendered Cutscenes made.
• Huge environments created.
• Boss battles implemented.
• Extensive story written and implemented, with lots of lore in place.

Lots of work went into this. Hopefully, more media will appear over time.

It's funny to think that, after hearing about games with tens of millions of dollars in budget, where sales exceeding 3 million are "disappointing", you even have scenarios like this where publishers have effectively tossed millions into a black hole with nothing to show for it.
 

Ephemeris

Member
It's funny to think that, after hearing about games with tens of millions of dollars in budget, where sales exceeding 3 million are "disappointing", you even have scenarios like this where publishers have effectively tossed millions into a black hole with nothing to show for it.

it's heart breaking, especially in this case.
 
Aren't they kind of running into the risk of a Shadow Run-style snaffu? It's cool that it's the game they want to make and a lot of people who played Shadow Run loved it, but I can't but help but think that a sp LOK game, regardless of quality, would sell better than a MP only, PC only game. It's kind of crazy they had all the mocap and voice acting done for Dead Sun and it was in development for three years only for it to be canned.
 

Nags

Banned
lok-soul-reaver-wings-o.gif


I'll take it for now, if only it gives more hope for another single player entry in the future. Seems like they should do something with all of the assets from Dead Sun, seems like a hefty amount of work was put in.
 
I'm more than okay with Dead Sun being cancelled based on those character designs, especially the main character. How the fuck are you going to follow up this bad mother fucker:

yUsPaBz.jpg


With that shit?

Obvious answer: you're not.
 
A damn shame. Legacy of Kain is the series that more than deserves a next-gen reboot. Hell just make the first games HD, and you'll be printing money Eidos.
 
Just to summarise, from what I understand this game was cancelled after:

• Over three years in development.
• Voice Acting and Motion Capture done.
• Rendered Cutscenes made.
• Huge environments created.
• Boss battles implemented.
• Extensive story written and implemented, with lots of lore in place.

Cancelled after all that? FML...

This is a series that needs to come back.
 
Maybe they're waiting until all fans of the series die so they never have to actually finish the story and can reboot it with a bald gentleman who hunts an assortment of nasties with assault weapons and a gruff attitude.
 

Grief.exe

Member
Dead Sun looks surprisingly far along. I can't believe they cancelled it, the money it would have taken to release the game must have been substantially less than the money they already lost developing the property.

Really unfortunate.

Considering Eidos'/Square's track record, it probably would have shown up on PC as well as PS4.

I'm definitely more interested in Nosgoth when he is comparing it to a 3rd person Unreal Championship 2.

I've seen Nosgoth in the Steam Registry for months now, so it must be pretty far along.
 

Ahasverus

Member
21. Can we expect good graphics?

Nosgoth will be the best looking LoK game to date.
Ok I laughed. I mean, by two generations, I think that would be a given but the game could look like a first wave 360 game and still make this statement true. Heh.
 

FloatOn

Member
guys Unreal Championship 2 was the most fun I had on the OG xbox.

a third person multiplayer vampire power throw down could be quite fun.

I'm definitely more interested in Nosgoth when he is comparing it to a 3rd person Unreal Championship 2.

Unreal Championship 2 was both in third and first person. Here is some gameplay in case you forgot. Imagine this with a gothic skin and we might have a clearer idea of what they intend with Nosgoth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3_nbdFlvAI
 

.la1n

Member
Yeah cancel the return to form game but keep trucking with the multiplayer game absolutely nobody asked for.
 

Rat Salad

Banned
The game probably was sorta cancelled, but will see the light of day on the X1 and PS4 later. Once both userbases are much larger. For now we have this umm 'interesting'(?) game... LOL. Oh boy...
 
A damn shame. Legacy of Kain is the series that more than deserves a next-gen reboot. Hell just make the first games HD, and you'll be printing money Eidos.

I'm not really disappointed since I'm 100% confident we'll still get another real Legacy of Kain game someday.

Disgusting. It's like they forgot you're allowed to make cartoony/non-realistic characters

Thank you. That character is fucking garbage, and certainly not something I want to be playing as in a LoK game.
 

Retne

Member
Great thread Mama but holy shit does it bum me out. At this point I'd take even a terrible LoK game. I miss Nosgoth and I'm afraid a multiplayer game toting the title of the series is not what I'm after.

Hopefully I get to play one more game in the Legend of Kain series before I bite the dust. I'm not gonna hold my breath with the way things have been going though.
 
Are you fucking kidding me????

Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun was to take place centuries after Soul Reaver, the existence of the Silenced Cathedral in its game world suggests further familiar landmarks would have appeared.

Noooooooooo!! Bring it back!!
 
The game in the OP looks pretty intriguing, would definitely have liked to see it happen.

Couldn't give a shit about Nosgoth though, competitive mutiplayer? No thanks.
 
god, another series devolves into another multiplayer game...this stinks. Oh well, the wait continues for another LoK game.

Shame it got canned so long into development :(
 
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