this game is not 60 hours

[NopeAce]

its a good title, dont get me wrong, but that line in the details is very misleading.

[nya[dc]]

I would say it's pretty close to that if you pace yourself and do absolutely everything, time in a game is always relative to the way you approach it.

[「Sh1k1」]

Doing absolutely everything (completely finding all the secrets, finishing all the side quests, locating all the glyphs, etc.) took me nearly 80 hours on PS1.

In comparison, rushing through the story took me about 10-15 hours, give or take 2.

You do the math.

[Perrin]

Yup, almost HALF of Soul Reaver 1 was COMPLETELY optional. If you do everything you can EASILY get 40+ hours out of it. Or you could rush it and beat it in 10 if you follow a walkthrough and miss half the content and never explore the open world.

[Fuzzy.Bunny]

I was compelled to google 'legacy of kain: soul reaver not 60 hours' today after going through my Playstation library and giving the game another go, the first time I picked it up since I was in high school. I found this thread and these comments and believe they need to be corrected.

The only way this game can be even half of 60 hours is if the player gets lost on a regular basis, something that isn't out of the realm of possibility. The game is spacious but, all things considered, it really doesn't need to be. This makes itself known through more and more play. This is not a matter of debate, this is bedrock fact. Trying to get 'everything' in the game is also misleading, as the only things to get are more health, the 5 Eldrich(sp?) cubes and the spells. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no reason to do this.

First, the plane-shifting mechanic makes a larger health pool unnecessary. Should the player have a problem they can simply shift to the Spectral Plane, easily recover full health and the Soul Reaver and re-engage the fight. Damaged enemies will retain their damage and, of course, be in the same spot because time is stopped when in the Spectral Plane.

Second and, consquently, third, finding even one of the spells is unnecessary because they have precious little utility. The spells all work, don't get me wrong, it's just that the player isn't ever in a situation where they either need any of the spells or where they have not a need but a strong use. This makes the Eldrich(sp?) cubes completely irrelevant.

A special point of interest is the fire-charged Soul Reaver. It's only utility is in the ability to shoot 'fire shots' that can immolate staggered enemies. One can argue that it takes less hits to stagger an enemy with regular attacks, one for the flame version and two for the regular version, but increasing efficiency by just one attack is, in this game, inarguably without any real use. Thus, this blade is only useful insofar as the 'fire shots' are used.

I discovered this and the above back in 1999-2000 when I purchased the game. Simply put, Soul Reaver is a neat experience but it's unfinished state makes itself known. The bit of marketing ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ about 60 hours of gameplay is grossly misleadying, it isn't just a bit of hyperbole. Anyone expecting to get 60 hours of play out of the game and finding a lot less would be right to be upset or angry and especially when the extra bits that are there are made irrelevant by the game's mechanics.

N.B. Save your 'necro thread lulz' comments. Relevant is relevant: Valve is still selling the game.

Further, after completing this game about a day after my post here, I can say that this is perhaps the longest demo I've ever played. The world is just too big, the combat far too simple and awkwardly spaced out, the puzzles-for-the-sake-of-puzzles gameplay that doesn't at all fit with the narrative, the Glyph system that is without an meaingful utility, and the regularly occuring frame drops (PS version, at least) demonstrate a game that just wasn't finished and was sold as a finished game...with '60 hours' of play advertisted and absolutely NO WAY to tell there isn't half of that play there without first trying for oneself.

The story is really great but isn't worth playing the game or the blatant lie in the game's avertising. There's no way sale of this game demonstrates care for the art and craft of video games or the players themselves.

[FreeToaster]

Originally posted by The Bitterness:

I was compelled to google 'legacy of kain: soul reaver not 60 hours' today after going through my Playstation library and giving the game another go, the first time I picked it up since I was in high school. I found this thread and these comments and believe they need to be corrected.

For its time the game was amazing, theres a reason it released with critical acclaim.
Naturally it has many flaws but ignoring gameplay the game offers the player to add to your point so you can "correct" others while judging the game by todays standards instead of the standards for the games original release date makes it really hard for me to take anything you just said seriously.

Save this stuff for your blog or FB wall, The majority of people here have played through the game multiple times, none of what you said is going to somehow give any of us an epiphany and make us realize we never actually enjoyed the game and it sure as heck doesnt negate all the time we spent on our first playthroughs so many years ago, when getting stuck in a game wasnt solved by going to youtube.

Oh, and Necro thread! LULZ! what you said may have been on topic, but it wasnt relevant.

[Doomykins]

Having beaten this game over twenty times, and likely spending over 400 hours playing it on the PS1. This game had a TON of value and game time. Maybe not sixty hours but atleast fifteen. And for a first time play through the game has a greater duration than most modern AAA titles.

Having rushed through the game again on the PS1 it took me roughly four hours to complete the game. No gylphs, never exploring and not bothing to get the fire reaver. So yeah, if you're skiping a great deal of the game you'll feel like you're not getting the full "sixty hours".

Although in all honesty the LONGEST stage for me HAS to be the silenced cathedral aka getting to zephon. It's got to be the greatest time sink in the game.

I mean the zone is freaking huge qq, that took me a great deal of the four hours on the playthrough.