This is a list of characters in the Legacy of Kain series of video games, originally created by game developer Silicon Knights, and continued by Crystal Dynamics. The series, which comprises five action-adventure games—Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, Soul Reaver 2, Blood Omen 2, and Legacy of Kain: Defiance—takes place in the fictional land of Nosgoth, and centers on eponymous antihero Kain, a nobleman who is murdered and returns to life as a vampire, as he unearths, and struggles to achieve, his destiny to maintain the world's balance. Leading alongside Kain is his former lieutenant Raziel, the series' secondary protagonist, who is similarly resurrected as a devourer of souls, and forced to confront his fate. They are supported by a variety of non-player characters and bosses, many of whom appear in multiple installments.
Inspired by classical models pioneered by William Shakespeare, Silicon Knights president Denis Dyack and writer Ken McCulloch made an effort to subvert ideas of moral absolutism when conceiving Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain's characters, feeling that the industry lacked a story addressing issues of good and evil, propaganda, and fate. Crystal Dynamics writer Amy Hennig continued this trend in the sequels, aiming to avoid two-dimensional, uncomplicated portrayals, and ensuring that each character was given flaws and realistic motives corresponding to their belief systems. A range of actors voiced the characters, most of whom reprised their roles for each game. Both lead characters have received positive critical and user reception, being regarded by many publications as particularly memorable and complex antiheroes. Individual coverage of the series' supporting characters has been less extensive, but commentators have praised their collective story, motivations and visual design as compelling, and attributed acclaim to the ensemble voice cast as a whole.
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