Raziel (Legacy of Kain) - Concept and Creation

Concept and Creation

Raziel was initially conceived as the nameless protagonist of Shifter, an unproduced, non-Legacy of Kain related game concept by Crystal Dynamics which preceded Soul Reaver, and the outline of his character concept and motivations was based on the former title. His name was taken directly from that of the archangel Raziel, prevalent in Jewish mysticism, with the name's meaning ("Secret of God") considered appropriate by the game's developers. Early visual artwork of Raziel was influenced by The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari's character of Cesare, and dozens of concept sketches were produced to shape his final incarnation. Hindu tradition was the basis for his blue color, while his broken, ruined wings symbolized his tragic nature as a fallen angel.

When writing the script for Soul Reaver, series director Amy Hennig considered it important to make Raziel's character flaws apparent as well as his positives, contrasting his personality with Kain's and emphasizing the notion that he is a character with strong aspects of villainy as well as heroism. She focused on the evolution of his personality in Soul Reaver 2, describing him as "kind of a self-righteous little twit" with a lot to learn, and pointed out her belief that Kain was, in some ways, a more interesting and complex character, with Raziel a more two-dimensional personality in the original game.

Raziel's typical physical design is characterized by his skeletal profile, tattered wings and bluish body tones. He is depicted with cloven, tridactyl claws and feet, and radiant, pupilless eyes. A brownish cowl bearing his clan symbol, originally a red cape, masks his disfigured, jawless mouth, which glows either green or bluish-white (varying between games) upon devouring souls. The clan symbol was based on a rearward profile of his undamaged, outstretched wings. He is usually depicted wielding the ethereal form of the Soul Reaver, an ancient vampiric blade. One of his features which remains consistent between his transformations is his hair; when queried regarding the logic of Raziel retaining his hair after several centuries of torture in the Abyss, Hennig responded "because he'd look silly if he was bald", while when questioned as to his capability of speech without a lower jaw, she replied "very supple throat muscles". His vampire incarnation from the intro cinematic of Soul Reaver, designed after his more common appearance was finalized, is batlike, and depicted with a sword in some indirectly official media. The design of his human, Sarafan incarnation (who appears in Soul Reaver 2) was inspired by influences from the Roman era.