Don't care if it's a double post, I'm going to conclude my impressions anyway.

99% SPOILER FREE

I finished the game a few days ago, and it was simply amazing. If you haven't at least played Soul Reaver 2, then the ending might not satisfy you as much as it did for me. Every single outstanding question I had about the series as a whole was answered, with the exception of one question I still have about Blood Omen 2, and one that I have about Defiance itself. But, both of those were left purposefully vague so that they could be covered in a future Legacy of Kain game. With that said, there is a very good possibility that the Legacy of Kain series is not yet over.

The combat system remained awesome throughout the entire game, and Raziel does gain extended TK abilities, exactly like Kain's, later on. All of the special attacks and Reaver enhancements were awesome, particularly Raziel's Water Reaver and Kain's Time Reaver.

The challenge level in the game ramped up nicely, but never felt unfair or unbalanced. There were a couple of boss battles that I died in (maybe three times total) and all because I hadn't figured out the boss' weakness quickly enough.

My only new gripe with the game, now that I have completed it, was the puzzle selection. Here's specifically why I was disappointed with them. Soul Reaver 2 featured the best (and I mean THE ABSOLUTE BEST) puzzles I have ever seen in a game thus far. Each one of the four elemental forges contained one giant puzzle that spanned the entire level. The Dark Forge was one giant puzzle in which Raziel had to locate and correctly position a series of reflective mirrors, in order to supply sunlight to power the forge itself. The Air Forge required Raziel to activate a series of air mechanisms (by solving a number of smaller puzzles) which would allow him to float to the top of the forge and activate it.

The puzzles in Defiance (by comparison) were nothing to write home about. For example, at one point in the game, Raziel must find a set of three spear-like artifacts that are used as keys to open up one of the elemental forges. The entirety of this puzzle is exploring every single unexplored area of the level, finding the spears, and then placing them in the locking mechanism. Not a bad puzzle, but certainly not better than any found in SR2. And the spear puzzle was probably the best one in the game.

Otherwise, I loved it. The puzzles were uninspired, but everything else was pure fucking gold, and I can safely say that Legacy of Kain: Defiance is my favorite game in the series thus far. I honestly didn't think that there was any way to top Soul Reaver 2, but Crystal Dynamics pulled it off, and with flying colors. Well done. Well fucking done. *claps*