Dark Chronicle (term)

The Dark Chronicle, also known as the Dark Diary, is a plot summary available in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, Soul Reaver 2 and Legacy of Kain: Defiance which recaps the major scenes of each game through transcript or cutscene.

Role
The Dark Chronicle was a summary of the important plot of each entry in the series, appearing in Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, Soul Reaver 2 and Legacy of Kain: Defiance.

The feature first appeared in Blood Omen as the "Dark Diary" which could be selected from the main menu or the in game pause menu. The Dark Diary divided the plot into sixteen of the most significant cutscenes of the game. Once the feature was selected, a slideshow of still images of the currently completed chapters would be displayed - each one representing a cutscene which would play upon selection of the appropriate image.

No plot summary feature was available in Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, however Soul Reaver 2, would return to the feature, now titled as the "Dark Chronicle". This divided the Soul Reaver 2 story into twenty-one chapters summarizing the plot of the game. The Dark Chronicle was accessible either through the main menu, pause menu or the Bonus materials section and contains a list of unlocked chapters, each of which would display a transcript for each one. New chapters were unlocked through gameplay progress.

The feature was absent from Blood Omen 2 but returned again in Legacy of Kain: Defiance. This time, the plot was divided into forty-one of the significant chapters of the game. The Dark Chronicle could be selected from the main menu or the pause menu and listed these chapters with each providing a link to the appropriate cutscene. Again chapters would be unlocked through game progression and coulkd be viewed at any time after the completion of that part of the game.