There’s something about Metal: it’s fast, furious and beautifully angelic all at the same time, as well as being able to kill demons. Ok, well that last bit is part of Tim Shafer’s vision of Brutal Legend; this open-world mish-mash of genres oozing with rock has a lot going for it, but can this world of metal mythology and interesting characters receive a standing ovation?
Brutal Legend, fresh from the mind of Shafer, whose quirky humor and unique art-style has fueled games such as Psychonauts and Grim Fandango, revolves around Eddie Riggs (Jack Black), a roadie, who after being crushed by a stage prop, is transported to an alternate land inspired by heavy metal. There he finds a human resistance being enslaved by Doviculus (Tim Curry) and General Lionwyte, whose glam-rock minions and lumbering brutes wreck havoc across the land. Teaming up with the resistance, Riggs must help liberate the human race and defeat the evil which suppresses the beautiful, yet brutal world he now find himself in.
The story of Brutal Legend is nothing short of phenomenal, thanks to some incredible voice acting by a humorous, yet emotional Jack Black, who portrays Eddie. There are a bunch of other big name rock cameos from Rob Halford and Ozzy Osbourne, although the story is driven by clever and witty writing, which pokes fun at new age metal, glam-rock, as well as providing some hilarious dialogue between all the fantastic characters.
As mentioned earlier, Brutal Legend may appear as your typical hack-and-slash, but that couldn’t be more far from the truth. The game is a mixture of a lot of genres, including brawling, driving and real-time strategy mechanics. The combat on the whole is tight and responsive. You have a battle axe, which makes up the melee attacks, while your guitar serves as a ranged attack by either electrocuting or blowing-up your enemies with pyrotechnics. Special abilities and moves can also be learnt and bought, such as the ‘face-melter’ which literally melts your opponents’ faces after a rocking solo.
With all of Eddies rocktastic moves, he also has a vehicle, dubbed as ‘the Deuce’ at his disposal. This is primarily used for traversing the incredibly large open-world environments, but it can also be upgraded with machine-guns, rockets and armor to help with some vehicle missions, where you’ll have to protect some mobile friendlies.
The other side of the gameplay is comprised of real-time strategy sections, where players (using Eddie of course) command units to destroy your enemy’s stage. The units vary from close range head bangers and ranged artilliary, to vehicle units and big-fisted bruisers. Upgrades are also available allowing for stronger units to be built. These units are bought with fans which are gathered by capturing ‘fan geysers’ by performing solos near them. During the strategizing, players can also head into the battle and perform co-op moves with certain units to deal more damage.
This probably all sounds awfully confusing, and it is. The RTS sections get pretty overwhelming at first, leaving players who may not be familiar with RTS games scratching their heads. There is a definite learning curve, but after a few battles, players will easily get the hang of it. Unfortunately, the real culprit here is the controls. The lack of a ‘jump’ button, as well as the difficult RTS controls make these sections a little awkward, but still enjoyable.
Visually, Brutal Legend is a very good looking. Giant rock and gothic inspired monuments fill the large vistas, while the smallest details to the characters and world are extraordinary. Animations and facial expressions are some of the best out there, as each character’s humor, emotion and all out quirkiness is conveyed excellently.
Some humorous dismembering gore and violence highlights the whole mood and awesome atmosphere the game projects, as well as some really cool enemy designs. From glam-rock sell-outs to evil Goths and groupies, it’s all there.
In addition to the main story-line, there are some side-missions scattered across the world which compliment the plotline but don’t drastically change anything. They’re quick, easy and a good way to rack up some ‘fire-tributes’ in order to upgrade your moves and vehicle.
Multiplayer also makes an appearance in Brutal Legend. The online component takes on the form of the RTS sections, whereby either player controls an army and manages their own unit creation in order to destroy the opponent’s stage and structures. There are seven maps which will keep players busy until the already announced multiplayer DLC map-packs arrive.
Now, any game based on metal wouldn’t be anything without a rocking soundtrack, and Brutal Legend delivers. 107 songs from 75 of the world’s best metal bands of the past and present. The tracklist is as awesome as it sounds and couldn’t compliment the action any better.
All in all, Brutal Legend is a hilarious, yet awe-inspiring adventure that’s driven by clever and witty writing, along with an equally pleasing gameplay experience. Enthusiasm aside, Brutal Legend does have its slight control and difficulty faults, but it’s nothing that hampers the fun players will find within the game. Jack Black is awesome as Eddie Riggs, and we applaud Shafer for his ambitious and successful take on a brutal Rock ‘n Roll universe.
[starreviewmulti id=1 tpl=20]
