Very few items manage to combine all the great things of life into one neat package. Things like: heavy metal, beer, Lita Ford, video games, magic, black sabbath, hot girls, hot guys, and of course Tim Curry’s voice. Luckily for us, we have Brutal Legend which does just that. This beauty of a game was released back in October of 2009, and only sold about 215,00o copies in its opening month. It seems like a lot, but sadly it only ranked 12 on the top selling games of October. The game obviously targets a specific market, mainly metal fan, but in truth it’s an enjoyable game regardless. It combines aspects of both action, open world, and even real-time-strategy; to deliver a truly epic (and brutal) experience to the gamer. As for the cherry on the top? It actually has a really great story-line!
by Electronic Arts| Rated: Mature| Platform: Xbox 360/Playstation 3
Story 10/10
Eddie Riggs is a roadie. Not just any, but the world’s greatest roadie. It’s just a shame that the band he works for is an affront to all things metal. The story begins during a performance of Kabbage Boy, an obvious reference to a few popular bands…or singers, today. Through a series of accidents Eddie finds himself injured, and bleeding on the amulet his father had given him as a child. Thing is, it turns out that gift was actualy an ancient artifact to the great God Ormagõden! The beast manifests and carries Eddie to the land of Heavy Metal, where he finds himself in the midst of a civil war aimed to dethrone the tyrannical Doviculus! Through Eddie’s journey you’ll come across a variety of characters that assist you on your quest; from a gang of head-bangers, to more important allies modeled after some of Rock’s greatest Legends! Seriously: Lemmy Kilmister, Ozzy Osborne, Lita Ford, and Rob Halford are all in this game!
Audio 10/10
Boasting 175 songs from75 different metal bands, there really is nothing to complain about in terms of sound. From cruising around listening to Tenacious D’s “The Metal”, to engaging in mortal combat while Black Sabbath’s “Children of the Grave” blasts in the background; the fun seriously never ends. The soundtrack provided is probably one of the most fitting collection any game has had, to-date. You can also change tracks whenever you like, you will however have to unlike some of the songs. Music aside, you also have the amazing voice cast that was listed above! Tim Curry, who plays the antagonist Doviculus, plays one hell of a villain! Of course, Jack Black steals the scene by just being Jack Black.
The game has pretty generic graphics for its time; however, the art style is really breathtaking and reminicent of Metal albums during the 70’s and 80’s. The character designs are influenced, for the most part, on real artists. Eddie is Jack Black with some roadie appeal added to him, while characters like Kill Master or The Guardian of Metal take their influence from their voice-actors (Lemmy and Ozzy). Overall, the game’s art style really fits with the setting and regardless of some of the glitches you are bound to come across; it still flows quite well.
The only fault that can be given to this game is the lack of replay value. Although I have no doubt you can find yourself picking this game up after a long break away from it; the story is going to be exactly the same. There are no choices, and even progression flows pretty much the same. However, there is an online mode that can provide hours of entertainment. Even that will still only delay the inevitable boredom from having done everything the game has to offer. Don’t let this turn you away from the game though, for a game that’s under $20 this is more than worth it. The combat can be quite entertaining, as Eddie uses not only his actual battle axe to fight his foes, but his musical axe as well. In the land of metal, the guitar is cable of literally blowing up Eddie’s enemies. As you progress you’ll earn “Fire tributes” which allow you to upgrade your abilities, as well as unlock new paints schemes for “The Deuce” (your car) or equipment for Eddie. There is of course more than just slashing at your enemies with your axe, or summoning lighting from the sky with your guitar. Eddie can enter a music mode where you must match the notes on screen to successfully perform the attack. With this ability you can literally melt the faces of your opponents, or summon your hot-rod. Combat can get a bit repetitive, but the dialogue made my Eddie, his allies and enemies is more than enough to entertain you while you fight.
Overall, this is exactly what $20 or less is about. This is a game that is really epic, but would honestly not be worth the original price of $50. Now that it’s dropped however, it’s a must own game for just about anyone. Seriously, if you can think of anything cooler then slaying demons with the aid of Lemmy Kilmister with the tools given to you by Ozzy Osborne then please inform the rest of us. Brutal Legend will more then fill the gap as you wait for the next big release, more importantly though; it might just influence some of you to go out and buy some truly classic albums.
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I love this game!! It has SO much good music and is really fun. One of my fa orite moments was when you are in Tim Curry’s lair and you have a huge battle set to “Mermaider” by Dethklok.
Really underappreciated game :(
never had too much interest in it even though i LOVE jack black so maybe i’ll pick this up now!