Developer: Double Fine Productions
Availability: Playstation 3 & Xbox 360

Tim Schafer is quite a funny fellow. He’s bought us the retort “Yeah…well you fight like a cow!”, a game whose protagonist is a reluctant Grim Reaper, and of course a milkman convinced the entire world is one giant conspiracy. Now he gives us Brutal Legend, an action-adventure game set in a heavy metal-themed land. Theoretically, this is great news for a good number of people - Schafer fans, metal fans, action-adventure fans and even Jack Black fans all have something to look forward to here. However, equally large is the possibility of disappointment.

Plot

If the name ‘Jack Black’ doesn’t give you an indication of what kind of experience this will be, the opening scenes certainty will. Eddie Riggs, (named after Iron Maiden’s mascot, Eddie the Head, and the artist that created him, Derek Riggs) is the world’s greatest roadie for the world’s most sucky ‘metal’ band, themselves a nice bit ‘o’ satire to get us rolling. “Metal is dead”, Eddie’s buddy states, and as the band starts to play, it’s pretty hard to disagree. After a little stage accident featuring a suitably epic cutscene, Eddie is sent back in time to a land of epic, awesome and metal.

The story itself never really takes itself too seriously, and this is a good thing as it’ll be a while before you play another game this funny. Well, one that is intentionally funny anyway. Jokes are always sharp and very quotable, and several prominent figures in the heavy metal genre make an appearance, though I doubt the mainstream or casual metal fan would recognize them, with the exception of maybe one. While it obviously isn’t the deepest story ever told, it is engaging and funny and will encourage you to progress just to see what comes next.

Gameplay

Pre-release, Brutal Legend was promoted as a third-person action-adventure game where, and I quote, “it’s basically just you playing a bunch of demons with a battleaxe”. This is what I was expecting, but wasn’t exactly what I got. While there is demon-slaying aplenty, there is also a good deal of real time strategy (RTS) mixed in. In fact, sometimes it feels like you’re just driving from one of these segments to the next. While it’s fine to include some of these elements, the game shouldn’t focus on them, particularly when they seem more like time fillers than actual fun. It’s kind of disappointing because I think the game would be better off it was actually what it had originally claimed to be. This aspect of gameplay is what takes up the multiplayer section, and as a result is largely forgettable.

However, this isn’t the whole game, and thankfully the on-foot combat and driving segments more than make up for it. While Eddie does lack the ability to jump, this is only a minor annoyance, and he has many moves at his disposal. The player is introduced to combat in a very seamless manner, and it won’t be long before you’re lobbing heads of druids and literally melting faces. As well as his axe, Eddie has his guitar, which acts as a ranged weapon, amplified by the land itself. With it, he can send bolts of lightning down from the sky to shock his enemies and perform guitar solos through a Guitar Hero/Ocarina of Time sequence, producing all kinds of devastating effects. Both the axe and the guitar are upgradable to cause even more damage.

Also upgradable is his car, which you also get early on, affectionately called the Druid Plow, or The Deuce. Driving and steering in this vehicle is surprisingly smooth and fluid, and the nitros ability helps a lot with those long road trips, with fast travelling obviously having not been invented yet. You can later upgrade the car with fixed guns and speed increases, and for the most part these are worth checking out. You purchase upgrades to both your weapons and car with fire tributes, obtained by completing various side missions throughout the land. It’s always good to see a game with more optional missions than I have the time or patience for, and Brutal Legend does not disappoint. These extras add a lot of playtime to the somewhat short yet mostly enjoyable campaign, but navigating between these points can be annoying. Instead of a mini-map, destinations are highlighted by giant stage lights shining down onto the area, and you have to make your own way there. It can be sometime difficult to get there as the game gives no indication of which roads to take. Interestingly enough, during the racing side-missions you follow a spotlight that always stays just ahead of your car, and you chase it all the way to the finish line. It’s a really simple and fun system, and makes me wonder why it wasn’t implemented into general navigation during gameplay.

Visuals/Audio

The art in this game is bats**t insane. Let me put things into perspective: upon arriving in the land of metal, you will see giant swords stuck in the ground, a massive stone sculpture of a guitar being played by two bodiless hands and a bunch of flowers shaped in the requisite ‘devils horns’ pose. \m/. The environments have been so well crafted that each area is memorable and unique. It really is like a metal album cover, or several, come to life. While each area of the world has it’s own feel and theme, the gothic area in particular succeeds admirably in it’s chosen field of creepiness, with hills covered in grave stones and a giant skull for a moon. Equally impressive are the characters themselves, with all of them being unique and memorable. Aside from the written lines, a lot of the comedy comes from the animation itself, and it’s rare that a game can make you laugh simply by making a character's eyes move.

The soundtrack has been paid an equal amount of attention. There are over 100 songs to listen to while driving in the car, or during certain moments of the game. There are songs that have been used in story missions that really capture the atmosphere of that particular event, and you can tell a lot of thought has gone into these segments. Most sub-genres of metal are represented here and metal is sure to gain a few new fans thanks to this game. Voice-acting is great as well, with each character feeling appropriately life-like and interesting, particularly Eddie and some of the featured musicians. It’s a shame some of the minor characters haven’t been given the same treatment, as cruising around all you’re likely to hear from minions is either “we’re just cruising around, kickin’ ass!” or “we’re on patrol!”

Highs
· Amazing environments and art
· Comedy is sharp and hilarious
· Both on-foot and car controls are great
· Combat is fun and…Brutal
· Great soundtrack
· Fantastic atmosphere
· Boss fights are awesome
· Main menu screen will not only blow your mind…it’ll blow your soul
· Plenty of side-missions

Lows
· RTS elements aren’t as deep or fun as they could/should be
· Minion dialogue is repetitive
· As fun as driving is, fast travel would be appreciated
· Eddie can’t jump
· Campaign doesn’t last as long as I would have liked

Tim Schafer’s newest game is funny, bold and unique. The gameplay is vastly improved from his last effort, Psychonauts, and the story is equally twisted and different from pretty much everything else out there. Although, the later RTS battles can be frustrating and disappointing, the boss fights, environments and characters you’ll meet along the way more than make up for it.

If you are a fan of heavy metal, you should get this game; if you are a fan of Tim Schafer’s previous work, you should get this game; if you are a fan of action-adventure, you should get this game…but be aware, it’s not all you’re in for. Brutal Legend is flawed yet unique, and a lot of effort has gone into making this game one of the funniest, individual and…Brutal out there. Schafer’s stamp is undoubtedly all over this experience (and I’m not just talking about the front of the box), and he has made this one of this year’s great gaming experiences.