There are many things to like about Brütal Legend, but what I like most about it is its sincerity. This game is pure effen metal: an irony-free testament to the music and culture of old school headbanging. Designer Tim Schafer’s love for the subject matter is evident in every square inch of the world he has created. From the enormous stone broadswords to the candelabra-lit swamps to the alpine wastes populated by shambling woolly mammoths – you can see his passion in all of it.

And not only his. I would hazard to guess that pretty much everyone who contributed to Brütal Legend put a lot of love into their work. The voice-actors, for example, do an incredible job, and I suspect that part of the reason why is that they genuinely enjoyed playing their respective roles. Jack Black is eminently likeable as protagonist Eddie Riggs, and Jennifer Hale’s Ophelia (Eddie’s tormented love-interest) is both sympathetic and believable. Among the multitude of secondary characters, Ozzy Osbourne’s hilariously profane Guardian of Metal stands out as the most memorable, though Lemmy Kilmister’s chain-smoking healer – Kill Master – runs a very close second.

Another reason the voice actors do such a good job is simply that they had excellent material to work with. If you’ve played any of Schafer’s previous games, you’ll know he has a talent for writing hilarious dialogue. In this regard, Brütal Legend is his magnum opus: it is really freaking funny. But not just funny – moving too. Like a good concert, the plot is an expertly timed series of highs and lows, completely predictable but no less engaging for that. If you allow yourself to get swept up in it, then you will love every second of it. (And no, I’m not going to spoil it with a synopsis.)



Some of you are no doubt wondering why I’d talk about things like voice acting and dialogue before dropping a single word about how the game plays. The reason is that each individual component of Brütal Legend is equally important to the quality of the whole. Game mechanics, dialogue, voice acting, soundtrack, level design, interface – it all works together to deliver Schafer’s vision. Emphasising one over the other is like listening for a single specific note in a Black Sabbath solo. It misses the point.

But okay, you want to talk gameplay – let’s talk gameplay. Gameplay in Brütal Legend is an ambitious genre mash of open world adventure, beat-em-up, and RTS. Clearly inspired by the Zelda series (Ocarina of Time in particular), the first of these consists of equal parts exploration and collection. Using Eddie’s awesome car – a flame-spewing hotrod called The Deuce – you’re free to roam the gorgeous landscape, completing quests and collecting goodies.

As you’d expect, quests come in two varieties: sub and story. Sub-quests are located all over the map and involve activities like hunting wildlife and racing a disgruntled Scotsman with sparkplugs for teeth. Completing these earns you Fire Tributes, which can be exchanged at Ozzy’s Upgrade Barn (not its actual name) for new weapons, moves, and goodies for The Deuce. Combined with a frankly ridiculous amount of collectables to find, this simple but effective system engenders a satisfying sense of industriousness, always giving you something new to want and do.



Story quests are another reliable way to earn Fire Tributes, but that isn’t the reason you’ll want to do them. The reason you’ll want to do the story quests is that they’re EPIC AS HELL. Imagine a dragon, and imagine that … I don’t know … Robocop is riding on top of it, and he’s fighting Rambo, who’s in a tank made of skulls. Got it? Okay, well, the story quests in Brütal Legend are about 50 times more epic than that. Again, I don’t want to spoil the fun with specifics, but I will say this: if you don’t throw the horns at your TV at least once while playing this game, then there’s a good chance you’re a robot, void of human emotion.

Story quests are also where you’ll find the vast majority of Brütal Legend’s combat – both ordinary and strategic. With the former, Schafer is again indebted to Zelda. Where Link wields a sword and various magic items, Eddie is possessed of a double-headed axe and a magic guitar that shoots lightning and can pull flaming blimps from the sky. Since most enemies require a combination of the two to kill, learning to use both effectively is a priority.

Unfortunately, teaching the player how to do stuff is the one area where Brütal Legend falters. Tutorials are few and mostly unhelpful, meaning that you’ll have to figure out a lot of the important stuff yourself. This includes how to play the aforementioned RTS sections, which is probably why so many people have expressed frustration with them. Not me, though! I love ‘em.

Let me explain how they work. Using his magic guitar to build merch booths (which I assume are also magic), Eddie is able to harvest the will of his fans to create an army made of hilarious metal clichés, including shirtless headbangers, flaming motorcycles, and amp-lugging roadies. The idea is to take this army and use it to destroy your opponent’s fortress, which in this case is actually a stage decked out with flesh-burning spotlights and a fog machine. The rub is that you have your own stage to protect as well, and so victory depends on your ability to manage time as well as troops.

Concentrate too much on storming the front and you’ll discover yourself the victim of a punishing sneak attack. Spend all your time giving orders from on high and your troops will suffer from lack of immediate leadership. That’s actually the secret to enjoying these bits, you know. You gotta get down there, in the dirt and the blood, shoulder-to-shoulder with your soldiers, and inspire them with your presence. This isn’t like Starcraft. It isn’t like Command & Conquer. If it’s like anything at all, it would have to be underappreciated gems like Sacrifice and Giants: Citizen Kabuto.

I tell you what, though: Brütal Legend better not be underappreciated. I don’t care if you’re so broke that you’re forced to subsist on a diet of dog food and shredded newspaper – you’re going to buy this game. Everyone is going to buy this game. So many people will buy this game that Tim Schafer will become mega rich and use his newfound wealth to fund the development of even more awesome games for people to buy. And so there will be justice in the universe.

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The world of Brütal Legend is an amazing place - watch this vid for a sneak peak.