Brutal Legend (PS3/360)

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Jack Black and Tim Schefer, the underdogs of the entertainment industry have come back to create a game inspired by heavy metal and the power of rock but does Brutal Legend make you feel like a rock god or does this game make you want to put this game in the ashes of hell?

Story​

Eddie Riggs, voiced by Jack Black, is a roadie for a band called Kabbage Boy. He is named “the best roadie in the biz” by his band but he is not rewarded for his hard work, as the band play a song called “Girlfriend”. It is an example of the music that is released these days from bands that are designed for the tween demographic. Eddie, a lover of heavy metal, is disheartened about the music released these days and wished that he lived when metal was at its strongest. He gets his wish, as the Kabbage Boy guitarist accidentally causes a metallic sculpture in the shape of a beast called Ormagöden, to fall on top of Eddie. Blood spills from his hand and it falls into his belt buckle, which is in the shape of the fire beast, Ormagöden. He then wakes up and finds himself in a temple that cremates the fire god. After a few encounters, he finds the axe of Ormagöden and a resistance in a fort called Bladehenge. This resistance is against an evil overlord called Doviculus. Lars Halford, leader of the resistance, tells Eddie that he is the chosen one to defeat Doviculus because the axe chose him and he tells Eddie that he is the person who will defeat Doviculus and his forces. Eddie forms a party called Ironheade and rallies off to find recruits for his army.

The beginning cut scenes were hilarious but as the game progressed, you realize that the story has mutated into a much deeper and rich story Jack Black and the rest of the cast have done amazing voice work (Ozzy Ozbourne is a welcome and humorous addition) for the game. They should give themselves a pat on the back. The metal gods would be proud!

10/10

Gameplay​

This game is a mixture of several different gameplay genres. The main gameplay in Brutal Legend is a hack and slash action/adventure. The arsenals you have to rock your enemies’ socks off are both the guitar and the axe. The guitar can summon a pillar of fire below your enemy, which can smaller sized enemies in the air. The second attack you can utilize with the guitar is the power to electrify your enemies with thunderbolts. This can be useful in a fight because this attack can stun enemies for a few seconds. The second weapon, the axe, is a devastating power against your foes and feels very satisfying when you are slashing through enemies and someone’s head comes off in slow motion but there is an option for turning off the gore, which takes out the blood and decapitations out of the main game and the cut scenes so parents don’t worry! Eddie Riggs can also perform rock solos and they change the effects on the battlefield.

The creators of Brutal Legend have taken ideas from “The Legend of Zelda” franchise but they have transfused Zelda’s concepts and made them their own. An example of this would be the Druid Plow (or the Deuce). The Druid Plow is a high powered car that is used to travel around the massive heavy metal landscapes. This is very familiar to Zelda and also to call forth your metal companion, you have to use a guitar solo. Does this sound like something to you? The car controls work very well and feel fluid. One problem I have is that when either you or the Deuce fall into water, it doesn’t make a splash. There is no reaction from the water at all. Despite that, I enjoy searching through the world of Brutal Legend for guitar solos and other collectibles I do not want to spoil. You can also upgrade your attacks and your deuce with the help of the guardian of metal, voiced by Ozzy Ozbourne. My complaint is that they were not enough upgrades to give to your character, which is a let down. If you love free roaming or having a good amount of extra missions after you have finished the story, you’d really like this aspect of the game.



Real Time Strategy is another gameplay mechanic in Brutal Legend, which is mostly located during the main battles in the campaign. Both you and the enemy have a stage (base). The idea of the game is to destroy the other person’s base but as you go along, you have to collect fans from green stones across the battlefield. To do this, you have to build merch booths (towers) over the green stones. The fans will supply you with more reinforcements and upgrades to your stage. The enemy can do this too and it’s your goal to destroy their merch booths and also their stage. You can command your army, in 4 ways; attack, defend, follow and to go to a beacon you set. The beacons you set can be placed anywhere around the field and your army stays in their particular position, they are given. To know more about this system; check out this video. YouTube - Brutal Legend Multiplayer Tutorial Trailer [HD]
This mode is also in multiplayer and it is interesting to fight someone other than the computer, while learning each other’s tactics. On the other hand though, the RTS elements of the game can drag on and make you want to tear your head out!

Overall, Brutal Legend has a great mix of action, racing, free roaming and real time strategy, leading towards a wonderful game to play and to experience for yourself.

8/10

Sound​

Firstly, the soundtrack is very well done. They have collected arguably, the best selection of heavy metal music for the game. “Mr Crowley” is an example in the game, which fits the mood perfectly as an innocent soul plunges her heart to darkness. Songs such as “Master Exploder” by Tenacious D or “Through the Fire and the Flames” by DragonForce are great to listen to, as you are driving through the fields of the heavy rock world. The original soundtrack composed by Peter McConnell perfectly sets the mood of the atmosphere around you.



Secondly, the voice actors, as I have said before, have done a good job, creating unique characters that many gamers will remember for a long period of time. The one problem I have with the voice acting is when you are with the guardian metal. He repeats the same lines, as you are selecting an upgrade. This can be very repetitive and after a while you feel the need to mute his voice.

The sound in Brutal Legend was very well done such as the clashing of blades, the sound of fire and the engines of the Druid Plow. The soundtrack is amazing and the voice actors have helped present a great story.

8.5/10

Graphics​

The world of Brutal Legend looks great. Everything about this world has an element of metal and it is true what Tim Schaefer said about the environment. It does look like an album cover. Throughout Eddie’s journey, the colour scheme changes from bright colours to dark shadow like clarity. It creates a spooky atmosphere and Double Fine created a great balance between light and dark.

The creatures throughout the world are marvelously created by Tim Schaefer and it is brilliant to see them running around the landscape. As you drive across the deuce, there is absolutely no lag and it is impressive to have this amount of detail.

10/10

Replayability​

Brutal Legend has a lot of options for you to choose as you are questing. You can look for hidden metal (extra tracks for playing while you are driving), serpents (dragon statues, which once you set alight, frees them from chains. They give you health boosts), viewpoints (an area where you can look through a glass and it shows you a landmark in the world) and solo locations (solo locations are where you learn new guitar solos for use against enemies). There is a lot to do and when you finish either secondary missions or collect extras, you gain fire tributes from the gods of metal. These tributes is currency for buying upgrades to your car or weapons. There is a lot to do in Brutal Legend and will last you around 15-25 hours, finishing the campaign and all the extras in the game. The multiplayer, though, lacks substance and after a while, you lose interest.

9/10



Brutal Legend succeeds in bringing a great game for rockers and game lovers alike and if you want a game with a fantastic story or if you want something out of the usual, I definitely recommend it.

45.5/50

91%

Images from:
Crowson, B. (2009, October 29). Brutal Legend Review. Retrieved January 10, 2010, from al.com: Brutal Legend review | Techcetera - al.com
Hewet, D. '. (2009, October 23rd). Brutal Legend Review. Retrieved January 10th, 2010, from More to the Game: [PS3/360] Brütal legend - Review | MOREtotheGAME
Martin, J. (2009, May 1st ). Brutal Legend Preview. Retrieved January 10th , 2010, from bit-tech.net: bit-tech.net | Preview - Brütal Legend Preview
Wenen, K. (2009, October 13th ). Gaming Union . Retrieved January 10th , 2010, from Brutal Legend Review: Brütal Legend Review (Playstation 3, Xbox 360) - Reviews - Gaming Union
Domain, T. X. (n.d.). Archive for the Xbox LIVE Gallery. Retrieved January 10th , 2010, from The Xbox Domain : Xbox LIVE DLC The Xbox Domain