Brutal Legend - review

With a main character voiced by Jack Black, and cameos from metal legends such as Ozzy Osbourne and Lemmy from Motorhead, Brutal Legend transports the player to a fantasy world inspired by metal, rocking out, and all things awesome.

Playing as roadie Eddie Riggs, Brutal Legend opens with the character being saved from death by his magical belt buckle, transported into a strange world inspired by all-things heavy metal. Huge swords jut from the ground; demons roam the land in hotrods, and guitars gain magical abilities, such as literally melting people's faces with an awesome solo. It is up to Eddie and his new found allies to the free the land from demonic slavery, and rock out in the process. The game is very tongue-in-cheek, with plenty of hilarious moments, but also manages to be reverential to metal in general, and it is clear the game was made with a loving touch.

Made up of many different parts, Brutal Legend is something of a patchwork quilt of a game, in which some sections succeed more than others. For the most part, players will control Eddie as he roams the wilds, free to go where he likes and explore. Imagine a Zelda game infused with metal, and you are on the right track. Eddie even has a means of transportation, although rather than the Zelda series' traditional horse, players will roar across the land in a customizable hotrod. Weaponry comes in the form of a giant battleaxe and Eddie's trusty guitar, which he uses to shock his foes with bolts of electricity, or burn them with a snazzy pyro show. This basic free-roaming and combat is the most fun to be had in Brutal Legend, with plenty of hidden secrets to find, lengthening the experience.

The story progresses through a series of missions, with Eddie tasked with aiding the human resistance against evil demon oppression. Although packed with jokes, the story still manages to become quite involving, with characters you actually care about. This is mainly due to the absolutely stellar voice acting. Jack Black is on top form, with perfect delivery on both the jokes and over-the-top battle cries. There is also plenty of solid work from veteran voice actors, as well as a great turn by Tim Curry as the evil demon overlord. As an added bonus, the game is full of cameos from old metal legends, such as Lemmy from Motorhead, Rob Halford from Judas Priest, and Ozzy Osbourne, who puts in a fantastic performance.

Unfortunately, as the game goes on, it reveals its main weakness. As battles become bigger, the action gameplay that began the game is replaced with something resembling a strategy game, with Eddie sprouting wings to direct the battle from above. Although these battles can still be played on the ground, fighting with your troops, they cannot be won unless strategy is used. Unfortunately, these tactical segments are no fun to play, with the game becoming a poor imitation of a real strategy game. Thankfully, they are not too difficult, and do not make up a huge portion of the gameplay until near the end. The story itself is also quite short, although those determined to find all the secrets amongst the landscape will squeeze more hours out of the game. There is also online multiplayer, although this consists of the aforementioned strategy mode, and is therefore not that fun to play.

Special mention must go to the soundtrack, which consists of over 100 songs and covers almost every sub-genre of metal. Everything is made more awesome when set to a pounding metal soundtrack, and Brutal Legend's is nothing short of fantastic.

Overall, Brutal Legend is an unbalanced game, but one with enough charm to see it through the bad patches. Metal fans will enjoy it more than others, but this is a game everyone can have a good time with.

7/10

Review sponsored by Game - www.game.co.uk

Brutal Legend

XBox 360/PS3

Age restriction - 15+

39.99 (www.game.co.uk)