To be blunt, Tim Schafers the man. Boasting a repertoire of creatively imaginative titles such as Day of the Tentacle, Grim Fandango, and Psychonauts they were often overlooked due to poor sales and marketing. This time, a brilliant combination of heavy metal, Jack Black, and the mind of Schafer have culminated into something that appeals to a broader audience. The folks at Double Fine Productions have been hard at work perfecting this heavy metal masterpiece and while I was unable to obtain a review for the site, my impressions of the demo should satisfy your need to rock.
Brutal Legend entangles you in a fantasy world where the wildest, absurdist things imaginable have come to life. I immediately noticed the level of care and detail given to unfolding the story. You play as Eddie Riggs, a roadie working for the Kabbage Boys, a typical tween demographic heavy metal band (notice the quotations). After a stage malfunction, Riggs is transported into another dimension inspired by elements of heavy metal music and Nordic mythology. From then on, Riggs must lead a group of downtrodden humans against a horde of supernatural overlords who have virtually enslaved humanity. In the demo, these supernatural foes vary from the typical axe fodder skull necromancer dudes to gigantic mechanical contraptions like the hate cage.
The gameplay is simplistic to begin with and develops its difficulty curve through the execution of combos. The two prominent weapons in the game are the battleaxe The Separator and the Flying V Guitar Clementine. Each deals damage through melee and magical spells respectively. The combat feels mechanical but pulling off the starting combos is fairly rewarding (it occasionally activates a slow motion sequence of your decapitations). However, the lock-on targeting system could use a bit of work in detecting enemies from a certain range. Introduced is your partner, Ophelia, who serves to show the team based mechanics offered in Brutal Legend. Ophelia can interact with Riggs to unleash a coordinated and devastating attack. Obviously, gamers will be quick to point out similarities to its counterpart, God of War. I wont, there is a lot more to the game than what is initially seen.
Brutal Legend plays in a third person perspective and focuses on open world adventure exploration as well. While the demo was linear to navigate, the massive landscapes and vistas in the complete game can be fully traversed upon through the vehicular hot rod The Deuce a.k.a. Druid Plow. A mini boss battle in the demo demonstrates how maneuvering the vehicle is important to ensuring success. The vehicular segment of the game certainly represents the interplay of various gameplay genres found in Brutal Legend. There is a guitar solo minigame, hitting timed notes, that occurs when interacting with relics.
There is obviously a lot that wasnt included in the demo that is integral to the game, especially the real time strategy element which is later introduced in the single player. Complete with over 108 tracks from various heavy metal bands throughout the decades, imaginative storytelling, and even multiplayer Brutal Legend certainly lives up to the Rocktober moniker.
Brutal Legend was released on October 13 for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 and is developed by Double Fine Productions and published through EA Partners.
