Brütal Legend

Infobox VG
title = Brutal Legend


developer = Double Fine Productions
publisher = Sierra Entertainment
designer = Tim Schafer
engine =
released = March 31, 2009 (US), December 31, 2008 (UK)
genre = Action, Adventure
modes = Single player, Multiplayer
ratings = ESRB: Rating Pending (RP)
platforms = Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
media = DVD, Blu-ray Disc

"Brütal Legend" is an action adventure game under development by Double Fine Productions and published by Sierra Entertainment for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It is the second game from Double Fine Productions, following the critically-acclaimed "Psychonauts". The game was announced by Game Informer magazine in their November 2007 issue and will star Jack Black. cite web|url=http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Story/200710/N07.1012.1011.37086.htm|title=Game Informer's November Issue Revealed!|accessdate=2007-10-13]

A CGI trailer advertising Brütal Legend was made available on October 16 2007 [http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/118200.html Gametrailers.com - Brutal Legend Trailer by KratosGOW ] ] , introducing the main plot device in the game as well as demonstrating a variety of action sequences. A high-definition (720p) version of the trailer was made available on October 19 2007 [http://www.gamevideos.com/video/watch?video=15850&largeFormat=wmv GameVideos.com ] ]

On July 29 2008, it was announced that Activision had opted not to pick up "Brütal Legend" from Vivendi Games's portfolio as a result of the Activision-Blizzard merger.cite web|url=http://www.shacknews.com/laryn.x?story=53901 | title = Brutal Legend, More in Danger as Activision Blizzard Streamlines Vivendi Portfolio|accessdate=2008-07-29] However, according to Double Fine in response to questions regarding the possible cancellation of the game, the company stated that "Brütal Legend is fine." [cite web | url = http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/53913 | title = Brutal Legend Not in Danger of Being Canned, Says Developer Double Fine | date = 2008-07-29 | accessdate = 2008-07-29 | first = Nick | last = Breckon | publisher = Shacknews]

Plot

"Brütal Legend" follows the story of Eddie Riggs (named for Eddie the Head, the mascot of Iron Maiden, and Derek Riggs, the artist who created him), who is living as a roadie for a Heavy Metal band. The game begins one night before a gig. As Riggs is tuning a guitar, an accident happens and he starts to bleed, his blood dripping onto his cursed belt buckle, which bears a strong resemblance to Motörhead's Snaggletooth emblem. Before he knows it, the beast on his buckle has come alive and transported him into a Heavy Metal and Nordic fantasy inspired alternate history where demons have enslaved humanity.

After escaping the Temple of Ormagöden, where he first appears in the Heavy Metal past, Eddie meets Ophelia, a love interest likened to the same character from Shakespeare's Hamlet. Ophelia is soon severely injured and Riggs must climb a mystical mountain to do battle with a motorcycle driving bass guitarist (voiced by Motörhead's Lemmy), called the Kill Master (reference to Lemmy's last name Kilmister)-- an ironic name for a guy whose riffs are said to heal wounds. Eddie will also meet Lita Halford (a double-reference to Lita Ford and Rob Halford) and her younger brother, Lars (probably named after Lars Ulrich), who help Eddie and Ophelia start a resistance movement against Lord Dolivicus, his Glam metal minion, General Lionwhyte (voiced by Rob Halford and a reference to the band White Lion), whose hair is so luscious, he uses it to fly (maybe an ironic reference to Halford's baldness), and their legions of demons to free the world. Eddie will also encounter the local wildlife, including half boar/half motorcycle "Razorfires", a giant three-tongued lamprey (that gets its tongues run over by the Deuce), and giant chrome spiders that spin silk which can be made into magical bass strings.

After the first act of the game, Eddie will deal with a community of humans who willingly fight alongside the demons. They wear black and "drink from a sea of black tears. It gives them great power but also makes them look dead." These humans are obvious parodies of Goth and Emo. These enemies include "Grave Diggers", "Brides" and "Reapers" that wear bondage gear.

In the game's first trailer, a goofy-looking pink demon tells Eddie that his belt buckle is a mask "forged from the steel flesh of the fire beast", and that it was meant for "a god, not a roadie". Eddie then snaps the demon's neck and charges into battle with the Headbangers to the tunes of Black Sabbath's "The Mob Rules". The trailer also shows that Eddie has the ability to sprout wings so he can fly. According to the Game Informer article, "his blood hides a dark secret and his wings are the proof".

Gameplay

Brütal Legend is a third person action game; the gameplay is similar to others in the genre. Eddie Riggs (voiced by Jack Black) wields a battle axe he found at the beginning of the game as a primary melee weapon, while his second weapon is a guitar that he brought back with him from the real world. A forward attack sends Eddie attacking his enemies with the battle axe, while a wider slash attack takes out a larger quantity of enemies. Using a Flying V guitar (which has magical powers in the Heavy Metal Era), Eddie Riggs can cast magic spells. The guitar is used as a ranged assault weapon, when wielded players can perform a guitar solo in response to your combo-styled button presses (similar to Johnny Whatever or Total Distortion). Attacks are based upon the combo pressed in, possible combos include a pyrotechnics display where flames come from the ground to burn your enemies. A third weapon is the Deuce, a drop-top coupe Eddie builds out of spare parts he finds. The Deuce can be used to run enemies over, but it is also used to traverse the large game world. Eddie can use his magic guitar to summon the Deuce. Ancient garages can be used to upgrade the Deuce with weapons and abilities. A large part of the gameplay involves controlling an army of metal-themed characters, such as...
*Thick-necked Headbangers
*Roadies that carry amps that blast killer feedback
*"Runaways", girls who battle with flamethrowers while riding on Eddie and the other characters' shoulders, perhaps a reference to the all-girl rock band, The Runaways.
*"Fire Barons" that trap enemies in rings of fire left by their motorbikes
*Large-fisted Bouncers. When Eddie defeats a type of character, they will then join his army. Each type has its own attributes. Simple commands such as "Defend" or "Attack" are issued to the army by use of the D-Pad.

Inspiration

Creator Tim Schafer has said that roadies have long fascinated him. Schafer originally thought of the game's title over fifteen years ago. "I was riding a bus, thinking about a game that would be the complete opposite of what we were working on, The Secret of Monkey Island. And Brütal Legend leapt into my head. I've been hanging on to that name ever since." Schafer also credits a Megadeth roadie he once met as having given him the idea to make a game about a roadie. Schafer has pointed out that there are music term inspired attacks, such as a "Face-Melting" guitar solo, which literally will melt your foe's faces off. Schafer has also commented that there will be a lot of Rock and Roll music references in the game, such as the term "Axe" for a guitar, which inspired Eddie Rigg's weapon, a literal axe. The metal/motorcyclist lifestyles and Norse mythology also inspired the game's open-world environments, such as amps carved into the face of a mountain, a forest where tires replace leaves, giant axes and swords piercing the ground, spandex covered temples, and mining facilities where human slaves excavated car and motorcycle parts. Fact|date=November 2007

Voice Actors

* Eddie Riggs - Jack Black, comedian/actor/vocalist for Tenacious D [ [http://www.gamespot.com/news/6180901.html Double Fine recounts Brutal Legend - Xbox 360 News at GameSpot ] ] [http://gameinformer.com/News/Story/200710/N07.1012.1011.37086.htm Game Informer's November Issue Revealed! ] ] .
* Kill Master - Lemmy Kilmister, bass guitarist/vocalist for Motörhead.
* General Lionwhyte - Rob Halford, vocalist for Judas Priest.
* (Unnamed Role) - Ronnie James Dio, the vocalist of Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio, and Heaven and Hell .

There are also many unannounced Hollywood stars that are being targeted for other roles in the game. Fact|date=November 2007

Soundtrack

The soundtrack is set to include brand new music by Zakk Wylde, Tim Skold, Wolfmother, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, and Ronnie James Dio, with extended guitar solos by Judas Priest guitarists K. K. Downing and Glenn Tipton.Tim Schafers' long term collaborator Peter McConnell is also involved in the soundtrackcite web|url=http://www.petermc.com/Subpages/Credits.html|title=Composition credits for Peter McConnell: TBA (Double Fine/Vivendi 2007) i.e., Brutal Legend|accessdate=2007-10-23] .

The song "The Mob Rules" by Black Sabbath was used in the first trailer for the game and on "Brütal Legend's" website, the songs "The Hellion" and "Screaming for Vengeance" by Judas Priest are used.

See also

* Full Throttle, an earlier Tim Schafer game featuring bikers and heavy metal music.

References

External links

* [http://www.brutallegendgame.com/splash/ Official website]
* [http://www.doublefine.com/news.php/projects/brutallegend Double Fine Product Page]
* [http://www.g-wie-gorilla.de/content/view/654/18/ Interview with Tim Schafer about "Brütal Legend"]
* [http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/objects/142/14210507.html Ign page] " (Confirms release date)"