Submission 203

About

Brütal Legend is a 2009 action adventure video game themed around the music genre of heavy metal. It was created by Tim Schafer and Double Fine (of Grim Fandango and Psychonauts fame). ^[1] The game is infamous for its large number of cameo appearances by heavy metal musicians and many tributes to the heavy metal fandom and culture; it is considered by many to be a cult classic. ^[2]

Overview

The game is a third-person open-world action adventure and real-time strategy hybrid. The game's story centers on Eddie Riggs (modeled after and voiced by Jack Black), a roadie for the nu-metal band “Kabbage Boy.” During a concert gone wrong, he ends up being transported into an alternative fantasy world themed around heavy metal. After fighting his way through demons, he ends up meeting Ophelia (voiced by Jennifer Hale) and the siblings Lars and Lita Halford (voiced by Zach Hanks and Kath Soucie, respectively). Together, they team up to lead a resistance against the tyrannical regime of the demon emperor Doviculus (voiced by Tim Curry). ^[3]

Origins and Development and Release

According to Tim Schafer, he had been a metal fan since high school and always wanted to create a game centered around it. ^[4] Development on Brütal Legend started in 2007; the development cycle ended up becoming quite troubled, and some ideas would be scrapped due to time and budget constraints for a time. ^[5] The fate of the game seemed unclear due to Schafer being unable to find a publisher. He would eventually find one in Electronic Arts in 2008, and the game would finally release in 2009. The game would receive positive reviews, but some reviewers would think the real-time strategy and action adventure didn't mix quite well. Despite this, the game sales ended up being disappointingly small, which resulted in plans for a sequel being shelved. ^[6]