I originally saw TV ads for this game back when it was a console exclusive, and thought it looked amusing, so when it came out on PC I decided to give it a try. What I found was not only one of the most hilariously awesome games I've every played, but one that gave me an appreciation of an entirely new musical genre...no mean feat! Brütal Legend reminds me of Beyond Good and Evil in that it defies genre categorization: it's an action combat game, it's open-world exploration, it's a racing game, it's an RTS, it's an RPG, it has comedy and blood and music and romance...in short, there's something here for everyone. Opinions seem to be split in that some think the game would have been better with the RTS elements removed, but I found them a fun change of pace. So regardless of whether you have any interest in hard rock or heavy metal (and you probably will by the time you're finished with this), I can't recommend Brütal Legend enough.
Great fun, and a refreshing departure from the high fantasy setting of previous Ultima games. The setting is clearly inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Lost World", and it has all the fun tropes you'd expect: dinosaurs, savage primitive tribes, lizard men, erupting volcanoes, an advanced lost civilization, and of course a jungle princess to rescue. My favorite aspect of this game is that with a bit of help from Professor Rafkin, you can jury rig firearms to give you a leg up on the natives and wildlife. But to do so, you'll have to do what they did in the old days and actually find the chemical components of gunpowder in their natural state. Good luck! And don't forget to talk to the Wisp...
