The concept behind Metal: Hellsinger is simple enough: marry the classic shooter gunplay of DOOM with a rhythm game. And developer The Outsiders absolutely nail this element of its game: the gunplay feels fantastic. Shooting, dodging, cycling weapons, it all feels great. You can do just about everything in the game to the rhythm of each level’s song, and you get bonus points, as well as bonus damage, for keeping in time to the music.
All of the music has a distinct drum beat that is easy to keep track of while in the heat of battle, and each level features a guest vocalist from some pretty famous bands, such as Trivium and System of a Down. The songs start with basic drum beats, adding layers of vocals, guitars, and so on as your combo meter goes up. It’s a really nice touch, and the implementation is seamless. The music is the real star, as the threadbare narrative is tucked into bland cutscenes that bookend each level.
The cracks start to show up when you look beyond the core gameplay. The title doesn’t do anything poorly per se, but everything comes across as barebones. The environments across all eight levels blur together and have similar colour grading with uninteresting level design. Each level amounts to a series of arenas connected by hallways ending in a boss, and they do little in the way to encourage creative or differing combat approaches. You can successfully beat the game with solely the shotgun if you so choose.
The encounter design practically stops evolving after the second level, only occasionally introducing variations of enemies thereafter. Many of the enemies aren’t terribly fun to fight, which is another big problem. As fun as the guns may be to use — every weapon is satisfying, and a blast to play around with — everything starts to stale quickly. Completing torments — mini-dungeons that unlock and upgrade perks — add some variety to the affair, but these are brief distractions at best. You can 100 per cent the game in about 6-7 hours, too, making the $39.99 price tag astonishingly steep.
Ultimately, you have a game with one masterfully designed core element — the rhythm gunplay — surrounded by a number of elements that, while not terrible, are mediocre at best.
Comments 21
So what are the graphics like? Is it 60fps,4k etc? A bit more info please..
I’m having a blast with this game. Never went into it expecting a great story. Just fun, addictive gameplay. This review is once again on the lower end of the spectrum (80 average on OpenCritic with 50 reviews). Encourage others to read more opinions.
40 buckaroos is one hell of a steep price for something that one-note. Not everything has to be massively sprawling or have diverse gameplay but I would expect a little more for that price. Some might pay that and that’s ok but just not for me in this climate.
I played the demo three times in a row and had a blast, it plays great, is pretty original and the music is right up my alley. I honestly think the only thing that's barebones here is the review, almost nothing about the bands and music is mentioned, and how addicting it is to get in the flow of it all with layers of music being added when you perform well. I might be biased as a metalhead, sure, a six out of ten just feels out of place for me.
Tried it on gamepass...didn't like it unfortunately
@awp69 so how does it perform seeing as this review isnt really helpful on that front?
Couldnt get into the rythmn of this game at all, i kept playing it as a regular fps and forgetting about the beat mechanic. Cool idea though.
I played the first three levels (out of like 8-10 iirc)
Game is indeed short but manages to throw in a decent and surprising amount of varying weapons.
Whilst it is nice that you can do everything on beat if you're the frantic type you'll probably mess up the combo meter more times than not by mashing the dodge button.
Also gotta add that as a totally non metalhead the music is quite nice. Though ofcourse that can differ quite alot for each individual.
If anything, be sure to do the audio & visual calibration before doing the tutorial.
I saw Cohh streaming it. Looked boring but the OST is great.
@Northern_munkey I’m playing on my Xbox Series X and it’s smooth as butter. Not entirely sure of the resolution but in performance mode it’s at least 60 FPS. I’ve been trying to find actual stats on each mode but can’t seem to find it anywhere on the web. Regardless, I’m happy with how it runs on the Series X. I’d assume it’s be about the same on PS5.
@kaijukaiser they are usually higher and lower than any other site, its not often the score matches other sites
@Smiffy01 The lowest difficulty setting is set up to if not entirely allow it, definitely give it a little more leeway. Might be worth trying that way just to see! The gunplay is very good, so it's probably still worth it!
@Northern_munkey 60fps if you're using the performance mode which I would say is a must! It hits a higher resolution on the other mode, but I don't think it's native 4K. 1440 as I recall? But it didn't feel right when moving at 30fps. The way motion blur's implemented I think.
@Cherip-the-Ripper Yep 8! And then each level has 3 mini-challenges ("torments") that are single arenas with gimmicks like "each kill changes your weapon" etc. to unlock new perks for your character. And definitely agreed, every single weapon is great!
@Trousersnake It being a mini review leaves verrrry little leeway to get into the nitty gritty for games unfortunately It can be frustrating sometimes. That being said, more than happy to expand in the comments if you had any specific things you wanted me to talk a little more about!
We salute you! (sorry, could not resist)
@nessisonett yeah I don’t think your meant to pay that price for it though. It’s a
It’s a game pass title in a few months it will be on regular sales then on ps plus extra after game pass most likely.
I really liked the concept of this but then I saw the list of bands on the soundtrack and then I saw the price of it and now I'm pretty much out.
Played 4 levels on Game Pass. Really worth a shot on the subscription but 40 is way too much for a game like this.
Have to say I'm glad this was on Game Pass, as there's no way I'd pay more than £10 for it. The music mechanic is quite novel and addictive but in all honesty, I'd much rather have the natural flow of Doom gameplay. The graphics are smooth and functional at best, but bland and generic which also goes for the level design and story as mentioned in the review. Was disappointed after reading other reviews.
Also. while I'm fine with the music style it seems odd to tie your whole game to a particular type which potentially isolates your user base, mixing it up a bit could have made it more widely appealing. But of course, it's demons and hell so has to be metal! (and I guess they would have had to change the title)
I've had a lot of fun. If you own a Xbox or PC definitely worth a look in Game Pass. At $40 even as a metal head and huge FPS fanboy I'd have to say wait for sale.
@johncalmc I don't normally go for that sound in my music, but it's definitely a good fit for the aesthetic of the game. And a couple of the songs are genuinely great! The track that features the vocalist from Trivium (the 3rd level I think? 2nd?) Is really fantastic!
@Blackmagehobbit I mean, you basically have to!
@gbanas92 Indeed!
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