Pros:
- The concept of combining a first-person shooter with a rhythm game? That alone gives it points for cleverness.
- The controls are pretty fluid, and shooting in rhythm with the song feels satisfying.
- Scoring system adds to the gameplay nicely, with a lot of potential for supremely high scores.
- Multitude of difficulty options can create a lot of replayability once the main story is complete.
- Story is rather over-the-top, but fittingly so, and it works around that nicely.
- Visual design and production values are awesome; the "DOOM" vibes are strong and I'm happy to see another modern game take on that style with its visuals.
- "DUDE. MOST. METAL. EVER!!!!!" The soundtrack is absolutely pitch-perfect; an absolute metal odyssey that's fantastic to listen to in general, but even better in the context of the game.
Cons:
- The level design does get rather repetitive, with not much variation to the demon slaying.
- Boss fights are epic in scale, but not exactly fun to play.
- The contradictory elements of the game's two genres can rear their ugly head at certain points.
- Very minor thing that doesn't affect the score, but it bothers me that the vocals only play when your multiplier is at 16x. Be nice if it played at 8x at least.
Consensus: Does a game like "Metal: Hellsinger" necessarily *need* to exist? Probably not; despite the cleverness of the concept, first-person shooters and rhythm games are two very contradictory genres that don't go together very nicely. Some of that can show during the campaign: the busyness and in-your-face style of the game distracts from the focus needed for a rhythm game, while the static rhythm-based gameplay can limit the movement/combat options that are paramount to a great FPS game. But even with those contradictions, "Metal: Hellsinger" does everything it reasonably can within the constraints of the genre combination to squeeze out an extremely entertaining experience. Between the memorable gameplay, modern "DOOM"-based visual design and FANTASTIC metal soundtrack, there's a lot to like about this game. It's not perfect, no, but for a debut game from new developer The Outsiders, this is a good way to make a first impression. Cheers to continued success and improvement in the company's future.
Final rating: 7 out of 10 "Good"