Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), Xbox Series, Xbox One, PlayStation 5
Genre: Rhythm First-Person Shooter

Developed by The Outsiders and published by Funcom, Metal: Hellsinger isn’t your typical FPS game. Partnered with a phenomenal soundtrack featuring artists such as System of a Down’s Serj Tankian, this shooter is a metalhead’s fever dream. With its fluid movement and platforming to compliment the combat, it feels like a mix of DOOM, Crypt of the NecroDancer, and Guitar Hero. Sprinkle some of old-school Quake’s musical aesthetic and you’ve got Metal: Hellsinger. To add icing on the cake, the entire story is told by none other than renowned voice actor Troy Baker as he plays Paz, a soul-possessed skull who is also a usable weapon.

Shout At The Devil

The premise is also something to be talked about. The story is unravelled through MMORPG-like cutscenes narrated by Troy Baker sporting an extremely silky Southern accent. You play as a demon-like character called “The Unknown” as she fights through what is commonly known as Hell, The Infernal Planes. You find out that this plane is in reality a union of a thousand Hells, all of which are terrifying and diabolical in their own way. In order to dethrone The Red Judge, you must fight your way through the fiercest corners, from the icy world of Voke to the maddening world of Stygia.

Not only does the soundtrack match the aesthetic of the game, but it also dictates the pace at which you play. How exactly, you may ask? Well, what makes this game so unique is the firing system. Although you can shoot whenever you want, to deal the most damage you fire on beat with the music. There are also visual aids to help you with this, but your timing and sense of rhythm must be impeccable.

The game progresses like a typical platformer following a familiar formula that many games use for their own dungeon crawls. You fight your way through several chambers fighting demons so you can proceed to the next chamber, ultimately leading to the level’s boss. The game also has an arcade-type feel to the overall objective. Although the intention is to pass all the levels, the real satisfaction comes from gaining multipliers that can be earned by firing your weapon on beat.

The mechanics and controls are pretty intuitive for those familiar with FPS games, although the starting sensitivity for mouse and keyboard is disturbingly high even if you used 400 DPI. Controller support is also available and although I prefer playing with mouse and keyboard for this game particularly, I’m confident I would have just as much fun with the controller.

Another mechanic that helped in sticky situations was the dashing mechanic. The dash in this game has no cooldown meaning you can consecutively dash as many times as you want to create space between you and the hoards of demons chasing you.

BEELZEBANG!

One thing to point out is the weapons. There’s a decent selection of weapons that you pick up throughout the game, each with its own timing to match a different aspect of the music’s beat. Each weapon also determines how you choose to fight the demons. For someone like me who embarrassingly can’t stay on beat to save my life, I opted for Persephone, an eight-round shotgun that has the slowest rate of fire of the early guns.

Due to my pick, I had to play a little more close range, meaning I didn’t have to have pin-point precision with my aim but I had to utilise my dashes more efficiently.

From my experience playing the game, I haven’t seemed to have run into any obvious bugs or glitches which I guess goes to show just how well-developed this game is. From the niche concept alone you can tell this music rhythm FPS mash-up is more than just a monetary opportunity; it’s a passion project for the developers and seeing it all together. I can’t help but say they have done a fantastic job at creating a solid game.

There’s only been one other notable game that can be compared and that is BPM: Bullets Per Minute which was released in 2020. It’s safe to assume that Metal: Hellsinger, draws a lot of inspiration from the mechanics of BPM and wears them on its sleeve. Just take the shooting mechanic, for example, the shape of the visual aids is almost identical in either game. Though to its credit, the presentation & authenticness of Metal: Hellsinger is enough of a standing ovation.

Weirdly, I can’t help but reminisce as the concept and feel of the game does slightly remind me of Call of Duty: Zombies where you’re being chased by hordes of zombies—or in this case, demons—as you fight your way through the levels. But I do feel that this game caters to a very particular demographic of gamers who enjoy music and rhythm games alongside first-person shooters.

I’ll be upfront if you’re not one for rhythm games—like me—then I don’t think this is the game for you, but if you’re someone who’s loves to challenge their beat and rythm then I would wholeheartedly recommend this game.

The game in its entirety is a bit short but I feel that adds emphasis to the game’s intention for replayability. The only thing I think that could have made this game even more interesting to play would have been to implement a multiplayer feature and fight alongside your friends in the depths of Hell.

But besides that, I thoroughly believe that Metal: Hellsinger is a fantastic game that has been extremely well-developed regardless of my inability to stay on beat. It’s definitely a shooter that requires a bit of focus, more so than usual. But for those who are more than good enough at rhythm games, it will be a breeze.

PROS

• Phenomenal soundtrack.
• Fluid and intuitive game mechanics.
• Incredible design and art.
• Interesting storyline.
• Narration by Troy Baker.
• Little-to-no glitches.

CONS

• Can be hard to play if you’re not good at rhythm games.
• No multiplayer.

Final Score: 80/100