Review material provided by the publisher
Heavy Metal Machines released on consoles last week and when I saw it, I kind of claimed it to be a mash-up of Rocket League and Twisted Metal. After playing the game, I believe that assumption to be pretty wrong. It does a lot more going for it in terms of strategy as well as how the game itself rolls along. There’s more to HMM than meets the eye and it deserves to be tried even if it isn’t your cup of tea. Strap in, ‘cause it’s gonna be Metal!
Gameplay
I didn’t expect the learning curve that this game was going to throw my way. I just assumed that I’d pick a vehicle that’s stats grabbed my attention and roll with it. After my first match though, all of that changed. I soon realized that HMM has way more mechanics that go with it besides just running into cars and trying to score points. I’m actually pretty relieved that I was wrong because there are some things here that set the game apart from others.
When it comes to playing the game, you get the choice to play in a few different types of categories. There are regular matches, ranked matches, and challenges that are more competitive. I stuck with the regular matches as I like to play more for leisure. From there, you’re thrown into a lobby with 7 other players and then you get to go to war.
The battles are made up of two teams of 4 who need to bring a ball located at the center of the arena to the enemy team’s goal. First team to 3 wins but that’s a lot easier said than done. Every car is fitted with 3 standard attacks and 1 special attack to take out the competition. Attacks have cooldowns that limit people from spamming the best attacks which I feel is a great choice. If your health bar hits zero then you’ll have to cool down until your car is rebuilt and then it’s time to peel out again.
You get to pick from a list of unlockable vehicles, each with its own stats, attacks, and playstyles. There are 3 distinct playstyles that you’ll need to watch out for because you may want to be an offensive driver but may choose the wrong vehicle. I did that myself but quickly became aware of these 3 types and got onto the right path. The vehicle types are the Interceptor, Transporter, and Support. When going into a game with your 3 other teammates, it’s imperative that your team is built up correctly to have a cohesive strategy.
Interceptors are the more offensive players that will go head-to-head with the oncoming enemies that seek to take out the player holding the ball. Secondly, there’s the Transporter whose job is to play defensively and keep the ball tethered to the car. Thirdly, there’s the support player whose job is to keep the Transporter alive and the ball rolling.
There’s a couple of arenas available right now and each of them offers their own signature hazards and tracks that do enough to make them feel unique from each other. Things like acid, lava, and the like are what you need to look out for whilst traversing with the ball or playing defense/offense to the incoming enemy players. There are also repair pickups located throughout these arenas to put your car back together to keep you from going out too soon.
The last bit of what’s included in gameplay is the store and Metal Pass. In the store, you can buy new vehicles and cosmetic items for you to use during battles. To buy these items, you can use fame or cash. Fame is the in-game credits that can be earned just for playing while cash is the currency that can be earned through the Metal Pass or by purchasing them with real-world cash. It’s a standard thing that we’ve seen in most multiplayer games in the last few years.
The Metal Pass has two forms, the free version, and the premium version. Obviously, the premium Metal Pass gives the better loot like the cash that I mentioned. It’s around $10 for the season and runs for 70+ days long. It offers an incentive to play as much as possible to get through its 130 available rewards. The Metal Pass doesn’t work any differently than normal season passes and includes cash, fame, cosmetics, and so on.
Visuals
Heavy Metal Machines is like a tsunami of Heavy Metal that is unapologetic about just how awesome it is. Every character takes inspiration from music artists or stereotypes that go along with the music genre but do them extremely well. The visuals throughout the arenas and menus further that with their dystopian looks that make it look and feel like more than just a bunch of metal-heads driving into each other. The aesthetic actually reminded me a lot of Brutal Legend, which in my eyes is a great compliment.
Audio
Being that Heavy Metal Machines roots itself in the genre of Heavy Metal music, you better hope that it does the music justice. Luckily, I think it does a fantastic job of bringing the game to life through the music within it. There’s the heavy stuff with double-bass pedals and fast tempo as well as sweeping guitar-driven songs that feel melancholic. It’s a great blend that feels like real fans of the genre created it.
Replayability
As it’s an online multiplayer game, the devs have put a lot of thought into how it can keep its players coming back for more. There’s the Metal Pass that may warrant a return for players but I feel that the gameplay itself does stand on its own two feet even without it. It’s a great blend of multiple genres that exists in its own place. Besides that, there are also awesome aesthetics and music that help to make it engaging beyond the gameplay. There aren’t many games that exude the level of Metal that Heavy Metal Machines does.
What It Could Have Done Better
My main gripe is that there’s no rumble feedback on console. Between the hard music and the awesome machines, I would’ve loved to be able to feel the game more so than I’m able to. Another thing that bothered me was the fact that there are only two arenas included as of now. I’m hoping that more are on the way but as it stands now, it’s a letdown.
Verdict
You can’t go wrong with trying Heavy Metal Machines. It’s free-to-play after all and the Metal aesthetic itself is worth the download. It’s a game that obviously has a lot of passion thrown into it in every facet. It’s not just another game you’ve played that meshes cars with other types of sports or a destruction royale. It’s a game of a different breed that puts itself out there and asks for nothing in return. If you’re a metal-head or a gamer, there’s something here for you to enjoy and appreciate.
