Video Game Review - UnMetal

Rob reviews UnMetal on Xbox One...

UnMetal is a game that doesn't take itself too seriously. Versus Evil has crafted a game that's a curious mix of Metal Gear and Hot Shots, with a sprinkling of Naked Gun and any 80's action flick. UnMetal knows what it is and it makes sure that you know that as well. 

From the get-go, UnMetal introduces you to the outlandish world of Jesse Fox - around badass with very selective memory. After getting shot down as an American flying a Russian helicopter, Jesse is taken for questioning and it's here where the narrative takes place. As the narrative goes - it's constant. For the vast majority, you'll hear Jesse's gruff vocals as he narrates everything up until he gets shot down over home soil. 

Shoved in front of a military chief, Jesse recounts his escape from imprisonment "for a crime he didn't commit". It's quite an outlandish story that's full of bizarre twists and turns, yet it all concludes satisfyingly. 

On occasion, the storytelling will throw a few choices at you to decide how the situation pans out. These range from deciding how many enemies are in the current area, to how powerful a certain boss is. It's a nice mechanic that not only unknowingly allows you to choose the difficulty, but also paints more character to the already rich Jesse Fox.

As I mentioned in my introduction, UnMetal's humour is very much akin to movies such as Naked Gun, Airplane, and Hot Shots. 

This comedy comes quick and fast and there's a great variety in what the game pokes fun off. There's plenty of video game and movie bashing, that's both funny and doesn't outstay its welcome. Quite often the game will throw you a curveball as Jesse goes off-piste and starts recounting something entirely different. It's almost surreal and will almost certainly make you question your reality - and Jesse's.

Whilst the game is a clear satirical parody of America and most - if not all - action movies, it also features some amazing gameplay that's both familiar and unique. The main bulk of the game is played very similarly to the original Metal Gear games. Gameplay is played via a top-down perspective that's very familiar to many games from the '90s. You'll be controlling the pixel Jesse Fox as he moves from screen to screen taking out the other pixel bad guys and everything in between. 

Unfortunately, UnMetal isn't perfect and there is the odd few niggles throughout. On occasion, the game can slow down to a crawl as it becomes laden with random cutscenes or tedious objectives. There's one part where you'll be clearing a minefield. I won't spoil the why, but let's just say it wasn't fun. Boss fights can also be a chore as if you die you'll have to watch the intro cutscene again...un-skippable. Crafting can also be a bit laborious as your never given hints as to what's needed. During the opening chapter, you have to build a radio which had me scouring every inch of the already explored map to find the component that I was missing. Thankfully however these are fairly minor annoyances that don't detract too much from what UnMetal does so well.

All in all, UnMetal is a superb game. It's a solid stealth-action title that strikes the perfect balance between parody and originality. Everything about UnMetal has a retro vibe to it and is certainly going to appeal to those who lived through the '80-the '90s. There's plenty of light-hearted finger poking too as everything from video games to action movies gets thrown into the story. If you want an old-school adventure, with modern mechanics and storytelling then you can't go wrong with UnMetal. 

Seriously give this game your time. You won't regret it!

Rating 9/10 

A code was kindly provided for this review.

UnMetal is out now and can be purchased via the Microsoft Store by clicking here.

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev