The 5 Most Metal Video Games You’ll Ever Play

There's no denying the fact that heavy metal, even in small doses, is a dish best served with a bullet-riddled and outlandishly anarchic first-person shooter, which explains why the genre already has an abundance of such games lining out its pockets. Whatever it is that gels the two together, there's no mistaking the relationship the two share with one another. Needless to say it generally bodes well for metal-loving gamers, regardless.

The good news is, with so many games fostering a metal score, fans of the scene can get their kicks without having to stray too far from the front page of the market. Question is, though, which games are worth picking up and actually playing from beginning to end? Well, here's how we see it. Here are, in our opinion, the five most metal games you'll ever play.

5. Metal: Hellsinger

Metal: Hellsinger is an all-new rhythm-based first-person shooter by The Outsiders, a collective best known for developing hearty monster-infested gothic underworlds strewn with hell-bent creations. In this case, players are given the task of traversing eight layers of Hell, annihilating demons and entities in sync with a high-powered metal opera. Although relatively short and evidently in-your-face, this high-octane orchestral work of art will have you pinging off bullets faster than your neck can recover from the sheer amount of headbanging you'll be doing.

Metal: Hellsinger has a whole lot of replayability, thanks to its global leaderboards and myriad of challenges and what have you. It's evidently metal through and through, and it quite possibly has more bark and bite than most, if not all first-person shooters that have released in the last two years or so. Therefore, if sitting at the front row to an interactive rock opera sounds like your idea of a good time, then Metal: Hellsinger is an absolute essential journey to take under your wing this season.

4. DmC: Devil May Cry

Devil May Cry has a long-standing relationship with the heavy metal community. In fact, the hack and slash saga has had more flings with the genre than the vast majority of Capcom's collective works combined. Needless to say its reboot of the beloved saga was equally as rife with bullets, blood, and brutality, and it just went on to show that metal, if it had anywhere to call a home away from home, was in the roots of DmC: Devil May Cry.

DmC: Devil May Cry is a third-person hack and slash game at heart — and a friggin' good one at that. It's also laced with all-powerful bosses, a ludicrous amount of combos and executions, and a tough-as-nails metal score that'll make Ozzy Osbourne himself flush a crimson red. Although there is quite clearly a divide between the OG saga and the reboot, there's certainly one thing both iterations of the franchise bring to the table — and that's a quality show, every time, without fail.

3. DOOM (2016)

Anyone who's stuck with DOOM from the very beginning will know that the series has and always will be as effortlessly stylish as it is brutally difficult, as well as one of the pioneers of metal-based first-person shooters, in general. And to be fair, its greatest coat of arms is arguably the 2016 reboot that id Software brought to the table following its lengthy thirteen year hiatus.

DOOM 2016 returned to the spotlight with two smoking barrels worth of action-packed mayhem, which came bundled in an ecstasy-fueled rock opera that could swivel heads for days. It contained the same addictive full-frontal combat as its original series, only it brought a truckload of additional embellishments for fans of the series to delve into. To put it short, it was a DOOM game, only with the treble cranked up to eleven.

2. Brütal Legend

Fan of Jack Black and Tenacious D or not, there's no ignoring the fact that Brütal Legend was one of the greatest, and perhaps one of the most overshadowed rock operas of all time. Those who did soak up the Sucker Punch-led action-adventure game, though, will more than likely speak highly of it, and go on to tell you that the game hosted some of the most prominent metal legends ever seen in the format. And not to mention that it was also a righteous third-person action-adventure game through and through, of course.

The fact that Ozzy Osbourne played the role of the  Guardian of Metal just sort of said it all, to be fair. Bundle in a radio channeled specifically to host a selection of metal tracks, as well as a metal-themed open world and storyline, and you've got more than enough incentives to pick it up and slug through it, be it for the first time or the fourteenth. Brütal Legend is perhaps the most metal game you will ever play, and it pains us to know that countless others have failed to give it the time of day it so rightfully deserves.

1. Guitar Hero

The golden age of Guitar Hero seems like a lifetime ago, and yet the memories of thrashing the neck of a miniature plastic guitar are heartbreakingly clear as day. And as hard as it is to admit, the fact that you can pick up both the guitar and a number of games and expansions for a few bucks from any local bargain bin these days is actually rather soul destroying. Still, it's a venture we're always happy to host with open arms. That is, for whenever we find the time to dust off an old Xbox 360, of course.

It doesn't really matter which of the Guitar Hero entries you pick up, because they're all as equally stocked with hard-hitting metal anthems and power ballads as the next. And yeah, LAN parties may be a thing of the past, but there's nothing to say you can't still invite a house full of people to one communal area for the sake of reliving the glory days of Guitar Hero Live and its rocking counterparts.

So, what's your take? Are there any games you'd recommend for this list? Let us know over on our socials here or down in the comments below.