Scott Watson reviews Strange Brigade…
Ah, Strange Brigade, I’ve been waiting for you to arrive for what seems like an eternity! Now you’re here, you’re pretty much everything I hoped and dreamed you would become having played you at EGX last September. Wonderfully over the top storyline, gloriously gorgeous to look at, some of the most fun level design I think I’ve had the pleasure to playthrough, and all sprinkled with some charming British wit and panache.
For those of us old enough to remember Saturday morning re-runs of serial adventures like Flash Gordon, Tarzan, Buck Rogers (the Buster Crabbe black and white, not the Gil Gerard 80s classic), Strange Brigade is a delightful homage to these adventures.
Thousands of years ago, Seteki, a brutal and barbaric queen was overthrown by her people, sealed in a nameless tomb and left to rot for all eternity! Fast forward to 1930, and archaeologist Edgar Harbin uncovers her tomb and naturally releases the Queen’s spirit. The Strange Brigade, an arm of the Secret Service sent by the British colonial government, infiltrates Harbin’s expedition in an effort to eliminate the threat.
It’s like someone has bottled the essence of Indiana Jones and poured it out in game form!
It weaves its narrative brilliantly as the story opens up, playing out each level as if it were another weekly installment of a long running adventure show. It’s this narrative that also gives us a glimpse into each of the four characters we can pick from, and while you could say they’re perhaps stereotypical tropes, they’re played with a knowing nod and wink from Rebellion’s creative team.
I spent most of my time with Frank Fairburne; ex-military and “the man with the coldest eyes in the Empire”. You’ll see a lot of Sniper Elite’s Karl Fairburne (perhaps a relative) in him with his huntsman rifle allowing for decent ranged attacks and dynamite that packs quite a wallop when used. Playing solo he felt well balanced with his default loadout, allowing for ranged attacks, close attacks with his pistol and a great special move dash that essentially plants dynamite and throws an enemy away to great effect!
That being said, the great thing Rebellion have done with Strange Brigade is give you the flex to allow all of the characters access to all weapons apart from the special powers unique to each of them. It means the only real choice you have to make is which special you prefer to use.
The special powers themselves are charged over time as you take down the enemies you encounter. Each of our Strange Brigade has an amulet that imbues them with a special, and again the weighting of these feels pretty much on the money. None feel over powered, each have their specific uses that can benefit co-op play in different ways, each have enough heft that solo players don’t feel under-powered either. It’s a great balance that Rebellion should be applauded for.
There’s another key addition to your arsenal that helps make Strange Brigade a joy to play, and that’s the levels and the creativity in place to ensure you always have some environmental form to take out the undead enemies in your path. Again, it’s something Rebellion need to be applauded for here. The levels are such a joy to play through as you look for blade traps, flame pits, spike pits, hot coals, crates and more creative ways to remove the threat with extreme prejudice.
Not only that, but the game rewards you for being a bonafide adventurer too. Yes, each level is a linear direction at the end of the day, but that hasn’t stopped the dev team adding multiple routes, additional puzzle rooms and secret treasure and more to find if you open your eyes and ears to your surroundings. It’s a game that also doesn’t lead you by the hand through each of these puzzles or secret areas, you’re expected to use your head to logically resolve and uncover them which is a refreshing change in these days of button prompts and executions!
Yes, all in all Strange Brigade is indeed an entertaining and brilliantly well-crafted co-op shooter, built to keep you entertained from beginning to end. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have undead to slay and a Witch Queen to destroy… all in time for tea!
Pros:
+ Well crafted game world to play in
+ Entertaining story, characters and dialogue
+ Excellent level pacing means boredom never sets in
+ Ability to mix and match play styles is great
Cons:
– Solo players will miss the company!
Rating: 9/10
Platform reviewed on Xbox One
Scott Watson
