Broforce Review

Mother. Of. God!

The above was the first thought to pass through my head when I first loaded up Broforce and was immediately slapped across the face by the raw machismo and hilarity of it. Greeted by an eagle with literal biceps of steel and a narrator who sounds uncannily like the announcer for each Epic Rap Battle of History, I knew that I was going to love this game. And oh my god, I was right.

The formula for the main story of Broforce is simple: take every amazing action movie that has ever lived, pump it full of steroids and smother it with testosterone. Think of it as the video game equivalent to Kung Fury, a balls-to-the-wall ode to the 1980s glory days of action cinema overflowing with puns and tongue in cheek macho nonsense. Led by Nelson Brodela (you’re god damn right it’s that kind of game), you take control of the Bros as they battle against the forces of evil, which range from terrorists to aliens to the powers of Hell itself across a multitude of fully destructible environments. Each Bro has his own unique primary weapon and secondary ability, and is unlockable by rescuing captured Bros throughout the missions. Every character is named after an action movie icon with (naturally) the word Bro implanted into the name, for example Rambro, Indiana Brones and Judge Bro Dredd all feature within the playable cast.

“the enemy is a diverse, ever-changing force which really ramps up the difficulty”

At the start of each mission and upon respawning after death you are assigned a random member of the Broforce to play as; while initially you may bemoan the inability to choose the characters yourself this mechanic becomes a blessing in disguise as each failed mission inspires you to attempt alternative tactics to match the abilities and weapons of the Bro you are provided with. The destructible environments are also a fantastic idea and bring a tactical edge to proceedings. Do you take the fight to the enemy head-on, or do you tunnel beneath them and strike from below? Unfortunately I haven’t had the chance to sample multiplayer mode as of yet, however from what I’ve seen of other people’s playthroughs it takes the insanity and turns it all the way up past 11.

The enemy is a diverse, ever-changing force which really ramps up the difficulty as you progress through the game. Starting with the standard goons you will soon find yourself battling against helicopters, tanks and oversized brutes, while later stages introduce a sci-fi flavour with an alien scourge and the demon armies of Satan himself coming out to play. You haven’t lived until you have witnessed B.A. Broracus unleash the contents of his flamethrower into the face of an eldritch hellspawn from the deepest circles of Hell. Developers Free Lives did a very good job of controlling the pace at which the more powerful enemy units emerge, as they provide a meaty challenge without making progression seem impossible by the time you reach them.

“The glam rock soundtrack is the final piece of the puzzle that truly elevates the game above and beyond.”

The design of the game is a masterstroke; this is the sort of ridiculous premise that could only ever work as a side-scroller. Had Free Lives attempted to create Broforce with full next-gen graphics and gameplay, it would fail. Just look at Duke Nukem Forever for an example of that. Instead, by giving us a side-scrolling shooter that looks like it’s surfed straight out of the 80s on a tidal wave of its own awesome, the developers serve us up a throwback masterpiece. The glam rock soundtrack is the final piece of the puzzle that truly elevates the game above and beyond. Squealing guitars and epic riffs are, quite frankly, the ONLY suitable accompaniment to hosing down countless bad guys in a glorious storm of bullets, grenades, lasers and even swords (thank Brade for that one) and after a couple of hours of Broforce you’ll want to fly to your local gym to bench press some cars.

How to conclude this review? Simple. BUY. THIS. GAME. Unless of course you’re a PS Plus subscriber, in which case you don’t have to! Regardless of whether or not you have to fork out for Broforce, snap it up immediately. You will not regret it, and I will happily accept your gratitude in the comments section for directing you to this exquisite slice of fried gold. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve spent too much time writing this review and not enough time KILLING THINGS TO DEATH. BRO.