Look out Pac Man, Zelda, Mario Bros.! DRAGONFORCE are coming for you! Well, okay not literally, but with their latest album, "Ultra Beatdown", the British power Metal band have taken their apparent obsession with video games to the next level. A question that might come to mind is what in the world do video games have remotely anything to do with Heavy Metal? Technically nothing. However, with the popularity of Guitar Hero and Rock Band sweeping across the globe, the market has embraced bands like DRAGONFORCE who have something exciting to offer, especially their guitar playing. Let's not get too far off topic though.

Some may say that DRAGONFORCE's music might be too over-the-top for their liking, but one thing they bring to the table is originality. Their unique sound is a welcomed escape from much of the mundane material floating around in Metal space these days. And it's not just the whole video game sounds thing either. In spite of the numerous Death / Black / Thrash / Speed Metal bands out there who play insanely fast, DRAGONFORCE are arguably one of the most capable in terms of execution. It's almost inhuman. And with each release it seems the band continue to push their limits and strengthen their musical abilities.

"Ultra Beatdown" carries on much in the same fashion as the band's last album, "Inhuman Rampage", but more emphasis is placed on the music and the songs are more technically-driven. Sure, the usual wacky, sonic mayhem you would expect from DRAGONFORCE is splattered all over this disc, it just sounds like the band paid more attention to detail and took a little extra time in the production stages.

Opener "Heroes Of Our Time" blasts through the walls in traditional DRAGONFORCE style, with plenty of blistering guitar riffs, thunderous double kick drumming and rising choral lines (courtesy of the ever-recognizable ZP Theart. "The Fire Still Burns" follows along the same path while songs like "Heartbreak Armageddon" and "The Last Journey Home" feature a mixture of mid-range tempos heading into fast ones, back and forth. As mentioned earlier, the whole "video game" thing is more prevalent on this album, and a prime example of this can be heard directly in "Reason To Live". The 30-second intro actually makes you feel like you are being launched inside a video game before engaging yourself in the music. Herman Li and Sam Totman deliver some excellent guitar solos as well (wait for the "whistle" near the end).

Through the course of their career, DRAGONFORCE have managed to develop their own sound according to their own tastes. Hell, they could quite easily create their very own sub-genre… Video Game Metal! All kidding aside, DRAGONFORCE have become a very prominent figure in the Metal world, somewhat a prodigy of sorts. Even if they decided to scale down the bleeps and guitar wahs a tad they would still be able to maintain their fan-base because of their ability to entertain the masses. So no matter what video game console you own (or not), "Ultra Beatdown" will make you feel like you've just been pixelated into a world where Heavy Metal reigns supreme over the evil creatures that lurk in the firey depths of video game hell.