[Multi] Dante's Inferno

[Krakalakachkn]

I think this game looks good, even if it is a take on God of War

 

 

Here's a review from NPR:

 

An epic journey through nine circles of a fiery hell filled with monstrous beasts and condemned souls — Italian poet Dante Alighieri didn't know it at the time, but 700 years ago, he mapped out a pretty sweet video game.

 

"He fundamentally mapped hell with this poem," says Jonathan Knight, the game's executive producer. "He's created a visual topography, and there's a tremendous amount of structure, geography, weather — and monsters."

 

If you don't remember the epic poem from your college classics course, here's the Cliffs Notes version: The Inferno is a 14th-century poem in which Dante is guided through hell by the Roman poet Virgil.

 

 

 

... Hath No Fury Like A Poet Scorned? It's hard to say how Dante would have felt about his epic poem being turned into a video game. Some scholars are bothered by the liberties the developers took with the plot, but game producer Jonathan Knight says that, just like Dante writing in Italian, this video game communicates using the vernacular of the time.

Each circle of hell laid out in the poem has souls guilty of a particular sin — lust, gluttony, greed, you name it. The punishments are symbolic of the sins; gluttons, for example, must lie in slush because of the garbage they made of their lives on Earth.

 

By the end of the poem, Dante has a deeper understanding of the Christian idea of sin. But to turn the poem into a video game, producers felt that the main character needed to be more active.

 

"Our reimagined version of Dante is as a warrior," Knight says. "He's a fallen crusader, and he's fighting his way through hell."

 

In the video game version, he's doing it all for love. Beatrice, a love from the real Dante's life, becomes the fictional Dante's reason for going to hell — he must rescue her from the clutches of Satan.

 

These plot twists are a far cry from the poem, which is woven with philosophical discussions and monologues about life and death.

 

But Knight believes Dante might approve of a video game translation of his work, because the Italian poet was trying to reach out to ordinary folks with his writing. In the early 14th century, Italian literature was written in Latin. Dante wrote his Inferno in Italian, using the vernacular of his time.

 

Still, some Dante scholars bristle at the liberties the game takes with Dante's story. Then again, maybe those Dante scholars just don't play video games. So we found Jonathan Combs-Schilling, a 30-year-old graduate student in the Italian studies department at the University of California, Berkeley, who loves Dante and loves video games.

 

Combs-Schilling says he found some parts of the game "exhilarating." He was impressed by the renderings of the river Styx that Dante must cross to enter Hades. But he doesn't think you can really compare a game to a poem.

 

"Fundamentally, it's not a narrative in the way that a movie or a text or a work of literature is," he says.

 

 

 

Hell Or High Water: The river Styx is guarded by Phlegyas, who ferries Virgil and Dante into the underworld.

Although there are plenty of interpretations of The Inferno in other creative mediums — such as Gustave Dore's famous illustrations — Combs-Schilling thinks it might be easier to compare a video game to a musical interpretation, such as Franz Liszt's Dante Symphony.

 

Still, he has his reservations about the game. "The way the game is structured, you feel OK doing the abhorrent things you do," he says.

 

Despite the game's departures from Dante's original work, Combs-Schilling isn't worried about the future of Dante's epic poem. After all, he says, it's lasted 700 years already, and it's doing just fine.

 

The video game producers are also releasing a print edition of the poem illustrated by pictures from the game. They hope it will encourage a new generation of gamers to read Dante's original work.

[Krakalakachkn]

Here's a worse review from game informer.  I bolded the good parts.

 

If ripping off the gameplay of another title was a sin, there’d be a circle in hell reserved exclusively for Dante’s Inferno. Its combat, magic system, finishing moves, and various other gameplay mechanics unapologetically ape God of War to the point where Kratos fans will feel right at home in Lucifer’s den. Inferno mimics even the most mundane and inexplicable tasks, like requiring the player to mash the action button to open doors, cementing this title’s status as a bonafide God of War copycat.

 

The result of this imitation however, is that by and large the game is fun to play; the combat is tight and satisfying, and the finishing moves are brutally graphic. Despite being a poet in the source material, Dante is transformed into a badass warrior, almost rivaling that of his Greek counterpart. Minor additions to the formula, such as branching skill trees for learning new moves, hidden relics that can be equipped to boost various stats, and the ability to condemn/absolve souls give Dante’s Inferno some individuality, even if it’s never fully realized.

 

While the gameplay is largely unoriginal, Inferno’s story is unique to say the least. Tapping a 14th-century poem as inspiration for a hack and slash action title is enough to make even the most forgiving gamer cringe, but Visceral Games uses Inferno’s premise to good effect. The game is scandalous and over the top, but as controversial as the topless lust demons and unbaptized spider babies might be, they are also entertaining and more or less justified – this is supposed to be hell, after all. Literature buffs will likely be offended by the many liberties taken with the source material, but if you can get over the story compromises made for the sake of gameplay, Inferno’s creativity may pleasantly surprise you.

 

The classic work serves as more than a starting point for the game. Your ability to judge characters that Dante meets in the original poem (which are used to independently level up your Holy and Unholy powers), and Virgil’s monologues add some authenticity in light of the sweeping story changes. The poem also inspires the game’s vision of hell, and fortunately the developers pulled no punches in bringing their interpretation to life. Although the level of detail for the character models is oftentimes underwhelming, the early environments are unique, twisted, and memorable. The game lacks the brilliant level design of the God of War series, but there are times when Dante’s Inferno faithfully recreates descriptions from the poem, resulting in some remarkable sights.

 

 

 

Inferno’s ultimate sin is that the game can’t sustain its early pace. Of its nine circles of hell, the first three – Limbo, Lust, and Gluttony – contain the game’s best ideas and most impressive creative vision. Later circles offer memorable sights as well, but for every river of boiling blood or ride on the back of Phlegyas there are a dozen drawn-out battles against groups of recycled enemies. After the variety introduced in the beginning, it was disappointing (and nonsensical) to see the same enemies popping up again and again in later circles, requiring little in the way of fresh tactics to beat.

 

This problem ironically culminates in the circle of Fraud, which is composed of 10 different challenges in identical arenas. Each challenge introduces a different element, but most can be beat with either your heavy attack or projectile combos. Despite the plethora of moves to unlock, these two techniques will get you through the vast majority of the battles you’ll face, making the game feel like more of a grind than it has to be.

 

Dante’s Inferno features some interesting aspects (like its combat), but early innovation loses out to repetition. The game’s biggest strength – Visceral’s recreation of hell – wanes during the second half. Some entertaining unlockable content adds to the replayability, but for most gamers, Inferno doesn’t have enough new ideas to warrant a return trip through hell.

 

 

Concept:

Tap a classic poem for the story and a standout series for the gameplay

 

Graphics:

The character models are rough, but some circles of hell look impressive

 

Sound:

The orchestral soundtrack serves the story well

 

Playability:

The combat is God of War from beginning to end, which isn’t a bad thing

 

Entertainment:

Beneath the repetition and unoriginal gameplay, there’s a solid title

 

Replay:

Moderate

 

Final Score:  7

[Quibby]

I have this game.  It is sitting in my stack of games, just waiting for me to play it.

 

I put it into my 360 when I got it.  Red Ring of Death.  I wept bitter tears of hatred and anger that will probably earn me a place in the 5th circle.

[Krakalakachkn]

I'm on my 3rd xbox.  First two got the Red Rings.  It was a dismal day.

[Red2111]

meh, i can wait another month for GoW3.  no need to spend 60 bucks ona rip off

[SinisterDeath]

meh, i can wait another month for GoW3.  no need to spend 60 bucks ona rip off

 

The demos got nudity in it.

Does that help? :P

[Quibby]

Never actually played God of War, so I won't have to worry about the whole déjà vu thing.  I got it because after I read Inferno about 9 years ago, I've always wanted to see an artist's rendition of the horrors that Dante described.  Since this seems to be the only way that is likely to happen...