Dante’s Inferno Game Review
Dante's Inferno tells a modified story that is centred on delivering an impressive third person action game experience while bringing a depiction of Hell to the gaming world. The character of Dante was inspired by the author of classic 14th century poem “The Divine Comedy”, Dante Alighieri ( Inferno being only one part of this three part epic poem).
Players assume the role of Dante, a man whose crimes during the Crusades have marked him for hell, but he battles death, wins the fight and continues home to his dear wife Beatrice. He gets home to find Beatrice has been murdered and taken to hell. Dante, seeking to redeem himself of his crimes and save the woman he loves, chases after.
You will take Dante through nine distinctive circles of Hell as mapped out and portrayed by Alighieri: lust, limbo, violence, gluttony, greed, anger, treachery, fraud and heresy. That’s a lot of hell to get through I must say.
To take down the demons of Hell, Dante is kitted with two main weapons: the Scythe and the Holy Cross, which has divine powers that will help Dante gather souls and spells from the creatures he defeats on his quest. Dante can seize his enemies, and either punish them, which put him on a path of damnation, or convert them, which brings him closer to salvation.
Controversy swirls around the game, branching from the exaggerated violence and the brutal and dark nature of the game, but considering the poem itself on which the game is based reflects so much that is wrong with the world, there is bound to be controversy.
The similarities to God of War are noticeable, from the game play mechanics to the similar story of revenge and deliverance. The story is a classic bit of literature, and the voice work captured that nicely. Visually the game is quite striking. The surroundings are incredible and the effects are dazzling.
The combat makes for some good fun if you enjoy loads of guts and gore in your games. The different kinds of creatures you meet as well as the astounding environments you roam through make it quite enjoyable (James Cameron inspired may be?). The game itself is not without a few drawbacks however. Dante’s Inferno seems to start off on a high with great intensity but the rather uninspiring ending will not enhance its chances of becoming an alternative to the highly-rated God of War.
Comparing the characters of Kratos from the God of War series and Dante of Dante’s Inferno you find that the two are both products of video games sporting similar game play elements, with causes that are unearthly, mysterious on some levels and very much remarkable. Dante is charged with every evil one can think of as he descends through the nine levels of Hell. Kratos, a Spartan and son of Zeus takes on the gods of Greek mythology, engaging in combat with the likes of Ares, the Olympian god of warfare.
With the game drawing likenesses to God of War, Xbox owners will be happy to get their hands on Dante's Inferno as they have surely grown tired of PS3 owners bragging about God of War and how much fun they are missing out on, since God of War is not available on Xbox. Dante’s Inferno will surely be welcomed by fans of hack and slash action-adventure games.
Get your copy of Dante’s Inferno now in the Bob Shop Gaming category.
Available for Xbox, Playstation and PSP platforms.