Dante’s Inferno is based upon the epic poem “The Divine Comedy” by Dante Aligheri. In the game, you are in control of the title character, Dante. Armed with Death’s Scythe, you fight hordes of the dead in the nine circles of hell to rescue your murdered wife from Lucifer’s clutches. In addition to the scythe, you also have a holy cross to help you dish out the damage. Scattered througout the game are mana and energy pools in which you can restore lost health and magic. During gameplay, a quick time system is used where Dante is able to either absolve or punish his foes with a series of button imputs, but just a little warning: the incorrect imput will get you countered and wounded.
Upon defeating your foes, you receive souls, which then can be used for upgrades to either of the two categories: Holy(cross) or Unholy(scythe). The more souls you obtain, the more experience you gain, which allows you to upgrade your weapons. A lot of your experience can also be obtained in absolving or punishing many famous figures in history, triggering a mini game where you have to capture the particular characters sins via more button imputs. The amount of experience gained depends upon the number of sins captured.
I have to say that upon starting the game for the first time, you figure out that this is definitely not a game for anyone under the age of 18, or the weak of heart for that matter. There is painstaking attention to detail, from the landscapes down to the characters and clothing. There are little interludes in the game with less graphic art, but I think it only adds to the game as a whole. Gameplay does get a bit daunting when you are pitted against seemingly impossible amounts of foes, it even borders on annoying but due to smooth controlling, it’s easy. You definitely do not get a break in this game due to constant environment-based puzzle solving and large sections of platforming in which you have to jump, swing, and climb across treacherous terrain where one slip-up means your life.
Although the hours of gameplay itself are relatively short ( 7-10 hours), it’s a fun hack-and-slash trip through hell. You can always downoad add-ons or choose another difficulty to experience the story all over again and revel in all of the graphic rich material. Nudity is prevalent here in this game, so if you can’t handle it, don’t play it. If you can, you will receive some shocks. I don’t recommend looking down on Lucifer though…
I give it a 9.5 out of 10
