Hi all,
I have just watched the trailer for EA's upcoming game titled Dante's Inferno and, frankly, I am a bit upset about this development.
The very notion of cheapening one of the greatest literary works, into what appears to be some sort of action game, is quite abhorrent in my opinion. Dante's Inferno(the book) is not just some dime store novel that went into print three years ago; it is one of the classics of literature whose influence is still quite strong in contemporary society(if you have played Dungeons and Dragons, chances are that Dante's Inferno was one of the influencing factors). I am quite appalled by this act of literary necromancy being performed by EA. Instead of creating something new, they choose to dig up the Italian master's work and are now in the process of *editing* it to suit their needs. To me, it is the equivalent of someone defacing the Mona Lisa with the word "LOL" written in a thought bubble. Perhaps I am being unreasonable here about this entire thing but I was raised on the appreciation of literature and to witness this travesty being performed on a timeless classic makes me very angry. The worst part of this debacle is that, unless I am wrong, Dante(the character) was given a *tour* of hell and that is all. He did not fight hordes of demons through the various circles of Hell. Dante's Inferno, in my opinion, is not one of those works that lends itself to reinterpretation. It is not like The Witcher where one can take a character's story in the story's world and craft a different set of events concerning that character. Dante is given a tour of Hell, he meets the various historical figures of his day, he sees the various punishments for the sinners, and then he moves on; that is the gist of the Inferno portion of the Divine Comedy.
EA(or any other video game developer/publisher) should have some boundaries as far as what works of art are transformed into video games. There are certain works that are sacred and should not be sullied by contemporary society and Dante's Divine Comedy is, to me, one of those works.
I welcome your opinions on this matter. I understand that some of the above post may seem a bit on the ranting side, but I wanted to express my feelings as best as possible on this matter without resorting to crude vulgarities.

You know you don't HAVE to play it, right?

Yes I know that. I was hoping to express my thoughts on the *principle* of using established works for purposes of purloining the ideas found within and changing them to something else.

You know, you just got me interested in the book I thought I'd never read, because it's obviously about shooting hordes of demons. Which it isn't.
And I think this kinda expresses my opinion on the topic: Yes, you're totally right. When they're doing something like this, they should do it properly. Or not at all. Frankly, I've never heard of the book before and the game said to me 'meh, that book'll be worth nothing' - I think I'm not the only one. I could write a loong post about this, but I think people here are intelligent enough to figure my point...

While it could be a good way to get others to read the original work, chances are they will be expecting something from the game to found in the book instead of the other way around.
///offtopic
How do I respond to something within a quote without it being written in italics?? Can't seem to figure that out.
/////offtopic

I wasn't trying to sell the book, per se, but I do hope you read it and, perhaps, it will bring you a measure of enjoyment.

I've only read Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's version of Inferno. That was pretty cool.
But hey, the wholesale rape of classical literature is not a new thing. It's what made Disney what it is today. Try to read Victor Hugo's The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, and then watch the Disney movie afterwards. You'll want to go to the Disney studios and stab every employee there in the groin with a salad fork :-/ (I'm not actually condoning violence, I simply use colorful language for emphasis.)

For me neither ;) Maybe holy enough to dislike bad derivatives, but not holly enough to protect it from any derivatives.
But you're right, logically I should be against the outrage when the comics were posted, but I'm not... I guess there are a few special rules for "belief" in my mind... gotta think about that one.

I have read that version as well. It wasn't that bad really and if there was any sort of literature rape in that reiteration, I certainly did not see it.
I haven't seen the Disney version, and, judging from your comment, I don't think I will. I'm already in a witch burning mood. There's no need to get me more upset...hehe

I would have preferred something slower, requiring thought.. perhaps like a third person puzzle game with survival horror elements.
Getting an understanding of the tormented, and learning about the characters, rather than "BANG BANG!"
If we look at Doom.. there is no real reason to go to hell and shoot stuff up, just do it. Using part of The Divine Comedy as a mask just really cheapens it.
But maybe it will drive some people to read it, and become educated..

It's just a sign they are running out of gimmicks. But hey, at least EA are trying a few new things eh?
Can we expect a co-op mode with Virgil, A gun toting trench coat wearing street smart thug with a preference for tight black leather, hot babes and sharp one liners?

If Hollywood can butcher our favourite titles, so can EA!

Somewhat like this, you mean? ;)
On a more serious note, I don't see the problem with what EA is actually doing. What I'd find problematic is people not considering them talentless, unimaginative hacks for turning a classic into yet-another-shooting-game. If they'll end up as laughing stock, who cares.

On one hand, I kind of like EA for things like Mirror's Edge, Dead Space or even Spore (eventhough I don't like it).
On the other hand, I loathe EA for killing the NFS series (which was wonderful until NFS 5), for releasing the same sports games over and over again, and for killing Godfather.
This just adds to me loathing them.