As a somewhat intellectual snob, I’ve always thought of Dante Alighieri as a master writer whose epic tale of hell in “Inferno” was rivalled by none. Gruesome, terrifying, a serious and literal portrait of hell that would forever be the pinnacle of macabre literature. As a horror fan I believe that his work stands out as a real superb example of what we as horror fans find interesting. So imagine my interest when I read on Cinema Blend that a film about the Inferno was given a new writer. Oddly enough that was not the only twist that the article on cinema blend threw at me. Not only is there a film about to be made about Virgil’s descent into hell, but apparently there is a game. Yes, a video game. A proper walk and kill extravaganza. Upon which the film will be based. Some details, perhaps, are in order.

First thing’s first, a bit of housekeeping. Universal has decided to piggyback off of Electronic Arts, who are in charge of the new video game. If you go here you can see a great video of the upcoming game. It seems Dante has gone from gangly Italian artisan to medieval knight with massive scythe and a magical cross ready to kill demons. The game is going to be top of the line, and has had hundreds of millions of dollars being put into it by EA Games. The complete CGI universe will take a look at the entirety of hell from the gates to Satan himself. This is what the Executive Producer of the game, Jonathan Knight, has to say about it:

“The time is right for the world of interactive entertainment to adapt this literary masterpiece, and to re-introduce Dante to an audience that, until now, may have been unfamiliar with the remarkable details of this great work of art. It’s the perfect opportunity to fuse great gameplay with great story.”

Now whilst the idea that somehow Dante needs a reintroduction offends my sensibilities, there is still reason to be excited. Off of this massive advance in games and technology by EA Games will come a full length feature film showing the descent to Hell. And it has a new writer. In charge of creating a video-game adaptation to end all video-game adaptations is Dan Harris. Although he is not the most experienced of writers, he has done a few bigscreen hits. He has X-Men 2 and Superman Returns to his name, as well as a few writer/director credits including the upcoming film “I, Lucifer.” And he now has the potentially brilliant task of adapting a video game, using the video game’s premade universe, into a film. Of course, he’s adapting one of the great literary works of the previous millenium, so perhaps there will be some expectations. The only thing that is missing now from this Video Game adaptation to end all Video Game adaptations is a Director. Video Game adaptations are tough to make good, so someone with experience would be worthwhile. Anyone have Dr. Uwe Boll’s number?