Dante's Inferno

God of War took the third person action brawler and made it something new. Dante's Inferno takes God of War and... that's about it. It's not as polished as God of War, the fighting system is simplified, and the setting is roughly based on the Hell envisioned by Dante Alighieri in 1321 rather than roughly based on the entirety of Greek mythology. In spite of the rough patches, and perhaps because of the setting, it was a huge amount of fun. 
 
Written 650 or so years before even the Nintendo Entertainment System was released, the original Inferno reads like a video game. Dante and his poet guide Virgil travel the nine circles of hell and visit the poor souls trapped within. Each circle is reserved for sinners of a certain type, from sins of lust, to gluttony, all the way down to the frozen wastes of the most heinous sin: betrayal. Lucifer himself, the fallen angel cast out of Heaven for opposing God, rules Hell from this bottom most pit. The game makes good use of each themed circle, each being pretty gross in different ways, and does a fairly good job of adding new enemy types to fight the deeper it goes with large helpings of previously seen enemies thrown at you again with new twists, or in new combinations. 

There's not much to say about the fighting system other than to point at God of War. The left stick moves Dante, the right stick is for quick evasions. Left trigger blocks, and if you block at the last moment you have the opportunity to counter. The upgrade paths are the most interesting with new sword attacks unlocked on the Unholy side, while your ranged cross attacks are marked Holy. Redeeming or punishing the sinners you meet in hell will accumulate Holy and Unholy points to unlock new skill levels that can be purchased with the souls you capture as you fight. The unlockable skills are presented in a manner similar to Dead Space where some skills build upon others. Getting a new skill and using it to stomp an enemy that had previously been causing trouble is always a thrill. 
 
The best part of Dante's Inferno is definitely the story. I couldn't care less about how fast and loose it plays with the source material, it was a great ride. Dante's voice overs never fail to be 100% over the top, 100% earnest, and spoken with such conviction and enthusiasm I felt like giving a standing ovation. It's played completely straight, which in its poetry and absurdity makes it fantastic. The animated cut scenes where we learn more about Dante's sins, and those of his family, make for an interesting back story.
 
Dante doesn't have as deep a fighting system as Bayonetta, or the mind blowing scale and visuals of God of War 3, but it's fun. It's a video game's video game, and the sincerity with which this ridiculous crusader superhero dispatches Hell's minions made me smile throughout. I'm looking forward to the sequel.