Dante's Inferno

Cheat Code Central

It's about eight to ten hours of pure, fast-paced action no one should look down on, unless you're just not a fan of the genre. With such an appealing story and addictive gameplay, Dante's Inferno's only sin seems to be its shameless similarity to Sony's celebrated franchise.

Destructoid

You're not going to find a wholly original gameplay experience with Dante's Inferno, but that doesn't mean it's not a hell of an entertaining package -- it's one that fans of action shouldn't miss.

Digital Chumps

Dante's Inferno is a captivating fight through Hell that any action gamer should partake in. Highly recommended.

SpazioGames

Dante's Inferno is not an innovator of the action genre, but a game that can entertain until the end credits. The gameplay is solid and the great design is an added value, able alone to raise the level of the production. Ultimately a title not brilliant as Bayonetta, but perfect to be played waiting for the upcoming king Kratos.

Planet Xbox 360

If you are looking for a mature title that features some of the best action-adventure gameplay on Microsoft’s system look no further than Dante’s Inferno.

WonderwallWeb

Playstation gamers will probably turn their noses up at this whilst Xbox followers finally get a chance to play a game like God of War.

Gaming Target

Dante’s Inferno has taken a bit of flak from the gaming community for borrowing a lot (and I do mean a lot) of gameplay elements from God of War. But when it’s all said and done, Dante’s Inferno is a fun experience.

9Lives

Dante’s Inferno borrows quite some gameplay from other successful franchises, but that doesn’t mean that this game knows exactly how to weave them into a fun and interesting game. The fights are fun and bloody, the enemies and surroundings offer enough variety and its gruesome atmosphere fits the game perfectly. Whoever is looking for a fun action game and doesn’t care about a pint of blood more or less, will want to take a look at Dante’s Inferno.

MondoXbox

Dante's Inferno is entertaining and a good variant to the usual Xbox 360 line-up. Great storytelling, very solid graphics and an atmospheric soundtrack make it worth the purchase: only its low longevity and the too repetitive combat system keep down our rating of the game.

GamesNation

We’ve gone to Hell and returned, and although we couldn’t help having the feeling of being constantly watched by Kratos lurking somewhere in the shadows, we think that Dante’s Inferno is a game to play… from top to bottom.

XGN

Dante's Inferno offers an unique experience with an excellent story. It's too bad the gameplay and graphics can't reach that level. But it remains a game you should definitely consider.

Level7.nu

Dante's Inferno mimics the formula established by the God of War series, and for the most part it works great. The first half of the game is a bit underwhelming and the plot is weak in delivery and execution, but the overall experience is salvaged by the fact that Visceral has implemented a great system for character development that offers a great variety in combat strategy.

GameDaily

Obviously, critics will obsessively compare Dante's Inferno to other games, or complain about the quick time events, but don't let those nitpicky issues prevent you from experiencing this imaginative and fun adventure. It's one Hell of a good time.

Official Xbox Magazine UK

Dante's Inferno has a unique style, is a cracking journey and you're likely to feel slightly rocked by the end. It's not quite divine, but it's an experience you're sure to enjoy.

Vandal Online

If you like this type of games you won't be disappointed, but the genre is crowded enough and you should consider it depending on your budget.

VideoGamer

With some impressive combat mechanics, an excellent game world, some of the most disturbing enemies ever seen and tight production values, Dante's Inferno delivers the goods.

Eurogamer Italy

Dante's Inferno is a well refined game with all the credentials to keep the fans of this genre stuck in front of the television until the final confrontation with Lucifer. The not always perfect positioning of the camera and the poor length of the experience prevent the final mark to go higher than this.

InsideGamer.nl

Dante’s Inferno feels a lot like God of War, but in the end it is a great game to play!

ZTGameDomain

There is no doubting that Dante's Inferno owes a lot of what it does right to a certain other franchise, but honestly who cares? The game is an action thrill-ride that will entertain anyone who enjoys action games at all.

Cynamite

Decent clone of God of War but barely any innovations.

Gamer Limit

Dante's Inferno is undoubtedly just another action game that doesn't stand out among its peers. While short, every minute of it is enjoyable and challenging, and it succeeds in being a quality addition to the long list of western style action games.

GamerNode

Fans of the genre should absolutely experience Dante's Inferno, at least through the first seven circles of Hell.

Extreme Gamer

In basics Dante's Inferno might only be a standard run, but it has its own unique challenges and dynamic atmosphere to keep you interested until the final confrontation at Lake Coeytus.

BigPond GameArena

The accomplished combat and surprisingly decent adaptation of the story make Dante's Inferno a fine diversion while you wait for the next button-masher... One based in a different set of mythology.

X360 Magazine UK

Starts off brilliantly but, like a loose thread, it begins to slowly unravel until you're left with just another God Of War clone. [Issue #56, p.78]

Da Gameboyz

All in all, I would definitely recommend Dante's Inferno to anyone that is a fan of hack and slash type games.

Gamereactor Sweden

A brutally entertaining interpretation of the classic poem with some really inspired backdrops. We don't care who they stole the basic concept from.

Play.tm

It's clear this is Visceral's first jab at the genre, though, and with a bit more confidence (or time and money, perhaps) they could have definitely made more of their excellent core mechanics and the well-implemented license. It might be an unashamed God of War clone, but there are certainly worse games to try and imitate.

Gamer 2.0

While the level designs deserve plenty of praise for creatively exhibiting the Nine Circles of Hell, Dante’s Inferno really has nothing else to offer itself other than its obvious comparison to God of War.

Xbox360Achievements

This is a good game, make no mistake about it, but it suffers from being far too short and easy. After one playthrough you will have seen everything the game has to offer barring the arena mode, which itself, only lasts about an hour once you are leveled up to the max.

IGN

Dante’s Inferno takes a bold, visually impressive take on a literary classic and adds in an intriguing action focus to create a different kind of action title. Unfortunately, some derivative combat sequences and a shallow combo system prevent the title from becoming a truly great experience.

3DJuegos

Dante’s Inferno doesn’t play the same league as Visceral Games first gem, Dead Space, but it’s a nice old school Hack and Slash. The game works like an interactive compilation of God of War mechanics, but at the same time Hack and Slash action fans should ignore its references and enjoy it for what it is: A good action game.

Gaming Age

All in all, it was a fun trip though hell, even with one circle being lackluster and the game feeling rather short, I still have no issues or moral objections to recommending Dante's Inferno for fans of this genre.

Official Xbox Magazine

Packs each and every turn with extreme imagery and wickedly macabre imagination. [Apr 2010, p.82]

Hardcore Gamer Magazine

Much like how Saints Row is a damn good GTA clone, Dante’s Inferno is the best God of War clone yet that should be enjoyed be all.

Console Monster

If you can get this game on the cheap or rental you’d be damned not to check this game out - even if it is for stunning CGI sequences, epic bosses, the odd boob shot and the brainless bashing of the undead.

GameShark

It’s not the poem in game form by any stretch – but it is a gorgeous action game – one of the best looking games you are likely to play and if you’re a 360 gamer who has never experienced a God of War game then it’s actually a fairly easy sell. However, those who know Kratos will quickly realize this is mere imitation.

Gamervision

If you can look past the fact that Dante’s Inferno is a very loose adaptation of the classic poem, the game offers eight to ten hours of fun occasionally interrupted by unnecessary annoyances.

Xbox World 360 Magazine UK

A solid romp, but Dante's Inferno fails to live up to its promise as EA's Next Big Thing. [Apr 2010, p.87]

ActionTrip

As they demonstrated with Dead Space, Visceral Games is capable of more than what they have done with this game.

GameSpy

Despite its flaws, Dante's Inferno is definitely worth checking out, if only because it presents a unique visual take on one of literature's greatest works. It's occasionally shocking and often annoyingly repetitive, but the action is good enough to keep you engaged through what is a thought-provoking experiment in converting classic literature to a game.

games(TM)

Visceral Games has lavished Dante's Inferno with polish and atmosphere. [Issue#93, p.110]

Totally360

Overall Dante’s Inferno is a pretty fun game. There is nothing really great about it, however, I enjoyed my time with the title.

GamingExcellence

Dante’s Inferno would be a much better game if it had spent a bit more time in development. The last half of the game isn’t very imaginative, the final two levels are just terrible, enemies are reused far too often and it really feels like there should have been two endings (one for each alignment).

Xbox World Australia

Dante's Inferno could have offered more. It's heavily influenced by God Of War, but never seeks to do anything to differentiate itself from its influence beyond a superficial weapon development tree that has ultimately no impact on the game or the story.

IGN UK

Ultimately, our issue is simple - if you’re going to shamelessly riff on a formula popularised and pretty much perfected by another massive game title - yes, God of War in this instance - you better be damn sure you do it better. And, sadly, aside from its excellent combat system, Dante’s Inferno misses the mark in almost every way.

Total Video Games

Despite its refusal to innovate, its blatant copying from the God of War rulebook, and its missed opportunities, Dante's Inferno is nonetheless a solid title. At the very least, it's an engaging prospect for Xbox loyalists who've never played a God of War game. However, with the likes of Darksiders and Bayonetta on the market (as well as God of War III in our sights), Dante's Inferno is the weakest proposition of the bunch.

GameZone

The game starts out with a bang, with vision and a challenge, and then becomes more of the same, over and over. The bosses get tougher, the objectives are more defined, but aside from going back and trying again at a tougher difficulty level, once through the game, there is not much reason to go back.

MS Xbox World

Dante's Inferno is a decent action hack and slasher, that is ultimately let down by a lack of vision with its gameplay

Thunderbolt

Dante’s Inferno starts off big, consistently introducing new enemy types and grand environments, but by the end of the game that initial excitement turns to repetition as you fight through wave after wave of the same enemy type in increasingly familiar territory.

Game Informer

Dante’s Inferno features some interesting aspects (like its combat), but early innovation loses out to repetition. The game’s biggest strength – Visceral’s recreation of hell – wanes during the second half. Some entertaining unlockable content adds to the replayability, but for most gamers, Inferno doesn’t have enough new ideas to warrant a return trip through hell.

GameTrailers

While it goes through many of the same motions perfected by the best games in its genre, Dante's Inferno never reaches their lofty heights.

TeamXbox

It locks you into a gameplay hell of sorts, giving you a devil of a time just to try and survive, though rarely making you feel like the reward is worth the incredible effort. Instead of bringing the poem to life, the gamemakers slammed the book on your fingers.

Gameplanet

Each of Hell’s nine circles are realised with care and character, but without innovative gameplay and with some downright outmoded game mechanics, there’s not quite enough here to distinguish Dante’s Inferno from the raft of action adventure titles available to gamers today.

GameSpot

Dante's epic quest loses momentum long before you reach the end.

RealGamer

As it is, we have a solid and very playable game which will no doubt entertain genre fans, but never dares to do much more than parrot good ideas that came before in a slightly grosser way. It’s hard to dislike, but for the same reasons hard to love, too.

Absolute Games

The fatal flaws of Dante’s Inferno are not even its dated graphics or depressing lack of originality. It’s monotony and endless repetition that will drive you nuts.

HellBored

From an entirely creative perspective, I’d recommend this just to see the interpretation of Hell, because the locations are often brilliant. Beyond that, there’s not much else here to go on, or to provide any enjoyment after the seven hours of play it takes to get through it.

AceGamez

All in all Dante’s Inferno slowly falls into dangerous territory – it goes from being an excellent hack and slash into a mediocre hack and slash far too quickly, and when it’s not being repetitive it’s being relatively annoying.

D+PAD Magazine

So while it’s hard to fault the efficiency of Visceral’s final product – all carping aside, the controversial license has at least been handled with a certain care given that this is a videogame and not an academic study – Dante’s Inferno is too familiar, too regressive and too content to do the necessary minimum to recommend wholeheartedly

DarkZero

You can see glimpses of what could have been, but it is spoilt by some bad choices and a sloppy ending.

GameFocus

Dante’s Inferno is a game of contradictions. It’s based on a literary epic but appeals to the most common denominator. It’s rammed full of sex, violence and depravity but sets a record as being the one of the first video game I’ve played where this feels completely tacked on. It’s just masking third-rate gameplay and a soulless experience.

Gamer.nl

Dante’s Inferno copies God of War in every way possible, except the part that makes God of War really good: the epic scale, the fantastic build-up and original puzzles. These elements are simply lacking in Dante’s Inferno, and what remains is a brown version of the game that it was inspired by. EA could have done better with the source material.

Eurogamer

Dante's Inferno is worth considering if you're a diehard hack-and-slasher fan who loves blood, gore, fire, brimstone, layered but simplistic combat systems and tits. This is more than one big lava level and it's not a terrible game. It's just not an original one, and it's arrived a little too late.

1UP

The game is filled with lots of good and well-executed ideas, but they all seem to exist independently of one another. It's a popcorn movie that clearly took a good deal of talent to pull together, but comes up short of creating the grand adventure that it seems to be trying for.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

The game’s rivers of blood, corpse-piles, and wailing souls make for a morbid, depression-inducing milieu. It’s a relief to be shut out of the place once the final credits roll.

Game Revolution

Another major annoyance is the save system. You can only save at designated statues, and there are only two or three per level.

Teletext GameCentral

The works of both Dante Alighieri and David Jaffe are defiled in this shallow and puerile actioner.

Giant Bomb

Imitation is an open invitation for comparison, and while it's mostly competent from a technical perspective, it's all very rote.