Forget Dante's Inferno 2, Visceral Wants Macbeth

[malestrithe]

Is nothing safe? But at least Macbeth was gory and fun to read so if they stick to the book a bit more then dante's inferno it's all right

Nothing new, really. Edith Nesbit took the stories of shakespeare and rewrote them for children over 100 years ago. Macbeth has been modernized many times. One of them, Sleep No More, was reworked into a Hitchcockian thriller, with music cues and everything. A kruosawa movie, Throne of Blood, is Macbeth but in feudal Japan.

Let's not forget that Gargoyles took this entire storyline, reworked it and used it as one of their main anti heroes.

Video game developers are now adapting classics and it becomes the end of the world? I will not get some people. Movie and film adaptations okay. Video game adaptations not so much.

I do not care if they modernize Macbeth into an ultraviolent video game because nothing is really sacred. Nor should it be. If we do not take our classics off the shelf and use them every so often, they might become forgotten.

Then again, Edgar Allen Poe might be a better fit for a ultraviolent video game. He focused on the dark side of humanity for a long time.

 

[LTK_70]

First Dante, now Shakespeare? Is nothing sacred? Eh, seeing what they did to Dante's Inferno I doubt they have any notion of 'sacred'.

 

[Shamanic Rhythm]

I can't believe he actually used the word "interpretation" to describe what they have done to Dante's poem. Adaptation, I could stomach. But seriously, no. Interpretation refers to what you think the poem is about, and I don't care how much postmodernism you subscribe to; if you think that Inferno is about murdering demons then you are provably and laughably wrong. The allegorical function of Dante's journey through hell is to present his audience with a series of morals to abide by in life, by depicting how sinners are punished via poetic justice. For example, the greedy are punished by being forced to spar against one another using giant weights they push with their chest. If you can't see the symbolism in that, you need help. The idea of Dante going through hell and killing everything he meets throws all concepts of poetic justice out the window; as there is nothing symbolic about killing the damned with a scythe - that's just cliche. What this game represents is how the very concept of Hell has been re-appropriated in modern culture by games like Diablo; where rather than a place created by God to punish sinners, Hell is Satan's personal funhouse and where he trains his armies.

Given that he doesn't even seem to understand the meaning of interpretation, I don't think Jonathan Knight should be allowed anywhere near Macbeth. I'm not at all against the idea of literary classics being adapted into games; but he seems to think that the only way to make a game is to slap lots of violence and titties onto it.

 

[teknoarcanist]

This is to be followed by an adaptation of "The Pen, The Pit, and The Pendulum", wherein the player takes on the role of an elite psy-ops soldier in the Spanish Inquisition, and "Notes From The Underground", wherein players must press X rapidly to talk themselves through the stages of existential self-loathing. Also there's, I don't know, a helicopter fight. Because why not.

 

[Anonymous Overlord]

I say to Visceral go big or go home, do time machine, moby dick, journey to the center of the earth, war of the worlds... ect. Keep going, but only if dante is a fun game to play.

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2010/1/15/

http://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/103967
Curse you penny arcade.... pretty awesome image though.

 

[Cousin_IT]

Since interpretation seems to mean excuse to make a God of War clone, my expectations of a Visceral Macbeth game to share anything with the play except the title & maybe being set in Scotland are very low.

Also, while hypothesizing, I have little doubt that despite their "best efforts" the three witches will still have hot racks & nice asses, & quite possibly all look like Bayonetta except in Tartan.

 

[Shamanic Rhythm]

This is to be followed by an adaptation of "The Pen, The Pit, and The Pendulum", wherein the player takes on the role of an elite psy-ops soldier in the Spanish Inquisition, and "Notes From The Underground", wherein players must press X rapidly to talk themselves through the stages of existential self-loathing. Also there's, I don't know, a helicopter fight. Because why not.

You are actually my hero. I take it you watched the leaked Heavy Rain scene?

 

[Florion]

It sounds awesome because I love Macbeth, but I think you'd have a difficult time spinning anything Shakespeare into a video game without some massive "interpretations". x3 It'd be amusing!

 

[Spaghetti]

So I imagine in a few months Visceral will be releasing "The Scottish Game"?

Visceral: Breaking down the barriers between High and Popular Culture since 2009

 

[Kuchinawa212]

Hey! I'm reading that play now! and if I can learn about it in videogame form all the better!

 

[HT_Black]

Well, I suppose it was inevitable. While I'm perfectly okay with (if not particularly optimistc about) an Inferno game, I can't for the life of me imagine how a Macbeth would work. I mean, what would it be? Nosing around a castle with a scowl on your face, murdering the odd chump, and hallucinating? At least Dante went to Hell...but this idea is beyond me.

And because nobody's had the wit to spew this one yet:

"Out! Out, damn Knight!"

 

[SimpleChimp]

Okay. If know one has made the joke yet allow me.

Macbeth Video game sounds like a horrible idea. It's a cursed play. Every xbox it is put in will red ring! Every Ps3 will turn into an Xbox then Red Ring!

 

[Plurralbles]

Ok, after spending weeks doing coursework on Macbeth, if they did make this game, I would burn it.

I read it last year. it almost sucks as a writing to movie piece, let alone a play to a game!

Stupid. It could work in the macbeth UNIVERSE, but it would definitely have to ignore everything about the actual story.

 

[The Random One]

Man, there's a point in which something gets so stupid it wraps around and becomes awesome, and Dante's Inferno is already edging pretty close to that line. I'll buy any brawler they release turning classics of literature into bloodfests. Show me Don Quijote stomping giants into a pool of blood, a retelling of The Murders of Rue Morgue in which you are the gorilla, and an insane axe maniac's rampage in CRIME AND PUNISHMENT II: PUNISH HARDER. Hooray for public domain!

...Better than trying to adapt the Paradise section into the game. So there's a chorus of singing angels being happy... and you murder them. Hm.

...That thing with Don Quijote looks cool, though. An action game showing the things he imagines are happening. I'd buy that.

"New Quest!: Get The Blood Off Your Hands"

Spoiler

[small]Who are we kidding... there's like 120% chance of an achievement called that if the game does come out.[/small]

 

[Nicolai]

Seriously, what they need to do is this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLM5Y0VElPc

MacBeth Rearisen.

 

[Pimppeter2]

Damn, I love this guy.

I may simply buy DI because of this.

 

[The_Shinigamer]

I'm willing to try Dante's Inferno considering I love the original and this is strictly an interpretation made for the gaming masses, not an adaptation that would be boring as hell. And not immediately saying thet we should expect another one when no one's really played the first? and taking one of the greatest emotional draws of all time and interpreting it for my interactive enjoyment? Visceral just became my favorite studio.

 

[silver wolf009]

double double, toil and trouble
a good game in the cauldron bubbles!

 

[Aesir23]

A Game based on Macbeth? I can't imagine it, though I am guessing that Shakespeare would probably start rolling in his grave.