Monster's Ball writer penning Dante's Inferno script

• by Dave Rudden
• October 09, 2009 00:00 AM PST

EA has announced that Will Rokos, an Oscar-nominated writer known for working on the Monster's Ball script, is responsible for translating Dante's Inferno from the printed page to video game consoles.

I will say this: the man can set a scene.

Ever since the game has been announced, gamers have been curious as to how Dante Alighieri's epic poem the Divine Comedy would be condensed and translated into video game format. EA has found the answer in Will Rokos, an Oscar-nominated writer.

While Rokos was indeed nominated for an Academy Award for his work in co-writing Monster's Ball with Milo Addica, it should be noted that Rokos has no other writing credits on his IMDB profile (though he does have a handful of acting roles). Do you think Rokos' lack of Hollywood history will help or hurt Dante's Inferno?

Visceral Games ANNOUNCES Academy AWARD-nominated Writer Will Rokos to pen DANTE'S INFERNO

Redwood City, Calif. - October 9, 2009 - Visceral Games(tm), the developers behind the critically-acclaimed Dead Space(tm) franchise and a studio of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), today announced that Academy Award(tm)-nominated writer Will Rokos is writing the story line for Dante's Inferno(tm), the adaptation of part one of Dante Alighieri's epic poem "The Divine Comedy" from Visceral Games(tm). Rokos is best known for his Best Original Screenplay nomination for Monster's Ball in 2001, and is collaborating with the game's creative team to craft an all new narrative that parallels the original poem.

"The task of adapting a revered and classic piece of literature for the gaming medium was a tremendous challenge," said Jonathan Knight, executive producer of Dante's Inferno. "Dante Alighieri's masterpiece forms the foundation of the game's plot, but Will's take on the Dante/Beatrice story brought the necessary conflict and action that made the material really work dramatically. It was an enormous thrill to partner on the script with someone as creative and talented as Will."

"Taking such a naturally rich and deep universe and adapting for the video game has been one of the most interesting and challenging projects I've worked on," added Will Rokos. "I really got into re-imagining Dante as a flawed hero with a dark past, and his determination to save the love of his life from a terrible fate. It was a truly unique experience to re-create one man's hell, one circle at a time." In Dante's Inferno, players will assume the role of Dante as he fights through Dante Alighieri's nine circles of hell - limbo, lust, gluttony, greed, anger, heresy, violence, fraud and treachery. Each circle features distinctive epic environments, custom creatures and demons, bosses and sub-bosses, unique gameplay scenarios, and specific story elements crafted to tell the sins of Dante's past.

The blockbuster video game adaptation of Alighieri's epic poem "Inferno" will be available in North America beginning on February 9, 2010 and in Europe on February 12, 2010 for the Xbox 360(r) video game and entertainment system, the PlayStation(r)3 computer and entertainment system and the Sony PlayStation(r) Portable (PSP(r)). Dante's Inferno has not yet been rated by the ESRB or PEGI.

For more information on Dante's Inferno, please follow the Dante's Inferno team at Visceral Games on Twitter at www.twitter.com/danteteam and visit the game's official web site at www.dantesinferno.com where the team explores a new circle of hell, with new content and updates on the ninth day of every month.

THE VERDICT by Dave Rudden

I'm not sure if writing a drama film is the best pedigree for re-interpreting the Divine Comedy for video games. I will say this--the sex scene between Billy Bob Thornton and Halle Berry in Monster's Ball was surprisingly disturbing.