Admit it. DmC’s new emo, malnourished-looking Dante is about as popular as Jar Jar Binks if he had rectal thermometers for fingers and went around giving Nazi salutes. General reaction on the interwebs has been heated to say the least, with many fans of the series pining for the trench coat-sporting, white haired demon hunter of old. Well, just take comfort that it could have been worse. We’re talking man nipple action and suspenders worse.
Above: You can't unsee it
Speaking to Kotaku, Ninja Theory’s Alex Jones, who is lead producer on DmC, revealed some of the concept designs he and his team showed Capcom big wig Keiji Inafune in Japan. He said: "We had a shirtless version of Dante, with just suspenders. That went nowhere. It looked like he had just stumbled out of a Clash concert. When Inafune saw it he said, 'I don't think so.'”
Above: Tut, tut, young man. Don't you know smoking will stain those model-esque teeth?
Trying to explain what inspired the reboot, Jones cites Christopher Nolan’s recent Batman flicks as inspiration. “Look at the Dark Knight. That went from the Gothic fun house of the earlier Batman movies, to a fairly dark look at Chicago crime today. We want to update and mature the tone of Devil May Cry.”
Above: Hate emo Dante? Blame the pair on the right
It’s been a big week for Ninja Theory, with creative design boss Tameem Antoniade pouring his opinion sauce down the throats ofthe folks at 1UP. “It’s about Dante being cool and making you feel cool when you’re playing it, and so the combat and the style system and everything is integral to that. If Dante, dressed as he was, walked into any bar outside of Tokyo, he’d get laughed out,” he told the site.
Above: Don't listen to him DMC3 Dante. If anyone laughs, just shoot them the hell in the face
He continued: “I feel like now, for Devil May Cry to have that same impact, it needs to draw on new things. New music, new ways of cinematography, new fashion.”
Ah well, we might pine for old Dante, but at least we won’t have to endure the man nipple action. Small victories and all that, yeah?
Sep22, 2012
