Adventure Game Show (hand drawn + Photoshop)

The idea behind the design

The adventure game show is based on ‘Dante’s Inferno’, the first of the three books that make up ‘The Divine Comedy’ by Dante Alighieri. It’s played by two teams of 4 people who have to collect coins throughout the journey through hell which will help them further on in the game.

The set is part of a bigger scheme which is based on all of the three books. The first part, which is the one I designed, is Hell, the second is Purgatory and the third is Paradise. As the two teams complete the first they will go on to the next one. Whoever completes Paradise with the most coins wins the game. In Hell the challenges are more physical, in Purgatory and Paradise more logical and mathematical. The coins, therefore, can be used for clues in the later parts of the game.

Dante Alighieri divides Hell in 9 circles where souls are punished in different ways. The logic of the game is the same but I’ve chosen just 5 circles due to space restrictions, if the game was set in a bigger studio the full 9 circles could be used. Each challenge is based on one of the punishments.

1^st. Circle 2. The Lustful: blown forever by storm winds.

One member of each team has to compete against the other trying to collect as many coins as possible while being blown by very strong winds. There will be obstacles behind which they can hide for up to 2 seconds. The coins will be put in different places and the person has to reach them and bring them back to the team.

2^nd. Circle 3. The Gluttons: discomfort, lying in filth and mud.

One member at a time will cross the tank filled with mud, slime and very thick stuff so it will be very hard to move. The coins will be positioned in different places in the tank. The person has to reach the coins and put them in a box in the least possible time as there will be a time limit.

3^rd. Circle 4. The Greedy: pushing rocks, useless labour.

One person of each team has to push big heavy rocks that will work as metal detectors to find the coins buried in sand.

4^th. Circle 6. Heretics: trapped in burning tombs.

Two members of each team play against each other. They will be trapped in a chamber which will be like a laser maze. The lasers will resemble fire which they have to avoid in order to reach the coins in the time limit given. If they don’t manage to get out in time they will be stuck in there until the end of the game at which point the team members can decide whether they want their team mate back or not, if they do they can buy him/her with coins.

5^th. Circle 9. Traitors: frozen in ice.

Two people will compete against each other. They will have their hands tied and they will stand in front of a big container full of ice cubes, some ice cubes have coins frozen within, it is these the contestants must acquire. They can only use their mouths to pick up the ‘coin cubes’ and put them in a nearby box within the given time limit.