Very occasionally a computer game, or even just the idea of one, is enough of a grabber to justify getting the comic book treatment. That’s the case with Hellgate: London
, a collection of the four-issue series based on the as-yet-unreleased video game from the makers of the wildly popular Diablo computer game. In 2020, London serves as the unfortunate entry point into the human world for an armada of slavering demons from some vile Lovecraftian dimension. The always handy Knights Templar (yep, still around, only now equipped with modern weapons and hypermodern armor) try to head off the demons, but no luck, and the city becomes a charnel house. Cut to many years later, and the city is a Terminator
-style wasteland of ashes and bones, while the human resistance continues underground. Much of the plot involves the fragile alliance between the competing human factions, envisioned in strictly medieval fantasy terms. As befitting any game (or soon-to-be game) turned comic, the emphasis is strictly on action, not to mention explicating the different types of characters and weapons likely to be used by players. To that end, Pugh’s artwork is extremely energetic, but Edginton’s text is strictly off the shelf. (July)
