Ninja Theory’s Tameem Antoniades has spilled the beans on Dante’s controversial new makeover in the studios’ upcoming hack n’ slash outing DmC: Devil May Cry, revealing it’s all about making the demon slayer “cool” again.

Capcom and Ninja Theory lifted the wraps off the new title at the Tokyo Game Show last week, showcasing a completely new look for the iconic protagonist, much to the surprise of fans worldwide.

However, Antoniades revealed that the move was necessary in order to keep things fresh, noting Dante’s previous design would no longer be perceived as cool, going so far as to saying he’d be laughed at if he were to walk in to a bar in Tokyo.

"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."

"But, you know, what was cool 12 years ago, I think that was when the first game came out, isn't cool anymore,” he said (note that the Ninja Theory dev was slightly off in saying the original game launched 12 years ago – it actually hit stores in 2001, making it nine years old).

"What Devil May Cry did when it launched was it brought everything that was great about action cinema like the fashion, music -- it was like a cultural melting pot -- and 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."

DmC: Devil May Cry is due for release on PS3 and Xbox 360. No release date as of yet.

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