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DmC: Devil May Cry, Current Analysis & Impressions.

My most beloved gaming series of all time is CAPCOM’s Devil May Cry, even more so than EPIC’s Gears of War, and that is saying a LOT.  
CAPCOM and Ninja Theory shocked the world (In one way or the other) with the release of a redesigned Dante with a different origin and reason for fighting than our previous badass half-demon in DmC: Devil May Cry.
What I am going to do is analyze from then to now what I like and dislike about the game in terms of graphics, presentation, character portrayal, fighting mechanics, and where I think this game is going with the direction Ninja Theory is taking it (Story Line included). Coming from a hardcore Devil May Cry fan, this is one article of mines you will not want to miss!  


WARNING! 

While this is merely my analysis about CAPCOM’S and Ninja Theory’s DmC: Devil May Cry, I will be comparing the game to previous iterations by using knowledge and situations that are presented in those games (Devil May Cry, Devil May Cry 2, Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening, Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening Special Edition, and Devil May Cry 4) along with the anime “Devil May Cry“.  If you have not played these games, nor watched the anime, and wish not to spoil yourself from some of the information made within this analysis, I would suggest that you go and pick up Devil May Cry: HD CollectionDevil May Cry 4, and watch Devil May Cry before reading!

ANALYZING DmC: DEVIL MAY CRY

Dante holding Ebony & Ivory.
Everyone who knows I game knows I love the Devil May Cry series.  To this day it is among the only Action/Adventure game, and one of the ONLY games period to actually jump the barrier of the Fighting Game and Shooter genres to stay on my gaming shelf without being traded towards something else;  not to mention the fact that I often wish for another release into this prominent, over-the-top series.  So, when the first trailer t
Since this game was said to be released by Ninja Theory, DmC: Devil May Cry, many people, including myself are skeptical about the game in itself and Ninja Theory’s ability to handle such a well loved IP (That and CAPCOM’s decisions as of lately, do not get me started on Megaman Legends 3 or Megaman Universe).  I had mixed feelings with this game over the period of time since its first announcement, so I will be talking about my feelings, hopes, aspirations this game needs to strive for, and the overall verdict of how I feel now since its first announcement.

FIRST TRAILER, FIRST DESPAIR

The hype that swells within me when I hear of a new Devil May Cry announced is second to none in my book, anxiously awaiting for Devil May Cry 5 and it seemed as though my prayers were finally answered!  What will we see in this story?  The true origin of what happened to Vergil in Devil May Cry 3:  Dante’s Awakening and the mystery behind Nero Angelo from Devil May Cry 1?  How about the link between Nero with Vergil’s Sword “Yamato” from Devil May Cry 4 that made Dante say, “Keep it in the family”?  Will we finally know what happens after Dante defeats a partially summoned “Argosax the Chaos/Despair Embodied” and is stuck in hell in Devil May Cry 2?…Well, none of that was even close.

This trailer starts off with a man talking about a “Young Offenders Rehabilitation Program”, obviously interrogating someone in a manner not fitting that of a normal adolescent.  Someone smoking a cigarette is in the very next scene, and you can only guess that this is the person we previously saw in chains being interrogated.  After some lackluster gun play against these marionette-like enemies, we get more talking and then more lackluster game play with a weapon that is seemingly able to transform itself at will.  Right after this mystery person throws a car via his weapon at the last wave of marionette creatures… I am shocked by what I see; one black gun, one white gun (Any Devil May Cry fan can tell you these are Ebony and Ivory) and then this mystery person utters the words, “My name is Dante”.  Finishing off the trailer he looks to be laying on a Batman-style gargoyle with the moon in the background, smoking a cigarette.  Anger surges through me like I have never known as I proclaim, “What the fuck?!”.

Proof by the comments that shrouded the YouTube page, many people were also angered that Devil May Cry’s flagship character, Dante, had been reduced to a seemingly delinquent teenager who resembled the Emo culture by appearance and dress.  Many people had an outcry by what they were seeing and thought that CAPCOM had reached the point of no return by trusting Ninja Theory to make this game, also wondering why CAPCOM seemingly moved more and more towards “Westernizing” their games rather than staying true to their Japanese roots (A lot of people enjoyed Dragon’s Dogma, but wish it was more towards an anime-style in how they portrayed the characters rather than realistic like most do over here in the United States).  I was also among those who were angered beyond belief at what I saw.  Dante has white hair, even in Marvel vs Capcom 3 one of his quotes was, “No, my hair’s always been white.  Why do you ask?”, so why in the hell is his hair black here?!

This trailer did not leave the best taste in my mouth and left a pretty sour one in most other people’s; what had CAPCOM done to my favorite game series of all-time? My favorite male gaming character of all-time?  Well, one thing for sure happened, all my hopes were shot down and the future was looking quite bleak.

 MORE FUEL FOR THE DOUBT FIRE 

Fan-made comparison photo of Tameem Antoniades and DmC’s Dante.

If you cannot tell by this point I am not at all happy by what I saw in the first trailer, and things only got worse when they interviewed Ninja Theory’s Creative Director Tameem Antoniades who basically said in an interview with 1UP, “But you know what was cool 12 years ago isn’t cool anymore”.  Wait what?  Old Dante is not cool anymore?  Even more than that, he said, “If Dante, dressed as he was, walked into any bar outside of Tokyo, he’d get laughed out”.  When I saw this statement I was suddenly upset, especially when I saw that he seemingly dressed “New Dante” in clothing after him and gave him a look after himself and defined that as “Cool”, thus defining himself as “Cool”, which I think not to be the case.  Also, I am pretty sure that Dante would get laughed out at any bar he would plan to attend, especially if he went into anything a grown man should walk into, this just did not make sense to me.

At this point I was shaking my head and thinking, “All right, I guess CAPCOM has really messed up and put their faith into the wrong people’s hands”.  Even more than that, I was even more shocked at how Ninja Theory managed to even talk CAPCOM into letting them recreate one of their most beloved franchises (Then again, I was talking about that whole, Westernization thing CAPCOM had been bastardizing their games with as of late).  If you went on other websites and forums, including GameFAQ’s and NeoGAF just to name a few, people were upset about what Ninja Theory were producing and were already shunning Tameem as being the “cancer” infecting the Devil May Cry franchise.

Well, after taking all this information into account and then placing it together: DmC: Devil May Cry is not going to include my favorite gaming character of all-time (In his original form), the creative director behind Ninja Theory is an idiot who thinks he is cool and wants to put his alter ego in digital form, and that it was going to be an even longer wait for a decent Devil May Cry game to come out once CAPCOM realizes this was all a big mistake.  With this I hoped things would drastically improve and lead towards something better, but truthfully in a sense I did not want it to work.  Being such a fanboy of the original Dante and Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening on Playstation 2 being my all-time favorite game, I did not want to see such a beloved character change (How do you think fans would feel if Mario, Sonic, or even Link from Legend of Zelda was made to look entirely different?).  While this game could very well to be something more, right now it showed me nothing and I was not up for giving it any love whatsoever.

To want to be apart of the greatness that is “Devil May Cry” is one thing, but to completely reinvent it with the thought that one of the most badass characters in the history of gaming is just “Not cool” any longer is enough to make me think Ninja Theory is nothing more than a privileged child given a gift they do not truly know the value of and requires further maturity as to not ruin it.  If they would have said, “We want to do our own take on the Devil May Cry universe and prove to the fans our vision of the series can also be relevant” I could understand, but to talk ill of the masterpiece you are attempting to “make new” sickened me to no end as a fan.

NEW LOOK & GAME PLAY INTRODUCTION



Not too sure if this was the first trailer showing off the redesign of the “New” Dante, or the game play, but it is the first that I saw of either one.  Dante looks more normal and not drug-addicted or “Emo” in this trailer.  A lot of people commented on the conception that Dante’s not a “Model”.  So, I do think he attempts to have the pretty boy look going on, and yet I feel like this is a huge step up from his recent showing in the very first trailer (I showed you above).  Also, even in Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds when “Old” Dante is fighting Dead Pool he says, “And where are you from?  The land of the Fabio’s?” in the comic book that came with the Collector’s Edition (And the comic pages shown during Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3), so this look might fit in this iteration, though I still would prefer the original.  In addition to a new look, it seems as though he has three different weapons he is using: His normal sword, a scythe, and something that resembles a heavy axe.  Some of his moves seem to have different properties, such as being able to pull an enemy over like Nero’s Devil Bringer from Devil May Cry 4, a scythe attack which resembled “Prop Shredder” a move for the “Sword Master Style” in Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening, and the axe weapon knocked an opponent back to the air.  Later on Ninja Theory confirms what I thought by saying he has a normal weapon (His sword, Rebellion), an Angelic Weapon (Scythe), and a Demonic Weapon (Heavy Axe), and of course Dante’s normal trademark handguns, Ebony & Ivory.

The game play is reminiscent of the old Devil May Cry games, more specifically Devil May Cry 3 & 4, but only to a certain degree in my opinion.  The music was not loud enough in the background which allows you hear the clunky sound effects which could have been a lot better and that the music they chose which I do not believe fits the originals of Devil May Cry at all.  Without the proper music a atmosphere cannot be placed.  But then again, one of the main atmospheric things in the realm of DMC has always been the macabre and occult settings that seem to take be the backdrops for the action: A church, demonic tower, hell itself; but here it is taking place in an everyday city that has been warped; not toi much the dark and dreary environments we are use to fighting in; that and it is hard to see Dante as actually “Dante”, who is not even sporting his trademark red trench coat any longer (And red is my favorite color so this was immediately noticeable).

Not only that, but featuring this particular scene, other gameplay and cinematic trailers appeared to show what everything was about; including various live streams by CAPCOM.  Seems the city itself is coming after Dante and “Limbo” is where he is being pulled into in order to combat demons (Which to me does not make sense since Limbo is supposedly the place at which unbaptized children souls dwell or those that were righteous yet died before Christ could come down from Heaven and free men of their sins).  Even though the girl cannot fight, she is seen going nearly transparent when Dante is pulled into Limbo, maybe this is dictating the planes separating between the two worlds and the fact she could hear him but not see him probably means things look completely different from his side than her’s.  This concept seemed quite good and could actually spell a meaningful story for the Devil May Cry series (Something it has not previously had, even though it had quite the good amount of action the only game with a relevant story seemed to be the original, and even that is not what I would call phenomenal).  The story aspect did get me a bit hype, even though somethings were executed very poorly (Like him kicking the eye camera, very cheesy); but an engrossing story aspect was something I would love to see take place, something that actually makes you root for the new Dante instead of being disgusted by him.

This shows that Ninja Theory are coming up with good concepts, however, it is not quite there yet.  Luckily Dante looks is changed, though not optimized, looks a load better than it did originally and shows that Ninja Theory did not turn a blind eye to the public’s view of their version of “Dante” or otherwise known as Tameem’s alter ego.  If things continue to improve I believed we could possibly see a lot more, but at this point I was still skeptical but my mind was more open to the idea of a new Dante and a new concept for the series as a whole.

THIS GAME MIGHT ACTUALLY BE GOOD?!

New trailer for DmC: Devil May Cry surfaced again, and I was not too sure what I was going to see; probably something that was going to add to my growing dislike for the game the more I thought about it and watched what I previously had seen.  Though, then I seen something about “The Order” trailer and had premiered on E3 and my opinion shifted on exactly how good this game might actually be.
This trailer shows Dante is working in tandem with a group called “The Order” which to me symbolizes the internet activist group “Anonymous”, simply by the way the guy talks about liberation from the demons as Anonymous does the world from corporate and government influence and censorship (Or at least they attempt to make statements through DDoS attacks on a large scale to take down websites and databases).   Dante punches the guy and writes “Fuck you” on the paper, and at this point I love Dante’s personality.  Dante was always kind of laid back and cool in Devil May Cry, Devil May Cry 2, and Devil May Cry 4, Even the anime.  However, my favorite Devil May Cry, and game of all time, is Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening, and in this game he is younger and is a lot more arrogant and pompous, taunting enemies and full of himself and this version of Dante reminds me exactly of how he would be as a rebellious teenager.  Not only that, but the club scene was pretty fantastic looking and the guy at the end seems quite intimidating as a final boss calling himself a “God” (Which I am guessing is this version’s Mundus because of the third eye in the middle of his forehead).  Dante shattering the glass at the very end also was pretty bad ass in my opinion (All this is aided by the song “Sent to Destroy” by Combichrist.  Though, the music video also seems like an additive for this game because the guy talking about how to have a “better tomorrow” reminds me of the news anchor of the “Raptor News Network” who is also seen as a boss in DmC: Devil May Cry).

Seen within this trailer (Not for the first time, but maybe of him transforming) is Devil Trigger.  Devil Trigger from Devil May Cry generally makes Dante Invincible for a period or time, or greatly reduces damages done to him while simultaneously refilling his life and makes him stronger.  In this version, it seems to slow down time (Like Witch Time in Bayonetta), cause everything to go in black and white except his jacket which turns its normal red (Like in previous versions) and turns his hair white.  It seems like he also hits fairly harder than he does last time and it may launch opponent’s into the air upon activation (Weak ones anyway).

Besides just the fact that Ninja Theory can put together a decent trailer, it also gives a glimpse that there will be ties to another organization that is using Dante as a weapon and gives an alternate agenda and possibly another antagonist besides the guy we see at the end of the trailer (If they are doing more than just trying to eradicate demons in order to further their own motives).  Also, the graphics in this game seem as though they will be the best of any Devil May Cry game, it does make sense considering recent technology but also that a lot of care was put into this game one way or the other, not to mention the story in itself may actually be something interesting which is a twist from the previous games where you cared more about how close you were getting to the end and how beast the next boss was going to be compared to how the story would turn out (Never was the strong suit of this series, as I said before).

Couple of things about this trailer that I was really excited about when I first saw it: Stylishness of the whole thing, the lush environment of the carnival scene which seems to be vibrant and full of colors, exceptionally large enemies to combat with  a lot of things reminiscent of the old Devil May Cry Games, at least in terms of combat.  
First off, the fact that he was putting on his clothes while everything was floating shows that he did it within the fraction of seconds the car was airborne from being pulled and still within range for him to jump out and still make it to the ground.  The significance of this is because I could see Dante actually doing something like this because it is something that I consider to be “Stylish”, which is something Dante has always been all about.  Even grabbing his guns by doing a back flip and going into the moving Ferris Wheel in order to nab his jacket (No idea why all his weapons are scattered, but they may explain this later).  The significance of this is that it does seem natural in this trailer and not forced like some of Dante’s antics during Devil May Cry 4 (Which I found to be a lot more cheesy than stylish and cool).

The environmental perception of people of different planes show that Demons caused the Ferris wheel to come off and used it as a weapon against Dante, yet it did not appear that way in the human world shows that things in “limbo” effect were humans exist yet they are not able to see it and think it is an accident or act of terrorist,(Saying that demons walk amongst humans and we are unaware of their presence and existence, which is something most religious people believe of angels, ghosts, demons, and other supernatural entities which is very modern in comparison to the representation of demons in the Devil May Cry anime).  Beyond this is even the colors that they used, which is brighter and more lively compared to previous games (Much like how Gears of War 3‘s levels are compared to that of Gears of War).  Though, this also has a bit of a sadistic feel because it is warped and in limbo with demons every where, this is the first environment besides the club scene in “The Order” trailer that I have been looking forward to playing.

Now, the thing that takes the cake for me is how reminiscent this whole scene is of Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening; a lot of people may not have caught some of this stuff, but I did.  First off, he’s fighting in nothing but his wife beater and has to go back and get his jacket (At least that is what I am assuming), which reminds me of when he was barged in on out of nowhere in the very first first Act of DMC 3 and had to fight with no shirt and later got back his jacket.  Also, at (1:35) Dante is seen doing Million Stabs into Stinger, something he can also do in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3.  At (1:39) he is launching an opponent into the air and bringing them back down to the ground with Helm Breaker.  Dante also throws his sword and it comes back to him.  Even though I believe they need to improve the animation at this part, (1:42) is undoubtedly Dante’s “Round Trip” move where he throws his sword and it returns.  The icing on the cake is at (1:47), the part where he’s saying, “My Mother.  I don’t know my mother but if you’re calling me a son-of-a-bitch you wouldn’t be the first!”, he is standing and the camera is fixated sideways, but he has the exact same stance as Dante on the boxart of Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening.

These two trailers completely drove me to wanting to see more of this game and began to actually get me excited for it.  Leaps and bounds above what we had originally saw and I am not hating this new Dante as much (Note, I did not say “like” I said not hate as much), though, he did look pretty cool smirking after he knocked out the bouncer during “The Order” trailer, and at the very end of the “Public Enemy” trailer.

VERGIL’S APPEARENCE & A MORE SERIOUS DmC


Vergil is Dante’s Twin brother who first made his appearance known in the third video game as the main antagonist.  Many people also remember that he was a playable character when they came out with Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition.  It is also rumored that he is Nero Angelo from Devil May Cry and that he is probably Nero’s father or is reincarnated as Nero in Devil May Cry 4.  When I heard of Vergil’s announcement trailer from my friend Lilli I had no idea what to think, but before I even watched it I had mixed feelings because I never was a fan of Vergil to begin with (Even less now that he is a damn powerhouse in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3), but I clicked the button to watch it anyway.

They show that Vergil is the masked guy resembling anonymous in “The Order” trailer, which I think takes away a lot of the mystery about who it is and also drastically changes Vergil’s character.  Vergil, if anything, is a lot more proud than Dante is and would not go to his brother for help and would attempt to achieve everything solo (Kind of like Dante’s own pride).  Also, the fact he is aiding mankind is different than when was attempting to open a portal to hell in Devil May Cry 3 (I also did not see him wearing the other amulet).  Also, at the trailer he saying something along the lines of, “Putting our lives in each other’s hands, completely” and the way he looks at Dante lets me know he may have ulterior motives, but that is not like Vergil to not have everything laid out to begin with (But this could turn out to him actually wanting to rule the Demons rather than him actually wanting to protect humanity).  Also though, it makes you wonder how Kat is involved.

This trailer in itself may have disappointed a lot of Vergil fans, and while I have never liked Vergil, I could at least respect what he represented in the series as far as being Dante’s true opposite and wanting to actually use the power his father, Sparda, left him.  In this version of Vergil I do not see many traits that he has left (And I think his hair should have been slicked back instead of how it looks in here); though he does portray the serious demeanor he had last time, “And what else were you planning on doing with your life?”, but to actually manipulate Dante into achieving his goals (By calling him a “Weapon” in The Order trailer) is something uncharacteristic of him as he seems more along the lines of “If you want something done right, do it yourself”.

Though, with Kat being shot and Vergil asking that question to Dante, it appears as though this is going to be a very serious game despite the cockiness and arrogance from Dante we have seen in previous trailers.  I think this is something to be excited about as long as the game is good, if it is not we could have something disastrous on our hands as other Devil May Cry’s have focused mainly on stylish, original game play and the “cool” factor of Dante rather than major emphasis on the story or character development and interpersonal relationships between characters (Though, it would drive you more into the plot but this series normally leaves those elements secondary).  This change, again, could be very worth while and make it the best story to date but it could also prove to be a flop and horrendous when it all comes into the open.

CURRENT STORY ANALYSIS

Kat and Dante

Llet me go ahead and recap so far what I know about the story and what might possibly be the plot of this series so far.  I want to lay out the concrete things we know thus far and compare it to previous games and then I will speculate on exactly what these things might lead to in the future.

Dante is still the son of Sparda, no idea if he was still a Demonic Knight who protected humanity or not (Which may not be the case because humans seem to not know demons actually exist), though, his mother, Eva, is an Angel this time around.  We know that Bob Bargas is the anchor of the “Ratpor News Network” which is spreading misleading propaganda about Dante and is making him out to be a wanted terrorist in the plane that humans exist, event though the damage that happens is a result of fighting demons who are after him that are controlled by the End Game Boss (Which is probably the guy who calls himself a “God” at the end of “The Order” trailer).  Not to mention Kat may be a love interest of Dante’s at least, she’s Vergil’s second hand man since you find out in his release trailer he is the boss of “The Order” (Which so far only looks like a 3-man team).  Limbo contorts the environment but it does not seem to actually try and kill Dante (Though it does seem to alter itself into more dangerous shapes to be more hazardous) rather the demons who inhabit Limbo do.  At one point and time Kat ends up getting kidnapped and Dante and Vergil must combine forces to save her, though it looks as Vergil does not want to do that.  Dante wants to save her because it appears that she knows him and finds him for Vergil, who remembers Dante and knows he has power and wants him to cooperate with him.

As far as the previous story a lot of things are different.  First off, Eva was a human and not an Angel; this is the most significant change in the story, even more so than his appearance.  Dante and Vergil are Half-Human, Half-Demon though look fully human unless in demonic form.  The fact that they are know acknowledging the existence of Angels should bring about instances where he has to confront angelic opponent’s like in Bayonetta or maybe there is a war going on between Heaven and Hell and earth is caught in the middle and he is fighting on behalf of humanity.  Vergil’s attitude towards Dante and the demons invading the human realm; even the introduction of Kat (As we do not see Lady nor Trish anywhere in sight) as a possible love interest for Dante.  I am sure that the guy resembling Mundus is probably the head of a major corporation because money is the root of all evil and in “The Order” trailer Vergil said, “Your banking system enslaves us”.  In this, it seems that demons are lurking amongst humans, interacting with them and taking shape rather than appearing in our world in their demonic forms and trying to rule it this way (If anything they are trying to say demons exist among us in this modern day and age and we are subject to their influence because they are operating within our daily life in ways we do not see as abnormal).  As far as the first trailer with the “Young Offenders Rehabilitation Program” I do not think that will be part of the story for the simple reason they have changed nearly everything since then, but it very well could be for the reason the news anchor says he has a record of physical violence in the Boss Fight.  Also, Vergil’s hair is white and with them being twins it means Dante’s hair could also be the same color.  Either Dante has died his hair white in order to “Fit in” or, as Devil Trigger shows, his hair is only white once he has reached his full demonic potential, which could happen towards the end of the game and his hair will become permanently white; which means all this time Vergil would have had access to his full powers.

This is all a good premise and it makes everything more realistic but it also makes you worry when Devil May Cry was about fighting literal demons of lore rather than those that exist in today’s society.  I am worried that when everything happens and if they can save the world, how will they know that Dante is not a terrorist?  It will be very hard to prove that he is not when his face is shrouded all over the world.  The only way I can see this happening is if demons actually come to the human realm through a portal and it is broadcast that Dante is fighting the demons and he gives an explanation as far as to what they are, why they are there, and why he is fighting for the sake of humanity and not for acts of terrorism.  Even beyond this we have no idea at this point who the true boss is and the origin of Dante as to why everyone is after him; it could because everyone bears a grudge against Sparda and wants his son dead, or it could be he began to interfere with their affairs unknowingly and got mixed in with everything without much regard to the scale of the situation until he joins The Order.

Additionally, I am also confused about all of this (Ninja Theory’s version0 because in the anime Dante was apparently known as “Anthony” and lived in a small town with his mothers when demons attacked and killed her; apparently this was his motivation for becoming a demon hunter in the first place, to kill every single demon that threatened humanity because his mother died (Also, the reason he has such a fondness for Trish is because she reminds him of his mother because she looks exactly like her).  Though, “Anthony” may have simply been an alias he went by because his mother did not want anyone to know (That may be disguised as a demon) that he was the son of Sparda.  Also, Trish and Lady not present completely ruins the old back story entirely if Mundus is the main boss of this game; and if he is not in the game and Vergil turns out to be the main boss we have something of a new origin story which is meant to replace Devil May Cry 3 (Which is not good for me) and could spark a sequel to DmC: Devil May Cry 2; that and we do not have a strong female character who can hold her own, which we saw in Devil May Cry with Trish, Devil May Cry 2 with Lucia, and Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening with Lady. Even if the ladies of DMC are not the main heroes of the game, it is good to have a strong female presence, for the only time a female has appeared in a central role and not been able to hold her own in anyway is in Devil May Cry 4 when Nero has to save Kyrie, but that is more suited to  the fact she is Nero’s love interest and this type of thing is not suited to Dante’s personality (He fought Lady for the right to pursue Arkham and he fought Lucia for the right to fight Argosax).  However, this may make for a dramatic turn later on and may propel Dante forward even more and give him the ability to find his “real” self, or the fact he makes his hair turn permanently white will be the result of her death by the main boss of the game, whoever that is.

CURRENT COMBAT ANALYSIS

Dante fighting at the Carnival, same as in the “Public Enemy” Trailer.

This right here is the bread-and-butter of the Devil May Cry Series, the gameplay (Aside from the lead character being a total badass, of course).  So how the mechanics work in this game and the type of gameplay that can be accomplished by it will sum up, as a whole, if it has replay value and if you enjoy the game enough to overlook any flaws the story may present or any uneasiness about actually picking the game up in playing it, at least for me.  Even more than this is the fact gameplay has continued to improve in every single Devil May Cry; the most prominent changes being in game three and four; and I am surprised that Ninja Theory, while not making any groundbreaking new changes, has not strayed far from Devil May Cry’s roots.

As you can see from this game play HERE, the combat system is reminiscent of the old games in how it operates.  One thing I find to be different is they seem like they are showing in-game points from the type of combo you do, which is a first for the series (Or so I believe).  Also, during the combat you see the typical lettering of a combo, from D to SSS.  There was also something mentioned in other play throughs about a universal “Launch” button so that you can knock enemies into the air (Similar to Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3‘s “S” button) so you do not have to worry about the camera angles in order to know which direction to press in to launch an opponent (I admit that this is a welcome change).  Also, he seems to be switching between four weapons during that game play; The Demonic Axe and Eryx, the Angelic Scythe, and the regular weapon Rebellion (His sword).

You also see a weapon call the “Eryx”, a pair of demonic gloves (Which remind me of boxing gloves) that have fire come out when you punch and seem of the “Heavy Weapon” variety with its charged attacks; reminds me of DmC: Devil May Cry’s version of “Beowulf” from Devil May Cry 3 & 4.  Also, there is going to be a shotgun (You can tell because they offer a skin as a pre-order bonus) and will be other weapons as well; no idea if these will be original or maybe reminiscent of other weapons from the other series (If they bring back something, I am personally hoping to see Pandora from Devil May Cry 4 and the Kalina Ann from Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening).

With the Eryx he got the Tyrant Launcher, which is a fully charged move that knocks your opponent into the air.  The significance of having that move shown means there are specific moves per weapon just like the old Devil May Cry games (Like Rebellion having “Macabre Dance” and the Cereberus Nun-Chaku having “Satellite” in DMC 3).  We can tell this (And that there might be style moves) because the Angelic Scythe weapon has something similar to “Prop Shredder” from Devil May Cry 3, there is a ricochet type shot using Ebony and Ivory, Rebellion seems to have Million Stab, Stinger, and Round Harvest, and there will possibly be more as you level up (Also, no idea if the double jump he did with Dante is standard or you have to buy it; you always bought it in other Devil May Cry games).  If this is the case, we may be open to even more stylish moves and combo video worthy options.  More over, they also started “Environmental kills” such as being able to knock enemies off the stages and you get more points for doing this, though, if you can knock them off I am sure they can knock you off which presents another hazard into the series.

The only problem is that in that game play video I automatically assumed that everything was on “normal”.  He said it was on “Hard” and mentioned that if it looked easy, do not worry cause he has been practicing.  To me, he looked a bit above what a normal person would be doing while playing but nothing too stylish whatsoever, it appeared as though the difficulty was too easy, even on hard (Something to cater to newer players, which is something that seems to be trending nowadays).  I am hoping that this game is good and is also CHALLENGING, and I mean from the get-go; by the time you get to Dante-Must-Die difficulty (If there is one) you should be wanting to rip your eyeballs out of your sockets.  Even more than that I am worried about the types of enemies you will encounter.  Personally, myself, I care more about humanoid type enemies than monster-type enemies, for example: I would rather fight enemies that resemble Hell Sloth in Devil May Cry 3 than something akin to the “Rage” rat enemy we seen in the game play.

OTHER THINGS

Dante standing in front of a Divinity Statue.

There are other things in DmC: Devil May Cry which I think need to catch everyone’s attention, for instance: There seems to be a return of the “Divinity Statue” which occurs during nearly every level of a game and right before bosses which allows you to level up skills and weapons (Appears that it is back!).  Also, there seems to be something called “Lost Souls” which is an item that frees souls trapped in Limbo.  Within the game play demo I showed above in the combat section, he found a Large Vital Star and a Green Orb (We know that Large Vital Star increases a big portion of life and Green Orb increase your life gauge from previous games).  This means that we will probably see the other signature items like Devil Star, Orb Fragments, Purple Orbs, etc.  This is cool and significant because it adds one of the things we know Devil May Cry by and actually may make me feel like this is DMC despite everything that has changed (It completely makes you think “Wow, this is DMC”).

Amazon.com is offering a “Bone Pack” which lets you craft “Bone Weapons” out of the Scythe, Shotgun, and Axe; and a “Orb Harvester” so you can upgrade weapons faster.  Gamestop is offering a “Samurai Pack” which lets you transform the same weapon into “Samurai Devastators” and 3 free upgrade points to boost any weapon or skill perk he may have.

What this is saying to me you may have something like custom “Skins” you can apply to weapons, similar to the camo from Call of Duty, or these could just be something totally different that adds to the power of the weapons or even changes the properties (Strength/Toughness/Weakness towards enemy) dependent upon which one you choose.  Also, they say 3 “Upgrade Points”, in the past you used Red Orbs to enhance moves and abilities; maybe they’re moving towards something of a leveling system rather than using red orbs; or these could be something that are just bonus outside of the actual Devil May Cry typical realm and is nothing more than an exclusive perk.  These do not worry me, it may add a bit of customization to the mix and also it may make you play the game longer if you have the ability to earn all DLC content in-game.  Though, most people I have saw were wishing that Dante’s old self as a skin would reappear in this game (Though, I would not rule out that possibility after beating the game once).

Also, something else I noticed was that the life gauge for this game is white where as all of the other DMC’s were green, the Devil Trigger bar is still purple but seem to be in squares like the life and not in round circles that fade like the other games.

As you can see here, this version of Dante will also appear in Sony’s “Playstation All-Stars: Battle Royale”, and he seems like one of the best characters in the roster.

THE VERDICT

Dante in Devil Trigger

DmC: Devil May Cry originally had all the hate in the world from me because of how Ninja Theory originally presented the character I had come to love and respected as the most badass every created; but eventually they ended up earning my respect on the whole “A for Effort” theory, then later I actually want to play the game.

The story and plot in this game could be the best that any Devil May Cry has ever had since it focuses so deeply on it, but then again it could easily be a blunder where everything starts off good/great and then ends up with a ending like the anime Soul Eater (Terrible).  I am just hoping that the emphasis on the story is not in vain because I like the tone that is given so far.

The combat seems pretty good, though, environmental kills and the fact that hard mode does not look hard at all may be a turn off for me since I loved Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening and hated Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition for the simple reason they toned down the difficulty in the SE (They released the Japan version  with the difficulty set to “Normal” and released the U.S. version with Japan’s “Hard” as our “Normal”, a lot of which non-hardcore fans did not approve of).  While I am fully aware you can always boost up the difficulty, the original difficulty makes me want to continue to play the game, especially since I always play games on their original settings starting out (Unless it is a shooting game like Call of Duty, I always put it on Veteran).

While this game has a lot to prove, I think it is beginning to make headway and I am looking forward to Ninja Theory’s continued improvement on the game as well as what the next trailer will bring.  I cannot see it as Devil May Cry fully yet, it still has the iconic names and some of the things that make Devil May Cry, but rather than revamp everything it seems like it built everything differently and from the ground up, gave it a new look, and still call it the same thing; not going to work (But the Divinity statues and orbs help a lot, trust me, I can feel it a bit now).  So, I am looking forward to this game now and any hardcore DMC fan should be as well; well I am saddened still by the change of Dante/Vergil and no Trish or Lady, the game does not look bad at all: Good graphics, stylish, and a compelling storyline (Maybe).

Thanks for reading this analysis of DmC: Devil May Cry.  Sayonara!


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About The Author


RoK the Reaper
A serious gamer & hardcore otaku who loves anything gaming, anime, or manga! I hope to bring you the best content for these subjects I love in the form of news, reviews, interviews, and in-depth editorials! さよなら!

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3 Replies to “DmC: Devil May Cry, Current Analysis & Impressions.”

  1. Well dude im sure you are a casual gamer and not a "hardcore fan" of the series. sorry but i cant accept these changes regardless on how the game looks so no im not wasting my money for this crap.

  2. A hardcore fan is someone who is loyal to the series and will make the best of any changes to the IP as long as they keep the core elements in place. Dante is still a half-demon, the combat is still there, and has trace elements of the old DMC there.

    The fact I have played and evaluated every game and the anime, and have written a comprehensive review on the article shows that I am a fan of the series and willing to stick it out. If the game looks good, paying it because Dante looks different will make you miss out on a good game.

  3. I think you've analysed the game really well 🙂 I'm currently writing an analysis on one of the games for an essay; you've definately opened my eyes to the themes across the series! Well done

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