"That little black haired punk isn't the real Dante" was usually the answer. I know, I think I said it once or twice. I grew up with the Dante and this new faux slayer of demons wasn't welcome. Now I feel stupid.
On January 15th, Capcom published the newest iteration of the genre-defining series; a reboot done by British developer Ninja Theory, the same folks who gave us Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Lo and behold, this isn't the worst thing that has ever happened to gamers. Actually, it's good. Damn good.
Despite all of the hate spewed towards the developer, specifically the director, Tameem Antoniades, they proved that the franchise is in good hands. And you know what? I'm glad that Ninja Theory didn't give in to all the people crying to get their old series back. It's different now and, I think, that is ultimately for the better.
Change is refreshing.
Of course, that doesn't mean that this release is without flaws.
Gameplay -- 7.5/10
After playing Enslaved, which I quite enjoyed, I was a little on the fence about how Ninja Theory could handle the combat and gameplay side of DmC. The combat in Enslaved was stiff and very repetitive and I feared that would seep into the Devil May Cry franchise, but it seems that Ninja Theory's collaboration with Capcom really paid off.
The combat here is very smooth and the controls aren't hard at all to familiarize yourself with. This leads to a great overall feel, but unfortunately, NT decided to tone down both the depth and difficulty of this release to open it up to a wider audience. While not necessarily a bad thing, it's a bit jarring coming from the older DMC games.
Throughout the game Dante gets access to both angelic and demonic weapons which can be switched on the fly. This opens the floodgates for a lot of basic, on-the-go, death-dealing creativity, but the lack of moves with the weapons (especially of the demonic variety) really limit the maximum potential of the combat engine.
That said, the combat is still extremely satisfying and should please anybody that isn't looking to make DmC combo videos for Youtube.
The hard lock-on system from the previous installments has been ditched in lieu of a new automatic lock-on, which tends to work surprisingly well. Small tilts of the analog stick influence the direction of Dante's attacks and grapples, and there are really only one or two circumstances where not having a hard lock-on is missed; Damn Witches.
The freedom of movement with the new lock-on system was more than welcome and I feel like if I had to choose between better movement and a couple targeting problems or more precise targeting and clunkier movement (like in the older games,) I would have to choose the former.
As expected, Ninja Theory added a lot of platforming to the franchise and it is SSSensational. Using Angel Lifts and Demon Pulls, Dante is able to manipulate the world around him to more easily get from point A to point B. Not only are the controls intuitive but the shifts in environment are a hell of a spectacle.
Design -- 9/10
Whoever is responsible for the level design in DmC deserves to be immortalized in stone. Seriously, it's that good. Much of the game takes place in Limbo, which is not unlike an alternate dimension where demons run rampant and gravity just isn't quite right. This place, though, is sentient and it's after you, kind of. Because of this, the stages will twist and contort to halt Dante's progression -- And yes, by 'stages' I mean the walls and floors of the city our (new) favorite demon hunter is walking around in.
This level design mechanic takes the aforementioned platforming and elevates it to one of the game's key strengths. It also puts this game into a league of its own as far as everything else concerning level designing goes.
Did I mention that the entire world is vibrant and uses a beautiful range of textures and colors? No? Well it does. It also talks to Dante and, speaking of vibrant and colorful, uses some really choice words to hint to him that he won't be making it far.
Well, at least he wouldn't if the enemies weren't so damn easy.
While most of the enemies fit into the modernized DmC world as far as appearances go, their actions and behavior certainly aren't befitting of the DMC universe. They are dumb and offer little challenge. Especially the bosses who, with the exception of a guy named
For the sake of not spoiling much, I'll refrain from further detail on the enemy design.
Characters, Plot, and Writing -- 7/10
There has been a ton of controversy surrounding the characters and story of this game. A lot of people are upset that Dante has changed so much. He's no longer a cheesy by-product of 90's leftovers and instead we find him as we find many super-characters since the reboot of the Batman series -- Gritty and realistic.
It suits Dante, if you ask me. We still get a cocky, big-mouthed, demon slaying son of a bitch, but without all of the dated dialogue and poor (albeit entertaining) writing. That's a win for everyone.
The dialogue, though laced with obscenities, isn't at all bad, but the superb voice acting and industry-best facial animations make it seem a bit better than it is. There are a few incredible lines, however.
The plot leaves a little to be desired -- There are definitely interesting ideas flying about, but there are too many untold elements that prevent it from being something better than it is. Basically, demons are playing the role of Big Brother and humans are being kept like livestock, brainwashed by the media and energy drinks so that the Demon King, Mundus, has souls to feed on and it's up to Dante, Kat, and Vergil to put an end to it.
Nothing groundbreaking and at times it seems a bit preachy, but it's a great deal better than what we see in most games; Something I am very excited to see evolving, by the way. The ending leaves a ton of wiggle-room for a sequel, which I hope Ninja Theory will get the chance to do.
TL;DR
- Fluid combat and very fun platforming.
- Some of the best level design in gaming.
- Solid characters, solid dialogue, superb voice acting and facial mocap.
- High replay value.
- New Dante is great, no need to worry!
- A bit short and pretty easy, even on higher difficulties.
- Mostly uninteresting boss battles. (Bob Barbas was amazing, though)
- Preachy plot.
- Flock off, Featherface.
Overall I give this game an 8, because that's how old I was when motorcycles and pizza stopped being cool.
Just kidding, motorcycles and pizza still rock.
Overall Score -- 8 out of 10
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