The demonic tale spun by the Devil May Cry series is fondly loved many a gamer. Its hectic brand of non stop brawling and blasting action has never failed to get our pulses racing.
But this franchise always had a sneaky extra arrow to its proverbial bow. Rather than simply repeating the same old combos to obliterate your enemies, it was all about style. Fancy moves meant higher scores and, in turn, more items to purchase and combos to learn.
Unfortunately the sequels never lived up to the original. We’re hoping the fourth trip into Dante’s world captures the long lost promise of the first game.
They say:
1UP: “Although it dips into the recycling bin a bit too much, Devil May Cry 4 still remains a must play title for action adventure gamers.”
IGN: “It's polished and slick, it's got gargantuan sized gods, nearmusical interludes, and infernal, flaming bosses. It's nothing short of brilliant.”
Official Xbox Magazine: “There’s always something more to strive for, something else to perfect. Bigger style combos, a higher mission grade to obtain, a faster speed run through each level... not to mention just trying to survive it all.”
We say:
For long term fans, here’s a bit of worrying news for you. Dante isn’t the star of Devil May Cry 4.
Before you scream heresy though, hear Capcom out. An astonishingly well scripted opening introduces you to the brand new central character, Nero.
This new kid on the block has a whole heap of powers thanks to his freaky glowing “Devil Bringer” arm. Nero can toss gigantic foes around like we’d throw a tennis ball, plus it’s mighty handy to pull yourself across the huge gaping chasms that litter your way.
The good old combo based combat makes a much welcome return. Just like Dante before him, Nero is pretty tasty with ridiculously large swords, pistols or whatever else comes to hand. As before, style is all. The better you are at despatching your enemies, the bigger the rewards and so the quicker you’ll be unlocking all the good stuff.
It’s not just the gaming rewards that make Devil May Cry 4 a treat to play though. Watching Nero float through the air, scoring combos and obliterating enemies in astonishingly stylish ways is a real treat for the eyes.
That’s not the only form of visual goodness either. Devil May Cry 4 is a real looker with some fantastically animated baddies and some gorgeous backdrops to ogle. Plus the cut scenes and voice acting are right up there with the very best gaming has to offer.
We haven’t even got to the boss battles yet. The first major one - against an immense 5 storey high fire clad enemy - is a stunning start and they get better as the game progresses. They’re all larger than life and every single one is an absolute joy to bash into bloody submission.
OK, so DMC4 isn’t perfect. Long term fans craving something a little different won’t find it here. In fact, if you updated the visuals of the first Devil May Cry and sat the both side by side, you’d be hard pressed to tell which is the newer title. The gameplay certainly hasn’t moved on.
But when it’s all as exciting as this, who really wants something different? It’s wickedly over the top, packed with masses of addictive combat and it looks better than a chocolate syrup drenched Scarlett Johansson. Devil May Cry 4 is a must buy.
Like this? Try these:
Devil May Cry – PS2
The Club – PS3, Xbox 360
Stranglehold – PS3, Xbox 360
FORMAT REVIEWED
Xbox 360
OTHER FORMATS
PS3
POSTED...
Sun 24 Feb at 1:15pm
