Emo Dante Dishes out the Pain in DmC: Devil May Cry - Preview
by VGChartz Staff , posted on 21 October 2012 / 5,038 Views
One of the games that attracted a large audience at Comic Con was the Devil May Cry reboot. Many Dante, Virgil and Trish cosplayers made their rounds staging fake battles and posing for hundred of pictures yet, (un)surprisingly, no reboot Dantes were in sight. Regardless of how you feel about the new design of the game's main character, DmC: Devil May Cry introduces some interesting new ideas while keeping true to the classic Devil May Cry formula. He may have adopted an emo style, but Dante still dishes out the pain.
Jumping into Dante's new and improved world was visually impressive and entertaining. Slightly more vibrant, yet surreal colors create a different feel compared to the gothic, darker style of the first couple of games. It feels a bit similar to the last entry in the original series, where Nero saw the light of day and the game looked very much like a candy store. Yet, with the surrealness applied, it gives DmC an interesting aesthetic with a very supernatural feel, which works great with the demon-infested cities and the demonic underground that Dante will explore. Though Dante's new look may have much of the gamer community up in arms, the emo style making it even worse for some, the new design fits with the rest of the game's visuals, even if you think he's gonna start crying into song at any minute.
At its core, DmC is very much the next installment in the long running series, where Dante's main combat focus continues to revolve around the use of his sword and Ebony and Ivory (his pistols). On top of his normal attacks, Dante now has two different combat styles he can enter with the use of the two triggers, aptly named Angel and Devil mode. When using the triggers, Dante's sword changes either to a larger hammer or scythe, giving him a whole new list of moves and opportunities to reach a high combo count while keeping his actions fresh.
Angel and Devil modes also grant Dante the ability to use a hookshot-like item that lets him pull enemies in for attacks, pull himself closer to enemies, and utilize the chain to progress through levels by moving platforms or grappling towards unreachable areas. The two additions compliment the game's mechanics and unique playstyle greatly, giving Dante some fresh ways to dispatch the demon army on top of his Devil Trigger Mode (which sees the return of the white hair), as well as creating a more robust experience when traversing each level. Movements are fluid and crisp in order for Dante to achieve those S, SS, and SSS rank combos that fuel combat and keep it stylish, with some great physics behind the game's design that allow for tremendous amounts of juggling to get those more high powered combos.
Enemies come in a great variety, and hold their own quirky style that blends grotesque, demonic imagery with a humorous spin, such as the cherub looking monsters that ooze some foul fluid from their open wounds, while still managing to come off as cute little chibi monsters. Bosses provide some enormous original creations, mostly demonic baddies spliced with a level of creepy and grotesqueness that rivals even some of Konami's best bosses. The boss available in the demo made use of almost all of Dante's abilities, which helps to keep the combo-ing action fresh and entertaining, as well as providing a healthy challenge in the process. Utilizing sheer brute force, while still a viable option, will take much more skill and determination to ground and pound your way through, yet using Dante's new arsenal makes boss fights much more entertaining than repetitive use of tired sword and gun combos
Though DmC: Devil May Cry will definitely receive more grief because of Dante's design, after a little bit of time, you'll realize that it deosnt really metter what he looks like, as long as it's still Devil May Cry, and DmC hits that stride in full. Action is fast and creative, yet remains true to the series, visuals hold a unique style that combines more surreal and vibrant backgrounds, and enemies and bosses vary greatly and are a bunch of fun to thrash about. Look for DmC: Devil May Cry in the first couple of weeks of 2013.
