E3 2012: DmC Catches Our EyE - Preview
by Daniel Share-Strom , posted on 06 June 2012 / 2,963 Views
It’s a good thing that our demoer told us that they designed DmC: Devil May Cry for newcomers to the franchise, or I would have had no idea what was going on. Yes, I admit that I’ve never played a game in the franchise. After the demo I just checked out, however, that may all change.
For those who don’t know, DmC: Devil May Cry is a reboot of the popular demon-slaying beat-em-up franchise. In this world, the demons control the world’s finances, the police, and pretty much everything else. Luckily, Dante is back, and he’s ready to kill. In our behind-closed-doors demo, we were shown a mid-game level called The Devil’s Dalliance. It took place in a nightclub owned by a delightful woman named Lilith. A gruff guard outside told Dante he was not on the guest list. At this, Dante uppercut him in the face, knocking him out, then caught the clipboard and pen, wrote ‘F**k you,’ on it, and said, “I am now.”
You know, no big deal.
When gameplay began, Dante was wandering through the crowded nightclub when a demon shouted his name, attracting the attention of Lilith. After some banter, the nightclub was replaced with some odd technicolour shapes, and some goons assaulted Dante. As he hacked and slashed at them, he was able to toss them into the air and continue the combo. He could also use his whip to pull them toward him or vice versa. By attacking and building up a meter, Dante can enter Devil Trigger Mode, which launches enemies into the air and makes him heal faster and deal more damage. This psychedelic world full of monsters and techno music is called Limbo, and during his time there, Dante fought a wide variety of enemies in his pursuit of Lilith. She had challenged him to make it through several waves of enemies to earn the right to face her.
The game constantly tosses enemies that require new strategies into the mix to keep you on your toes. At one point, she summoned some flying, angel-like things and a big fat guy with a shield. The best way to take the fliers out was to shoot them, while the other guy necessitated getting in behind him and slapping him around. Certain ‘angelic’ and ‘demonic’ enemies required the use of Dante’s Osiris and Arbiter weapons, respectively, and encountering both enemy types at once made the action more frantic. Eventually, even the floor worked against him, turning either red or blue and forcing him to flip to Devil or Angel mode to avoid taking damage. One fight gave him 30 seconds to defeat all the enemies, while another unleashed a swarm of dog-monkey-things to claw at our hero. Eventually, a boss fight ensued with a pair of porcupine-lizard hybrids who worked together to kill Dante. When Dante killed one, the other got extremely angry. It stopped recoiling from attacks, lit itself on fire, and generally wasn’t a happy camper. Once he was put to bed, the demo was over.
Even though some of the cutscenes were clearly in an early state, Devil May Cry is certainly looking like a strong game. It looks to have some decent play value, too, as weapon upgrades can be carried over to another playthrough. I’m just looking forward to diving into my first slice of hell when the game launches on January 15th.
