DmC Devil May Cry: Definitive Edition Review (PS4)
NOTE: This review will have 80% same written contents like the the original DmC: Devil May Cry review for the PS3 version.
Story
This game is set in alternate universe of Devil May Cry, where there is a number of new terminology introduced in this game, such as angels, nephilim, and etc. Few original characters are altered in this game, such as their appearances and characteristics.
Dante is a nephilim, a hybrid of both angel and demon. His mother, Eva was killed by the demon king Mundus, and his father, Sparda is banished forever. A girl by the name of Kat met Dante, and wants to ask him to help the Order to save the mankind from the demons' influence. After Dante met the Order's leader and went back to his old house, only that he realised that Order's leader is his twin brother, Vergil. After realising that, they are working together to bring down Mundus for the sake of the humans.
The storyline is pretty good, with much more coherent storyline exposure and interesting new universe. In comparison to previous Devil May Cry games, this game has much more coherent storyline, albeit much more darker in tone.
The characters are likable, but can be different to other players' taste. Dante is not exactly likable at first, but I started to like him a bit more once I have finished the game. Kat and Vergil are pretty good characters as well, where Kat is a timid, but brave and smart human that can travels to Limbo, and Vergil is cool, calm, smart and mysterious leader of the Order. Other characters such as Phineas, Mundus and Lilith have interesting personality as well.
It is understandable that original Devil May Cry fans may not like the alternate versions of the original Devil May Cry series characters such as Dante, Vergil and Mundus. Fans should keep an open mind that this is an alternate universe, not a prequel or a sequel to the original series. I personally, accept that this Dante is a different person than the Dante that I admired in original series.
Gameplay
i) Definitive Edition Changes Section
Enjoy some new gameplay additions and changes.
This Definitive Edition has a lot of new gameplay additions, and some of it can be substantial enough to increase the gameplay experience rewarded to players. Below are some of the additions added to this Definitive Edition for current generation consoles.
1) Manual lock-on: You can now lock-on on enemies manually.
2) Hardcore Mode: Enemies will hit harder, faster Stylish Rank meter drop, altered Devil Trigger, and other changes.
3) Turbo Mode: Gameplay speed increases by 20%.
4) Vergil's Downfall: You can play as Vergil on his own scenario, with his own sets of difficulties like the main game.
5) Bloody Palace: Both Dante and Vergil can tackle Bloody Palace, fighting enemies wave by wave.
6) 1080p definition and 60 fps.
Personally, this game's Definitive Edition has a lot of substantial additions that make this game worth buying the second time. However, players who do not like the original release may not enjoy this updated release, considering this game has split a large rift among Devil May Cry fans before.
ii) Combat Section
This game is developed by Ninja Theory, thus some of the gameplay controls may be unfamiliar to you. Like the original DMC games, you can use your melee weapons and firearms to chain stylish combos to defeat your enemies. This time, you can dodge to any direction to avoid damage, and you may also dodge while airborne or on the ground as well. Dante has also access to a variety of weapons, such as a sword, scythe, axe, and many more. This game allows flexibility in combat, such as quickly switching to use your guns while airborne during an air combo.
Unlike previous Devil May Cry games, there is no lock-on button. Thus, you need to control your attacks carefully during combat. There is now a button that allows you to launch enemies easily, and another two buttons for you to dodge attacks. If you don't like the controls setup, you can always change it in the Options menu. Otherwise, there isn't much changes from the original DMC games' control setups.
This game has no Styles system like previous Devil May Cry games, but it features two different weapon modes for Dante, which are Angel mode and Demon mode. Angel mode allows Dante to use weapons that can achieve easy crowd control, allows him to attack multiple enemies at once. For example, Osiris allows Dante to hit multiple enemies around him at the same time. Demon mode allows Dante to use weapons to defeat enemies with overwhelming power, albeit slower and is harder to hit multiple enemies at the same time. For example, Arbiter allows Dante to break enemy's shields easily. During combat, it is advisable to keep switching between both modes to fight multiple enemies at the same time and to achieve high Stylish ranking. There are variety of enemies, such as some enemies are only vulnerable to Angel weapons, so it is best for you to master each weapons's specialty so that you can defeat the enemies easier. At some Missions, you need to fight bosses, where they use powerful attacks and require specific strategy to beat them.
The Stylish ranking functions similarly to previous Devil May Cry game's Stylish ranking, where it can be increased by using a variety of moves. Using the same moves over and over however will not increase the ranking. Keeping a high Stylish ranking will net you more Stylish points.
Dante also has access to a variety of moves for each different weapons, like using Arbiter's Trinity Smash to deal heavy damage against one enemy, or using Rebellion's Death Coil combo to hit multiple enemies. More powerful moves like Drive deals heavier damage, and allows you to get higher Stylish ranking easier. He can also pull enemies toward him or pull himself towards the enemy using Demon Pull and Angel Lift to create even more stylish combos.
Dante has also access to Devil Trigger, where it allows him to deal heavier damage against enemies, regenerates health, and higher defense. Executing Devil Trigger will cause regular enemies (except bosses) to be launched into the air, where you can execute merciless air combos. Executing air combos during Devil Trigger nets you more Stylish points. You can only use Devil Trigger if the Devil Trigger gauge is filled enough.
ii) Progression Section
The game's progression is pretty linear, where each Mission has pretty moderately sized areas so that you won't get lost easily. In many Missions, you need to complete a variety of platforming sections using your Angel and Demon powers. For example, you need to use Angel Lift to pull yourself towards a platform, or use the Demon Pull to pull out a platform so that you can proceed. There are few puzzles integrated in this game, but none are terribly difficult to be solved.
There are certain 'barriers' in this game that cannot be broken unless you are using the correct weapons. For example, Osiris and Aquila can be used to destroy blue barriers. Some barriers are mandatory to be broken before proceeding in the game, but many others are optional to do. You also need to fight in combat sections in the game as well, where you need to defeat all enemies before proceeding.
There are collectibles in the game for you to discover, such as freeing lost souls, obtaining keys and opening secret doors. Unlocking secret doors in a level will unlock Secret Missions, but to do that, you need the appropriate keys. For example a Copper Key can only open a Copper Door. Keys are interchangeable in Missions, where you can use a key from a different mission to unlock a secret door in another mission.
After completing a Mission, you will be ranked accordingly as to how much Stylish points you accumulated, how fast you completed the game, how much unlockables you have obtained, and other factors. If you obtain a high ranking, you will get higher bonus Upgrade Points. If you have obtained every unlockables in a Mission, completing it will grant you permanent highest ranking, which is SSS ranking.
iii) Upgrading Section
Upgrade Points are obtained by defeating enemies. It is somehow similar to Proud Souls feature from Devil May Cry 4, except that you can get the Upgrade Points on the spot, and can spend it for new upgrades during Missions. You may also get Upgrade Points after completing a Mission, and the higher the Mission ranking, the more Upgrade Points will be rewarded. You can use the Upgrade Points to buy new Moves for Dante, or to upgrade a move into a more powerful version.
Red Orbs return in this game, and you can use it to buy new items such as Vital Stars. Red Orbs can be obtained by defeating enemies and smashing breakable objects.
iv) Gameplay Conclusion
Overall, the gameplay is pretty good, with easy to learn controls, stylish combat, good usage of platforming sections, great variety of weapons, and no backtracking. Unfortunately, there is no lock-on button for players to use when attacking a specific enemy in a crowded area, and the camera can cause you to get lost in the midst of a combat. The gameplay controls takes time to get used to, since you need to constantly hold either the L2/R2 buttons to use either the Angel weapons or Demon weapons.
Boss battles are epic, but fairly repetitive in the sense that each phase in a boss fight is very similar to the previous phase once you have learned how to beat them. In a way, the boss battles are not as intense as the original Devil May Cry games boss combat, and I preferred fighting regular enemies in this game as opposed to the boss fights. Another thing is that the game has short completion time, roughly around 8 to 10 hours since each Mission in the game lasts less than 30 minutes. I managed to beat the game about 8 hours, but without collecting many of the collectibles. Fortunately, there are a number of side-activities for me to do in this game, such as completing Secret Missions and tackle harder difficulty modes.
Graphics
This Definitive Edition boasts 1080p definition as well as 60 fps, meaning the game's performance run smoother and look better. Character animations look really great, especially during gameplay stages. Likewise, this game's graphics is actually good from it's original release, and this Definitive Edition makes this game look even better. Ninja Theory did an impressive work on doing the Definitive Edition for this game.
Sound
The soundtrack is composed by Noisia and Combichrist. Noisia is in charge of most of the game's such as stage, events, and cutscenes background music, whereas Combichrist is in charge of the game's battle music. I am disappointed that none of the previous DMC games composers return for this reboot, but this game's soundtrack is appropriate to the reboot's style and atmosphere, and perhaps listenable for any aggrotech or electronic fans. I like quite a few songs from this game, mainly Combichrist's battle music and some of Noisia's instrumental music.
The voice acting is pretty good, where Ninja Theory hired the correct voice actors to voice each character perfectly. Thanks to a good dialogue by the writers, the voice acting fits greatly and does not sound too weird for players to hear during cutscenes.
Replay Value
This game has good replay value, due to the number of gameplay additions. If you want to challenge yourself, you may play the game in harder difficulty modes like Son of Sparda and Dante Must Die modes, where enemies are more tougher than usual. Or, you can attempt to complete any unlocked Secret Missions in this game for fun. Playing Vergil's Downfall will give your further insight on what happened to Vergil after the events of DmC, or you can opt to play Bloody Palace as either Dante or Vergil.
Conclusion
The most important thing that will come in the minds of Devil May Cry fans is the question of whether this is a good Devil May Cry game. In my opinion, it is definitely much better than Devil May Cry 2 and is ranked with the same place as Devil May Cry 4, but is lower ranked compared to Devil May Cry and Devil May Cry 3. It is hard to judge this game objectively, since it will most likely splits a rift between longtime DMC fans and new DmC fans.
As a Devil May Cry series fan, I find that this game is a good Devil May Cry game, but pales in comparison with Devil May Cry, Devil May Cry 3, and Devil May Cry 4 in terms of intense boss fights, gameplay controls, and music. As an action gamer and fan, I believe that this is a good hack and slash game with accessible gameplay, great combat, good storyline, great music, and can compete with other recent hack and slash games like Darksiders II.
By far, this Definitive Edition is worth buying because it has a number of additions where the original version of the game does not have, such as gameplay changes and addition of more gameplay modes. If you like the original DmC: Devil May Cry game and want to try something new, get this version. Otherwise, skip this game and get Devil May Cry 4: Special Ediiton for current generation consoles.
Score
Story: 9/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Graphics: 9/10
Sound: 8/10
Final Score: 8.5/10 or 34/40
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Impressive amount of gameplay additions.
- Improved and great graphics.
- Darker and more mature toned storyline.
- Good storyline.
- Nice art design for characters, monsters and environment.
- Likable characters.
- Fun and accessible combat.
- Variety of weapons to be used, such as scythe, shotgun, axe, and etc.
- Easy to learn game controls.
- Lots of stylish moves to be used.
- No backtracking.
- Good voice acting.
- Appropriate music by Combichrist and Noisia.
- Good number of unlockables.
- Good integration of platforming sections.
Cons
- Cliffhanger ending.
- Dante is not likable at first.
- Short completion time.
- Lack of challenging puzzles.
- Boss fights lack intensity and repetitive.
- Combat may feels too easy for DMC fans.
Story
Delve into an alternate universe of Devil May Cry.
Dante is a nephilim, a hybrid of both angel and demon. His mother, Eva was killed by the demon king Mundus, and his father, Sparda is banished forever. A girl by the name of Kat met Dante, and wants to ask him to help the Order to save the mankind from the demons' influence. After Dante met the Order's leader and went back to his old house, only that he realised that Order's leader is his twin brother, Vergil. After realising that, they are working together to bring down Mundus for the sake of the humans.
The storyline is pretty good, with much more coherent storyline exposure and interesting new universe. In comparison to previous Devil May Cry games, this game has much more coherent storyline, albeit much more darker in tone.
The characters are likable, but can be different to other players' taste. Dante is not exactly likable at first, but I started to like him a bit more once I have finished the game. Kat and Vergil are pretty good characters as well, where Kat is a timid, but brave and smart human that can travels to Limbo, and Vergil is cool, calm, smart and mysterious leader of the Order. Other characters such as Phineas, Mundus and Lilith have interesting personality as well.
It is understandable that original Devil May Cry fans may not like the alternate versions of the original Devil May Cry series characters such as Dante, Vergil and Mundus. Fans should keep an open mind that this is an alternate universe, not a prequel or a sequel to the original series. I personally, accept that this Dante is a different person than the Dante that I admired in original series.
Gameplay
i) Definitive Edition Changes Section
This Definitive Edition has a lot of new gameplay additions, and some of it can be substantial enough to increase the gameplay experience rewarded to players. Below are some of the additions added to this Definitive Edition for current generation consoles.
1) Manual lock-on: You can now lock-on on enemies manually.
2) Hardcore Mode: Enemies will hit harder, faster Stylish Rank meter drop, altered Devil Trigger, and other changes.
3) Turbo Mode: Gameplay speed increases by 20%.
4) Vergil's Downfall: You can play as Vergil on his own scenario, with his own sets of difficulties like the main game.
5) Bloody Palace: Both Dante and Vergil can tackle Bloody Palace, fighting enemies wave by wave.
6) 1080p definition and 60 fps.
Personally, this game's Definitive Edition has a lot of substantial additions that make this game worth buying the second time. However, players who do not like the original release may not enjoy this updated release, considering this game has split a large rift among Devil May Cry fans before.
ii) Combat Section
Stylish combat is back, with some new stuffs for you to play.
This game is developed by Ninja Theory, thus some of the gameplay controls may be unfamiliar to you. Like the original DMC games, you can use your melee weapons and firearms to chain stylish combos to defeat your enemies. This time, you can dodge to any direction to avoid damage, and you may also dodge while airborne or on the ground as well. Dante has also access to a variety of weapons, such as a sword, scythe, axe, and many more. This game allows flexibility in combat, such as quickly switching to use your guns while airborne during an air combo.
Unlike previous Devil May Cry games, there is no lock-on button. Thus, you need to control your attacks carefully during combat. There is now a button that allows you to launch enemies easily, and another two buttons for you to dodge attacks. If you don't like the controls setup, you can always change it in the Options menu. Otherwise, there isn't much changes from the original DMC games' control setups.
This game has no Styles system like previous Devil May Cry games, but it features two different weapon modes for Dante, which are Angel mode and Demon mode. Angel mode allows Dante to use weapons that can achieve easy crowd control, allows him to attack multiple enemies at once. For example, Osiris allows Dante to hit multiple enemies around him at the same time. Demon mode allows Dante to use weapons to defeat enemies with overwhelming power, albeit slower and is harder to hit multiple enemies at the same time. For example, Arbiter allows Dante to break enemy's shields easily. During combat, it is advisable to keep switching between both modes to fight multiple enemies at the same time and to achieve high Stylish ranking. There are variety of enemies, such as some enemies are only vulnerable to Angel weapons, so it is best for you to master each weapons's specialty so that you can defeat the enemies easier. At some Missions, you need to fight bosses, where they use powerful attacks and require specific strategy to beat them.
The Stylish ranking functions similarly to previous Devil May Cry game's Stylish ranking, where it can be increased by using a variety of moves. Using the same moves over and over however will not increase the ranking. Keeping a high Stylish ranking will net you more Stylish points.
Dante also has access to a variety of moves for each different weapons, like using Arbiter's Trinity Smash to deal heavy damage against one enemy, or using Rebellion's Death Coil combo to hit multiple enemies. More powerful moves like Drive deals heavier damage, and allows you to get higher Stylish ranking easier. He can also pull enemies toward him or pull himself towards the enemy using Demon Pull and Angel Lift to create even more stylish combos.
Dante has also access to Devil Trigger, where it allows him to deal heavier damage against enemies, regenerates health, and higher defense. Executing Devil Trigger will cause regular enemies (except bosses) to be launched into the air, where you can execute merciless air combos. Executing air combos during Devil Trigger nets you more Stylish points. You can only use Devil Trigger if the Devil Trigger gauge is filled enough.
ii) Progression Section
Defeat enemies, run, solve some puzzles, get past platforming sections, and finish the mission.
The game's progression is pretty linear, where each Mission has pretty moderately sized areas so that you won't get lost easily. In many Missions, you need to complete a variety of platforming sections using your Angel and Demon powers. For example, you need to use Angel Lift to pull yourself towards a platform, or use the Demon Pull to pull out a platform so that you can proceed. There are few puzzles integrated in this game, but none are terribly difficult to be solved.
There are certain 'barriers' in this game that cannot be broken unless you are using the correct weapons. For example, Osiris and Aquila can be used to destroy blue barriers. Some barriers are mandatory to be broken before proceeding in the game, but many others are optional to do. You also need to fight in combat sections in the game as well, where you need to defeat all enemies before proceeding.
There are collectibles in the game for you to discover, such as freeing lost souls, obtaining keys and opening secret doors. Unlocking secret doors in a level will unlock Secret Missions, but to do that, you need the appropriate keys. For example a Copper Key can only open a Copper Door. Keys are interchangeable in Missions, where you can use a key from a different mission to unlock a secret door in another mission.
After completing a Mission, you will be ranked accordingly as to how much Stylish points you accumulated, how fast you completed the game, how much unlockables you have obtained, and other factors. If you obtain a high ranking, you will get higher bonus Upgrade Points. If you have obtained every unlockables in a Mission, completing it will grant you permanent highest ranking, which is SSS ranking.
iii) Upgrading Section
Buy new moves for your weapons or new items.
Upgrade Points are obtained by defeating enemies. It is somehow similar to Proud Souls feature from Devil May Cry 4, except that you can get the Upgrade Points on the spot, and can spend it for new upgrades during Missions. You may also get Upgrade Points after completing a Mission, and the higher the Mission ranking, the more Upgrade Points will be rewarded. You can use the Upgrade Points to buy new Moves for Dante, or to upgrade a move into a more powerful version.
Red Orbs return in this game, and you can use it to buy new items such as Vital Stars. Red Orbs can be obtained by defeating enemies and smashing breakable objects.
iv) Gameplay Conclusion
Great and accessible gameplay.
Overall, the gameplay is pretty good, with easy to learn controls, stylish combat, good usage of platforming sections, great variety of weapons, and no backtracking. Unfortunately, there is no lock-on button for players to use when attacking a specific enemy in a crowded area, and the camera can cause you to get lost in the midst of a combat. The gameplay controls takes time to get used to, since you need to constantly hold either the L2/R2 buttons to use either the Angel weapons or Demon weapons.
Boss battles are epic, but fairly repetitive in the sense that each phase in a boss fight is very similar to the previous phase once you have learned how to beat them. In a way, the boss battles are not as intense as the original Devil May Cry games boss combat, and I preferred fighting regular enemies in this game as opposed to the boss fights. Another thing is that the game has short completion time, roughly around 8 to 10 hours since each Mission in the game lasts less than 30 minutes. I managed to beat the game about 8 hours, but without collecting many of the collectibles. Fortunately, there are a number of side-activities for me to do in this game, such as completing Secret Missions and tackle harder difficulty modes.
Graphics
Impressive graphical update.
This Definitive Edition boasts 1080p definition as well as 60 fps, meaning the game's performance run smoother and look better. Character animations look really great, especially during gameplay stages. Likewise, this game's graphics is actually good from it's original release, and this Definitive Edition makes this game look even better. Ninja Theory did an impressive work on doing the Definitive Edition for this game.
Sound
Good voice acting and appropriately listenable soundtrack by Combichrist and Noisia.
The soundtrack is composed by Noisia and Combichrist. Noisia is in charge of most of the game's such as stage, events, and cutscenes background music, whereas Combichrist is in charge of the game's battle music. I am disappointed that none of the previous DMC games composers return for this reboot, but this game's soundtrack is appropriate to the reboot's style and atmosphere, and perhaps listenable for any aggrotech or electronic fans. I like quite a few songs from this game, mainly Combichrist's battle music and some of Noisia's instrumental music.
The voice acting is pretty good, where Ninja Theory hired the correct voice actors to voice each character perfectly. Thanks to a good dialogue by the writers, the voice acting fits greatly and does not sound too weird for players to hear during cutscenes.
Replay Value
Good replay value, unless you want to play harder difficulty modes and complete Secret Missions.
This game has good replay value, due to the number of gameplay additions. If you want to challenge yourself, you may play the game in harder difficulty modes like Son of Sparda and Dante Must Die modes, where enemies are more tougher than usual. Or, you can attempt to complete any unlocked Secret Missions in this game for fun. Playing Vergil's Downfall will give your further insight on what happened to Vergil after the events of DmC, or you can opt to play Bloody Palace as either Dante or Vergil.
Conclusion
An excellent Definitive Edition of a good action game.
The most important thing that will come in the minds of Devil May Cry fans is the question of whether this is a good Devil May Cry game. In my opinion, it is definitely much better than Devil May Cry 2 and is ranked with the same place as Devil May Cry 4, but is lower ranked compared to Devil May Cry and Devil May Cry 3. It is hard to judge this game objectively, since it will most likely splits a rift between longtime DMC fans and new DmC fans.
As a Devil May Cry series fan, I find that this game is a good Devil May Cry game, but pales in comparison with Devil May Cry, Devil May Cry 3, and Devil May Cry 4 in terms of intense boss fights, gameplay controls, and music. As an action gamer and fan, I believe that this is a good hack and slash game with accessible gameplay, great combat, good storyline, great music, and can compete with other recent hack and slash games like Darksiders II.
By far, this Definitive Edition is worth buying because it has a number of additions where the original version of the game does not have, such as gameplay changes and addition of more gameplay modes. If you like the original DmC: Devil May Cry game and want to try something new, get this version. Otherwise, skip this game and get Devil May Cry 4: Special Ediiton for current generation consoles.
Score
Story: 9/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Graphics: 9/10
Sound: 8/10
Final Score: 8.5/10 or 34/40
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Impressive amount of gameplay additions.
- Improved and great graphics.
- Darker and more mature toned storyline.
- Good storyline.
- Nice art design for characters, monsters and environment.
- Likable characters.
- Fun and accessible combat.
- Variety of weapons to be used, such as scythe, shotgun, axe, and etc.
- Easy to learn game controls.
- Lots of stylish moves to be used.
- No backtracking.
- Good voice acting.
- Appropriate music by Combichrist and Noisia.
- Good number of unlockables.
- Good integration of platforming sections.
Cons
- Cliffhanger ending.
- Dante is not likable at first.
- Short completion time.
- Lack of challenging puzzles.
- Boss fights lack intensity and repetitive.
- Combat may feels too easy for DMC fans.
- Some minor gameplay control issues for Angel and Demon weapon modes.
- Unattractive comic book cutscenes from Vergil's Downfall.
- Unattractive comic book cutscenes from Vergil's Downfall.
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